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John and Maritza (from next door) and Dennis (from across the street) saved the day with their contributions of umbrellas and effort to help us get things covered up in case of continued rain. Thanks!
Many thanks go to Johnnie Perkins, the Hotluck Photographer
Another successful fire in the belly. It is hard to say what was the hottest thing this year. It seemed that Mark's Demon Rum had mellowed (after 4 years), and it saw fierce competition from Johnnie's creative Fire Grapes. As usual, Art brought excellent enchiladas, this time in three heat levels (and some burned people claimed that the labels may have been swapped). Michelle's Babaganoush was intended to be hot, but it just seemed to soak up the heat. Scott presented Tarte Tatin with habanero and wine-stewed pears. Roswitha made a beautiful berry and habanero sorbet, using just hab juice via the juicer. Jon made interesting smoothies, and he eventually cranked up the heat.
The other dishes were excellent, as always, even if not very hot. Diana made excellent Thai wraps, and Scott smoked the usual animal flesh (ribs and brisket). Monika's Tiramisu was dusted with chile powder. Eileen concocted a hot version of Shepherd's Pie. The MacNaughtons used O's heritage to make a fine rice with spicy fish sauce. The Hall's Apple Pie was spiked. And it goes on! With over 100 people, it was hard to keep up with all of the fine dishes. There was lots of "Try this!" and "Be careful with this one!" and "Here, let me see you eat that." Since a fair number of the guests are wimps, we asked each cook to label their dish with the appropriate flag (see pictures below), and write what it was.
As in years past, Mark and Diana Snitily brought baby chile seedlings for people to adopt. This year, they grew red and yellow rocotos - we can't wait to see all the peppers next year. Thanks, folks.
For the first time, we were doing a live webcast, although some visitors to the website had problems getting in. We were showing pictures from our recent trip to the South Pacific, albeit without narration. Several people kind of got stuck in front of the screen. The rain did not come back until after the last guests had left (probably since we sacrificed an umbrella), but since we bunched the tables under the umbrellas, it made for cozy discussion.
Besides appreciation to all who came and brought outstanding food, drink, and craziness, we'd like to thank Jim Campbell of the Mild to Wild Pepper & Herb Company for sending sauces and powders, and Ron Levi and Joe Cloutier of Bucky Goldstein's Fiery Foods, who brought sauces and spicy chocolate-covered almonds. Oh, and also to Tara Deen of Sydney, who gave us lovely sauces and powders when we visited last month.
Finally, in a totally new development, we were left with absolutely no orphan dishes!
The Food:
The Guests:
