And, We all got Leid...

Last night, Alex and I took our ingredients and came up with a tropical themed meal. Not only did our guests get leid, they were also served a DE-LISH meal.

• Cooking Couple: Alex & Josh
• Ingredients: Soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Coconut, and Red Vines
• Special Guest Judges: Anne P and Katie L

Drinks

For our drink, we planned to make Strawberry Daiquiris and Pina Coladas, BUT, thanks to Alex's quick thinking, we improvised and combined the two to make Miami Vices. Excellent decision, for sure!

Miami Vice Recipe
Ingredients:

• Ice
• Rum (Bacardi Silver)
• Strawberry Daiquri Mix (Master of Mixes brand)
• Pina Colada Mix (Master of Mixes brand)

Mix both mixes separately in blender, then just combined both into your favorite glass. We topped ours off with a splash of more rum. :)


The group waiting patiently as Alex prepares the Miami Vices


Miami Vice with crazy straws 

Entree

For our entree, we made my Hawaiian grilled chicken with steamed white rice topped with Nori, and macaroni salad. I make this grilled chicken every now and then and when I do, people love it. Therefore, I choose not to share the recipe....yet. Maybe with some begging and pleading, I might upload it later. But, I like having this as a secret as for now. However, I will share some of the ingredients with you guys, so you can kinda get an idea. Also, for those of you who don't know what Nori is, it's basically dried seaweed, like that found on the outside of sushi. Oh, and we also used my special sauce from the chicken on top of the rice.


Josh's Hawaiian Grilled Chicken w/Steamed Rice topped with Nori, and Macaroni salad

Josh's Hawaiian Grilled Chicken
Ingredients:

• Boneless Chicken Thighs
• Ginger
• Soy Sauce
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Sugar
• A few other things..... :)

White Rice

Basically, any white rice will work, we used Calrose medium grain. Just follow the instructions on the back of the bag. If you have a steam/rice cooker, then even better. :) As for the Nori, you can find that any Asian food market. Just crumbled the strips up in a ziplock bag and sprinkle on top rice.

Macaroni Salad

Ingredients:

• Elbow Macaroni
• Carrots (1 large, grated)
• Celery (2 Stalks, diced)
• Green Onion (3 stalks, diced)
• Best Foods Mayo (We used Canola Oil flavor)
• Garlic Salt
• Pepper

Boil Elbow Mac (Amount depending on how much you want to make). Drain and let cool (not too long so the noodles don't stick together). Add carrots, celery, and green onion. Add mayo (Amount based on liking). Top off with some garlic salt and pepper. Let sit in fridge for an hour or so.

Dessert

For dessert, Alex made Funfetti Red Vine Cupcakes topped with a Coconut Cream Cheese frosting. He also used some of the remaining Red Vines to make the initials of our guests/blog and then placed them atop a few of the cupcakes.


Funfetti Red Vine Cupcakes w/Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting




Funfetti Red Vine Cupcakes Recipe
We just used a box of Pillsbury Funfetti cake mix, added a few diced up Red Vines, and followed the instructions on the back of the box. Ta-da! :) As for the coconut cream cheese frosting, that recipe will be uploaded once I get it from Alex.

Afterthoughts 

Not only did we get "lucky" and enjoy a great meal, but we also celebrated my dog's 2nd birthday. I personally want to thank all of my friends for bringing him gifts/treats, it wasn't necessary but it was a pleasant surprise and Keoki did not mind at all! :)


Keoki got lucky too :)


Checking out all his gifts/treats

As you can see, it was another fun night. Next week, Ryan and Kristin have some interesting ingredients to work with. We can't wait to see what they have planned!