Soup's On!

The weather is chilly
with a forecast of snow,
so let's make some soup,
and the "courses" we'll forgo.
We'll make a few appetizers
and have food for the kids,
so we're hoping you'll bring soup,
whatever flavor you wish!
Just let us all know
what kind you will make
it can even be a dessert soup
in place of a cake. :)
(I'll make a soup too
and have bread for us all,)
there should be plenty of food
and we can't wait to see y'all!

Hot Dog Mac n' Cheese - Trammell Family

Soups

Baked Potato Soup - Miranda Family

Brunswick Stew - Willis Family

Chili - Burnette Family

Trammell Family

Strawberry Soup with Pound Cake Croutons - Nama Family

Supper Club - Southern Comfort Style

It's time for the next meeting of the 5 Families & a crumber, so bring your best southern dishes that make you feel warm & toasty all over. We'll start with happy hour(s) and appetizers, then serve chicken & dumplings for all ages. So, as Paula Deen would say, bring your best dishes y'all!

Appetizers

Trammell Family

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts - Nama Family


Main Dish

Chicken & Dumplings - Burnette Family

Sides

Fried Grit Cakes - Nama Family

Trammell Family

Miranda Family

Dessert

Pecan Pie - Willis Family

The 4th Meeting is Coming!

Well I have been testing out some new software at school, so I used it to make a quick "commercial" for our upcoming meeting.

Check it out!

It's Derby Day

Our 3rd meeting of the year was hosted by the Trammells and the Kentucky Derby brought us our theme.

Beer-a-palooza

As a follow-up to the wine tasting in January, this supper club will centered around a beer tasting. We'll started with a CAB (Crappy American Beer) blind taste test to see who could guess the brewer and label. For everyone's benefit, the CAB was not Natural Light as that would give Bernie an unfair advantage. Then, we'll tried a true pilsner that most of the mass produced American beers were based on. From there, we sampled several styles including the darker lagers, pale ales, porters and stouts. We also had a homebrew sample from what a few consider to be one of the more adequate brewers in select parts of the 30360 zip code.

As for food, Shepherd's pie was the main course. BBQ chicken pizza was our appetizer. We also had salad, rice krispy treats, and a fabulous cake!

1st Meeting of 2009 at the Willis Family Estate

2009 got off to a rousing start with our meeting at the Willis Family Estate. Heath dazzled us all with his knowledge of wines as we had a private tasting of no less than 10 different wines. Throw in the blind tastings and fabulous food, it was a night of great fun for all. Of course the children loved gathering in the playroom and even performed a brief concert for any of the adults brave enough to venture in to the concert hall...

Here are some of the tasting notes from the wines and recipes from the evening's festivities.

Mark West California Pinot Noir 2006
Pinot pairs well with Brie.
Winemaker's notes:
Enticing aromas of juicy cherry, fleshy plum, strawberry tart and orange marmalade, with barrel notes of vanilla, cedar, brown sugar and spice. Oak aging rounds out the palate and gives the wine its body. Lush weighty fruit on the palate, tasting of raspberry preserves. The finish is fresh, bright and lingers of ripe red berry flavors.

Cline Ancient Vines Zinfandel 2005
Zinfandel pairs well with Cheddar.
Winemaker's notes:
The 2005 Ancient Vines Zinfandel shows wonderful dusty raspberry, blackberry, white pepper and spice, with coffee and chocolate characters. Aging in new and used wood has lent this wine a subtle vanilla quality that nicely complements the explosive fruit notes. Enjoy now or cellar for 5 to 7 years.

337 Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
Brie and mild Cheddar pair well with Cabernet.
Tasting Notes:
The 2006 337 Cabernet Sauvignon exhibits enticing aromas of mocha, dark cherry, and spice, with a floral top note of rose and violet. Silky tannins wrap themselves around a core of blackberry fruit, interlaced with cola and cedar.

Groth Sauvignon Blanc 2006
Gruyere and strong cheddar pair well with Sauvignon Blanc.
Blend: 96% Sauvignon Blanc, 4% Semillon
Winemaker's notes:
Groth 2006 Sauvignon Blanc was produced from grapes grown in various microclimates of the Napa Valley. The warmer Napa Valley microclimates provided grapes that resulted in a wine with a lush, full melon/citrus character in the aroma and in the flavor. The cooler Napa Valley fruit provided a solid, crisp backbone that gives the wine an exciting liveliness that balances the rich creaminess from "surlie" aging.

Stephen Vincent 2006 Chardonnay
Mozzerella and Gruyere pair well with Chardonnay.
Winemaker’s notes:
The malo-lactic fermentation gives the wine a buttery flavor and Stainless steel fermentation captures the essence of the Chardonnay fruit.
Winemaker tasting notes: food friendly, has buttery chardonnay overtones with, melon, fig and tropical flavors. Stylistically, it’s a fruit driven Chardonnay that is rich and delicious to drink.

Firehose 2006 Gewürztraminer
Swiss pair well with Gewurzstraminer.
Winemaker’s notes:
This was created to complement spicy meals, with a palate that is bold and fruity. Customers are becoming more adventurous, trying new varietals, and are attracted to eye-catching packaging. Firehose Gewürztraminer delivers delicious wine, great price, bold packaging, and interesting varietals.

Recipes

Appetizers

Meat & cheese spread - Nama Family
Salami, cheese, apple slices, bread

Bruschetta - Willis Family

Salad

Maggiano's Salad - Trammell Family

Main Dish

Penne with Creamy Vodka Sauce - Willis Family
Serves:4
Ingredients:
5 1/2 cups Italian Sauce
1/4 cup vodka
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pkg. (16 ounces) medium tube-shaped pasta (penne), cooked and drained

Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:Heat the sauce, vodka, basil and pepper in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream.
Put the pasta in a large serving bowl. Pour the sauce mixture over the pasta. Toss to coat.

Sprinkle with the cheese.

Kid-Friendly Dish

Mac n Cheese - Miranda Family

Desert

Blueberry Bundt Cake - Burnette Family

5th Meeting of 2008

For our fifth meeting, we gathered at the Willis home down on the south side. UGA vs. LSU was the big game of the weekend (at least for most of us), so a Cajun theme was chosen for the event. While there, we dined on food ranging from muffulettas to fried gator! With the game being pretty much a blowout, the cornhole boards were put to good use. I even found out that I throw much better with a laughing baby in my arms!! Who'd a thunk it?

As the evening wound down, we tried to decide about the date and location of the year's final meeting. We have tentatively set December 13 as the date with either Kyma or Maggiano's as our location. The children will sit this final event out as the adults (at least in years of age) hit the town.

Here are the dishes we enjoyed this time:

Appetizers:

Muffuletta

Fried Gator Tail

Main dish:

Jambalaya

Sides:

Salad

Kid's Main:

Mummy Dogs

Dessert:

Creme Brulee Cupcakes

http://howtoeatacupcake.net/2008/03/creme-brulee-cupcakes.html

Cupcake recipe from Cupcakes Galore by Gail Wagman.
Frosting recipe from Everyday Baking from Everyday Food.

Crème Brûlée Cupcakes
Makes about 24 cupcakes (the book said 16; I got 23)

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt, plus a pinch for the egg whites
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons caramel syrup (ice cream topping)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt together and set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Alternately beat in dry ingredients and milk. Add caramel syrup and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
4. Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff but not dry. Gently fold whites into batter.
5. Spoon batter into cupcake papers, filling cups about 2/3 full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool.

BROWN SUGAR SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM
1 cup light brown sugar
4 egg whites
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Put sugar, egg whites and salt into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees). Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff (but not dry) peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 7 minutes total. Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low, add butter two tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to medium-high; continue beating until frosting appears thick, about 3 minutes. Add in powdered sugar and reduce speed to low and continue beating for about 1 minute to reduce air bubbles.