DInner For 10

Really, it is just the simplest things that bring me the absolute most pleasure.  Cooking for my family and their friends certainly ranks right up there as one of my all time FAVORITE things.

Last night I cooked dinner for 3 of my children, 3 of their friends, one of my brothers and his daughter and my husband and I.  It was a wonderful night.  I was lucky enough to come home from work after half a day and the festivities began.  I had been to the grocery store at 7:00 that morning before I even went into work, so all I had to do was come home and get cooking. 

The menu would consist of Grilled Chicken Breasts with a Mango Salsa, Mac and Cheese with 3 different cheeses, Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Vinegar, Olive Oil and Garlic, a huge pot of Spicy Beans, rolls and for dessert Peach Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce and Chocolate Cream Pie.  My only fear was not having enough food to feed 7 teenagers and 3 adults.  Four of those teenagers were college students who have not had a home cooked meal in a month and have been surviving off of college food.  Needless to say, they were pretty excited about coming here to eat. 

As soon as I walked in the door, I put the beans on to start cooking since they were going to take about 4 hours to cook.  Within 30 minutes, the house was already starting to smell amazing.  This recipe, as well as the Mac and Cheese and Peach Crisp recipe, came from here http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/category/all-pw-recipes/.


Rinsing the beans before they cook.



Nothing like a Ham Hock to season things up.



Using peppers and onions from the garden and some garlic is what made these beans so delicious.  Red peppers and jalapeno peppers both were used.   After about two hours of cooking, the house smelled AMAZING.  In fact, the first thing Reed said when he and his friends walked into the house was how wonderful the house smelled inside.  Can I just say, nothing makes this mama happier and smile bigger than for one of my kids to say how great they think something I cook for them smells or taste:)


Wish this was a scratch and sniff picture.

The mango salsa was the next thing to take on as it required alot of chopping since I had 6 mangoes, 3 red peppers, 6 jalapeno peppers and one giant red onion to chop.  Add to that the juice of 6 limes and 3 lemons and you have yourself one very tasty Mango Salsa.

So yummy on top of grilled chicken or fish tacos!!!!

 This went into the fridge so that it could be nice and cool to add to the grilled herbed chicken.  I first tried this recipe a few weeks back when I made Fish Tacos.  My hubby loved it so much that I decided to make it again and have it as an option to top the chicken with.  Everyone loved it once again.

Next I made the Chocolate Cream Pie as I wanted to make sure it would have time to set up in the fridge before it was time for dessert.  I used an Oreo Cookie crust for this rather than a regular pie crust.  Just seemed like a really great idea to add more chocolate wherever possible.  I put a layer of the chocolate filling on the top of the crust, then added whipped cream to the rest of the chocolate filling, then topped that with more whipped cream.  I grated semi sweet chocolate on top and the drizzled caramel sauce on top for a final touch.  Needless to say, there is no pie left this morning.



Chocolate filling mixed with whipped cream.


















Final touches on the pie.

 I had full intentions to keep on taking pictures of the night and all the rest of the food once it was done, but somehow once everyone started showing up, I lost track of my camera.  Everyone was very happy with the meal, the kids just kept eating and eating and still managed to save room for dessert.  After Reed and his friends finished eating, they actually washed all their dishes by hand:)  That was a huge treat for me.  And best of all, they asked if they could come back on Sunday and eat again.   Needless to say I didn't hesitate for a second to say YES!!!!!  Reed and his friends left and headed on up the highway to go to Va. Tech to spend the weekend with some friends.  They will be hitting my house on the return trip to George Mason on Sunday afternoon.  Oh and one more great compliment I recieved, Reed's friend and her boyfriend decided that our house should be the scent of a Yankee Candle, how cool is that? 

I don't know about you, but there is just something about a table full of family and friends, talking, laughing and sharing stories and food that just makes my heart swell with joy.  Sitting back and watching everyone enjoy being together and eating the food that I prepared with nothing but love, is just a really hard feeling to beat.  I feel so blessed when I am given the opportunity to do this. 



My niece, Meredith, and I in the kitchen once everything was cleaned up.



Sitting next to the woodstove which would have been even nicer if there had been a fire in it.