This pastSaturday was the Colorado State Cyclocross 2010 Championship race and that happened near the end of the race. Ellie had prepped for it, gotten a good start, but then crashed in the second (of three) laps. It broke her shifter and locked up her front wheel. She had to walk back to the start of the course with her bike on her back. It was a long, slow and most likely lonely mile or so back to where the cheering crowds were. She ended up with a DNF (Did Not Finish) and earned no points. She was bummed, but handled it with grace.
We had the most delightful dinner with some friends last night. I thought we were going over to have a simple meal and decorate the great wooden snowflakes that Wendy and I recently purchased. When we arrived, we found that it was something much more in-depth and exciting.
Wendy set two lovely tables, each with their own theme. She wanted to honor the kids and the adults alike.
Inspired by Ethan's recent hunting trip, David made a few recipes from The Sacajawea Cookbook by T. Evenson, L Lesmeiste and T Everson. We started out with a lot of chatting and soon began eating. David made a mushroom pate' that Ellie really enjoyed. (I have included the recipe for that one below.) David also made a great salad with an oil and vinegar dressing. This was pared with the wine we brought to the party. Next up was a Venison stew (that actually had buffalo meat since they could not find venison in the store) that everyone loved. We were really touched that they went out of their way to try new recipes and honor Ethan's recent new adventures.
The kids seemed to have conversations that were just as animated as the one at the adult table. Ethan handled the needs and interests of three very different girls with ease and grace. What a boy. :)
Part way into the main meal David upcorked an old and wonderful wine. It was much smoother than most of the wines I have had. He had Wendy pull out the decanter and a flashlight so that we could see what he was doing. He swirled the wine until it was well aerated.
We finished up the lovely meal with chocolate fondue. You had your choice of strawberries, green apples, bananas or pund cake for dipping. ait was luscious. Most of us ended up wearing some it.
During all of the chatting we did at least look at and admire the basecoat painting of their snowflakes. I was inspired and began to rethink my plan. Laura had each one painted a different shade of blue. Wendy had been inspired by nature. She had many colors including a nice, dark teal blue and an intensely purple one. Caroline made my favorite ones. With her usual child infues enthusiasm and carefree attitude, she let colors mix and mingle. She made one that look a bit like tye-dye and another looked like it was made of heavy water coloring paper. (I wish I had taken photos of them to share.) I think they are wonderful just the way they are. Mine are all white. I may have to rethink my plan.
Hazelnut Mushroom Pate'
2TBL Butter
2 Cloves of Garlic, roasted and minced
1 1/2 cup Fresh Mushrooms, diced
1 small Onion, diced
1 cup Hazel nuts, chopped
1 TBL Basil Pesto
1 TBL Soy Sauce
1TB Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper (To taste)
2 TBL Cream Cheese (softened)
Melt that butter and saute' the garlic, mushrooms and onions until the onion is translucent, but not browned. Transfer this to a food processor. Add in the hazel nuts, basil pesto, soy sauce, lemon juice and seasonings (to taste). Process until smooth. Add in the cream cheese and pulse until just incorporated. Serve with cracker or bagel chips.
Makes 2 cups
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