The kids came home. I cooked a bunch of stuff...and have a ton of pics

SciAggie

My two kids came home for the weekend. Their plan was to go fishing and enjoy the beautiful spring weather we - were - having. No one expected chill factors in the low 20’s Saturday morning. Jeez, but then, it IS Texas after all. Someone says, “There’s no way it can be in the 90’s one day, then chill factors in the 20’s the next day, then sunny and 80’s the next day.” Texas says, “Hold my beer.”

We still fished and we still feasted.

They got in late on Friday so I cooked some skirt steak on the large seasoned with MeatChurch Holy Cow. I really like this rub on beef that gets cooked hot and fast. We made some tacos and called it good. Onions and peppers were cooked in the wok on the MM.


Saturday morning the kids bundled up and went fishing. I started get stuff ready for an extended tapas party that night. 

While they fished and warmed by the fire, I baked a loaf of sourdough that was cold proofing in the refrigerator.

They rolled in late afternoon and cleaned their fish, then cleaned themselves up. About 7:00 we started cooking, eating, and drinking. I told them the goal was to eat until they were full, then push through and eat until they were miserable. 
I had the kitchen ready for a great evening. 

We started with a cheese and charcuterie board. I only served one meat - but - it was jamon serrano, so they forgave me. Cheeses were smoked Gouda, chipotle Gouda, and Fontina. I also put out some assorted olives and picked garlic. 

The next round was bacon wrapped dates stuffed with pistachio nuts. 


After these we cooked some oysters. These were seasoned with compound butter made with DP Game On rub, smoked Gouda, Chives, and a splash of hot sauce. 

After that I toasted some of that sourdough bread over a few coals I robbed from the wood oven. 

These were served with a few chives, some fleur de sel, and some nice balsamic vinegar. (I’ve used this pic before. The ones I took of the bread were not good. Sorry)

Next I made a round of empanadas. I had made the chicken, green chili, and cream cheese filling along with the dough earlier in the day. I formed the empanadas while the kids cleaned up, so all I had to do was throw ‘em in the oven when we were ready to eat. 

Then we had more oysters.

Then we had some polenta rounds topped with a sun dried tomato sauce and a sauted shrimp. (I had trouble getting a good pic)

Then we had some blistered shishito peppers with a bit of salt and some homemade Chuy’s creamy jalapeno dip.

Then we had more oysters... We finished off three bottles of wine and a few Shiners. We started at 7:00 and we called it a night at around 12:30. Folks, this is a great way to spend an evening with family. I’ve learned the secret is to make just a very few of each appetizer. Don’t fill up on anything. Then cook something else. Everything I made was simple to cook and cooked fairly quickly.  This night took planning but the cooking was easy. There was plenty of time to talk, and drink, and tell stories. I’ve decided this is definitely one of my preferred ways of cooking for family and close friends. Right next to paella...
The kids told me I had to include this shot of me by the oven...

If you made it this far, thanks for looking. I hope your weekend was as blessed as mine was. 

DMW

OK, after this, I'm selling all my gear and just go back to making PBnJ sammiches.

Seriously, that's an amazing production right there. Be proud.

SciAggie

DMW said:

OK, after this, I'm selling all my gear and just go back to making PBnJ sammiches.

Seriously, that's an amazing production right there. Be proud.

Thanks. It was a great night and everything worked as planned - except for the weather

WeberWho

PLEASE!!!!!! ADOPT!!!!!!! ME!!!!!!!!

I'd use words but I don't think there are any after seeing this post. I'll just go and mop up my drool...

SciAggie

@WeberWho Thanks. It was a memorable evening for sure. 

pgprescott

Enjoy the spoils of your labor. The cooking and the great kids. 

blasting

Wow.  I'd have been patting myself on the back if I did any single part of that feast.  I'm blown away.

bgebrent

Incredible.  I'm up for adoption as of now.

caliking

Is there a "speechless" emoji on this forum ???

Gary, you've posted some great cooks, but  I really think this is my favorite. For so many reasons. 

Absolutely... Fabulous! And I do mean that.  

20stone

Outstanding cook!

Theophan

Man, you live in a different WORLD than I do, and it is so COOL!!!!  AMAZING!

Navymom

Outstanding as usual. I'm sending my son to your house to fish and eat next time he comes home.

JohnInCarolina

JohnnyTarheel

Wow... Wow....  you are my hero... I’m not pissed at you anymore.... I have seen the light... I can be adopted...... Great job and awesome family time... That’s what it’s all about!!!

kl8ton

U
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B
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V
A
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bluebird66

I believe they ate very well!

FarmingPhD

This was awesome on so many levels.  The memories you are making with your kids in my opinion is even better than the food.  From experiences in my life, moments like this with my dad (farming however and not cooking), make me want to create similar experiences and memories with my kids.  Congrats on a beautiful cook and family.

Killit_and_Grillit

I got tired just looking at this...you did life well over the weekend. 

That shot of the fish and the fire is great. 

northGAcock

There is no way in hell that I show this to either of my kids. They both think they get something special on the food front when they come home. What a disappointment I would be compared to this. 

Shamin in SC.

Canugghead

Should have visited you instead of Barcelona couple of years ago!  I'm hiding this post from my kids 

lousubcap

As with all above, that is an unbelievable day/event/banquet right there.  The menu is stand alone 4 star.  You have set the bar so high for your family, never mind us pedestrians who are seeing this.
Pics are magazine quality as well.  What a skill-set.  

smbishop

So good, I always enjoy your posts, thank you for sharing!

SciAggie

Y'all - I don't know how to respond to so many kind remarks - except to say thank you. This cook was truly a lot of fun and not that hard to execute. As I said above there was a fair bit of planning ahead, but even the prep work wasn't difficult. I've worked a lot harder trying to get three things off the stove and out of the oven at the same time in the house.

The fun part of an evening like this is you cook one thing at a time. When it's ready, you eat. If it's not ready yet, you drink and talk. Then you repeat that process until you can't take any more and tap out. 

KiterTodd

Beautiful bass! 

Nice pics.  You know how to do it.

YukonRon

I have been to the mountain top, and there was @SciAggie draped in his golden robe offering blessings to the mere mortals of the BGE community.

There are chefs, and then there are immortals.

This guy.

Great cooks sir, expected fabulous food, and this went beyond expectations. Again.

thetrim

Awesome.  Jamon Serrano is amazing but it falls to about #20 in your roll out of treats this weekend.

FHawk

I give up.

SciAggie

thetrim said:

Awesome.  Jamon Serrano is amazing but it falls to about #20 in your roll out of treats this weekend.

That stuff is really tasty. Of course I buy this little package that's "just" 4 ounces of ham. My son gives me this look that says, "is this it?" When I explain that you just eat a bit at a time and savor it, he still wasn't impressed. After eating a bit though he is now a confirmed fan. I'd love to have the opportunity to enjoy some of that carved right from the ham. Someday...

SciAggie

YukonRon said:

I have been to the mountain top, and there was @SciAggie draped in his golden robe offering blessings to the mere mortals of the BGE community.

There are chefs, and then there are immortals.

This guy.

Great cooks sir, expected fabulous food, and this went beyond expectations. Again.

I assure you my friend I am quite mortal. My wife does a good job of making sure I know that. There are no golden robes or glittering trophies anywhere. What is true is that I have learned so much from this wonderful community that shares their knowledge so readily. I would name names, but there are just too many. I steal ideas remorselessly from you all. I loved to cook before I got here, and this community has helped me grow and learn as a cook.
At some point maybe some of y'all will wander through this region of Texas. If you do, stop by and we'll eat and drink together. In any case, thanks for the kind words. 

SciAggie

FHawk said:

I give up.

lol. I learned to cook all this stuff from the folks on this site.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

...and next I made a round empenadas. Of course you did.

This is next level stuff right here. So great.