Cooking Club 4.0

We almost gave up. Almost. Ben and R. J. talked about scrapping CC 4.0 in favor of going out to a gourmet dinner. Trader's Point Creamery was discussed. Luckily, a IM chat conference changed all that around 4:15 pm (aka Martha made an Excel spreadsheet grocery list. . .even more anal than R. J.?). In Cooking Club, we call that: lucky.

Date: Friday, August 22, 2008

Attendance: Founding Members + Bridget (aka 'the frymaster')

Where: Ben's new place

Cost: $$

Photographic Proof here
Menu: the menu was all but abandoned. But Martha (aka Aunt Martha) came through...
Jalapeno Wonton Poppers
Filet of Pork with Apple-Rosemary Vinaigrette (and also Sea Bass - same sauce)
Basil-Corn Pudding
Molten Lava Cakes (Michael and I did it in 25 minutes)

A few notes:
- CC bylaws were finalized tonight
- Cooking Club 4.0 was all about getting back to basics. After 3.0, we just couldn't risk it.
- Mary Kay broke the decanter. It was $25.00. See? See??
- No measuring cups? No measuing spoons? No problem.
- Lots of extra Chili dipping sauce. "That's lots of sauce."
- The wine lady's favorite? Not our favorite.
- Ben, in spite of recently moving in, got a B+ on the kitchen audit
- White towels over shoulders = Founding or Associate Member

Key Learnings:
- Basics doesn't mean boring.
- (First Name:) "Michael" (Last Name:) "AndIsaid": Don't be afraid of small messes
- When you pull a skillet out of the oven, you should use a hotpad. However, if you don't, you should pop the blister (according to Cha Cha)
- Despite celebrity status (he was quoted in the NY Times today), RJ's loyalty remains with the CC

The Grand Finale (drum roll please) :
- Bridget became our first Associate Member (initiation ceremony remains confidential)
- Cooking Club members will be getting matching towels and wine glasses

Cooking Club 3.0

Stephanie wanted to come (sans child), and we borrowed her torch last time, so it was only fair that we scheduled the next Cooking Club on a Saturday night. We wanted to cook lamb. . .

But Ben prompted a quickchange to Tapas, and an evening where 'the sangria flows like water.' And so it was. MK had just completed a kitchen audit. Her place was ready to host.

Venue: MK's house

Cost: $$$

Smoke Alarms: 6 (as of 8:58 pm)

Menu:

- Sangria = yum.

- Bacon-wrapped Figs with BBQ Sauce- Almond-crusted Mango & Manchego Skewers w/ Watercress

- Summer Squash + Sausage

- Blue cheese meatballs with Red Wine Pan Sauce

- Tomato Bread (Martha Ellen didn't quite know how to duplicate this one from Spain. . .)

- Heirloom Tomatoes without Parmesan Crisps- Roasted Eggplant Dip (aka Babaganoush) with Toasted Pita

- Salt Cod Fritter/Pancakes with Tomato Sauce

- Maserated Berries

- Apricot Plum Puff Pastry (not quite cooked)

Learnings:

- Don't melt parmesan cheese on wax paper (they melt together)

- You need more whipping cream.

- Wow, we tried too much, too soon.

The darkhorse of the night was the bacon-wrapped fig. In other news: Stephanie named her stand-up mixer "Aunt Martha," because everyone has an Aunt Martha.

Until next time. . .

Cooking Club 2.0

Date: July 16, 2008

Venue: Martha Ellen's House

Attendees: Founding Members + Guest of Martha Ellen - Bridget and Guest of MK - Katie.

Photographer: Katie see official photos by clicking here

Cost: $$

Menu: it was a 'seafood theme'

Caprese Salad (with basil, then sans basil for the succatash)
Crab Cakes
Grilled scallops on tortilla chips with cilantro paste or jalapeno puree
Succatash
Creme brulee

Highlights:
- Katie did all the shopping (on the expense account), while Bridget manned the fry-daddy
- Except for the parsley, vanilla sugar, and the okra. Fresh okra.
- It was smoky. Very smoky.
- Martha Ellen's stovetop pops up to clean it.

Key Learnings:
- Whipping cream can be interchanged with heavy cream.
- When heating milk for creme brulee, it easily bubbles over.
- An average of one bottle of wine per person is not acceptable. More is needed.
- Transportation home from cooking club should be planned ahead.
- Parsley is different that cilantro.
- Dry parsley is not an adequate substitute for fresh parsley.
- "Pledges" are valuable assets; we should develop bylaws to define their role

Cooking Club 1.0

The first night, we were just making the rules. Cooking Club was born. We cooked at R.J.'s house.

Date: July 2, 2008 (Ben, RJ and MK had the next day off for a long 4th of July weekend. . .MET had to work)

Venue: R.J.'s house

Attendance: Founding Members (Ben, MK, MET, R.J.)

Menu:
- Chips + MK's guacamole
- Flank steak with cilantro sauce
- Green Bean Salad (crisp tender) with Shallots (lots of 'em)
- Homemade Angel Food Cake + Homemade Whipped Cream (whipped to stiff peaks) and Strawberries
- Wine

Key Learnings:
- Trust the recipe (we were really worried about the cilantro sauce)
- Everyone needs a mini-food processor (note: as of Cooking Club 3.0, all 4 founding members now own one)
- We should do this bi-weekly
- Harvesting your own herbs is uber-rewarding
- Rose Wine is not hotdog wine
- Wine is good.

Cost: $$

Sorry to just bring you up to speed on the Cooking Club, but after two successful outings, we felt that it was important to keep the world updated.

Pictures: MK's iPhone lost them. You can thank Steve Jobs for that.

The Backstory

Martha Ellen was in the midst of a cooking craze. When her birthday rolled around, R.J. (her bro) bought her a cooking class at the Indianapolis Chef's Academy. It was a Tapas class, complete with a 3-hour cooking class and wine tasting on a Saturday morning. Knowing Mary Kay's interest in cooking, R.J. mentioned this class to her, and well, the rest is history.

Martha Ellen passed out in the parking lot, Mary Kay had bitten through her lip, and I was very hungover. Not sure if those three factors contributed to our disillusionment, but we decided to start a cooking club instead of paying for additional cooking classes. Two weeks later, Ben joined us and we started Cooking Club.

And here we are: meeting 3 of Cooking Club. It's a bi-weekly affair, complete with an extensive menu, paired wines and a camera. And a blog. We'll try and keep you updated.