Party #4 - Family visits with the neighbors

10 adults, a baby and I got to smoke meat!
My Cat Eng and my red pig yard decorations helped supervise the party prep. My wife tells everyone that I drink so much my pink elephants have brightened up...

But I digress...

Remember last week's blog about party prep??? I was planning a very fancy meal, and I showed the table setting that greeted everyone. Immediately, every one knew what type of evening I had planned. Click HERE for that story... Well, today I was after a more fun Idea. So, with 10 people coming, I set up additional tables, different table cloths and even different plates let everyone know to relax and be ready for anything. No pretensions tonight.

It has been a great week. My neighbors, Jim and Herme, had family visiting. Herme's sister Nella owns and operates a diner in San Antonio. Twice during the week, we were invited to Jim's house for dinner, and it was a real treat to be entertained at someone Else's place. Being from San Antonio, and being Hispanic, she naturally showed off her Tex-Mex skills. Not something I have had a lot of, and never really attempted to try (unless you count fajitas). My, my, my...It was great. But, during the week, Jim and Herme were bragging on my food, so we happily invited the visitors over for a farewell dinner on their last night in town. My other foodie buddy Tom made some wings (his specialty), Pork tenderloin and some of his terrific kick ass Baked beans. I got to fire up my smoker...
Hard to tell in this shot, but we have hung some large Christmas strings of bulbs from our pergola and we get a nice Tuscan look, with plenty of lights to eat by. I LOVE this time of year, cooler weather, low humidity, and gets dark a little earlier. Big party of 10 adults and my pretty 14 month old neighbor girl...
I have a lot to blog about this week. This is a stuffed spiral cut pork loin with a bacon lattice wrap. It is going to a winner, so look forward to that (coming in a few days)...
I also made Brisket...Look at that smoke ring!!! I actually made two different styles, this is from a recipe in Steven Raichlen's HOW TO GRILL book that I will be talking about, but I also did one with an injected marinade that i will also be comparing and contrasting.

The party went great. Of course, the Texans have had great Texas BBQ, but they enjoyed the Kansas City touch Tom and I are working on. The extra effort was appreciated, and it was a treat for all to entertain and to be entertained.

And BTW...

I made the same BBQ Smoked Cabbage I blogged about a few weeks ago (you can reach that blog by clicking HERE), This is one of my favorite Steven Raichlen recipes that was very unexpected. Neela wanted the recipe, and promised to offer it as an option in her diner. While I would be surprised, it was very nice of her to comment. A sweet person that treated us all very nicely over her visit.

Nice to return the favor,

Stay tuned this week for reports of our fun!