Thank you all!

19 years ago

What a wonderful feeling I have tonight! We had some people over for a belated thanksgiving get-together. Due to illness last week, it was cancelled. In the meantime, the turkey has been cooked and frozen away, and I am leaving town Tuesday for three weeks. I really didn't want to do a lot of cooking. When we made arrangements for dinner, and people said "what should I bring", I was so frazzled I just said "whatever, I don't know, I'll cook a ham you do whatever you want". So, I cooked a ham and I made some scalloped potatoes. I figured there would be other dishes to go with (total of four couples coming over). Well. Every one decided to bring dessert! I might have just shrugged my shoulders and said "OK, it's ham and potatoes for dinner" but one couple is vegetarian! I really thought they would bring something they could eat ... and they didn't!

So, last minute add-ons to dinner were .... frozen corn, the Madras Pickled Eggplant, and the Curried Apple Chutney. Plus we had appetizers of crackers with cream cheese and Habanero Gold Jelly, as well as Marinated Jalapenos. All of the preserved foods were a huge success - especially with the vegetarian Indian couple! I was so delighted that I could so easily pull a few jars out and people loved the food.

And it's all thanks to you all here. Not only have you given me the recipes, you've given me the confidence to try them. Thank you all so much. I love my new hobby.

Ann (who is leaving for Australia!!!)

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Comments (5)

melva02
19 years ago
Way to go Ann! Have a great time in Australia.

I had a similar experience before my roommate's birthday. I had bought a tray & vase way in advance, and at the last minute I decided to fill it with 4-oz jars of almost everything I made all summer. I try to do one or two tiny jars of each item for gifts, and it paid off.

I also had an experience with a friend not being able to eat dinner. He didn't like vegetables, and had recently had a dinnertime run-in with his girlfriend's grandmother over it (not the most polite guy). So when two friends & I realized we were all making vegetable dishes for a pot luck, we asked the guy's girlfriend to bring dessert. He didn't bring anything, so he had a biscuit for dinner! I don't mean to imply the same personality traits in your vegetarian friends, just that it makes sense to bring something you can eat for dinner if you have special needs.

Melissa
annie1992
19 years ago
Ann, you are so welcome. Personally, I could make a whole meal out of crackers with cream cheese and Habanero Gold, but others require a protein source. (grin)

Have a great trip to Australia, it sounds like a wonderful trip.

Annie
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readinglady
19 years ago
Ann, I agree it's wonderful to have those instant appetizers, relishes and side dishes on the shelf.

Wow, Australia! Christmas in the summer. I add my wishes for a marvelous trip.

Carol
prairie_love
Original Author
19 years ago
I could also do a whole meal of the crackers, cream cheese and Habanero Gold! Thank you all again. I will try my best to have a nice trip, but of course it will be very difficult - warmth, sunshine, astonishing sights, strange critters, good wine, no work, ... what will I do???

Ann
mellyofthesouth
19 years ago
Ann, Hope you have/had a nice trip. I asked my friend what I should bring to a brunch meeting. She said, "Just bring the cream cheese and pepper jelly." I still have a couple of half jars leftover from my tasting station so I'm planning to do just that. (I don't think they would have been left over except that I put them away in the cooler once all the jars of that variety were sold out.) All the varieties were popular. But Shirley's mock H&D relish sold out first. (I bought a pork loin specifically for the rest of the cranberry jalapeno - yum yum.)