Cooking Challenge

Last night Mike and I ventured into new territory together by going to a cooking class in Naperville. The theme was 'A Night in Italy' and Mike had gotten me this class as an anniversary gift. We had thought it was going to be a demonstration class (since that is was the title of the course said!!) but upon getting there (late of course because I cannot manage to get out of work at an early time ever) we discovered we would indeed be cooking some of the dishes ourselves. Now we really want to learn more cooking ideas especially with our excitement over the kitchen in the new house but the things we would be tackling were much more complicated than the mac and cheese and hot dog gourmet cooking we do now. On the menu was a roasted pepper and tomato sauce, polenta with wild mushrooms, parmesan gnocchi, and some sort of chicken (since we were late we didn't see what that was called). Mike and I were assigned to the polenta station with 2 older ladies who were content with letting us do all the work. So we charged ahead with Mike cleaning and slicing mushrooms and me taking on the polenta challenge (it was basically like making cream of wheat - milk and water and adding the polenta very slowly - glad I picked up how to make that Mom!!). While the old ladies continued to watch what we did and the others in the class were busily working on their own dishes, Mike and I were waiting for things to simmer and pots to get hot so the mushrooms and onions could be sauteed. We took in all the different personalities of those in the class and as usual with me in settings of people, I find myself annoyed with at least 1 person. In this situation, there was an older lady (most of the class was well over 60) who seemed to know everything about cooking and was extremely vocal about this. However she couldn't quite master the art of boiling water and cooking gnocchi. So I tried to ignore her incessant talking about nothing but of course that didn't work. So anyway, the pots were hot and Mike and I got to cooking. I received good comments on my stirring skills (I think the chef was just being nice or grasping for any positive thing to say to this poor excuse for a cook) and Mike sauteed away. Meanwhile, the little old ladies continued to hang out and chat and pretend to be useful. I should say that 1 of the ladies did spend a considerable amount of time buttering the baking sheet that the polenta would be placed on. We finished all our work and put the whole thing together only to find out that the chef already had made the polenta we would actually be eating - guess she didn't trust these inexperienced cooks to mess up the polenta! Everything that needed to be baked was baked and everything that needed to be warmed up was warmed up and then we got to feast on all of our hard labor. Everything was very tasty - the chicken was fabulous, the gnocchi was a little doughy though, and the polenta was extremely tasty (if you like mushrooms, you would love this dish). I even tried the asparagus - didn't really like it but glad I tried it. Overall it was a really fun experience and Mike and I are already looking into future classes to see what might be of interest. I know I will never be a great cook but I am hopeful that I can begin to master some more complicated dishes than the usual easy fare we make every day (stir fry is probably our most challenging dish). We came away from the class with new ideas and I really think the chicken dish may make an appearance at Christmas Eve (if I can still hold it with the whole house thing still in the air). I am also glad that Mike and I got our butts off the couch and did something different together (although we made sure to tape all the shows we were missing!)

Hola and Buenos Dias!!

Ok so that's about the best spanish I have but it is still a lot better than what Mike has in his arsenal!! The trip to Mexico was fun, relaxing, interesting, different, and rainy. I realized very late in the planning process for this trip that October-December is the rainy season in Mexico - and they don't lie. It rained at certain points every day and there were some pretty severe storms during the nights. But the sun still managed to come out from behind the clouds and burn our midwestern skin. Mike suffered the most our first day there while I got the brunt of the burn the last day there. So we had 1 long week of whining :)

I was most surprised by the beauty of the resort and its surroundings as well as how incredibly friendly everyone was. We made our sad attempts at speaking the language when we could and basically tried not to embarrass ourselves. (Good thing I know my numbers in spanish because ordering from the McDonald's near the airport could have been much worse!) Mike made friends with some of the guys working the pool bar (a swim up pool bar mind you! - Mike was in heaven). He seems to make friends everywhere he goes while I like to curl up and avoid any eye contact whatsoever. The pool was amazing. It has the distinction of the 2nd largest pool in the world and I can see why. We spent every day there in a different portion. And because it was the off season, we had prime choice of any chair in the place. The food left a lot to be desired but what we determined is not that it was bad food but definitely a lot of things taste different and it's about how you adapt to the different flavors. We had a couple of really good meals at the resort restaurants though - Mike even says he had the best meal of his life one night. Portion size was not even comparable to here in the States - and we wonder why we are considered such a fat country!! We had some interesting conversations with some of the employees who talked about how they had family who were American citizens but they themselves would never want to move there - they wouldn't want to give up the tropical paradise that they get to enjoy every day. It is definitely a different side of the whole immigration topic that we hear and see in the States every day.

I wish we would have ventured out more into Playa del Carmen or even Cancun but I was really glad to be able to relax and not have anywhere to be. I had people tell me yesterday that I actually looked more relaxed (which has changed today with work being chaotic!). I am glad that my experience in Mexico has expanded beyond just Tijuana - there are not too many good things to see or say about that place. I enjoyed my time there but was glad to be home - out of the fantasy world and back to reality.

Busy yet entertaining weekend

The Illinois game on Saturday was phenomenal. It is great to finally see them winning and playing exciting football. I so look forward to going to these games and always enjoyed the tradition we have kept (even if we missed the past couple of years for various reasons). I also love that Dad gets so excited to go to these games (48 and counting....) and point out all his stomping grounds while he roamed the very big campus many years ago. I wish I had that connection with my alma mater. While I loved going to Eastern, I don't feel the need or desire to return to the campus for a football game or even to just reminisce. I am glad that dad still feels proud of where he went to school and still enjoys returning to see what has changed and what has not for that matter. As our family continues to get bigger and bigger and bigger, I hope that we can keep this tradition alive and hopefully the younger members of the Fagan/Weidner/Nogradi/Lewis/Klima clan will enjoy it as much as I do. Thanks Dad for continuing to keep the Illini tradition alive!

I was glad we were all together yesterday as well to celebrate Mom, Bonnie, and Mike #2's birthdays. It has been quite awhile since we were all in one place (I think since Cedar Point). I know Mike enjoyed himself until he injured his foot playing football with the boys in the dark. Heading to urgent care shortly to have his foot looked at (he cannot walk or drive). So be careful all you kids!!

House update: Walls are starting to go up this week. House is on schedule for end of January completion. Now if we can get some more eager buyers in the door of the existing house I would definitely feel better (and maybe not so stressed out).

Mike and I leave for Mexico on Saturday. Doggies will be visiting Grandma Nogradi for the week. They are super excted (mostly because they get lots of attention and spoiling - not to mention eggs on Sunday morning!) I am looking forward to some sun, relaxation, and hopefully no hurricanes. I should try to brush up on my key spanish words before I leave!