Cooking Club Stirs Up Creative Crockpots

Saturday was our monthly Cooking Club and this one included creative crockpot recipes and rats! Paula Beery poses here with her dynamite taco soup. She slaved over this one at home and brought it ready to go Saturday night - complete with all the taco fixings. We also had Cori Schmidt's Italian Beef on Ciabatta Rolls, Spicy Artichoke Dip Crostini and even a crockpot Apple Gingerbread cake to round out our meal.

Ericlee digs into the appetizers with Josh Beery. They are the "royal taste testers" of our group. The Spicy Artichoke dip on crostini bread was a favorite this time around. Throw a bunch of ingredients in a small crockpot, swirl the spoon a few times, and voila! You have a perfect appetizer dip (or sandwich spread) with a kick. (Could be a crowd pleaser for Thanksgiving if anyone's interested.)

Allison and Troy Vasquez joined us for the November Cooking Club to check out the festivities. Baby Mia slept in the guest room while we all feasted on "easy" crockpot fare. Allison was the chief for the making of the Apple Gingerbread Cake, which turned out surprisingly good. We were all a bit skeptical about how a cake would actually turn out in a crockpot but it was that perfect meld of sweet harvest tastes.

Meilani's favorite was the Taco Soup. She actually ate four bowls of the stuff. With all the beans and yummy veggies, Mama and Daddy were very happy. And, of course, she loved the toppings like cheese and cilantro to sprinkle on top.

Paula's daughter, Juliahna, who just turned 5 this week, also joined in on our fun. She took her little sister, Ella, and Meilani under her wing. This Cooking Club was definitely more kid-focused. (Not much time for adult board games.)
After dinner, the ladies and kids started a food movie/cartoon. Here's where the rats come in: we watched Ratatouille, a wonderful family movie about a cute rat chef who makes it big in Paris. Marcy Pusey holds her growing boy, Corban. The Puseys new foster son, Angel, also joined us. He was Meilani's new favorite friend and they huddled together on the couch for the movie. The theme of the night was crockpot comfort food and relaxing with friends. Bon Appetit!