You know what Wednesday means!!! Absolutely nothing. I got nothin’ for ya. Nada, zippo, zilch. Ok, that’s not necessarily true. I did have a fun day. We had our company Christmas party today at the Crowne Plaza and the committee did a great job with the food choices and prizes, and the "choir" did a great job keeping us entertained in between the nail bitting moments of prize announcements. Good food, good prizes, we’re still losing our jobs...woo hoo!!
Well that is not really what this blog is about, now is it? It’s really about my dinner - and I lose that term loosely. Tonight it was all about photographing some photo-worthy food. So here’s the cast of characters...now let’s see how appetizing I can make it. 
The dessert was the only thing that had to be cooked - all the other stuff was about slicing, dicing, spooning into a bowl, chilling it down and creating something edible.
Wine in the freezer, check.
Cookies in the oven, check. These are Toll House Caramel Filled Chocolate Chip Cookies. Good, but can't say I would get them again.
Let’s get down to business! First up...
Here’s Publix Spinach Dip and Hawaiian Bread. Not to shabby for store bought. It’s got to be healthy, right? I mean it has spinach in it for crying out loud.
Wait...how did this little guy get into the photo shoot? Oh that’s right, I’m trying to simultaneously decorate my house, cook dinner and give my boys some much needed attention. Let’s take a guess whose going to win tonight.
These are some beautiful, scrumptious, juicy and oh so delicious pears I have wanted to try for the longest time. Isn't that supposed to be one of the joys of life - having the freedom and desire to try something new - big or small. On Wednesday night, my joy was pears :)
So why the "need" to try pears? Back in August at my Birthday Celebration Afternoon Tea, I tried a pear and gorgonzola tea sandwich on pumpernickel. I thought that by using different pears, I might yield a different flavor each time. I’m no expert, but in this instance, a pear is a pear. The entire bunch was very tasty, so don’t be afraid to try and enjoy any of them!! I love this picture by the way - so "artsy".
First up...the Bosc Pear.
Firm, looks like it has a potato type skin, good crunch. I think these are used in baking, and in fact I think I’ve had them as dessert before. Seems to me they were cooked with a filo dough wrapped around them, then sliced in half and drizzled with a vanilla sauce. Pardon me...I need a moment.
Next is the Red Pear. Very pretty, tastes much like any other pear. The characteristic of this type is that they are short and fat like this one. Oh, and red.
On to the Bartlett Pear. Hello my love....juicy, flavor-full, could eat them every day - I was not disappointed.
Last, but certainly not least is the Forelle Pear. This one is a smashing second runner up to the Bartlett. LOVED the color of it. Truth be known THAT was the reason I wanted to try it.
So what did I do with them? I really only tried them two ways. Sliced.
And sliced sitting on top of gorgonzola cheese, which sat on top of a miniature slice of pumpernickel bread. Nothing fancy. Did I recreate the masterpiece I had at my Afternoon Tea? Not quite, but I was not disappointed. It was a unique flavor that warrants a second go-around. Now I have all this left over gorgonzola cheese so any ideas you all might have for it, just throw em’ on out there, ok?
A bizarre dinner like this wouldn’t be complete without a swing by the Olive Bar. Tried a new way of photographing them. I think it's a good idea but maybe not the best execution. There are green olives stuffed with blue cheese, green stuffed with garlic, marinated mushrooms, and a couple of "black" olives - of which the names I can not spell and will not attempt to spell.
I actually used a fondue fork/spear/thingy to set this shot up. I’ve enjoyed looking at all of my kitchen “stuff” in a different light these past few weeks. It leads you to be quite creative with the most unusual things.
Fourth course - my personal favorite and what I severed as “dinner” several nights when I was married: Pepper Jack Cheese and Salami. I’m now divorced...I’m just sayin’. :) Normally this would include Triscuits and mustard, but mustard gives me heartburn something fierce. Ah the joys of getting older!
To wash all of this goodness down...of course this would lead me to talk about tonight's wine selection. If you ever seem in the grocery store wine isle, you'll notice that I earnestly try to look like I know what I’m searching for. Unfortunately 9 times out of 10 I’m thinking “Oh what a pretty label”. I’m probably a marketing directors dream come true...”who CARES how it tastes, we can get them to buy it just by the way it looks!”. Remind me to tell you about Irish Butter sometime.
So tonight’s selection is * ta-da * Cupcake Chardonnay. I had some help in choosing this. A teacher was walking by and stopped dead in her tracks and said “I’ve HEARD about this stuff - it’s supposed to be really good”. Well ok then, Cupcake it is...but the type...what type should I get, chardonay, merlot...which one...decisions, decisions.
We looked at each other and shrugged and I said “I guess which type will depend on what you’re going to have with it”. She looks at me and says “Any of them go with “stress”, right? I gotta tell you, I’m a teacher and these kids are just wearing me out.”. We had a good laugh, she picked up her chardonay and proceeded to the fastest checkout lane. And they say we have problems with our youth.
Me, I lingered a bit more but decided on the chardonay as well. Not bad. Can’t say “Wow you HAVE to try this”, but I think that was more my issue - so many different foods mixing with it. I’ll have to pay this one a second visit then report back.
This stemware is one of my (dare I sound TERRIBLY materialistic) most favorite purchases ever. It’s a delicate but sturdy and beautifully structured glass which makes one heck of a great “ding” noise. Doesn't everyone flick them to see what they sound like? No..just me? Anyone?
So that’s it - wine, spinach dip, pears, cheese, salami, olives and cookies. If you’ll excuse me now I must go repent...with a smile on my face. One heck of a fabulous Wednesday that's for sure!
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