Chef Miranda

Judging by this title, you're probably thinking, "Oh that Emily, she's such a good homemaker... Loves to cook for her husband and try new recipes.." And, thank you... but, no. ;)

This is about Hector. He's the real chef. He is the one looking up new recipes on the Internet and in our cook books, finding lists of ingredients that I'd like (that he wouldn't have to alter to much) and going out to various stores to get the components.

One of Hector's favorite types of food is Thai food. His next venture will be Pad Thai, mark my words. :) But, while I was at work on Sunday night, he made a test run of Spring Rolls with peanut dipping sauce, then tried them out on me on Monday evening when I awoke from my slumber. Just look at these!

Aren't they gorgeous??

He learned a lot about the chemistry of peanut butter and oil, too

I just think he's so talented! These had rice noodles, carrot, cucumber, mango and cilantro in them, all wrapped in rice paper. And the sauce was a perfect blend of sweet, salt and spice. Can't wait for these again!

The other day, Hector and I were talking about some of our favorite meals. Come to find out, Thanksgiving type meals are one of our faves. (Who's isn't?) Not so much the turkey (which is good..) but more so the side dishes. So we decided to make a meal that incorporated mashed potatoes, brown gravy and rolls. :) These are the sort of things I've been craving.. you know, home-cooked foods.

We made filet mignon..

(pardon the blurriness, he wouldn't stand still)

Mashed potatoes..

We also made corn on the cob, rolls and of course, the brown gravy. Here it all is:

It was all SO good! We used lots of dishes and pots and pans, but it was so worth it! Now I'm really looking forward to my birthday dinner this Saturday at Fish Fry in Paris. Mmmm... I can taste it now!

After dinner, we watched Marley & Me.. What a cute movie! How did I never see this one? Reminds me of our friends, Jackie and Patrick, and their Lab pup, Ranger. I hope they laugh as much at his little stunts as Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston did at Marley's. :)