Foody triumphs and woes

We always like our dinner parties to have something special for the guests to remember them by. We have played indoor tennis with the sofa for a net, we have held a torilla-frisbe throwing competition, and we have even had a car burnt in the street outside our house. Ok, maybe we didnt actually arrange for the car to be burnt, it was just a coincidence.

But anyway, on Friday night Dee and I outdid ourselves. Picture the scene...

The guests:

Erinne
Paul

Paul

Nic & Matt

The menu:
Turkey & stuffing, roast potatoes, roast parsnips with sea salt, brussels sprouts with pancetta and marsala, sweet glazed chipolatas, and spiced red cabbage.

The after dinner entertainment:
Back at Christmas, the McDowells had discovered that you cant break an egg by squeezing it in your hand. The McDowells were not the first and probably not the last to try this out...

Paul [Moore] didnt believe Dee and so she challenged him. We put an apron on him and made him stand over the sink. He squeezed with all his might and nothing happened... until suddenly a sudden splattering of egg across the room put an end to Dee's theory... and the civilised tone of the evening. There was egg on the walls, the cupboards, the floor, the table, the cereal boxes, and most of the guests. Not much in the sink. For those who struggle to picture the scene... here is a similar incident;

Its curious how we all seem to think that doing it over the sink will make a difference.

And so that was the foody woe... now for the foody triumph. We ate out the following night. My hot thai duck stir fry (shredded bbq duck with bok choy, thai basil, mushrooms, red pepper, egg noodles, bean sprouts topped with chilli jam, crispy shallots, coriander, spring onion & chilli) was accompanied by a nice little pair of chopsticks in a wrapper with instructions. Rather than use the knife and fork also provided, I thought I'd try the chopsticks. A complete novice, I surprised myself by finishing the whole meal with the chopsticks. Now there has been some debate on facebook, but here on my own pulpit, I will sing my own praises. I thought I did very well. Here I am mid-triumph;

And here is Nic masterfully wielding her fork;

And Paul skilfully handling his glass;

Dee refused to be photographed unfortunately.

Filled with confidence, I have already successfully attempted meal number two with chopsticks. I am virtually a black belt!

Recommended music for this post: My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard Move over Kelis.