Iron Chef

While in Everett for Thanksgiving, we also celebrated my dad's birthday. Since he loves cooking and watching cooking shows, my mom arranged for 10 family members to go to the Blue Ribbon Cooking and Culinary Center. There we split into teams (Parents vs. Kids) to compete in an Iron Chef competition! We had access to a professional kitchen, including a stocked refrigerator and pantry, as well as a professional chef for assistance. Both teams had to create a dish with steak and a dish with salmon and a dessert with chocolate.

Brian was our documentarian as well as childcare specialist. Magnolia did super, happily playing well past her bedtime!

The Parents (my mom and dad, and Aunt Sherri and Uncle Craig) may have had fewer people but they had more experience, not to mention all the menu-planning phone calls weeks in advance. 

Mom and Aunt Sherri are making fake raspberry caviar for their dessert garnish!

The "Kids" team consisted of my sister Alli, her boyfriend Taylor, my cousins Matt and Adam, me. Alli and Taylor headed up the dessert and learned how to prepare white chocolate to dip dried fruit in. Adam got a lesson on how to use a knife and Matt learned how to deal with lemongrass after the chef saw us looking confused!

I learned how to make szechuan beans and how to choose which oil to use for a stirfry.

We had so much fun and made so many memories in addition to a great meal! In the end the judges gave the victory to the parents. It might have to do with the fact that it was my dad's birthday, or maybe that our rice never cooked.