My parents, my sister, and I get together several times a year and have lots of appetizers. My mom calls the parties "tapas parties" but I don't know that we've ever cooked anything Spanish. We usually drink several bottles of wine with the different dishes and have a great time. Judy and I thought that it would be a good idea to have a "tapas night" to celebrate the small improvements my dad has had in the hospital recently - and get my mom drunk. We've all been under a lot of stress lately because of my dad's stay in the hospital. And, with the exception of my dad, my mom, naturally, has had it the hardest. We can't liquor up my dad, so we thought we'd show my mom a good time and hopefully, she'd have a fun evening and get a good night's sleep for a change.



So, Judy and I prepared some dishes and showed up at my parents' house in the guise of harvesting grape leaves. I made scallop ceviche and prosciutto escargots. They both turned out well - and people politely complimented me. They were fine. But, there’s no denying it – Judy kicked my ass tonight. Her lamb kebobs were fantastic – tender and tasty with tomatoes and green onions on the skewers (I never would have thought of that). The inch and a half pieces of green onion turned black on both ends from the heat and were very sweet and flavorful. She had an absolutely fantastic mint yogurt sauce for the lamb. She also cooked clams and oysters on the grill and served them with mango salsa. Again, terrific.



Okay, I admit it – I’m a little surprised that I felt defeated by my escargots. They were buttery and garlicky and very interesting. I had to laugh at my fool self for being jealous of Judy doing so much better. I know I’m competitive. And, it’s only natural that I’m competitive with my only sibling. I recognize her as a good cook – both creative and technically adept. But, so am I. So, usually, we work to a draw. And, since we get to eat each other’s culinary efforts – everyone wins. But tonight, she stomped me. I ate three of her lamb skewers and took one home. I was effusive with my praise - trying to let her know that I knew she had bested me - without actually saying it. She politely asked for the leftover snails. She’s so nice.

Judy brought Ashley, her friend Bob, and Bob’s son Jeremy. We had a great time. The dinner was terrific. We harvested grape leaves for stuffing at a later date. And, we got my mom drunk. Mission accomplished. Tomorrow, we hope my dad will show enough improvement to be sorry he missed it.