The recipes don't have to be original!

Our Moroccan soup was called "Moroccan Saffron", created by professional chef Derek Ridgeway. It was a tasty blend of garbanzos, red lentils, onion, tumeric, saffron, and ginger. I'm taking no credit for this delicious soup. I purchased the mix from tomorrowproject.org. I encourage you to visit their site and shop for the wonderful products they sell. Tomorrow Project is a Catholic Charities organization, with the goal at teaching homeless women work-readiness skills. I've bought many of their soups and rubs and have never been disappointed. My family can count on one or more for a Christmas present.

If you are in San Diego, their retail site is a pink trailer on 5th Avenue, just south of Laurel.

On a movie note, I felt squeaky-clean after watching Secretariat. No betting, no drugging, no sex or violence, not even one horse tripping the next or one jockey over-whipping his steed(it was a Disney movie, after all). And when Mrs. Whatchamadoodle mind-melded with Secretariat...well, just goes to show that species can communicate. I don't know what language they were using...

No Dinner and a Movie next Saturday. Good luck, Toni, at your volleyball tournament! See you on SuperBowl Sunday!

Secretariat, Pot Pies, Morrocan Soup, Salad, Fruit, Raspberry Ice Cream and Cupcakes

The menu prompts an extra workout today! It was great. Oh, can't forget the Gin and Tonics which made this Annie quite the chatterer (sorry Annie) - but they were so good made with lemon - guess I needed to relax a bit as I had two tall boys. The movie was very good - we picked a good one this week. I'll upload pics as soon as I sign onto my other laptop - watching the NHL hockey game right now in the family room with the family. Briere just scored!

Should be interesting!

This Saturday, Annie's making pot pies and Trish is making a salad. Should we watch Cheech and Chong in Up In Smoke?

Great Post Ann!

After many Saturday nights of friends, food and laughter and many opportunities when each one of us has exclaimed 'that's one for the blog', we are finally posting! There are some blog moments that will not be forgotten and will surely show up here at some point. We are having a blast with our new tradition. Here's to the memories we are creating with amazing friends!

Here's a pic of Ann's Beet Salad:

And the all important Cucumber Basil Cocktail:

And finally, the Lemon Rosemary Chicken with Tzatziki Sauce:

As we start getting this blog thing down we'll add recipes!

Welcome to the Pilot Episode of our blog!

I begin with apologies for the length of this first blog. I promise not to be so verbose next Saturday.

Four friends - Toni, Trish, Annie, Ann - have been having 'dinner and a movie' for about 10 months now. Every Saturday Night. It's expected! Started out just watching a movie with a glass or two of wine, the next weekend, added some appetizers and more drinks, then tried dinner, then another dinner, then realize we had a good thing going and et voila, it's tradition.

We're always at Toni's house; she has a large screen TV, subscribes to NetFlix, and the house is always clean (plus a nice kitchen if we cook on-site, and a conveniently located grill). We communicate via email early in the week, tossing out food ideas so the resulting dinner is cohesive and balanced, with flavors that compliment each other.

The idea of blogging arose a few months ago, when we decided that we needed to memorialize our fabulous food and drink and what fun we were having.

Because we've gotten so comfortable, we now dress for bedtime in our jams and slippers. Hence, the name of this blog: "Jammie Night". When the movie is over, it's 8 hands in kitchen, finish cleaning the kitchen, sorting and refrigerating the leftovers and it's out the door. It's a science. We're a whirlwind of efficiency.

We have taken time off, especially during the hoidays. After all, we're all busy and get invited to work and family and other friend social events that conflict with Dinner and a Movie. In 2010, we had one free Saturday, December 18, and decided to hostess a Christmas Party for friends. We didn't play a movie, but our agreed-upon menu was well appreciated.

January 22, 2011 --- our first 2011 Saturday Night together: the first opportunity to blog.

I'm sorry to say that our movie tonight, Date Night, was less than memorable. I expect more from Tina Fey and Steve Carrell. Maybe next time.

Our dinner, on the other hand, was FABULOUS. We cooked and ate:

• Grilled Chicken Breasts, marinated in lemon juice, rosemary, and thyme
• Tzaziki (homemade - yogurt, lemon juice, dill, cucumber)
• Beet Salad - roasted beets, sectioned orange slices, sweet onion, beet greens with balsamic dressing
• Fresh Fruit Salad
• Rice
• Grilled Veggies on Flatbread
• Brownies with fresh fruit and whipped cream

Annie made us a special cocktail tonight: Muddled cucumber and basil, diet Sprite, lotsa ice, and splash (yea, right) of Vodka. Considerate Annie, she didn't mix the liquor with the mixer, so Trish could enjoy the mixer virgin.

I'll end this post by saying two things about my girlfriends:

"A friend is a person who knows all about you, and still likes you." and

"A friend will help you move. A really good friend will help you move a body."

Good night!