The Odd Ball

What a busy month I've had! There was Easter, a trip to Poughkeepsie to see the Flaming Lips in concert, more house hunting, and right now I'm making excuses for not posting to this blog for such a long time.

On April 10, I went to Real Art Ways in Hartford for their costume ball fundraiser, the Odd Ball.

It was a wild time, but let's focus on the food here, the "Twisted Buffet" provided by Ascot Catering. Not only was everything creatively presented, it was all delicious. Here's the run down of the goodies.

Salmon Lollipops: smoked salmon and cream cheese on lavash wraps, rolled into pinwheels, on skewers.

Antipasto on a Stick: Mushroom, tomato, black olive, and a pinwheel of cheese and fatty Italian ham, on a stick, of course.

Gazpacho Shots: Cold tomato-based vegetable soup served in test tubes. Reminded me of a virgin bloody mary.

Ciao Mein: spaghetti and meatballs (absolutely scrumptious, tender meatballs) served in Chinese takeout containers, chopsticks optional.

Mac and Cheese Cakes: Imagine macaroni and cheese casserole, the kind with crumbs on top, but instead of baking it in a big pan, packing it into mini muffin cups to bake. (I'm not sure if this is how they really were made. I ought to try it, though.)

Guacamole or Mashed Potatoes in a Cone: Ice cream cones the size of my pinky finger, filled with either guacamole or mashed potatoes, with cheddar, sour cream, and bacon bits with which to garnish them.

"Sushi": the rolls had rice and nori on the outside, but the insides were unusual. There was "Bbquishi" made with barbeque chicken, "Portasushi" with portabello mushroom and roasted red pepper, and another roll filled with provolone cheese, tomato, and basil.

Pig in a Tunnel: I couldn't figure out exactly what was in this, but it looked like a cannoli shell, with bacon wrapped like a ribbon around the middle, filled with guacamole, dots of mayonnaise, and something else, I think. Whatever it was made of, it was good.

Sausage Sliders: a breakfast sausage patty sandwiched between two hashbrown patties. Awesome.

There were also the big jars of candy: jelly beans, Red Vines, chocolate, chewy balls that tasted like coconut rum, miscellaneous penny candy.

Of course, I have to show you our costumes. I was a tree. Chris was Big Bird.