give me five

This past Sunday was our Give Me Five event at the beautiful Cherokee Town & Country Club in Buckhead. Different from the Taste of the Nation events, this is a 5-course dinner prepared by 5 different chefs and complemented by wines chosen by 5 different sommeliers. It was such a fun event and we raised 35% more than last year! Adam was forced to volunteered to help us out and I'm so glad he got to kind of see what it is I do.

The event also happened to fall on Jeffrey's 30th birthday! I was (obviously) beyond bummed I couldn't make it to Dallas for his birthday, but my parents flew in on Friday night and surprised him at a bar after dinner.

Dad had a really good time catching up with friends. Old frat habits die hard, I suppose. Speaking of frats, Mitchell accepted a bid to Theta Chi - which is my dad's fraternity! How cute is that?

While they were all having the time of their life on Friday, I got to witness this guy in Buckhead traffic. Yes, he is playing a saxophone while driving. This, ladies and gentlemen, is why they created cameras within cell phones.

Seriously, I couldn't make this stuff up!

On Saturday, Katie planned a surprise party for Jeff! (Again, so bummed I couldn't make it to any of the festivities!) While they were partying, I made a delish dinner. Yep - I cooked again! Adam was at a softball tournament all day, so he wasn't there to bother help me.

I was planning to do grilled chicken, but I actually found two steaks for less than two chicken breasts (literally, only $4 for both). Say whaa? Is that normal? I just made up my own marinade, since I'm a pro and all. But really, I just threw in soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, tabasco sauce (I had to!), and some garlic.

Adam loves cheese, so I thought I'd try to make some homemade mac n cheese. It was a keeper!

Chuck's Favorite Mac N Cheese

1 (8 ounce) package elbow macaroni
1 (8 ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 (12 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil, add    pasta, and cook until done; drain.
-In 9x13 inch baking dish, stir together macaroni, shredded Cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle topping over macaroni mixture.
-Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is golden.

I also made this ridiculously easy and fast zucchini recipe.

Parmesan-Roasted Zucchini

2 zucchini
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt
Garlic Powder
Black Pepper
1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese

-Cut off ends of zucchini, cut into 4ths (length wise)
-Lay zucchini on cookie sheet covered with parchment paper (I used foil)
-Brush olive oil on each and sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder
-Top with cheese
-Bake for 15 minutes, or until zucchini is tender and cheese is browned

Ta da!! I'm a cook!

To cap off a great weekend/kick start a new week, I got home from work on Monday and found this waiting for me. Best husband, ever! Seriously. How cute is he? For those of you who live under a rock, this is the quote for The Hunger Games - which we're both obsessed with. We even went to the midnight premiere with Kelly and Jason (and a bunch of teeny boppers).