The adventure begins.....

I started this blog for a couple of reasons, but the main reason is to share my birthday trip with those who are interested but were unable to make the trek to Argentina with the gang to celebrate the birthday. I am turning 40…. YES 40 this year. I will continue to blog after the trip about my food and wine experiences.

Last year I hosted a 40th birthday party for Bill at Lightcatcher Winery(www.lightcatcher.com). Knowing that next year was my 40^th, everyone was asking what is he going to do for my birthday… but being the controlling Virgo that I am… I made the decision of taking a group trip. I wanted to be out of the country for my 40^th. After a few months of online research, we opted for Argentina…!!!!

The agenda includes Beunos Aires August 24-27 and Mendoza, Argentina August 27-September 3. The next entry will be from BA.

We are off to the airport at 2:45 p.m. on Thursday. Dave, Bill and I are on the same flight from DFW to Miami. There will meet up with Megan and Melissa when their respective flights arrive in Miami. Liz and Rolando will rendezvous with us in Buenos Aires.

I have prepped all I can. The house is clean, sheets changed, etc. I also did one more prep thing that I wanted to share with the group. Wednesday I started my first 2 batches of Sweet Spicy Pickled Jalapeños. This is a recipe that I stole from Becky, a buddy from the Lightcatcher winery gang. We had a casual July 4^th gathering at the winery and Becky brought this incredible appetizer. She knows I stole it, and I wanted to share with you:

Sweet Spicy Pickled Jalapeños

1 12oz jar of sliced pickled jalapeño peppers

1 cup of sugar

A lot of patience….

Drain the Jalapeños and add the sugar. To accommodate a full cup of sugar, I take out 2/3 of the peppers and add 1/3 of the sugar and then another 1/3 of the peppers , topping with the last of 1/3 of the sugar and peppers. Let the peppers sit in the fridge for 2 weeks. It is recommended that you gently shake the jars every couple of days.

After 2 weeks, drain and chop the peppers. Pour over an 8 oz block of softened cream cheese and serve with crackers. WOW this is amazing. (Thanks for sharing Becky!)

Because everyone is not familiar with the entire gang participating the trip, I want to take a moment to introduce us to you:

Megan – Megan is the star! I met Megan through my former employer, but she quickly became much more special than just a co-worker. She became a very good friend. We have shared some very fun times starting with drinking green monkey butts and smoking cigars at the Davenport in San Antonio, an ultimate dinner of a lifetime at Alinea in Chicago (http://www.alinearestaurant.com/), incredible trip to Hawaii and being her first “official visitor” after moving to Boston.

Liz – We met Liz through Megan. Liz, like Megan, is a Texas Tech Alum. Liz is living close by and we hang out to share our enjoyment of good food, quirky music and LOTS of wine!

Melissa – the NEWBIE for me!!!!! Melissa and I have never met, but with HIGH regards from Megan and Liz, I am looking forward to the first meeting in the Miami International Airport. Melissa lives in NYC and is part of Megan and Liz’s annual girls trip. This year’s girl’s trip is going to be some “girls and boys” and has increased from 3 to 7!

Bill – the other real star…. An engineer with a flair for fun. We have shared our lives for the last 7.5 years. How fun and the adventures go on and on….. .

Dave – Dave has been an incredible friend. We share an affinity for good food, wine, travel, etc. He has become known to our circle of friends as “dave of garlic lime shrimp fame” because of a delectable dish he whipped up for a party once… of course it was a HIT. He has become a rock for me by helping out when everything gets hectic. We are looking forward to his birthday trip in Jan….

Rolando – Rolando is new to us as well, thanks to Liz. Liz and Rolando met because of an adventure picture gliding with Kevin. We finally got to meet mysterious Rolando at the Pink Martini (http://www.pinkmartini.com) concert at the Bass Hall in April 2007. After meeting, we opened up the invitation through Liz to have him join us…. He accepted and the adventure continues (especially with him and Liz).