On Saturday, John and I went to a little BBQ/party given by a couple we met last summer (at a BBQ!) and have become friends* with since.
I loved the inspiration for the party, and vowed to blog about it ASAP. The concept, at least is simple. (The cleaning of the house, and buying and prepping of the food, etc., can be time-consuming and costly, regardless.) Essentially, pick something you've always wanted to try, some unusual/hard-to-get food you love and want to share, and throw a party. The result on Saturday was an informal and fun event for adults and kids.
Besides the conversation, which was excellent, there were three main stages to the party. I'm going to talk about them in reverse order, because the final part of the day was the coolest thing and I don't want to lose you before you get to it! 
Part III
As the afternoon turned into evening, then into night, it was time for the finale, something that Mel & Rich had been dying to try: Miracle Fruit Tablets. They weren't the only ones -- John and I have been curious about the berries (and later, the pills) since we first heard about them a couple of years ago. These miraculous little berries contain a resin of some sort that temporarily binds to the tastebuds that register sours, and makes them taste sweet. (I'm over-simplifying, but you get the idea.)
We joked that we must trust these people a lot, because they passed out little red pills, and we all obediently popped them into our mouths and dissolved them on our tongues. (They don't do you any good if you chew them.) Most of us agreed that the taste reminded us of raisins, maybe with a hint of cranberry thrown in.
Then, we stood around the table and bravely grabbed for pieces of lemons, limes, grapefruit, sour dill pickles, etc. The things that were hot & sour, like hot sauce, were sweet on the tongue, like BBQ sauce, but hot in the throat. That was strange! My favorite was the grapfruit. I know it's good for you, and I love the smell, but really don't like the taste - unless it's got a ton of sugar on it, which defeats the purpose. With one of these pills (½ might have done the trick), the grapefruit was sweet and delicious.
Sweet things, like strawberries & oranges, tasted sweeter. Sour apples tasted like the sweetest Red Delicious apples, without the grainy/mealy texture that you sometimes get. It doesn't affect bitter, so the Baker's chocolate tasted even worse, if that's possible.
You want to have some fun? Order some of these little pills (you can get them from Think Geek) and either prepare a buffet of sour treats or, like Mel & Rich did, have your friends bring sour things to the party. This would be a fun party activity for just about any age! The seven-year-old there had a blast, as did her grandparents, and just about everyone in between. A couple of people noticed little difference, which was a bummer. The effects wear off within an hour or so, sped-up by dairy products (so, if you have it for a party, make sure it's after the ice cream & cake!).
Part II
We enjoyed the hard-to-get food, a dessert that Mel & Rich enjoyed on their honeymoon in Hawaii: Mochi Ice Cream. No lie, they had it air-shipped from the islands so their family and friends could sample it.
From the website: Mochi is "...a harmonious combination of creamy gourmet ice cream wrapped in a sweetened rice confection, all resulting in a delectable bite-sized, one and a quarter ounce ball of happiness."
I quite agree -- provided you get a flavor you enjoy. John and I both really liked the Passion Fruit flavor (there were 4 available to try). I can see how they'd be dangerous!
Part I
The first was the BBQ (enjoyed indoors thanks to the frustrating weather): Buffalo burgers and natural casing hot dogs. I had one of each and it was all yummy. (Everyone brought a side to go along with.)
*Good friends, as far as I'm concerned, since they helped us move while Mel was about 7 months pregnant! (I made little socks for their son, Darwin, who is now 3 months old and just adorable. Too bad he was born with HUGE feet and neither pair fit, ever. Soon: I'll be casting on for new, larger socks.) Meeting and holding Darwin was a definite bonus for the afternoon! Read More......
