Weekend BBQ (Mmmm kabli and macaroni salad)

It was the Mister's birthday this past weekend so it was all about him (as it should be). As a birthday present, the Halo gods thought it fit to give us a little luck to finally beat the Truth and Reconciliation: Into the Belly of the Beast level. I think we played for about 4-5 hours (it's all a blur) with a lunch break at Chili's in between. And it took a little luck or 2 of a throw of a plasma grenade at the right time. The Mister had to revenge my death a couple of times because I was sucking, bad.

We had a bbq on Sunday to continue the celebration of the blessed day. I apologize right off the bat because I have no pictures to post of the food. I had every intention to take pictures but got so busy with everything, I forgot. I marinated up some thick cross ribs using a marinade very similar to Kirk's. I even added the Asian pear this time. The ribs marinated for about a day and a half.

The Mister asked if I could try making a Hawaiian style macaroni salad to go with the bbq. He likes the creamy kind. I did a search for recipes but there were so many variations of "Hawaiian" style that I just said, "forget it" and went with my own. An interesting side note that I found while looking for a recipe was this article on Hawaiian macaroni salad. I had sent Kirk a quick note to see if he had a mac salad recipe and he was very kind to share with me his version. Unfortunately, I didn't check my email until after I had everything all prepped and started to blend. The good thing was that the key ingredients I used was very similar to Kirk's recipe. And my method was the same philosophy as Kirk's, the "to taste" method. I use this method all the time for dishes I don't have recipes for. I throw together what I think would taste good and adjust the flavor "to taste."

So here's what I used for the mac salad (warning: I can't give actual measurements of what I used but they are approximates; adjust to your taste):

• ~1/2 box of Barillia elbow mac boiled in salted water until al dente (I don't like mushy pasta). I only cooked a 1/2 box because this was an experiment. I didn't rinse with cold water so as to keep the elbows less wet. So make sure you pull it off just as it's getting al dente or else it'll continue to cook and possibly get mushy (ick).
• ~2 large, heaping spoonfuls (a large spoon, not a teaspoon) of Best Food mayonnaise (must be Best Foods! In the East coast, it's Hellman's) -- as Kirk would say, don't be afraid of the mayo! Keep in mind that Hawaiian style mac salads have a good amount of mayo
• 1/2 a small sweet onion, diced very fine
• 2 stalks of celery, diced on the fine side
• 3 small sweet Girken pickles, diced very fine -- this gives it a bit of sweetness but not overpowering
• Kosher salt and ground pepper to taste
• A couple of dashes of Paprika, again to taste
• ~1 Tbsp of plain yogurt -- this gave it a bit of nice tanginess.

What I didn't have but would have added was shredded carrots. The onion and celery give the mac salad a bit of crunch, which the Mister and I both like. Let the mac salad settle in the frig. Mix again before serving. It was a huge hit with the Mister and the in-laws.

There was also the standard affair of appetizers: cheese and Triscuit, pepperoni, homemade guacamole, chips. I made the guacamole a little differently this time. I usually just add avocado to homemade salsa but I didn't make salsa. Instead, I just added finely minced red onion, cilantro, lots of minced jarred jalapeno peppers, and juice from a squeeze of half of lemon. I decided not to add chopped tomatoes this time since I find that the tomatoes kind of get mushy if we don't eat the guacamole in the same day (it doesn't often last more than a day but it does happen). In all honesty, I didn't even miss the tomatoes.

The ribs were really yummy. The MIL wanted steak sauce with hers (don't ask me why cuz I don't know). The only steak sauce we had was A-1's Kobe Sesame Teriyaki Steak Sauce so it wasn't too bad, I guess. I also served 3 panchan side dishes but needless to day, I ate most of it. We did a pretty good number on the ribs. I think I grilled about 8 lbs of ribs for 4 people (about 20'ish cross ribs, if I was to guess) and had 5 left over. Thank goodness we didn't pick up prawns like I had planned. And we still had ice cream cake to go. Oiy.

To top off the Sunday, the Mister and I bought the Xbox 360 earlier in the day. As the in-laws were getting their first drinks and munching on the appetizers, I set up the 360. I was getting a little sentimental as I decommissioned the original Xbox. It was a Christmas present from the Mister in 2003. But the sadness only lasted until I fired up the 360. I popped in Halo, then Halo 2 and I immediately noticed a difference in the sharpness of the picture. This is going from S-video to component at 1080i. Ah....love HD!

After the in-laws went home, the Mister and I played few 1:1 games of Halo 2 to test out the new controllers. The new controllers felt very similar to the old ones. Biggest (good) difference is the white and black buttons have been replaced by 2 bumper buttons. Much more ergonomic and easier to use. Can't wait to play Halo 3!

29 more days until its release. 33 more days until the Halo party.

One last thing, don't forget to watch G4's Attack of the Show for the final Ninja Warrior Challenge starting tomorrow at 7 pm. It goes through Friday. Set those DVRs! Have a good Monday. Now go and eat well.