The Kryder Fais do-do

Last week my parents were in town.  As you can probably imagine, San Francisco was a welcome change from the 100+ temperatures in New Orleans.  My mom wrote me an email after she got home that put it plainly "I feel like I am living on the surface of the sun."  My husband has never been to New Orleans in the height of the summer and a laugh to myself to imagine it - it's going to be good fun to get there someday soon.  A native of California - I am not sure he knows what that kind of heat feels like.  Anyway, I digress.

While my parents were in town, Andy and Joselle threw an AMAZING cajun party for us all.  The spread was stuff legends are made of - and all of it was homemade.  Insane!  It included catfish sandwiches, shrimp/crab/crawfish cocktail, salsa, grilled oysters, grilled veggies, served alongside an incredible deconstructed bloody mary and plenty of wine.

The spread

Oysters on the grill

This cocktail sauce has 20 ingredients - including fresh horseradish.  I don't even like cocktail sauce usually and I couldn't get enough of it.  I helped myself to plenty (trying to remember to leave some for others)!

The cocktail sauce

Seafood cocktail (I had several of these)!

Andy also created a deconstructed bloody mary.  These cherry tomatoes were soaked overnight in vodka.  To eat - you speared a tomato and rolled it in the salt/seasoning mixture of your choice.   It was very creative - there weren't many of these left at the end of the night!

My dad also brought his specialty - the sazerac.  It was pre-mixed and ready to go.

I should mention that we ate dessert twice at this party.  Dessert the first included mini-cupcakes.

Dessert the second involved fire!

Andy and Joselle were fully prepared for the midnight marshmallow roast (they have many, many spears and mini-pitchforks) and we ate too many marshmallows to count.

Andy and Joselle, we can't thank you enough for hosting such a wonderful party.  I am now fully convinced that my life will not be complete until we have enough of a backyard to include a fire pit.  There was nothing like talking for hours with friends and family while drinking wine with our feet close to the fire on a cold, clear Bay Area summer night.  Thanks again!