Alana: Colin brought the Muddle Puddle Battle. It’s fresh berries muddled with lime juice and sugar, then topped with tequila and club soda. Muddled right before our very eyes. This was the first cocktail recipe we’ve had at cookbook club… I hope there are more in our future.

Sheana: I’ve decided that Colin is the king of the Cookbook Club, and in the future I need to brulee something, to show him up. Drinks and a show (muddling the berries)… touché, Colin!

Alana: Alyssa brought the Sugar Snap Salad with Miso Dressing. This had some nice crunch, but just couldn’t compete with some of the other recipes.

Sheana: I loved this one! It was super fresh and bright. Nice and crispy. I think it had a ginger kick to it.

Alana: Colin also brought the Corn Risotto-Stuffed Poblanos. Not just risotto, but beer risotto! The corn added nice pops of sweetness. And the nice plating with the cream topping… he actually piped that on while we all stood and watched – impressive.

Sheana: Pretty good! I was pretty full by the time I got to this dish. I would hit this with some fresh lime juice at the very end if I make it in the future.

Alana: Peggy brought the Roasted Eggplant with Yogurt-Tahini Sauce and Cumin-Crisped Chickpeas. Some of these eggplants were straight from the garden – doesn’t get much better than that! I loved the additional layer of texture that the crunchy chickpeas added to the creamy eggplant.

Sheana: It takes a lot for eggplant to dazzle me, but I really liked this recipe. The freshness of the eggplant probably helped! I’m also a huge fan of crispy chickpeas, so Peggy had me at hello here.

Alana: Shayna brought the Mushroom Tart. It didn’t stand out compared to others I’ve had.

Sheana: The double-edged sword of having a larger event is that there are more dishes you have to fit on your plate (too bad!). I liked the fresh thyme in this one, but I was too busy shoveling Olga’s galette (next) in my pie hole to give this one much attention.

Alana: Olga brought the Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette. This tasted as good as it sounded and looked. I ate my whole piece before I even touched any of the other food on my plate. And I would have gone back for another piece, but there was none left!

Sheana: That’s because I ate it all! Well, maybe not all of it, but this one was awesome. I got seconds of this before I tried all of the other dishes. It was buttery and smoky.

Alana: Sheana brought the Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese. The biscuit was a bit on the dry side, and there wasn’t enough goat cheese and tomato topping to moisten it up.

Sheana: As a tomato-lover, I had such high hopes for this one! The biscuit recipe was among the simplest I’ve ever seen. I was delighted when I was cooking, but the final product left something to be desired. The biscuit was dry, and there wasn’t nearly enough tomato topping. I would double (or even triple) the tomato portion of the recipe next time.

Alana: Robert brought the Sweet Peas and Shells Alfredo. This dish wasn’t mind-blowingly unique, but I like peas with pasta so it was perfectly pleasant to munch on.

Sheana: I agree. This was another case where pasta had a hard time competing with seasonal produce.

Alana: John brought the Wild Rice Gratin with Kale, Caramelized Onions, and Baby Swiss. This was a solid side dish. I liked the wild rice texture and color.

Sheana: I liked the cheese in this one. It reminded me of a mysterious veggie/starch casserole I would discover at Thanksgiving (that’s a good thing!).

Alana: Katy brought the Harvest Roast Chicken with Grapes, Olives, and Rosemary. I loved the contrast of the sweetness of the grapes with the brine of the olives. The rosemary added another layer of flavor without being overpowering like it sometimes can be.

Sheana: The salty olives went so well with the chicken and rosemary here.  I would almost be tempted to turn the topping into a tapenade so that there’s more olive-to-chicken (but that would totally compromise the presentation!).

Alana: Katy also brought the Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats. Do you like rice krispie treats? Then you’ll like these.  It’s the treat you know and love, only with a richer flavor, and slightly salty sweet.

Sheana: I loved these! Fresh rice krispie treats area always awesome, and the browned butter gave it that little kick of caramelization that I never knew they were missing. I nabbed some leftovers.

Alana: Anthony brought the Gooey Cinnamon Squares. According to Anthony spreading the layers was a bit of work, but I’m glad he put in the effort because these were a winner. Really good texture with the creamy filling and more solid crust, and tasty cinnamon-y goodness.

Sheana: This was de-LISH. It was all the comfort and warmth of a pie, but all of the flavor of a cinnamon bun turned creamy. I’m sorry to hear it was hard to make, because I want more of it soon!

Alana: I brought the Buttered Popcorn Cookies. I was so excited about this recipe – it’s popcorn in cookies! So I’m sad to say these were a bust. The flavor was just ok (would have been better with some chocolate chips), and the texture was terrible. The dough made the popcorn wet, which when baked then made the popcorn feel stale. Worst dish at the party.

Sheana: I had high hopes for this one! I’m a big fan of buttery popcorn meets sweet sugar. Unfortunately the soggy texture of the popcorn was a no-go.