Just Call Me Chopper

England may have Jack the Ripper, but Kansas City now has The Chopper.

Which would be me.

Okay, I'll explain...as I just know you're sitting there saying, "The Drama Queen has surely lost it."

After spending 3.5 hours yesterday in my new Culinary classes, I got home late last night, collapsed, and promptly fell into a restless sleep, where I was wielding a huge Chef's knife and chopping up everything I came into contact with.

Which, unfortunately, the only thing I come into contact with in bed is my poor Hubs, which meant he was getting the brunt of it as I tossed and turned in bed, all the while chopping and dicing and mincing and slashing. In my dreams, he was going to make a very tasty sauce.

Fortunately for him, all good dreams must come to an end, so at the crack of dawn this morning (on a SATURDAY, no less!), I woke up, got dressed, and headed over to Culinary Class for Day #2 of my cooking classes.

"Good morning, Chopper!" one of my fellow students greeted me as I sleepily stumbled through the door.

THAT got my attention. Was this guy eavesdropping on my dreams last night? Ew.

"Why did you call me that?!?" I asked, looking at him suspiciously. Creeper.

He explained that he had been so impressed with my knife skills from the night before - bloody finger and all - that I had gained a new nickname. Good to know it wasn't because I had been chopping up Hubs all night long in my dreams. Whew.

It was time to get crackin' in the kitchen, and this is what we started cranking out:



Roasted Acorn Squash with a Lime Yogurt Sauce & Fried Capers
Butternut Squash Risotto with Blue Cheese
Spaghetti Squash Alfredo
Couscous with Dried Blackberries

And this was all done by 10:00 a.m.!!!

For lunch, we made the following:

Southwest Turkey Clam Chowder
Roasted Barley Salad
Lettuce Salad with Homemade Ranch Dressing, and Homemade Red Wine Vinaigrette
Asian Salmon with Stir-Fried Vegetables


That's my salmon and veggies...doesn't it look delicious? Don't I look exhausted?

After lunch, we made a homemade Lemon Tart with an Almond crust. It was the easiest thing we did all day. And probably the most tastiest - although I'll have to say, EVERY SINGLE THING we prepared today was FANTASTIC!

Seriously. It was all good.

And one more day to go.

Which begs the question....

Who will die first? Hubs? From my incredible dream-knife skills?

Or me? From exhaustion?

Peace.