It’s been a very long time since this blog was updated, and to kick off the New Year we thought we’d share with you our annual Covert Bling Christmas dinner.
Each Christmas (or thereabouts) we all get together and bring a dish or two to share, do some laughing (naturally), welcome Secret Santa into our midst and have a thoroughly good time (with no ballet or torture or drill drill drilling dance practice). This year the theme was food beginning with “Ch”. We maybe should have thought it through a little more 
Emma always hosts (thank you Emma) as she has the largest table and can accommodate us all (although I would add one of our number was missing in action, sunning herself in Australia >grrrr<):
We all arrived, bringing with us our food. Now in the spirit of a “pot-luck supper”, which this essentially is, we don’t tell what we’re brining. It’s true to say that there was quite a lot of chicken (as I say, we should have thought this through). When we arrived there were nachos awaiting us (ok, so the “ch” was in the middle).
In fact there were two bowls of nachos with sour cream and chilis and avocado, one with cheese (oh, ok, there’s the “ch”!) and one without (because I’m a bit fussy and generally don’t like cheese so I was grateful for the thought).
So here was the main meal line-up:
Chicken drumsticks marinaded in ginger, garlic, honey and soy. No chilis….
Chicken wings, some of which were very very spicy, some not quite so spicy but by the time you’d had the spicy ones it was hard to tell……. 
Chips (handmade of course……)
Some more drumsticks that had been covered with a variety of spices that I can’t actually remember but I think there was chili (obviously) thyme, garlic, cumin, coriander….and again were very very spicy…
Then there was chicken in Mole sauce which included shallots, garlic, tomatoes, cinnamon, peanut butter, three kinds of chili, smoked paprika, orange zest and dark chocolate…. (yes, I know it looks unappetising but it tasted pretty good)….
Paella, including Chorizo…..
Just to add a little less chicken to the picture there was some salad….
And last but by no means least (for this course) there were some yummy sweet potato chips….
So, we chowed down, discussed the spicy nature of some of the wings and drumsticks (yowsers!), obviously discussed some belly dance topics close to our hearts and minds and all got thoroughly full up on protein and made the odd nod to green stuff by licking a salad leaf or two….. then we retired to the very comfy lounge in order to sit by a log fire and watch Sherlock on BBC1 like the rock and roll babes we are.
BUT – not before taking into the lounge the range of ”Ch” themed desserts:
Chocolate Pots
Champagne Cream and Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Brownies
(and there was ice cream too, and another plate of brownies!)
Personally I managed one chocolate pot, half the champagne cream dessert and took home some brownies, and some chicken, and I had chicken Mole for lunch today (nom nom nom!)
Once we surveyed this 
we decided upon a Medieval food theme for this year…..(recollections of Historical Masterchef on Horrible Histories followed….)
Praise the dance gods that we have torture and ballet this week!
Happy New Year all!
hipnoticbellydance
