I am very, very ashamed of myself.

The summer has just continued to roll on by and my posts have been few and far between. I hope that the summer has treated everyone well, and after this week I will be returning home to New Orleans. Things here in Montana have just taken a turn for the winter. Temperatures have not been above 60 degrees and I have barely seen the sun for two days. The fog has started rolling in this afternoon and the lake is covered in a silvery gray haze. I know... I'm bragging.

Even though the summer has not held as many guests as those in years past, I have had a great time, a few surprises and cooked many meals. In order to make up for the the past month I thought I would share a few meals that we have enjoyed and the people we have had the opportunity to meet in one large post.

First up; Vietnamese bun. This is one of our favorite lunches, a classic Vietnamese cold Noodle Salad served with hot, seared beef on top. The salad is a mixture of chopped Cucumber and Romaine Lettuce on the bottom, room temperature Rice Vermicelli Noodles in the middle and then topped with a julienne of Carrot & Green Onion, Mung Bean Sprouts, Crushed Peanuts and a ton of freshly chopped Thai Basil, Cilantro and Mint. This is dressed with freshly made Nuoc Mam! Mrs. Rocky Point is a big fan.

After our lunch of "Bun" we prepared ourselves for a few weeks filled with cousins, sibling, nieces, nephews, friends of friends and daughters. At the most we were hosting 21 people here at the lodge but we were still able to keep it classy... almost.

Let us discuss the not so classy moments and just get them out of the way. Many of you have never heard of the "Taco Bag" before, but here in Rodeo country there really isn't anything like it. Those of us in the South have enjoyed in many a "Tater Tot Casserole" or "Frito Pie", but the beauty of the "Taco Bag" is that it is the invention and reflection of its maker. All right its really just a individually sized bag of Doritos's or Frito's or Tortilla Chips, name your favorite artery clogging salty snack here, lightly crushed and then topped with Chili, Cheese, Pickled Onions, Pickled Jalapenos, and Sour Cream. Don't even think of using a bowl, all the action for this tasty little meal all happens in that disposable chip bag.

Another "embarrassing but yeah..I made that" moment was the "Corn Dog Casserole". I am known as quite a utilizer of leftovers and when you have 4 Corn Dogs in the fridge from Richwines (one of the best "cook to order", locally owned drive thru's in the county) and 10 Hot dogs with their buns left from the BBQ the day before I saw it as a personal challenge. Unfortunately the result wasn't what I was expecting at all...it was utterly delicious. Believe it or not, you can add Heavy Cream, Whole Grain Mustard and diced Spring Onions to a bowl of chopped up "Dog's" and have one of the better savory Bread Puddings ever. Can you imagine the scene at your next backyard BBQ...

Lady number 1: "Who brought this?"
Lady number 2: "What...that?"
Lady number 1: "I don't know, what is that?
Lady number 3: "Why that's my famous corn dog casserole!" "Go ahead...try it, you'll like it."
(Lady number 3 tilts her head to the left, cracks her perfectly glossed lips into a smile and exposes those straight teeth while Lady number 1 & 2 devour said casserole from wilting paper plates and plastic forks, all the while nodding and shaking their heads in approval.)
End Scene. Picture of Corn Dog Casserole appears.