Cafeoutdoors.com: More of an American Hors D'Ouvre Menu

Pretty sure I can get the recipes off my neighbour, but the neighbourhood had a happy hours of sorts tonight. If you don't mind Swampy.

California Dates wrapped in cream cheese and bacon. - new to me. I love dates, and usually eat them as is, because they are very good for you.

Pistacsios.

Baby Carrots with spinach dip.

Home made onion rings.

Deep fried gator tail. This I'd never had either, but it was fresh from Florida. I understand the tail itself is about a platter length long, with two strips of muscle on each side. Sure was tasty.

Tri-tip beef tacos is soft tortilla shells, with home made guacamole and salsa.

I can't eat like that all the time, but ALL of it was good. The neighbour who made it is a rancher from Boise, Idaho, so he knows about good meat, and his brother who is a ranger sent the gator from Florida - says they can practically take as many gators as they would like. His one tip to me was, whether it's meat or fish, to make sure they are room temperature before cooking them.

His wife also told me that she cooks pork loin by inserting cloves of garlic into it, slathering it with blackberry preserves, and then wrapping it in bacon.