Feeding Famished Freshman Footballers

Got a call from a woman on the Shadow Mountain Booster Club, asking for advice on how to get dinner for the entire freshman team, plus coaches and staff (that's 65 hungry people!), before their final game of the season. She was hoping we knew of a restaurant that could offer food for free or for a deep discount, since other local restaurants had provided meals throughout the season.

She knows us from the neighborhood, and although I'm sure she didn't expect us to make the dinner ourselves, she probably heard that we are the type who think, "Someone's hungry? We gotta feed them!"

So Basil and I talked it over, decided "WE can do this!" and launched in...

Well, I say "we" liberally. Okay, I shopped, and sorted, and wrapped, and loaded, and unloaded, and served, and put away the leftovers, and washed all the dishes. Yep, that's a lot.

But Basil cooked.

Spaghetti with a home-made marinara, moist and tasty Italian meatballs, hot-buttered garlic bread made from crusty baguettes and a salad with carrots, cucumbers and tomatoes and topped with a buttermilk ranch dressing made from a jug of real buttermilk.

He also had the tasks of pre-making, pre-boiling, pre-heating, and getting everything wrapped and ready to go to the school down the street. Basil is a stickler for health-laws (that's a good thing!) and he had to be extra careful with the food temperatures, since it all was to be transported in the back of a pick-up.

We served out of the south snack bar.

Three HUGE meatballs, delicious sauce, warm garlic bread... can it get better before a game???

(Only bad thing- now they know we're suckers for feeding our boys and their friends/schoolmates/teammates.)