Special Delivery at Tour de Hurley

When Patrick Hurley reluctantly signed up for Tour de Kitchens we knew that April 25th was going to be filled with fine cuisine as he aptly noted the main course next to his name on the roster - Healthy Choice. Ashley and I were taking bets on the menu in route as Patrick was setting the bar for the rest of the single men on TDK. Ashley predicted Brixx while I was holding out for 131 Main. After passing these infamous locales on East Blvd, we quickly reached our destination only to find that Mr. Hurley had mislead us by forgetting a digit in his address (the intentions behind which are still to be discovered). This kept us wandering through the parking lot working up an appetite for our meal. But lucky for us a kind stranger came to our rescue and agreed to accompany us on the rest of our journey as he too was looking for the Hurley residence.


In case you are still wondering who our new friend is, here's another shot:


As old friends met new friends, Patrick rescued us and the pizza from the delivery man and escorted us inside only to announce that he had a surprise for us. We wondered what would be delivered next, but as we rounded the kitchen much to our delight we were greeted by Brett and Anna McDonough!


Not to be outdone by Papa Johns, Patrick did prepare a homemade appetizer; an original creation he likes to call salad tacos, not to be confused with taco salads. (Note how the lettuce folds like a taco shell. Also not to be confused with lettuce wraps. Its so hard to come up with an original dish these days!)


The taco seasoning was complemented by chipotle pepper hummus and jalapeno hummus served with table water crackers.


To prove that he "cooked" something, Iron Chef Hurley displayed his finest chopping, warming, and plating skills.


Patrick didn't dare stop there as he channeled his inner restaurateur and created a unique ambiance complete with green and gold flung afar and a vintage vanilla candle waiting four years for its debut.


The large veggie and Hawaiian with jalapenos pizzas hit the spot as we settled into the dining room to enjoy the company and the bottles of La Crema Pinot Noir and Trader Joes Tempranillo. The McDonoughs were vying for any opportunity to add points to the Mexican Surf and Turf tally and suckered Patrick into letting them bring dessert. The Heath bar and Chocolate Chip cupcakes with salted caramel icing were delish with Patrick's addition of chocolate sorbet with strawberries and organic dark chocolate.


We're still deciding who gets points for the dessert, but Patrick gets extra points for being a good sport!