Indeed, the party was a huge success. It was our second group effort to make a more involved, labor-intensive dish and it was wonderful. We had a variety of tamal fillings, a delicious side dish of black beans, and a homemade tres leches cake. Everyone helped stuff and wrap tamales and while there was some talk of coding them so we could find the fillings we wanted, we threw caution to the wind! And made unlabeled tamales! Upon opening them, we swapped to get the ones we wanted and it was delightful.
It is going to be hard to leave the amazing group of friends we've cultivated here. The book groups, lunches, parties have been so enjoyable. I know we've got a lot to look forward to and I hope our new home becomes a place for friends (and family) to gather for fun events but for now, I'm soaking up as much of the IL crowd as I can.
*"Tamal" is the singular of "tamales," not "tamale." Just for the record :)
