Beans, Bullets and Canapés, Feeding a Fighter Pilot and a Few Other Boys and Girls

Twenty-six years, 3 months, 18 days, 7 hours and 52 minutes in uniform. But nobody’s counting. Seventeen assignments, eighteen moves, four cats, two kids, no birds or fish, and a lot of friends later, we began calling Marietta, Georgia home (6½ miles due west of the Big Chicken to be precise). It’s also kind of scary. We never had to paint walls before, we just packed up everything we had and moved across country to a different house!
But everywhere we went, we had to eat, so this is more of a cookbook than it is a travelogue. Spending over a quarter century traveling the world, we just HAD to include some stories for you to enjoy. While many of these are rib tickling, none are intended to criticize the most powerful Air Force in the world, or the proud men and women who continue to serve. To the contrary, we hope to praise them in the highest regard, for we’ve been there and know what it takes. “Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt!”
Throughout our travels around the world, we were always intent on building traditions that solidified our family life wherever we were stationed. Thanksgiving dinner always included that special turkey dressing that everyone looked forward to. New Year’s Day brunch always included a Shrimp Creole casserole, and Easter Leg of Lamb isn’t complete without mint jelly (often homemade).
Our travels to distant lands also gave us the opportunity to try new foods and challenge ourselves to duplicate them in our own kitchen. Our many successes were often punctuated with memorable disasters, but perseverance and return visits often did the trick.
So, simply put, this work is dedicated to the people in our lives who have inspired us the most: our family and close friends who have helped along the way, put up with our challenges, and encouraged us throughout. We love you all.
Tony & Marti Giacobe

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