suzilightning

we celebrated our christmas last night and i got from john a bottle of veuve clicqot ponsardin, a bottle of nicolas feuillatte brut, a set of 3 cutting boards for our condo down the shore, a thin cutting board for this house, 2 cork backed place mats with a cool wine bottle motif, a neat piece of pottery from the kongsberg jazz fest by hanne englunds and still to come a wooden wine rack for the basement. i also received a small thank you of some truffles from a fellow egulleter out of which john promptly ate the dark ones

new years eve is when john and i celebrate our christmas so it is champagne and opening the stockings in the late afternoon. we are going to do a cheese plate to have during this time. dinner will be a shrimp cocktail, filet mignon with a mushroom port sauce, roasted white and sweet potatoes, and a salad of winter greens. dessert will be chocolate mousse and more champagne - maybe in the jacuzzi if it isn't raining. new years day looks to be good weather so we will be out early to bird. i'll take cinnamon rolls and thin slice the filet to make sandwiches. i'm making some bean salad as well as a large thermos of coffee. when we get home we will have the other half of the capon from christmas, dressing, some wild and brown rice with broccoli. have a 2003 eroica (not erotica like john kept calling it at the dinner)to chill.

braised short rib raviolis at the eg wine dinner at an american grill

new years eve is when john and i celebrate our christmas so it is champagne and opening the stockings in the late afternoon. we are going to do a cheese plate to have during this time. dinner will be a shrimp cocktail, filet mignon with a mushroom port sauce, roasted white and sweet potatoes, and a salad of winter greens. dessert will be chocolate mousse and more champagne - maybe in the jacuzzi if it isn't raining. new years day looks to be good weather so we will be out early to bird. i'll take cinnamon rolls and thin slice the filet to make sandwiches. i'm making some bean salad as well as a large thermos of coffee. when we get home we will have the other half of the capon from christmas, dressing, some wild and brown rice with broccoli. have a 2003 eroica to chill.

i ordered a capon about the same size but had my butcher cut it in half. roasted just half for christmas day and it was done in just about 2 hours at 325F. this gave me plenty of time to let it rest and degrease the pan drippings for gravy. will do the other half new years day....

from a dear friend and johnnybird's family we have gotten: a dried fruit and nut basket a bottle of Taylor Brut and 4 flutes assorted bags of lindt's truffles maple sugar candy for john a small casserole dish decorated with cherries 3 sets of recipe cards <YEAH - i was almost out> a decorated vinegar bottle 2 year subscription to Intermezzo wine bottle night light gift card to linen's 'n things - i need either a new blender or a dutch oven john and i don't celebrate our christmas until new year's eve so i have no idea what he will be getting me. he is getting a bottle of 150 year old grand marnier edited to add the box from french feast has arrived(about 2 1/2 weeks late) so there are: a package of black winter truffles dried morels dried ceps dried chanterelles dried mixed forest mushrooms a bottle of verjus fleur de sel de guerande i see the makings of new year's eve dinner and new year's day in this

Francesca's (waits for the smack in the head from suzi) SMACK [size=1so when are you bringing pott's dogs?

oh...oh...oh..... how could i forget martini beach in cape may?? (sorry karin)

john tells me the sweet and sour meatballs went quite quickly. someone else brought meatballs in tomato sauce and were left with most of them when the party cleared out. we had a local restaurant cater it - ziti, chicken francaise, an italian meat platter,eggplant rolitini, stuffed mushrooms, bread. had some of the ziti and chicken for lunch today(didn't make it for the party). it was ok but i miss the days when we would meet up at someone's house and all bring appetizers or desserts and have a graze.

rosie- la dolce vita moved to rt 15 wharton next to shoprite about a year ago. it had been on 46 in dover for years. byo which you will like. white cloth red sauce place with good portions and reliable italian/american food. really good lasagna made with fresh pasta and fresh tomato sauce which i really love.for me if i'm not going to make it this is where i go - much better than charlotte's web down the street. warehouse has become my standby place to grab a burger or steak sandwich. a neighborhood joint where i feel comfortable popping in by myself. good grill man here.

definitely An American Grill Zoe's by the Lake La Dolce Vita, Wharton Warehouse Grille, Jefferson Cloves, Mount Olive East Cafe, outer part of Rockaway Mall and of course the Kitchen at 31 Croft

well, if you're cooking southern-ish food and you have a deep fryer there is only one thing to do: corn dogs here's a recipe: http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/corndogs.htm

no kids but i loved blue cheese as a toddler. my afternoon snack would be two ritz crackers smeared with it. also grew up eating game in all forms. i remember for my 8th birthday i wanted to go to this french restaurant in east hampton and have frogs legs for dinner and that was my birthday present from my grandfather. ohhhhh.... and lima beans, i adore lima beans. then there was my sister who would only eat campbells' chicken noodle soup or peach jam sandwiches and would not touch mashed potatoes.

leftover meat hash, scrambled eggs and hashbrowns tea breads(cinnamon raisin, cranberrry orange, banana nut) that you cut, toast and serve with flavored butter or cream cheese denver or western sandwich - ham, peppers and onions on toast yoghurt and fruit or cottage cheese and fruit - i've been having vanilla soy yoghurt with orange or cottage cheese with pineapple lately breakfast wraps toad in the hole - i'm going to be making this for johnnybird one day when we are both off the next two weeks french toast with bacon and real maple syrup cream of rice cereal made with milk and topped with real maple syrup - this is actually what john will eat as a snack late at night damn. i ate at 430 and now i'm craving that western sandwich with ketchip and miracle whip

well, i'm batting zero. didn't get into either city. but i did eat at An American Grill three times

since lunch was a retirement luncheon for john's departmental secretary(feh - vile banquet food) and then i prepped his contribution to the department's christmas party(sweet and sour meatballs) dinner was easy and quick - red lentil soup with black olive caviar, sauteed bok choy with garlic and whole wheat rolls with asiago cheese spread. beverage was a mix of french lemonade and brut sparkling wine for john - iced tea for me... the next two days are leftovers - soup, mac and cheese and ziti with meatballs and turkey sausage. the next day i will probably cook is friday - it depends on how i feel after i hear about my 18 year old cat's prognosis from aspiration and biopsy... i bet it will be catch as catch can for john

well, this year's contribution to john's office party on thursday will be the sweet and sour meatballs. john was just going to give them the 10.00 but then changed his mind and asked me to do these so he is sure of being able to have something to eat.

well, on christmas eve and christmas day we will be in poughkeepsie. i'm roasting a capon, mil is heating up canned sweet potatoes <sigh>. christmas eve will probably be a repeat of last year - ham, frozen cooked shrimp, stouffers macaroni and cheese and stouffers vegetarian lasagna. i asked her if she wanted me to do veggies and she said she didn't think we needed them... our office party is being catered next tuesday by a local restaurant here in sparta, carafello's. will let you know how it is. johnnybird's office party is tuesday - it's pot luck and he asked me to do sweet and sour meatballs so he will be sure of at least something he can eat.

ok- do you know how many fourth graders i have had to steer to an "ethnic food" from their heritage for the last 20+ years? do they care? do they actually cook/bake it? do they give a rat's ass? sorry the december cynicism is creeping- er flowing in. rachel is spot on on the chili sauce. the dish is fun, interesting flavors and relatively inexpensive. for some reason it appeals to all. another collegue does hers with jack daniels bbq sauce, grape jelly and cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. it freakin' disappears.

neuveu tater tot casserole? ducks from incoming

As I mentioned earlier in the thread, I visit the Long Island Wineries once each summer. I've probably been to three-quarters of the wineries at one time or another but I've gotten into a bit of a rut with Bedell, Pelligrini, Palmer and Lenz as the ones I hit first. try Paumanok, Pugliese and Osprey's Dominion. pugliese makes a wicked blanc de noir "nature" with no dosage. light salmon colored and a great dry finish. the blanc de blanc brut is good, too. we have had osprey's dominion fume blanc and johannesberg riesling and enjoyed them.

That hot dog and jelly w/ chile sauce is really ringing my bell. I wonder if I could cube up some SPAM instead of the hot dogs...or I could be really bad and make a cresent roll with Spam, mayo and whole fruit cranberry sauce...muwahahaha! why not make both? the hot dogs and the spam roll. sounds like the people you work with deserve them. of course you are nice - just have almost a perverted sense of food fun as we do.

wow i never heard of this version. i usually do lil smokies with currant jelly and spicy mustard sauce. ← Interesting. So do you just cut up the hot dogs and cook them in jelly? Sounds tasty. That salty sweet combo thing going on there. Never heard of it before now! Hmm...please provide details! (I work with Ally McBeal types...I'd get my jollies bringing this in!!!) ← here's a link. the first time i ever had these was at my going away party at texarkana public library - in 1983!! http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,191,159190-233201,00.html

However, I work with people who make rude comments at the smell of black bean sauce... (Screw it, I'll bring in some durian. ) love it!! though you do need to hang out with a higher class of food person - like librarians john is an engineer and they are the worst when it comes to this kind of thing. one of his bosses one year brought a loaf of wonder bread for the sandwiches - the giant economy size no less. over the years i have sent in: deviled eggs german potato salad hot dogs in the grape jelly & chili sauce(these lasted about 1/2 hour and at least three guys asked for the recipe to give to their wives) swedish meatballs sweet and sour meatballs pigs in a blanket stuffed mushrooms spinach salad with a honey mustard vinaigrette good luck!!