Stefferdoos

Soft boiled egg on buttered toast with salt and pepper.

Thanks K8. I have to really thank my mom though for giving me the best Christmas present ever. Unexpectedly she and my dad showed up the morning of Christmas Eve and pitched in with a lot of the cleanup. My office is clean and organized for the first time since I moved into the house. I did begin to lose it a few times during yesterday but I always tend to start to freak when people invade my kitchen space. Especially when people just started piling stuff in the kitchen as they walked in the door because it was the first room they hit if they came in through the garage rather than the front door. Oh boy and do my feet and legs kill after having spent two days on them on a hardwood kitchen floor. I may have to surrender and get some Crocs for next year. I hate their looks and believe the whole plant that makes them should burn in flames but boy are they comfy.

Here's the link to my album of pics from the Holiday dinner. I missed getting photos of a few of the dishes and my darn pictures loaded in reverse order so you'll be seeing dessert first. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=mo...lbum&album=5536

I like the clothespin/clothesline idea for the spice packets. I've got all sorts of those little Cello bags open in my pantry but they are just shoved up in that basket hanging from the top shelf. I might actually remember to use them before buying more if I could see them the way JEL can in his pantry.

Post em!! I'm so nosy. I must know!!

Pax, no need to worry about me possibly having OCD tendencies. I couldn't be further from the case. I saw that special on 20/20 years ago with Marc Somers and his OCD and I can't imagine the self torture a person goes through with that. I'm just a messy slacker that needs to clean up her crap before the relatives come over. One Person + Big House + Lots of Time on the Road + Long Haired Cat = Lots of untended messes to clean up The cat is the main reason for the carpet shampooing btw, it seems to be the only tool I can find that sufficiently gets his hair out of the carpet. Maybe I need a Dyson? And then locating all his barfballs before my 8 month old nephew finds them while he's crawling about and sticks one in his mouth. That's what concerns me more than anything. My family knows I'm a slob. But if a gathering can't get me to clean my house, what will?

I had a Senseo that I bought back in 2005 but last year switched to the Tassimo. Bed Bath and Beyond stocks the Gevalia pods for coffee, espresso, lattes & cappucinos along with the Sucard Hot Chocolate. I haven't gone back to check to see if they've added Tassimo to their subscription programs yet. Last year about this time they had just added the Senseo pods to a subscription program. I'm not a big fan of the lattes & cappucinos as the milk pods are shelf stable milk and its got a bit of a sticky mouthfeel to it. But I run through about one package of the Gevalia Crema coffee each week. I'm not a fan at all of that other system the Keurig (or however its spelled). One of my clients has it at their office and I just find no matter what roast I use it all comes out watery and they use the Green Mountain pods for theirs. And I've never found Green Mountain to be a bad product so I think its just the machine that's at issue here.

yah, that's just the schedule to get them in the oven. I did a test run of the Timpano this weekend and froze a batch of sauce and meatballs (which reminds me I need to add the defrosting of that to the to-do list) afterwards so that portion wont need to be done. Contrary to how its portrayed in the movie, the actual assemblage and cooking of the sucker is pretty quick. It took me longer to make the sauce and meatballs. Any of the items with someone else's name to them are being brought. Everything I'm making is a time tested recipe. Only 4 things in the oven and two are small and all vessels will fit and the temperature between them all is just fine. Only two stove top items. None of the appetizers need cooking. And I have warmers for anything being brought by someone else that needs to stay warm. Thanks for the reminder to do my mis for the potato dishes well before hand. I have two refrigerators so leaving the presliced potatoes in one of them in a bowl of acidulated water won't be a problem. I could probably make the sweet potato dish the night before and just reheat. Its one of those ones that gets better with age on it. I'll also likely have my dad and mom pitching in to help if I need it when it comes down to the wire but usually at that point I just want everyone out of my way when the pans start moving. Talk to the guests? Its my family, we're Italian-American, we just yell across the house at each other. It will be loud, we will be full, there won't be tears except maybe the baby, and hopefully I can kick some butt at Guitar Hero after dinner. As for the "cooking wine" suggestions from others... I've got two bottles of Vueve at the ready. If its too early and anyone comments, I'll throw in some OJ and tell them its just a Mimosa. Certain cleaning really can't be avoided, like the mopping and polishing the silver. With all the snow we've had here I've got water spots all over the floor. Plus my 8 month old nephew "Crash" will be flying about on his little baby buggy thing. I could likely just clean my office by stacking things up in neat little piles and hiding some in the closet. I've just never finished unpacking all my stuff in there so its a disorganized mess with about 8 months of un-filed bills just sitting around with little "pd" notations on them. I usually find places to cut corners while I'm cleaning because after the first bathroom I'm ready to give up. I keep telling myself I need to find a cleaning crew to take care of the house for me while I'm on the road all the time. This is why I fall so behind in cleaning, the two or three days a week I'm typically at home I'd rather not spend dusting and mopping. I'll clean it this time but I'll make a New Year's "resolution" to hire someone to do it from here on out.

Yes, yes and yes. I made chocolate chip M&M cookies today and those were the leftover chips. There were no leftover M&Ms All manner of hot sauces besides the Sirachi there. Should be a bottle of Choula (sp?) and Frank's Red Hot too. btw - some of the more offensive items people might find I will confess that some are mine. Others are leftover from when I let my sister and her family live in the house after they sold theirs and I was on the road. Like that spray "butter". Totally not mine. She's a diet freak and Weight Watchers tells her that a squirt of spray fake butter is free so I have to keep that around. I wish they could do that with real butter. Its handy for corn on the cob to be sure. However the two pounds of regular butter on that shelf and the canned Kimchi & Special K bars in the pantry are totally mine. I also seem to have about 5 bottles of rice wine vinegar. I think every time I cook Chinese I think that I ran out and buy a new bottle of the stuff.

What's in yours? I was just cleaning mine out and thought this would be an interesting show and tell topic much like the receipt thing. Who of us isn't curious what's in everyone else's refrigerators and cupboards? Now I'm off to go make dinner with that sad little porkchop you see on my counter.

Hot Dogs too. I had a friend that was a strict vegetarian except for ball games. Then she had to have a hot dog. Her roomate also a veg, does lobster once a year at Thanksgiving as a half way point between Turkey and Tofu I guess. Maybe start them off with Bacon Salt to get that smokey goodness craving going.

I had to laugh at this one because its very likely you bought that on ebay from my mother. She frequently buys up piles of books and the dollar store and then resells them on e-bay. She gifted that cookbook to me as well and I haven't cooked a darn thing from it either. Incidentally, I did give my mother the White Trash Cookbook mentioned in a post earlier and I think the tater tot casserole has been made once or twice. As far as cookbooks besides the MASH one I likely wont ever cook from is the bread baking cookbook from the LaBrea Bakery. I can't seem to make a starter without killing it a few days in from forgetting to feed it. Good thing I don't have kids.

I really need to clean upstairs though. Its been ignored too long to the point of being embarrassing (like fraternity house levels in my office and bedroom mainly minus the beer cans). As far as remembering to feed myself. I figure there will be plenty of "tasting" happening during the cooking process. Also since we are doing the immediate family (me, my mom, dad, sis, brother in law and nephews) gift opening in the morning at my house there will be all sorts of breakfast goodies to nosh on (mostly I am looking forward to the Danish Kringle from that bakery in Racine, WI that my parents mail order every year).

They came for an inspection luncheon back in July after I bought the house actually. Yes we are Italians and they are all Catholic but my parents and my sister and I are Lutheran (dad was Cath mom was Methodist so they compromised at Lutheran - or "Half-Cath" as I call it). I'm actually seeing the cooking part and the prep in the kitchen as all fun. Its the cleaning I'm not looking forward to. Especially my office.

...with my sanity intact. I'm a list person. I can't get stuff done without lists or something always gets forgotten. Since I've just recently moved back to my hometown and bought a house here I've taken over Christmas as it was getting far to crowded at my Aunt's house and her age isn't letting her do the big Christmas anymore with relative ease. So I've got a battleplan starting with the menu, then my grocery list, then my actual schedule to get crap done. Help me find the holes in this ship before it sinks. I don't think I could live the the loads of Italian guilt that will be heaped upon me if this fails. (For the record I am still getting guilt trips over a stunt I pulled back in 1990 when I was a freshman in college) Christmas Menu Deviled Eggs (Heather) Shrimp Cocktail Cheese & Meat Tray Dill Dip in Pumpernickel Boat Crudite Stuffed Mushrooms (Dad) Timpano Antipasta (Aunt Pat) Prime Rib Green Beans (Grandma) Potato Gratin Buttered Peas Sweet Potato Casserole Spinach Orzo Rolls (Grandma) Cannoli Cheescake Pitzeles (Aunt Pat) Cookies (Me & Chris) Coconut Cream Pie (Liz) Dessert from Ross Apple Pie Fruit I'll spare you all the grocery list but I'll share the receipt later on the receipts thread. Battleplan TO DO LIST FROM HELL Thursday Grocery Shopping Finish Christmas Shopping Friday Clean Office Laundry Iron Tablecloths & Napkins Saturday & Sunday Wrap Presents Finish Polishing Silver!!!! Basement Level Dust Family Room Dust Barroom 1st Floor Clean Bathroom Dust Living Room Dust Dining Room Dust Kitchen Dust Sunroom & Get rid of dead plants 2nd Floor Clean Guest Bath Clean Master Bath Clean Master Bedroom Clean Spare Bedroom Change Litter Mop Vacuum Shampoo Carpets upstairs Christmas Eve Pick up Prime Rib Order Frost Cookies Cut Crudite Make Dips Make Cheesecake Make Apple Pie Make Fillings for Cannoli Christmas Day AM Defrost Shrimp Make Cocktail Sauce Shell and blanch peas Open Christmas Presents!! Noon to 1PM Prime Rib Potato Gratin Timpano Sweet Potatoes By 2PM Fill Candy Dishes Assemble Crudite Dill Dip & Pumpernickel Boat Shrimp Cocktail Platter Meat & Cheese Tray By 3PM Gravy and Jus Spinach Orzo Finish Peas DINNER OPEN MORE PRESENTS!! DESSERT COMA Also, feel free to use this thread to discuss all manner of holiday event planning.

Hm. I've never gotten questions at Wegman's, but then again I'm also careful to always weigh and tag my produce in the produce section so it just needs to be scanned. Our local Price Chopper, OTOH, is getting worse by the day. Not long ago, a checker actually had to ask, "Broccoli or cauliflower?" MelissaH ← Melissa, I just noticed your from Oswego. Do you miss the Tops that was once where your Price Chopper is now as much as I miss mine? Its more or less the same but I really miss the old Tops brand Potato Chips. Edited to say I'm going out tomorrow to do my Christmas dinner shopping and I'll share my receipt with you all then. I'm feeding 18 people so I expect it to be a whopper.

Ooh, thanks for the new recommendation. I have a hard time finding places around Syracuse on the net. Not really any good sites out there like I had back when I lived in Boston. And getting recommendations from my family around here for anything new is impossible as a lifetime of living here has pretty much gotten them into very specific eating patterns.

Hoping for Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse but thank you. ← Tokyo Seoul on Erie Blvd in Syracuse is one of the only places in Syracuse to get Korean. The restaurant, as the name implies is both Japanese and Korean and its divided into 3 sections. One for the big show Teppanyaki style dining, another for a sushi bar and the last section is the Korean BBQ area. My mother and I did the Korean BBQ while we were there (she's never had Korean before so I figured it was a way to get her to dip her toe in). I haven't been back since as I'm out of town most of the time but I'd like to go back to see how their Bibimbap and some of their Korean stews are.

Oh wow, I couldn't agree more on Joanne Weir. Its like one of the ladies from Delicious Dish on Saturday Night Live got a TV show. If I want California Wine Country cooking, I'll watch Michael Chiarello instead. Another personality on TV that just doesn't translate well for me is Mary Ann Esposito. Not sure why, but she just grates for me. Of the current TV chefs I'd say yes to Mario, Lidia, Michael Chiarello and that's about it. Other than that its old episodes of Jacques and Julia for me. Separately or together. Also, add me to the list for the people that don't understand all the hate for Emeril. He may be annoying but his Essence of Emeril was one of the first shows besides Two Hot Tamales that got me hooked on the Food Network in its early days and started a lifelong cookbook addiction for me.

Jamie Lee, make a game out of it at the checkout. I look at the cashier and try to figure out which ones they won't know. It astonishes me how few kids these days seem to know what a fresh vegetable looks like. Doesn't happen as much at Whole Foods as it does at the standard grocery chains, even Wegmans.

In 2008, I will eat less Adirondacks High Peaks Ice Cream with Hot Fudge Sauce I will make a terrine (or two or three) I will find a Turkish restaurant in my area or at last resort at least find a middle-eastern one I will learn to make sausage I will teach my nephew how to make soup I will read all the cookbooks and other cooking related books I asked for at Christmas

Great thread Marlene!! This reminded my of the time about 5 years ago my friend Becki and I decided to go camping in Acadia National Park. We used to camp all the time with her parents when we were younger and figured it would be fun. So there we were about 20 years from the time we'd last camped together and loaded my car up with my idea of camping equipment. The standard stuff: tent, portable grill, flashlights, air mattress... and then I had to go get all "city girl" on her and packed my french press, all my knives and about 10 pieces of my All Clad. She cut me down to two pans and one knife to save on space in the car. But I did manage to wrestle in my citronella votive candles so the roll up coffee table I packed would look pretty. I don't remember cooking many dinners on that trip. We chose to go out to eat at the different places around Bar Harbor. But I swear that trip I made the best French Toast I have ever made every morning for breakfast along with killer coffee in the french press