Fresh Tart

Merry Christmas again! Last night we had our very last Christmas celebration, with Dad & Susanna and David & Etta, home from NYC. Stacey & Cooper were there too, as well as John & Nathan. And of course Jake-a-saurus (my parents' adorable spaniel). We opened presents right away, as we're learning (remembering!) that it's tough for a one-year old (Coop!) to face all that excitement post-dinner, dangerously close to bedtime. The star gift wasDida, an orphaned baby elephant that Dad & Susanna sponsored in Nathan's name through The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. Four-week old Dida had fallen into a man-made water hole, poor little sweetie, but is now healthy and settled at the orphanage with other young elephants. Nathan will receive monthly updates on Dida's progress, as well as photos of her with her caretakers. Read all about her and her lucky rescue here.

For dinner, Dad shot and Susanna prepared - I'm not kidding - Christmas goose! Not a roasted goose per se, but something rather more fabulous - a Julia Child, rustic French preparation of goose breasts over whipped potatoes and sauteed cabbage, napped with a rich, long-cooked brown sauce of onions, vermouth, and salt pork. Gorgeous, festive, and of course absolutely delicious, especially with crusty, grainy bread to wipe up every drop. Of that amazing sauce! For dessert, I made an old stand-by, cream puffs filled with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. Pretty darn tasty. (Recipe posted in comments, below.)

After lots of goodnight "kisses" for Cooper (you can tell he's tired when he starts "fuzzing" his little earlobes), and a very interesting look - on Nathan's new world map - at exactly where in Germany our family is from (Ostfriesland), we packed up our spiffy new gifts and made our way home for an early bedtime. Had to try for extra sleep because...

...tonight, we gather yet one more time, but more on that next year...

Merry Christmas Day! We spent the occasion at my Aunt Mary and Uncle Bruce's lovely farm outside Kerkhoven, Minnesota, as we have for the last several years, lucky us. As always, it was picture perfect - twinkly-sparkly festive and the definition of Christmas-y as we all sat around the gorgeous, gigantic table they set up for the holiday each year. Truly a sight to behold. We shared a toast with a delicious red prosecco, then tucked into prime rib, mashed potatoes, beets with sour cream, buttery green beans with morel mushrooms, and roasted carrots and cipollini onions. Tender challah and crusty no-knead bread (my meager contribution). And my Aunt Marge's killer creamycheese cake with strawberries. Oh yes, quite a meal!

And then, we just sat enjoying the candlelit table, in that charming old farmhouse in the country, chatting and telling stories and reading letters and verses and half-laughing, half-crying through it all. I am so very lucky to have an incredibly cool and fun extended family, my dad's sisters Marge and Mary and their families. So thanks to them, and their fabulous husbands Jim and Bruce, as well as Kim, Kelly, Jomo, Michael, Amanda, and Craig for such a great day. And to Stacey & Cooper for driving John, Nathan, and me out and back (long drive!). And to Dad, Susanna, David, and Etta for making the day complete and completely perfect.

And oh! We feasted the night before as well, of course, Christmas Eve. Stacey, Cooper, Bowen, and my mom were here for gifts and a big fire and a quiet, simple dinner. The crab cakes and Julia Child's chocolate mousse were big hits (recipe for mousse posted in comments, below).

So. I can't decided if it's going to be a great relief or incredibly disappointing to return to Normal Eating. Probably a little of both. I'll let you know when I get there, cuz it sure ain't yet!

And oh again! Because it's adorable, and I'm perfectly unashamed to spice up my food-obsessed blog with a bit of Cooper Cuteness, here's a little video clip, below... Merry Christmas Auntie Etta!

Caviar, caviar, caviar, oooooh, caviar, yay! Merry Christmas to me, tee hee! John and I took the opportunity, with the few hours alone we have this holiday, to indulge in the caviar he gave me for Christmas, with toast points, sour cream, sieved egg, and chopped sweet onion, washed down with lovely Veuve Cliquot champagne. Oh dear, I fret only because how can anything else possibly compare to such romantic decadence? I even thought about making blini, for a perfect Dr. Zhivago-esque experience, but man, too much work. Someday, someday, but with making a big dinner tonight, and baking a couple of loaves of bread for tomorrow, it would be more work than fun, so...buttery toast points instead of blini, hardly a sacrifice, ha.

I won't be posting tomorrow, so consider this my online Christmas card to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Here's to happy time with family, safe travels, tasty food, and fine drink.

My best to you all, with love, Stephanie

Silver bells, silver lights, let it snow and snow and snow! Yes, it's cold and blustery, but oh my goodness it's beautiful out there, truly a winter wonderland. John and I and both kids celebrated the frosty fabulousness with dinner at Ciao Bella - pizza, risotto, lasagna, salad, calamari, tiramisu, salmon - basically, a tour through their entire menu, ha.

Afterward, full and bundled up (and thankful for all-wheel drive), Nathan and I set out for a tour of a different sort, a Christmas-light tour, first checking out displays we looked up in the newspaper, then ending with simple drives through some of our favorite neighborhoods. I'm such a sucker for the big light displays, and every neighborhood looks perfect and Christmas-y under a blanket of soft, fluffy snow, lit by a full moon no less, warmly cold, silver and gold. Having ourselves a Merry Little Christmas indeed.

Tomorrow, stay tuned for late-morning Christmas caviar on toast points for John and me (one of my presents, nice!), then roast chicken and vegetables with stuffing and pan juices, crab cakes, and chocolate mousse and lefse for Mom, Stacey, Cooper, and Bowen for Christmas Eve dinner.

Thank goodness we'll be opening some presents, I'll be needing the exercise, whew.

Oh, I am so glowing after my neighborhood's holiday Afterglow Party - shield your eyes, baby, I'm bright, bright, bright. OK, maybe I'm just emitting uber-tiredness, since it's 1:30 a.m.(!), but hey, I wasn't the last one to leave, so I'm kinda proud. And, oh, tired.

I totally missed out on my neighbor Kasey's yummy-sounding appetizer - crisp bread with chives, ricotta, and prosciutto - so maybe I can snag the recipe from her, since they were obviously scrumpers and disappeared in a flash. The whole setting - generously hosted by Matt & Melinda Pfohl - was truly holiday gorgeous. Great food, lovely home, fine drink, a couple of roaring fires, good friends - what else could one want? Nothin' but a soft bed to fall into at the end of the night. And so...

Santa came a little early for Nathan AND John and me. Yesterday, with Nathan spending the day with his dad's family, my Johnny and I had a romantic, wintery dinnner-and-a-movie holiday date. Movie first, the new Bond flick Casino Royale. What a totally raucous, sexy, clever, action-packed blast! (And nice blue eyes, James...)

Then on to dinner at the highly regarded Bayport Cookery, in pretty little Bayport, Minnesota, just-south of Stillwater on the St. Croix river. I'd not been there before and that's a damn shame, because it is extraordinary. Cozy and gorgeous, we were seated in front of a (real!) roaring fire in the beautiful Mission-style dining room. We opted for the 5-course dinner (choices are 9-, 5-, and 3-course) with wine pairings...truly outstanding. Opened with silky chestnut soup garnished with black truffles. On to grilled swordfish over braised saffron lentils. Then rosy pork tenderloin over creamy risotto with a few drops of garnet-red cherry port sauce. And then the "main course" of New York strip alongside a slice of crispy potato galette and garnished with bordelaise and a smidge of fresh crabmeat. I opted for the cheese course for dessert - raw milk manchego served with a tiny, warm, phyllo-wrapped fig. John chose - of course - the chocolate grand marnier creme brulee and loved it. At just a few special bites each, the courses were perfectly proportioned and we left feeling satisfied, not ill (novel thought in a restaurant these days, sadly). The service was friendly and top-notch. The pairing wines were thoughtfully chosen and delightful. In sum, we enjoyed a gorgeous, romantic night and a lovely way to ease into Christmas...

...which we kicked off this morning, allowing Nathan to open his Santa gifts (as I said, Santa came a bit early to this house since Nathan won't be here tomorrow morn). I baked Mom's Sour Cream Coffee Cake, dividing the batter between a pan of mini-muffins (for us) and a couple of small loaves (for Stace and my aunt Mary). Even ol' Sigs got in on the action! He's been pretty busy this year, celebrating his 15th Hanukkah/Christmas holiday season by knocking ornaments off the tree with his wagging tail, snagging hors d'oeuvres off party-guests' plates, and hosting a playdate (of sorts) with Digby. Rooooo!

And oh! I can't forget to say how much fun I had at dinner Thursday night with Suz, her Cousin Ann, and Kim at Salut Bar Americain! We had our pommes frites, as promised, and they rocked - of course! Bearnaise dipping-sauce could make damn near anything taste good, mmmm. (I think I'd eat cold pommes frites off a dirty floor if I had Bearnaise sauce alongside, ha.) I also opened with a couple of delicious raw oysters, followed by a yummy salad. I've certainly had my share of delicious holiday meals - and it's not technically even Christmas yet!

So another tonight - as I said earlier, beef stroganoff for John, Nathan, and me. And then tomorrow out to Mary and Bruce's for more family and feasting - NICE!

And although it's a day late - Happy Birthday Kathie!!!

As the year draws to a close, I want to say a great big thanks, my friends, for reading my blog and trying my recipes - it all makes me feel great! I am so grateful for the blessings of family, friends, health, and abundance. I hope you're having a lovely, peaceful holiday season! My best wishes to you and your families!