Here is the first of four brunch dishes that I’d like to share with you from our New Year’s Eve Brunch. Since I wasn’t the one cooking any of these, there will only be the one picture… no preparation photos. And in some cases, as with this one, I even forgot to take the picture myself and had to ask the creator of the dish to email me the photo taken from the leftovers they brought back home – thanks for this one, Mary!  Oh, one more thing – This is my 800th Post! Wow 800!

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On Monday afternoon, I was looking through the stack of magazines that had been piling up these past few weeks. In the middle of the stack was the January issue of Bon Appétit. The first thing I spotted, down in the right corner of the cover was this-

“Set Up The Ultimate Bloody Mary Bar”  What the heck? Who knew I was so on trend?  I had just done that very thing two days before!  So I immediately opened the magazine to page 60 and saw this -

This is the “ultimate” Bloody Mary bar? I don’t think so! They have a few good ideas, some of which I had already used on my Bloody Mary bar – like beef jerky, peperoncini, garlic stuffed olives, and pickled veggies. But come on, 8 snazzy items does not make an ultimate anything! Heads up Bon Appétit… the next time you want something done ultimately, give me a call.

This is how you set up an ULTIMATE Bloody Mary Bar -

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My barrage of Christmas recipes has come to an end, time to let you know what we did for our New Year’s Eve Brunch.

I decided to host the brunch after my friends, Laura and Mary, and I were reminiscing about a fun annual Christmas cocktail party I used to host. I don’t recall why I stopped, but I’m sure it had something to do with feeling too overwhelmed and then it fell by the wayside in the following years, until it was forgotten. By the time I thought about hosting the cocktail party this year, it was too late, so I switched it to the NYE Brunch.

What made the original party unique, was that I would send out recipes to all the potential guests and they would choose a recipe (first come – first serve), make it, and bring it to the party. The concept is great because, as the host, you still have complete control over what is served and how it is set up. And as a pot-luck guest, you don’t have to “think” of what to bring.  And since you get all the recipes for every dish in advance, you don’t have to rely on someone to send you the recipe for that thing you just loved and want to make in the future. Plus, since everyone contributes, everyone feels completely invested and proud of how the party turns out.

For me, the #1 host benefit is that the RSVP’s come in, fast and furious! I sent out the email invitation with all the recipes attached at 3:00 PM on December 12th and everyone who could make it had responded by 6:00 PM the next day!  Here is what my email looked like -

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This is another of Bruce Aidells’ recipes from the December 2011 issue of Bon Appétit that I used for our Christmas dinners last week.

One important tip when roasting a whole beef tenderloin is to tuck under the tail end. Because the tenderloin narrows at one end, the thin portion must be tucked under itself and secured with a little kitchen twine, so that it will cook at the same rate as the rest of the roast.

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Welcome 2012!

Wishing you and yours a very happy, healthy, and prosperous new year!

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Happy New Year’s Eve! I offer up a toast, to you, followers of this blog. Thank you for another wonderful year and here’s to an even better 2012!

We are having a NYE Brunch today, I’ll post some recipes and pictures next week. Until then, please stay safe… and if you live in Arizona and are going out tonight, remember that AAA Arizona offers a NYE “tipsy tow” service. It is a free one-way ride and tow home, up to 10 miles, for drivers and one passenger, who have been drinking. It is open to everyone, not just AAA members. CLICK HERE to learn more!

This delicious pork roast recipe and the beef tenderloin recipe that I’ll be posting in the new year, are both from the fabulous Bruce Aidells and were featured in this month’s issue of Bon Appétit.  I did make one major and one minor adjustment to the pork recipe. Mr Aidells’ version used a double rack of pork and I used a boneless pork roast. And the original used oranges, whereas I’ve used tangerines.

Wishing you a safe and festive New Year’s Eve!

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You may recall that I used a bunch of pie pumpkins in my Thanksgiving table setting and on my kitchen island fall display. Soon after Thanksgiving, I roasted those pumpkins and froze the flesh – with the knowledge that I’d be making pumpkin soup for Christmas.

This recipe serves eight, so you will only need 2 small pumpkins, but since I had five to work with, I more than doubled the recipe.

For the garnish I used THESE sweet and spicy pepitas, but toasted pepitas (readily found at Trader Joe’s) work just as well.

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I found this recipe in an issue of Bon Appétit three or four years ago and tucked it away. When I stumbled upon it right after Thanksgiving, I knew it would be a perfect side for the pork roast I planned to serve on Christmas Eve. Not only because the flavors would compliment the pork so well, but also because I had a kabocha squash and a butternut squash laying around that I had used in my Thanksgiving table decor. I’d also used several pie pumpkins in the decor that I’d already roasted and frozen for use in a pumpkin soup I planned to serve. It is so gratifying when you can use such gorgeous vegetables twice… first to decorate and then to eat!

Just as with yesterday’s post, this dish my also be prepared a full day in advance. Assemble completely in the baking dish, cover and refrigerate, then bring to room temperature before baking.

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This is one of the two side dishes we had for Christmas Eve dinner to accompany a pork roast.  I also served a pumpkin and chipotle soup. The soup, the second side, and the pork recipes will be posted in the next couple of days, but this corn pudding was, by far, the favorite dish of the night!

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Merry Christmas

I usually post a vintage image for each holiday, but for this Christmas how, about a photo recipe? Only a photo… no actual recipe to needed.  I’ll be serving this during our appetizer happy hour today. Isn’t it pretty and perfectly festive? [Read more →]