Christmas Dinner

30 Dec

Posted by dan as Christmas, decorating, dining, fun

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Christmas Eve dinner has always been a tradition in my family that was made by reservation. Between Eli’s of Chicago to some of the fine dining chains here in Phoenix, my family was always treated out for dinner.
This year, Joy and I wanted [...]

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Spinach Dip

29 Dec

Posted by dan as appetizer, dining, fun

One of our appetizers for Christmas Eve dinner was the Spinach Dip from the 75th Anniversary Joy of Cooking. While we have no images, I believe the ingredients speak for themselves as to how delectable the dish will be.

0 Any thoughts?

Cheese plate

29 Dec

Posted by dan as appetizer, cheese, dining, experiments

Quite possibly, the easist dish to prepare was our Cheese and Crackers dish with Grapes. One of the stores Joy and I shop in the area, Fry’s, recently had a remodel. In that remodel, they introduced a section dedicated to cheeses of the world. I am not speaking about the little island in front of [...]

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My Salad Experiment

29 Dec

Posted by dan as Christmas, dining, experiments, fun, healthy, original Gourmeted recipe, salads, vegetables

One of our favorite new places to eat, Sauce, has an awesome salad: Chopped Chicken, Pine Nuts, Cherry Tomato & Gorgonzola. It was my idea to replicate that salad and its dressing. But I also wanted to make it something of my own. I did not write down anything for this recipe, so I’m going [...]

0 Any thoughts?

Hasselback Potatoes

29 Dec

Posted by dan as dining, experiments, fun, healthy, vegetables

This was the other side dish we wanted to serve with dinner. I used the word ‘was’ because everything did not go as well as expected. We wanted to make a potato dish with the beef but we did not want to make the regular mashed variety. Then one night while watching Food Network, Paula [...]

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Chocolate Crinkles for the tired Santas

27 Dec

Posted by joy as baking, chocolate, cookies

These were part of the take-home treat boxes we gave out to the “tired Santas” (a.k.a. parents and grandparents) on Christmas day. They are just one of my favorite cookies and I desperately tried to replicated them twice years ago but my efforts were futile. But didn’t they say three’s a charm? [...]

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Christmas test kitchen: Herb Crusted Fillet of Beef [Flat Iron Steak, actually]

26 Dec

Posted by dan as beef, dips and sauces, experiments

We are going be hosting dinner on Christmas Eve, and the main course will be a beef roast recipe that we took from Gourmet Magazine. Herb Filet of Beef with Tomato Confit. (recipe will follow.) We wanted to try it on ourselves before we served it as a main course on Christmas Eve. The rest [...]