24 Hours Of Christmas 2012

   
Picture this: It's Christmas morning and the kids wake up at the crack of dawn, dashing into their parents room.  Even though their parents are still asleep, they don't care!  All they want to do is go downstairs and look under the tree.  The kids bounce on the bed and try everything to wake their exhausted parents.  
Now return to reality.

On Christmas morning I didn't wake up early like these kids, I was out like a log.  I had stayed up late the night before, putting out fudge and milk for Santa, playing Wii all day with my friend Effie, and listening to my grandparents noisy friend on speaker phone when I was trying to sleep.  I had cracked. I was saying, "Who cares if Santa comes while I'm awake?  Who cares if he even comes?"  Deep in my heart I knew that I would definitely care, but I wasn't ready to tell myself that yet.  Soon I fell asleep, and if this was a cheesy Christmas story, the sugarplums would come dancing in my head right about now.  Sadly, no enchanted candy visited my dreamless sleep.  I don't think I would have gotten up if it wasn't for my dad in his Santa hat.  He barged into my room, bombarding me with early morning Ho Ho Ho's and sitting on my bed.  I reluctantly got up and donned my elf hat.

I checked on my fudge happily noting that it was all gone.  Then I moved to the milk, which hadn't been touched.   My dad shrugged, "I told you that you should have left wine for Santa."  I sighed and moved to the stockings, taking mine and Stella's.  We sat down in our playroom and opened our respective stockings.  Stella's stocking is red with a black lab stitched into it.  The stocking contained a collar, a big puffy red velvet collar with bells.  It was very classy.

I left her to inspect her new gift and try to take it off, and moved to my stocking.  There was a bear surrounded by presents worked into the material.  The stocking held many great gifts, a new grip for my tennis racket, animal butt magnets, and some not so great deodorant.  Then it was time to open the gifts underneath our wooden Jewish star tree.

 I received a gift all the way from France, a hand stitched donkey ornament to match the painting in my room.

I opened a box that contained a porcelain mask, the face had sparkly golden eye shadow and lips with a very elaborate turquoise hat.

My parents gave me an Ipad and a very cool keyboard case for it.

I acquired my very own hairdryer and curling brush.  Loads of new makeup for me to "experiment" came pouring in.  All in all, it was a very successful Christmas.  Most people would be content with their gifts and decide to sit around all day and wait for Christmas to be over, but not me.  The moment that the last present was opened it was time to start getting ready to go to my uncle's house for breakfast.  I donned my rather space age silver pants and black shirt, accenting the outfit with a red scarf and stylish Santa hat.

My parents had on rather similar color choices, so we looked like a family car full of red, silver, green, gold and black wrapping paper and tinsel.  During the long drive out to New Hall I plugged in my headphones and listened to some music.  Most of the music was purchased using my birthday gift cards, especially the six minute song that I accidentally bought.  It's a very good thing that I now like that song, or I would be a very angry Kellen.  I was jolted out of my music world a couple of times from the wet nose of Stella who was next to me in the car.  Soon we rolled to a stop and I opened my eyes to find the familiar outdoor facade of my uncle's home.  I threw open the door, grabbing the first bag that I could find from the trunk (letting Stella out in the process), then ran over to the gate.  I pulled on the little black string that pushed the gate open.  I stared into the beautiful back yard and then I was run over by two black Labradors.  In a storm of black feet, wet pink tongues, and jingling bell collars, the dogs started to wrestle playfully around the yard.

I picked myself up and fixed my toppled hat.  Once I walked through the back door I was almost run over again, but this time by relatives.  The first in line was my uncle Timmo, next my grandmother Jeanne gave me a hug, then my aunt Elisabeth, my uncle Kurt, cousin Mathew, and finally our family friend Kit.  Everyone was especially festive and gathered around the counter to catch up and chat.  I walked into the backyard and immediately saw the three black labs rounding a corner, frantic for more attention.  It was hard to pick out which was which; Tonka was like a large bear running towards me, Stella was distinguished by her fluffy collar, and finally Striker was the oldest, identified by his white beard.  I wrestled a new toy from their gaping mouths, and chucked it down into the vineyard, slinking away as soon as I could.  There was a very inviting smell coming from the barbecue and I decided to go and check it out.  My uncles were crowded around the silver grill, layering different sausages onto its hot surface.  I clapped my hands when I saw the ham (made just for me) and stepped back when the meat began to spit and sizzle with delight.

Inside, uncle Tim was cooking some breakfast sausages on the stove.

There was a big bowl of vibrant raspberries, dark blackberries, and fluorescent blue berries.

My parents had brought Rugula cookies as their contribution, which were filled with various things.  They were encrusted with granulated sugar, which made them even more enjoyable.

Tim was also tossing some scrambled eggs in their clean black pan.  The yellow yolk was consuming the white as he stirred the mixture with some milk.

 Once the entire buffet was set up, we all loaded our plates with delicious food.  The hash browns were perfectly seasoned, with just the right amount of salt.  They were also fried, not burnt, but crispy which made them a nice honey brown color.

The sausages and ham were all cooked to perfection, and I tried the ham with my meal.

 The hash browns tasted kind of sweet but also had a strong flavor of potato in them, but that it understandable considering that they are potatoes.  The ham was charred on the top and had a rather smoky taste to it.  After breakfast was finished, my brother Pat and his girlfriend Zsanett arrived.  We were trying to scold them for missing breakfast, but that didn't work because they had some really big news!  They were engaged!!!!  I was totally taken aback, and super duper happy for my brother and Zsanett!

We chatted while they ate their breakfast and the rest of us opened our presents.  My aunt Jeannie and my uncle Chris gave me a really pretty yellow striped scarf and a headband to warm my ears in cold weather.  I received a super nice Barnes and noble gift card from my grandmother, a cute handbag from my uncle Tim, and a cool tank top from my brother and his FIANCEE!  Most people would have given up at that point, being way too Christmas-ed out on Christmas.  Not me.  My parents, Stella, and I drove home to prepare for  Christmas dinner at our house that night.  My dad, still in his bright red pants, began to cook the rib.  Using his very favorite seasoning from our dear friend Dario in Panzano, Chianti Italy.  This famous butcher/chef would be proud to have my dad in what he calls "Dario Pants"( because Dario rocks those red pants), with his Dario Salt, cooking meat like Dario.

After much preparation by my parents, and much Sim playing by me, we were ready for our guests.  The first to arrive was my other brother Chris, we enjoyed the house music mash up CD I made him for Christmas.  The other guests started to roll in, and we all made our way to the den for H'orderves.  There were two types of eggnog.  The plaque for one said, "Without" and then a Christmas tree, so I guess it meant "Without Christmas Tree" and the other meant "With Christmas Tree".  I tried the "Without Christmas tree" one and I'm pretty sure that it was the right move because I didn't immediately stagger back in alcoholic overdose.

After the eggnog drinking and H'orderve eating, it was time for the main attraction. We all sat down at the very festive holiday dining table and awaited our salads.  The lettuce was very thick and multicolored, mainly green and pink, and there was melted cheese on the top.  I had chosen not to have hazelnuts sprinkled on my salad, but that is only my preference.  The salad tasted very citrus like with the dressing.

After the salad I was called to the kitchen to help serve the plates of prime rib.  I placed plates down for everyone, serving on the left and clearing on the right.  After I had finished with serving, I sat down at my own seat with my own plate.  The piece of prime rib looked juicy and rare.  It tasted perfectly tender and it went really well with the other items on the plate.  My mom just made a lovely jello mold, it had raspberry on the top and sweet cream on the bottom.  It was very good, sweet, refreshing, and I wanted to stick my hand in it because it was so wobbly.  There were also mashed potatoes that stuck together and were very sticky, creamed corn that was sweet and warm, and pop overs that could break a window.

That was my Christmas, and I wouldn't change anything about it for the world.            

Dinner with Friends

A few nights ago my family packed our wine and cheese in a bag and drove over to our friends Jeff, Julia, Paige and Sidney's house for dinner.  The adults spent the first part of the evening conversing, while the kids played fun games like laser tag and hide and seek.  A normal game of hide and seek soon turned into tag, unbeknownst to the seeker.  We played that for a while, waiting for dinner to be ready.  My mom and Julia worked in the kitchen, so we had to avoid that room.  The moms made chicken picatta.  They pounded chicken, dredged it in flour then dipped it in egg.  They finished the chicken with panko/bread crumbs. Heating the pan with hot oil came next, then cooking both sides of the chicken while adding more oil.  At the same time Julia cooked some risotto, so both of them were flipping like crazy.  The dads sat in the living room and finished off the cheese that we brought for an aperitif.  They were oblivious to the three girls running through the room being followed by Andy, their small dog with a big bark.  I caught only snatches of their conversation about wine, cheese, vineyards and all the usual dad topics.  Soon, dinner was ready and we all gathered in the kitchen to load our plates.  The chicken was a masterpiece, it was now cooled and sprinkled with a sweet and sour lemon sauce.  You could still taste the clean white meat, and the bread crumbs gave it a nice crunch.  The risotto had miraculously been compacted into risotto cakes!  The were warm and gooey, due to the wonderful cheese that had been placed in the center.  I love green beans so I put some on my plate.  The only time I've seen white green beans is when I went to their house.  The fresh green beans were sugary and split in your mouth. There were also baked cherry and heirloom tomatoes.  They were warm and filled with warm juice.

Then came dessert time, I found out that Paige, a third grader,  had made the entire dessert herself!  She made the  fragrant raspberry sauce, the velvety brownies, but not the ice cold vanilla ice cream.  The brownies were chocolaty and warm, the raspberry sauce made them taste sour and sweet.  The ice cream, which I ate separately because I'm weird that way, was also very good.  It was all amazing.  

And it is always a treat to have
1. Dinner with friends (that have kids, especially if they are my great friends)
2. If the dinner is also super good too!
3.  If I can post it on my blog!

Kudos to the G family!!

Watermelon Radish

Amazing Birthday Dinner at the New and Improved Bel Air Hotel

Yes, last night we did have a birthday dinner for my mom at the new and improved Bel-Air hotel, we enjoyed the menu created by Wolfgang Puck. We sat at a lovely and warm outdoor table to start. This table did not meet the expectations of my grandmother, so we moved inside. Inside, the table did not meet the expectations of my father who was getting very annoyed at the kitchen door banging in his ear. Finally, after two moves, we went back to the original table. My grandmother agreed to sit under the heater and my father was quite happy that there was no annoying noise in his ear. The menu was spectacular, there were so many mouthwatering options. After a long time, we each decided what we wanted. Our kind server, Lathrop, came over to get our orders for appetizers. My mother, the birthday girl, went first, ordering tuna tare- tare wrapped in cucumber with edible flowers. Then it was my grandma's turn, she had spotted a nice spring salad with watermelon radish. My grandfather, who doesn't usually like things with exotic seasoning, ordered tortellini pasta with mascarpone cheese and sweet peas. It turned out that the pasta was one of the best appetizers we ordered. My father was caught between two options, the hand cut steak crudo or the scallop sashimi. After much inner debate he chose the scallops, and I chose the fava bean soup. While we were waiting for our interesting assortment of appetizers my mother opened the birthday cards from my dad. I had already given her a card, an egg hunt. Each egg contained a note saying something I loved about her and they each had a different face. If you use that idea for mothers day or a birthday you must pay me three million dollars because its my idea. I'm joking, really! The cards were lovely, and before we could talk more, the food arrived. I didn't try grandma's salad, but she said, "This is quite good." From her, that is a huge compliment.

Spring Salad

I did try my mother's tuna tar-tar, and it was very good. The tuna tasted fresh and with cucumber it tasked cold and refreshing, the edible flowers were just icing on the cake but I ate both of them.

Tuna Tare-Tare

I tried one of my grandpa's tortellini's, and that was enough. They were very sweet, and creamy, and the peas were drowned out in the cheesy sauce.

Pea Tendril Tortellini

I did not try dad's scallop, I never eat them, something about with seeing them alive at a sushi restaurant turns me off.

Scallop Sashimi

Of course, my soup was the best (hair flip here please). It tasted a lot like regular peas, but every once in a while you would get the strong taste of olive oil. Did I mention that there was a fruity foam on the top? Well there was. There were also whole fava beans at the bottom so that you could eat them with the puree/broth. I always know the best things to get at restaurants, so take me out to dinner!

Fava Bean Soup

After we finished the appetizers we talked and commented on how good the appetizers were. During this time my grandmother paid me the biggest compliment she has ever given me, "The part in your hair is perfect!" Even if it wasn't exactly perfect, I felt very honored and patted my hair all night. While I was wallowing in pride the main courses came.

Almost Perfect Part

My father ordered lamb saddle with a topping that tasted to me like cream cheese. The meat itself was rare, and it melted in your mouth.

Lamb Saddle

My mother ordered scallop and langoustine. I only tried a small piece of shrimp, which I drowned in sauce, so I'm not sure if I liked it or not. My mother did not enjoy it, but she liked my fathers and mine.

Langoustine and Scallop

My grandma got a grandma sized piece of salmon, which was crispy because it was grilled. It also melted in my mouth. My grandpa got a hamburger, a specialty order, which I didn't try but he seemed happy with it. But, he is with almost every hamburger.

Burger with Yummy Fries

I got, the best by far, three small pieces of Dover Sole. The sole was presented with mint, spinach and sliced green beans on top and drizzled in a fava sauce. I ate the vegetables and then tried the fish. Lets just say that I valued every morsel, it was amazingly yummy.

The ABSOLUTELY SUPER BEST Dover Sole

After all that food I didn't think I could eat another bite.......of dinner that is. Yes, it was dessert time. Mother said that, "They wouldn't sing or give her a birthday dessert." They did the later of the two, they brought her absolute all time favorite thing. A COOKIE PLATTER WITH A CANDLE AND CHOCOLATE SAUCE! She was overjoyed and sampled her various cookies, one chocolate chip cookie was about to explode with chocolate. It did, right on her shirt, thankfully it rolled down, leaving her spotless. I got raspberry sorbet which tasted exactly like an actual raspberry. It was amazing but super sweet and rich, so I settled for a peanut butter cookie which was good, except it didn't taste like peanut butter.

Raspberry Sorbet

The one problem was that once the restaurant was overwhelmed with people, the service became lackadaisical. If you don't know what that word means then

a) get a dictionary

b) it means lazy and lacking, it took almost 20 minutes to get the check

Thanks

Kellen-Watermelon Radish