The holidays: Eat, get fat, and be merry

I love food and I love the holidays. Luckily both go together, so it's like extra happiness. Jason and I have neglected our foodie duties, but my only excuse was we were too busy eating. You'll see what I mean....

The weekend after Cardio (my life is broken up into 3 week blocks that coincide with exams) four of us decided to hit up the Symphony to Rachmaninov it up. Me, JLiu, Joye, and Lee. We decided to eat dinner beforehand and quite spoiled ourselves at the Porch. (www.theporchrestaurant.com) I highly recommend it:

My meatloaf with mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes. Like. Heaven.

Joye's salmon!

Lee's... ribs I think? Whatever it was, it smelled great. There was silence for about ten minutes while we stuffed our faces.. we resurfaced to have a conversation after those first ten minutes of silence.

Jason will have to post his plate later :) We also decided to go for pecan pie and s'mores for dessert. We did NOT regret that at all. The pecan pie was possible the best pecan pie I've ever had. Some people may not like pecan pie because it's too sweet, or for me, it's just way too thick AND too sweet. I usually have one bite and then I'm done with it. This pie was so light and so fluffy and just sweet enough - the pecans crumbled down once you put your fork to it. I can't wait to go back and see what else they have to offer.

Our only beef with the place - no bread! We wanted to be happily stuffed going into the Symphony... our plates were definitely big, and I was full, but I wanted to be painfully full. That's the best kind. It's like you really got your money's worth.

New opera house in Dallas!

Afterwards, we went and got chicken and waffles at Victor Tango's.. we'll go back another time and get pictures. But really, pictures don't even do this dish justice.. breaded chicken and maple syrup aren't exactly the picture perfect combination. Add in gravy and I'm thinkin this dish got assembled in my stomach instead of on the plate. But really, somehow, it WORKS! And it's wonderfully delicious. Especially after a classy dinner and classy symphony.....

Now, on to........ THANKSGIVING!

Last year we had a great gathering for Thanksgiving dinner before all of us scattered to spend the holidays with our families. Again this year, it was potluck style, and no one held anything back. Kudos to JLiu for the pristine and delicious turkey! Looks just like on the Food Network...

Annnnd the sides.. my favorite part of Thanksgiving is the sides. Better yet, my favorite part of any meal is the sides. Usually when we go out to eat, I don't have a particular craving for anything. So I look at the sides. No sides = deal breaker. (see above meat loaf.. I just wanted the mashed potatoes.. meat loaf was an added bonus)

Mashed sweet potatoes

Cranberries (I think JLiu/Queezy?)

Potatoes au gratin (JoJoyce)

Mashed potatoes

Cornbread

(me and Huay)

The cornbread was supposed to have jalapenos in it, but they were not put into my basket at Kroger :(

Sweet potato gnocchi with honey sage brown butter sauce

(me)

Onion pancakes - Jerry

(who kept complaining that they were getting soggy bc we waited too long - but they were still good!)

Mmmmmacaroni and cheese with hidden squash

-Emily!

Stuffing by me and Huay.

I took parsley, green onions, one yellow onion, and garlic, chopped it up (well Huay did that!) and sauteed it. I took a box of stuffing mix and combined it with the sauteed greens. I had some beef stock left over so I added that. I also got the turkey neck from Jason and browned it, adding water as needed (it sticks to the bottom, even with oil). Then, I.... well, Huay picked out the bits of meat from the neck and we discarded the bone. Mixed it up with one or two eggs, put it in a pan, and bake for 15-20 minutes until the top is dry. Bake around 375 degrees. Broil for a little bit if you need the top to brown.

 

Uhhh... my first plate. Which I inhaled. And went back for seconds.

A feast isn't a feast without desserts.. and desserts we had!

Pumpkin bread pudding with Cool Whip (me)

[Not gonna lie.. towards the end of the night I just took a spoon to the Cool Whip. Don't judge me.]

Kudos to Raj for the cherry pie! I don't really like pie but this was really great. Especially the shot of pure sugar right on top. No wonder I was able to stay up til 4 am...

And I don't have a picture of Joye's brownies, but I'm pretty sure those were snacked on all night.

All in all, a successful second annual Thanksgiving eat-a-thon. We had a great thanksgiving dinner at home, but definitely not as many side dishes/desserts anddd .. it was way healthier. Which is ok, I think my body needed a break.

Looking forward to the good eats for December. :) Happy Holidays!! Enjoy a holiday latte... I'm all over the pumpkin spice latte......

Eat your heart out!

Cardio block was a little nuts - and since I stayed in Cali for the first few days of it, I was scrambling to catch up. Subsequently, my cooking was to a minimum - and I went NUTS after it was done. Also, my wonderful old friend from hs (working on a decade of friendship!), Shannon Triggs, came in town to visit. We made Shepherd's pie and sugar cookies for old times sake.

But before that: State Fair!! We went to the Texas State Fair in Dallas. It was also the day of the TX/OU game AND Emily's bday! We ate:

 <-- turkey leg!

-corndog
-fried smores (same as fried cheesecake - smores were wrapped in a pastry, then fried)
-alligator 
-fried peaches (battered) and cream 

<-- fried cheesecake

<-- chicken wings (Jerry, confused as always..)

Happy Birthday Emily!! Too bad we couldn't get the candles to light.. too windy.

The crew.

If you've ever made icing, you'd understand the frustration of having leftover icing with nothing to ice. If you've got this guy around, your icing will never go to waste.

Licking the remainder of the powdered sugar from the funnel cake.

We left pleasantly plumper than we had arrived. But definitely happy.

POST-TEST EXTRAVAGANZA!

So, I always bite off more than I can chew. This menu was no exception. But when I do something, I like to go ALL out. Luckily, like I said earlier, I had the best sous chef - SHAN!!

SO pumped to be in the kitchen. And reunited!

First up - butternut squash ravioli. First time I ever made pasta:

3.5 cups of flour + 4 eggs

I made a well in the middle of the flour and slowly incorporated the eggs into the flour until it came together into a ball. I had to add a few splashes of water because it was too dry. Then I wrapped it in plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge - we took a break to go Halloween costume shopping.

Then Shepherd's pie... Rachael Ray's recipe :)

 

Fried chicken, the healthy way. In the oven. I always overplan for food... a bit much??

 That's alot of chicken. 10 pounds to be exact.

This sink got filled twice. I think we used every pot/pan/dish in my kitchen. Twice. But the final product was soo worth it!

Jason brought some delicious pasta with asparagus and pesto. You can see it in the back right. Also: Joye brought some banana bread (in the back)!

Shout out to Joye for letting me put a batch of chicken in her oven :) Best neighbor ever!!

And the finale....... Halloween sugar cookies

Love it all. The cookie recipe was from my new cookie cook book - bday gift from Shan, thanks!!!

Can't wait to have another dinner party. I think the next one is Thanksgiving wooooo!!!