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......