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Christmas Scenes: Trees, Tables, Holiday Menus and a Tale of Traditions

Mary + Nick’s Tree, Boat Parade Party 2012

I’ve enjoyed seeing everyone’s postings on facebook the last few days with photos of families beside gaily decorated trees and enjoying holiday meals. It’s such a happy time of year. Full of traditions and memory-making moments.

Our season starts with the Boat Parade Party the first weekend in December and the festivities don’t end until my birthday early January. A month long of family celebrations … 6 weeks if you count Thanksgiving! And I do. Continue Reading

Green Bean Casserole Makeover: It’s Italian, contemporary and it has fried spaghetti!

The ‘green bean casserole’ was created in 1955 by the Campbell Soup Company and has been a Thanksgiving favorite on a gazillion tables across America for more than 50 years!

This one is a makeover. It’s Italian. It’s lighter. And, it’s contemporary. This is an ‘instead of” recipe.  Continue Reading

A Really Good Dressing for Slaws and Sandwiches

Short Post: It started as a dressing for slaw and then I realized it made a really good sandwich spread too. Continue Reading

The Marriage of Broccoli Rabe and Beans

You know you’re Italian if you grew up eating broccoli rabe and beans. We ate it as a soupy dish and dunked bread in the bowl. Any liquid that was left, we slurped. Oh, yes we did. We also ate it as a side dish (usually with sausage) and, of course, we ate it with pasta!

Broccoli rabe and beans (cannellini or garbanzo a/k/a chick peas, ceci beans) are a perfect marriage. But, like any wedding party, they need some loving attendants to walk them up the aisle: garlic, chicken broth, olive oil, onion or leeks, carrot, tomato. Continue Reading

The “Anti-Super-Bowl-Menu” Supper

I like parties, celebrations and gathering with people over food and drink, but I can’t be enthusiastic about Super Bowl Sunday. You see, the problem is I’m not a football fan and I don’t like wearing team t-shirts, drinking beer, or eating poppers and buffalo wings. What’s a gal to do? Continue Reading

Lessons for the Lazy and/or Recipe-Impaired Cook, plus 3 More Side Dishes

Um…yup, that would be me…lazy and recipe-averse.

For Christmas Day dinner I made an exception and purposefully selected 3 published recipes to ‘follow’. The word follow is accented because it never seems to turn out that way…
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3 Delicious Side Dishes, Tried and True

With the exception of New Year’s Day lunch which I’m hosting, I was a guest most of the holidays. The proverbial blogger/cook’s day off. But I did carry out 6 side dishes: the first 3 for holiday parties I attended and the last 3 for Christmas Day dinner.

Wanna see?
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My Winter Fruit Compote + Pancake Muffins

I associate compote with my maternal grandmother. It’s not that I have a specific recollection of her making it for me…but, somehow, when I think of compote I think of her, so there must be a connection somwewhere in the recesses of my childhood memories.

I think she would approve of my recipe. Continue Reading

Warm Garbanzo Salad: Simple, Spicy, Smoky and Fried!

I like beans as well as the next person, but I’m not particularly fond of a plain scoop of beans. No, no! While I try to incorporate them into meals on a regular basis because they are purportedly a good source of protein, they’ve got to be slow-cooked, dressed, sauced, tossed, or otherwise treated to be worthy of a place on my plate. Continue Reading

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