apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Pre-Baking little pizza crusts for quick meals, bread bowls for soup, and cookies!!! not too festive, but something to do in all the snow! :)

Oy. Big cooking weekend. Coquito and possibly more pasteles. (Another grating extravaganza!)

Cookies for my guys at work. And homebaked Christmas gifts: spiced glazed nuts, candied citrus peel, cranberry cake.

Making the marinade for the pernil.

And bourbon balls. Lots and lots of Bourbon Balls.

I am hosting the annual Lab party from work so I am cooking up a storm this weekend; jalapeno cheddar scones from smitten-kitchen, spiced nuts, matzo crack, hot spiced cider (with calvados on the side) a vegetable tray, blue cheese pimento spread, oh and green chili stew for dinner tonight.

Hmmm, gingerbread cookies, salt toffee, stareos, marshmellows and another batch of hot chocolate on a stick.

And probably, you know, meals.

Not sure what we're cooking this weekend. We're about to be socked with a big ol'blizzard, so I think something warm and toasty is in order. I wish now I had picked up the fixings for bread, but may just make a warm frittata, some soup, and maybe meatballs...

Oatmeal Cookies with Cranberries and Pecans from the Baked cookbook in the oven right now!

Mini mince pies and triple-chocolate cookies.

Eating leftovers and seeing what I can whip up with the scarps in the fridge before we leave for Christmas travel.

spritz cookies! I just got a cookie press and am excited to use it. I made linzers tonight, from the recipe you posted a few weeks ago. And caramels last night.

And for actually eating, General Tsao's (sp) tofu. Yum.

My xmas assignment savory palmiers with bacon and spinach and fontina and red pepper and mushrooms (and a kids/picky eater version with pepperoni and mild cheddar), split pea and smoked ham soup, and if I find time I'm going to take a go at adult jello shots: Iron Butterfly style.

I've got just one more day to finish my holiday baking gifts before we hit the road. I've checked granola and bourbon balls off my list and all that's left is the caramel corn and gingerbread. Looking forward so some slow-paced bread baking with the family over the holidays.

Home from the hospital after major surgery so I won't be doing anything more than making tea and buttering bagels for the next few weeks.

It's time to let others do the cooking and caretaking--and how strange it feels to be on the receiving end! Friends are bringing in meals for the next two weeks and I have freezer meals made up and ready for my family to serve.

Enjoy some holiday baking for me! I will miss it. Won't miss the dishes though...

I'm transforming my ugly, tasty pie:

http://onepot.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/mushroom-baby-portabella-butternut-squash-pie/

...into studly, tasty pie.

I have started my vacation! So I don't feel under the gun to get a lot of cooking done ahead of next week's festivities. However I will start some no knead bread this morning and then tomorrow will likely be spent making french onion soup.

Turkey chowder, mushroom panini, lemon clove cookies, sausage egg & cheese strata, Swedish ginger cookies, prosecco cocktails (does that count?), homemade pizza, just finished pancakes!

White Chocolate, pistachio, cranberry cookies, lentil salad from the Sprouted Kitchen and definately s/mores over the fireplace for the kids.

More caramels, chocolate peppermint bark cookies, ancho chile truffles, and probably some bread.

Dinner tonight is venison and wild mushroom stroganoff, with buckwheat spaetzle and braised red cabbage. Hello, winter meal.

Anna gave the Christmas cake another drink of brandy.

http://cheesecloth.wordpress.com/2009/12/19/a-week-to-go/

It's nice and cold, so it feels like a healthy bowl of pea soup to prep for the incredible amount of feasting this coming week:

http://cheesecloth.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/pea-soup-from-canadia/

Ooohhhh, no more cookies! We've got presents rolling in from many exceptional cooks who enjoy homemade gifts as much as we do...I'm surprised I have not turned into a brownie!
I want to make a white bean soup for dinner, or maybe a white bean with lamb braised dish with oven roasted brussel sprouts. For Sunday, maybe we'll use our enormous butternut squash for soup with fried sage leaves (an idea from Michael Nischan's book "homegrown")

This is the last weekend at home before traveling for Christmas, so I'll be finishing up my bread blog with the following Christmas breads: panettone, stollen, christopsomos (Greek), kolach (Ukranian), and challah (for good measure). All today and tomorrow.

The gingerbread is in the oven, and I'll be making loads more buckeyes, too.

No real cooking will be done, as we need to clear out the fridge before we leave.

*bake bake bake*

Merry123-Hope your recovery goes well and that you are able to enjoy the holiday.:)

I've already made chocolate walnut fudge today, tomorrow I need to make the peanut butter fudge, caramels, pralines, Barefoot Contessa's jam thumbprints, world peace cookies, and banana bread. Everything has to be ready to ship out on Monday. PHEW!

This weekend is all about cookies. The persimmons are perfect and this is my mother-in-law's best cookie recipe: http://bit.ly/67LWMV

Yesterday I made a veggie lasagna for a vegetarian friend coming over for dinner.

Today I'm making chocolate cupcakes with chocolate mint frosting for a work potluck on Tuesday.

I'm also going to make Fusilli with creamed leek and spinach out of the newest Food & Wine for dinner tonight.

What's cooking? Batter breads, one light loaf made with a good German lager and another whole wheat one leavened with, amonth other things, buttermilk and baking soda and laced with molasses. Gifts? Maybe. If they're unbearably good, I may keep a loaf each for the baker. Then a lentil soup from Sprouted Kitchen: those tiny little green French lentils (Nigella once described them as looking like fairy roofing tiles) with chipotle yogurt for topping the soup. And then there's smoked tuna dip. That last one can be whipped up during a commercial break: 1 packet smoked tuna, 1 brick (8 oz.) cream cheese (I use lite) and 1 packet of Good Seasons Italian salad dressing mix (the powdered stuff). Whomp it in the food processor, buzz till smooth, eat with crudite, crackers, a spoon, your fingers.

Update: I am pleased to report that my above-mentioned ugly pie is ugly no more:

http://onepot.wordpress.com/2009/12/21/mushroom-butternut-squash-kale-pie/