Poultry Review

brioche.jpg Here are some photos from Turkey Day 2K3. Featured in this first picture are some scrumpscious little brioches, which came out well considering we had to do some serious improvising (read: Rapid Rise yeast and muffin tins replaced the molds…).
The brioche served as a bit of an appetizer too, since they came out of the oven a few minutes before dinner. Lup lup!

Moving right along…
biscotti.jpg I thought some simple dipping cookies might be in order for a “light” after dinner treat, so Brenda and I whipped up some Pistachio Cranberry biscotti and another Chocolate Hazelnut rendition of the same Italian favorite. Everyone raved about the chocolate/anise combination, but I wasn’t a big fan.

Uncle G “kicked up” the mashed potatoes by adding a large quantity of one of his favorite cheeses from the Bleu family.
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And after two and a half days of prep, we sit down and devour the feast in less than fifteen minutes!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Vote for your favorite Turkey Day dish:
Cranberry Sauce
Mashed Potatoes
Stuffing
Gravy
Turkey
Brussel sprouts
Sweet potatoes
Pumpkin pie
Leftovers
Other (please specify)

Minty Hoopaverse

loop.jpgFeeling self-indulgent yesterday, I splurged on a few extra-special Wal*Mart specials! I totally believe in the quality of the great products I purchased yesterday. Check these out:

Herbal Whitening Toothpaste
Not only does this toothpaste have a fantastically fresh minty flavor, but it’s packed with exotic herbs (including Melissa, Eucalyptus, and some other exciting ones…). I also enjoy the cantelope green box and tube it’s packaged in. Hotness.

A Hot Pink Bubble Gum Scented Hoola Hoop
Apparently hoola hooping is not like riding a bike, because my record hoopage since yesterday is three. And I’ve been working at it quite a lot. Any helpful hints you can throw my way about how to improve my hula hooping skills would be much appreciated! I’m hoping to work up to this after I re-master the one hoop. These other hoola hoops are quite interesting as well…

Happy Birthday!

Phoebe and John had their baby today!! Whooo!! Congratulations guys! It’s a girl, Sydney Anne, and I think she weighed just a little over 8 pounds! This is so exciting!! I can’t wait to go and visit them at Christmas! Mom, Dad and the boys are going to see them all over Thanksgiving break.
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Speaking of holidays, here’s a little snap of Phoebe and the fam last Thanksgiving. Gosh, looking at all of this food is making me soooo ready for T Day Dinner. Do you guys have any special Thanksgiving traditions? I’m always in charge of making the centerpiece/placecards–just about my favorite job ever!! A couple years ago I made a giant (we’re talking 10 feet tall) 3D stuffed paper turkey–complete with a rainbow of feathers and an oversized, bulbous gobbler. SO HOT. He’s still stashed away with our holiday decorations. I wonder how vegans and vegetarians feel about this American holiday (one of the few native traditions that is uniquely ours)? I’ll have to do a survey at school tomorrow and get back to you…

Small town life

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St. Helena is not exactly a booming metropolis, however, the modern woman makes the most out of every situation. This partly explains why we go to Ana’s Cantina just about every Friday night. Ana’s is the local dive bar, whose only real claim to fame is the hottest Thursday night Karaoke in the Napa Valley. On the weekends they hire out mediocre rock bands to play songs that nobody’s ever heard before. But if you drink enough Tequila, it makes the place a good deal more interesting. Here’s a photo taken on the way home from one of our recent excursions to the Cantina.
For you Hotshot lovers out there, the latest update to said photo gallery is the documentation of my Aunt Joan’s wedding. Thanks to Joe for sending me hot photo editing and illustrating programs!!! Thank you!! Watch for hot new illustrations (I realize that the lobsters aren’t the most professional looking images, but I’m getting back into the groove…)