SCOTCH-A-ROOOOOOS

OKAY. Is there a better dessert in the whole world than Scotcheroos? I mean really. I'm not talking about Creme Brule or Bananas Foster. Or Baked Alaska or Crepes Suzette.....I mean, down and dirty DESSERT. Scotcheroos, people. Peanut butter, chocolate, butterscotch.....oh yeah. They're not gourmet. That's okay!! Scotcheroos. 'Nuff said. This is the kind of dessert that makes you happy you have kids around, 'cause it's not sophisticated or grownup. It's just yummy. Here's the recipe. As my daughter would say, "Happy belly"!!!

SCOTCHEROOS

Serves: Uh, not enough....maybe 4 hungry Damrons.

Source: http://allrecipes.com/

1 c. sugar

1 c. light corn syrup

1 c. peanut butter

6 c. Rice Crispies or Special K

1 c. semi sweet chips

1 c. butterscotch chips

Line a 9x11 Pyrex pan with foil and hit it with non-stick spray.

Place cereal in a medium mixing bowl.

Bring sugar and corn syrup to a rolling boil over medium high heat. Remove from heat and whisk in peanut butter until melted and smooth. Pour over cereal and stir until well blended. Scoop into prepared pan. Press with a spatula until mixture is spread neatly throughout the pan.

Microwave both semisweet and butterscotch chips in a glass bowl until melted and smooth stopping periodically to stir, about 2 minutes. Spread over the top of the cereal mixture. Chill until topping is set, about an hour. Cut into uniform slices and try to refrain from eating the entire pan within the hour. Sick...just sick...in a good way, of course!!!

Chicken Pot Pie with a Lattice Crust

We have a winter storm warning here tonight -- high winds and -30 windchills. If that doesn't call for a comfort menu, what does? One of my favorite winter meals is this chicken pie with a pastry top. I like to have a big green salad alongside.

CHICKEN PIE
Serves: 5-6
Source: ?? I honestly cannot remember, I've been making this for years and have no idea where the recipe came from! Besides that, I've changed it so many times it doesn't resemble the original anyway. ;-)

2 c. cooked diced chicken
1 c. fresh broccoli
1 large carrot, small dice
2 leeks, white and pale green parts only, rinsed thoroughly and diced
3 T. butter
3 T. flour
2 c. whole milk or half & half
1 large chicken bouillion cube, dissolved in 1/4 c. whole milk
1 c. Parmesan
1/2 c. frozen peas
1 box refrigerated pie crusts

Preheat oven to 425. Remove pie crusts from box and allow to come to room temperature. Place one crust in the bottom of a glass pie plate, and prick all over with a fork. Line pan with pie weights and bake crust for 12 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, cook broccoli, carrots, and leeks in a pan of boiling salted water until tender, about five minutes. Drain and set aside.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour. Cook and stir for five minutes. Gradually add the two cups of whole milk and the additional 1/4 c. milk, whisking constantly until mixture begins to thicken, about 7 minutes. Add in the Parmesan, the cooked chicken, the frozen peas, and the reserved vegetables. Stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour filling into prepared pie shell.

To make a lattice-topped pie, follow the directions on Simply Recipes -- she has an amazing set of instructions and photos that show in gorgeous detail how to make the perfect lattice! Here's the link:

http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/005134how_to_make_a_lattice_top_for_a_pie_crust.php

See what I mean? Aren't those awesome instructions?!

Place pie on a cookie sheet and bake in the middle of the oven for 35-40 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Allow pie to rest for five minutes before 'slicing' (it won't really slice, it will probably mostly 'ooze') and serving in a shallow bowl.

I'm totally bummed about how these pictures turned out, by the way. I took some better ones in daylight this afternoon, then my husband came home and accidentally put them all on his computer! Shoot!!

Telluride Ski Weekend

I'm coming down from a long weekend high and feeling a little sad tonight! We're just back from skiing with our good friends Sarah and Robert and they're four kids. Their family is spending the schoolyear in Telluride and we went out for a four day visit. The best word to describe it is AWESOME! What a fabulous time. The snow was amazing and of course the skiing was incredible. And the views! Stunningly beautiful, is all I can say.

Sarah's a foodie too. We didn't really cook anything together, but we did have some amazing smoked salmon bagels one morning -- Sarah made them look so good we decided to shoot them with the mountains in the background. She spread onion bagels with cream cheese, then topped that with capers, mixed baby greens, the salmon, red onion, sea salt and ground pepper, then a squeeze of lemon juice. So yummy! After the bagels and a rocket fuel latte, we were off for the slopes.

Back to reality tomorrow....tonight I'm still enjoying my Rocky Mountain high!

Double Chocolate Biscotti & Lasagna Rolls

Man, it's cold here today. I mean, bone chilling cold -- I know I'm preachin' to the choir for you girls who live up here in the north land, but it's -15. FIFTEEN BELOW ZERO!! The wind is howling, and the day's only saving grace is that the sun is shining brightly. I can handle this weather long in to April as long as the sun continues to show her face on a regular basis!

Today I made two GREAT recipes. I'm showing pictures of both, even though neither of them photographed all that well; you'll just have to take my word for it! This lasagna recipe is simple and delicious, and tastes like it was SO much more work than it was. Usually, I make Giada's basic marinara but today, I have to admit, I punted and used Rao's Marinara. This sauce has had incredible reviews and believe me, it ain't cheap. A 4c. jar was 9.89! Criminy! But, between the tomatoes and fresh basil Giada's calls for, the cost was probably comparable. Anyway, there are two sauces in this recipe -- a bechamel, and the aforementioned marinara, which make it so rich and decadent! I love it!

The biscotti are amazing, especially since I used Valrohna cocoa. Wow. It's worth it to use the best quality cocoa you can afford. I hope you guys try these recipes -- they're perfect for a cold winter day.

Lasagna Rolls with Two Sauces
Source: http://www.foodtv.com
Serves: 6

2 T. butter
4 t. flour
1 1/4 whole milk
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. freshly ground pepper
pinch of nutmeg

1 15-oz. container whole milk ricotta
1 10-oz. box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 c. plus 2 T. grated Parmesan
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 t. salt, plus more for pasta
1/2 t. freshly ground pepper
12 dried lasagna noodles
butter, for baking dish
2 c. Giada's Quick Marinara (or good quality purchased sauce)
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Melt the butter in a medium heavy saucepan over medium low heat. Add the flour and cook for 3 minutes, whisking constantly. Whisk in the milk. Increase the heat to medium-high. Whisk the sauce until it comes to a simmer and is thick and smooth, about 3 minutes. Whisk the salt, pepper, and nutmeg into the cream sauce.

In a medium bowl, stir together the ricotta, spinach, 1 cup of the Parmesan cheese, the egg, 3/4 t. salt, and the pepper until blended.

Bring a very large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add the lasagna noodles and cook until just tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently to prevent the noodles from sticking together. Drain. Arrange noodles in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.

Preheat oven to 450. Butter a 9 x 13" glass baking dish. Spread the bechamel sauce over the bottom of the prepared pan.

Spread 3 T. of the spinach filling evenly over each lasagna noodle. Roll the noodles up and arrange the rolls, seam side down and not touching one another, atop the bechamel sauce. Repeat with the remaining noodles and ricotta mixture. Spoon 1 cup of the marinara sauce over the lasagna rolls, then sprinkle with the mozzarella and remaining 2 T. Parmesan cheese. Cover the dish tightly with foil. Bake until the rolls are heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until cheese on top is golden, about 15 minutes longer. Let stand 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinara sauce in a small, heavy saucepan until hot. Transfer the sauce to a sauce boat and serve alongside.

Double Chocolate Biscotti
Source: http://www.epicurious.com
Makes 30 Biscotti

1 3/4 c. flour

1/3 c. cocoa powder

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1 c. sugar

6 T. butter, room temperature

3 large eggs

1 1/2 t. vanilla

8 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Sift flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.

Using an electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in a large bowl to blend. Beat in eggs one at a time, then vanilla. Beat in flour mixture. Stir in semisweet chips. Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheet in two 10 - 11" long strips, spacing 3" apart. Using metal spatula or wet fingertips, shape strips into 11 x 2 1/2 " logs. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350. Bake logs until tops are cracked and dry and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 325. Using parchment as an aid, transfer logs to a clean work surface. Re-line cookie sheet with clean parchment. Using serrated knife, gently cut warm logs crosswise into 3/4" slices. Arrange sliced cookies on prepared baking sheet. Bake biscotti until just dry to the touch, about 8 minutes. Turn biscotti over. Bake until top is dry to the touch, about another 8 minutes. Cool on baking sheets.

Shrimp Quesadillas and the Packers

It's a big day for football up here in Wisconsin .... but you couldn't pay me enough to sit outside at Lambeau Field tonight! It's -25 with the windchill, for gravy's sake. So the DamFam is hanging out at home enjoying a fire and football from the comfort of our family room.

Here's what we're munching on while we wait for our chili to finish cooking. I found this recipe on Simplyrecipes.com, I just love that site! I made these a couple of weeks back when I was asked to bring an appetizer to a neighborhood get together, and they were gone in a flash.

One note: the original recipe calls for sliced avocado as a garnish, but our grocery store's avocados were hard as rocks. Today I'm using fresh guac' from the deli instead.

Shrimp Quesadillas
Serves 2
Source http://www.simplyrecipes.com/

1/2 lb. large shrimp, cooked, peeled, and deveined
the juice of one lime
2 scallions, minced
a hefty pinch of minced cilantro
1 jalapeno, minced (seeded and deveined if you can't take the heat)
1/4 t. chipotle chili powder (I added this, it's not on the original recipe)
Shredded Queso Quesadilla (a semi-soft Mexican melting cheese)
2 or 3 Flour tortillas
Sliced avocado or guacamole
Sour cream & additional cilantro sprigs for garnish

Chop the shrimp into bite sized pieces. In a medium glass mixing bowl, combine the lime juice, scallions, cilantro, jalapeno, and chipotle chili powder. Toss shrimp in lime mixture and season with salt and pepper. Set aside to marinate for 20-30 minutes. Drain off lime juice.

Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium high heat. Spray one side of flour tortilla with cooking spray and set spray side down on a cutting board. Top one half with some shredded cheddar, then some of the shrimp mixture, the a bit more cheddar. Fold over and set aside. Repeat with another tortilla. Place both quesadillas in the grill pan and cover partially with a lid. Toast until golden and cheese is melting, then flip and repeat on the other side. Remove to cutting board and allow to rest for a minute or two. Cut into wedges and place on serving platter. Garnish with sliced avocado, a spoonful of sour cream, and cilantro sprigs.

Garlic Roasted Potatoes

I made these potatoes earlier in the week to go along with pork tenderloin. The tenderloin, although yummy, turned out to be uh, how shall I say? Non-photogenic. The potatoes were picture worthy though, so here they are. (Dad, if you're reading this, I just want to point out the extra 'green stuff' I added for your benefit!) This is one of my favorite go-to side dishes. Here's the recipe:

Garlic Roasted Potatoes
Source: Barefoot Contessa Parties!
Serves 8

3 lbs. small red or white skinned potatoes (or a mixture)
1/4 c. good olive oil
1 1/2 t. sea salt
1 t. freshly ground black pepper
2 T. minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
2 T. minced fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 400.

Cut the potatoes in half or quarters and place in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic; toss until the potatoes are well coated. Dump the potatoes on a baking sheet and spread them out into one layer; roast in the oven for at least 1 hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice with a spatula during cooking to ensure even browning.

Remove the potatoes from the oven, toss with the minced parsley, season to taste, and serve.

Super Nutty Peanut Butter Cookies

I've ended my quest for the perfect peanut butter cookie ... these are by far, the most delicious cookie ever to come out of my kitchen. Crunchy on the outside, soft in the middle.....mmmmm. Even better with a glass of cold milk!

Super Nutty Peanut Butter Cookies

Source: Cooks Illustrated.com

Makes 3 Dozen

2 1/2 c. flour

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

2 sticks butter, salted

1 c. dark brown sugar

1 c. granulated sugar

1 c. extra crunch peanut butter, preferably Jif

2 large eggs

2 t. vanilla

1 c. roasted salted peanuts, ground in food processor to resemble bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.

In bowl of electric mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add sugars; beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down bowl as necessary. Beat in peanut butter until fully incorporated, then eggs, one at a time, then vanilla. Gently stir dry ingredients into peanut butter mixture. Add ground peanuts; stir gently until incorporated.

Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll into large balls, placing them 2" apart on prepared baking sheets. Press each dough ball with back of dinner fork dipped into cold water and make a criss cross pattern. Bake until cookies are puffed and slightly brown along the edges, 12 minutes (they will not look fully baked). Cool cookies on cookie sheet until set, about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

I just joined the Foodie Blogroll!

How exciting for me, my blog just got accepted into the Foodie Blogroll -- a huge list of food blog links that also now link to my blog. This is going to be a great way for more people to find out about my blog and then read my recipes and posts. FUN!!


Click here to find out more about the Foodie Blogroll:

www.leftoverqueen.com/the-foodie-blogroll/

Banana Cake for Griffin's Birthday

Today is Griffin's 12th birthday! Wow....I can't believe I have a kid that old. That makes me.....OLD TOO!

We love this cake at our house....it's sooooo yummy. It's supposed to be a layer cake, but I made the two 8" pans and put one in the freezer for another day. Here's the recipe:

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Source: Epicurious
Serves: 10-122 c. flour

2 c. flour
3/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 large eggs
1 c. sour cream (I often substitute 1 c. vanilla yogurt)
1 1/3 mashed ripe bananas
1 c. mini chocolate chips (optional)

2/3 c. powdered sugar
1 8 oz. package cream cheese, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly butter two 8" round cake pans. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowluntil blended. Add eggs and beat until fluffy. Mix in 3/4 c. sour cream and bananas. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture and beat until well blended. Transfer to prepared pans.

Bake cakes until top is golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool cake completely on rack. (Can be prepared 2 weeks ahead. Cover cake and freeze. Thaw before continuing.)

Beat remaining 1/2 c. sour cream, powdered sugar, and cream cheese in a large bowl until well blended. Spread frosting over cooled cake. Garnish with extra mini chocolate chips and banana slices.

Oatmeal Cookies -- Two ways

Each day after school, my kids walk through the door and their first question is always, "Did you make any treats today?" I decided I would answer yes to that question this afternoon by making some of their favorite cookies.

Personally, I like my oatmeal cookies with raisins, but I always meet resistance from my tasters when I try to sneak something healthy in -- so I have to appease them by doing half the batch with chocolate chunks, which is what I did today. Make these for your gang sometime -- they'll love them!

OATMEAL COOKIES

Source: Gourmet Magazine, 9/1999

Makes 24 cookies.

1 3/4 c. old fashioned rolled oats

3/4 c. flour

3/4 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1 1/4 sticks butter, softened

1/3 c. brown sugar

1/3 c. granualted sugar

1 large egg

1/2 t. vanilla

Options:

1/2 c. raisins or

1 c. chocolate chips or chunks

Preheat oven to 375 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Beat together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined well. Add oat mixture and beat until just combined. Add in optional raisins or chocolate chips and stir until combined. (I like to divide the dough in half and put raisins in one half and chocolate chips in the other).

Drop dough by heapingj tablespoons 2 inches apart onto baking sheets and flatten mounds slightly with moistened fingers. Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until golden, about 12 minutes total. Transfer to racks to cool.

Creamy Chicken & Rice on a Gloomy Winter Night

What was it I said earlier in the week about eating healthy and clean? Seems that idea's already been kicked to the curb, right along with our poor, pitiful, dried up Christmas tree. My kids started ski lessons today and I knew they'd need something warm and filling after a long afternoon on the slopes, and 'clean and healthy' wasn't gonna cut it.

So, here's what we're having tonight. It's one of my favorite wintry comfort dinners; a creamy chicken and rice with a toasty breadcrumb topping. Mind you, I'm NOT a casserole girl (canned soups -- eeeewwwww), but this dinner kicks some serious butt! Another bonus: it freezes beautifully, so I made a pan for tonight and put one in the freezer for another wintry day.
Back to 'clean and healthy' tomorrow. Chicken and Rice and a big green salad tonight!!

CREAMY CHICKEN AND RICE WITH PEAS, CARROTS, & CHEDDAR
Source: The Best Make-Ahead Recipe, From the Editors of Cooks Illustrated
Serves 8 (personally, I think this serves about 10)

4 T. butter
1 medium onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
1/4 t. cayenne
1/4 c. flour
6 c. chicken broth
1 c. heavy cream (I use half & half with no real difference in creaminess)
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 5 breasts)
1 1/2 c. long grain rice
1-1lb. bag of frozen peas and carrot medley (about 3 cups)
2 c. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 T. fresh lemon juice
Ground black pepper
1 recipe Toasted Bread Crumb Topping (see below)
Fresh minced parsley for garnish

Melt the butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and 1 t. salt and cook until softened and lightly browned, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cayenne and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until golden, about a minute. Slowly whisk in the broth and cream.

Add the chicken breasts, partially cover, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover completely, and cook 10-15 minutes, or until chicken is completely cooked through. Remove the chicken and set aside to cool.

Stir the rice into the pot, cover, and continue to cook over low heat, stirring often, until the rice has absorbed much of the liquid and is just tender, about 25 minutes. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred it into bite-sized pieces.

Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the chicken, peas and carrots, cheddar, and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the mixture into a 9x13 pan (or, as I do, divide it between two smaller pyrex pans). Sprinkle the pan with the crumb topping.

Bake the pan in the middle of the 400 degree oven until the sauce is bubbling and the crumbs are crisp, about 25 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

TO STORE A PAN OF CHICKEN AND RICE: Cover pan tightly with plastic wrap, the cover with foil. Freeze up to one month. (If frozen, the casserole must be thawed completely in the refrigerator, about 24 hours.) Preheat the oven to 400; remove the plastic wrap, and recover with the foil. Bake for about an hour (or until hot throughout), remove the foil, and continue to bake until crumbs are crispy, about another 15 minutes.

TOASTED BREAD CRUMB TOPPING
Makes 2 3/4 Cups, enough for one 9x13 pan.

4 slices good quality white sandwich bread, quartered
2 T. butter, melted
2 T minced fresh parsley leaves
Salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 325. Pulse the bread and butter in a food processor to coarse crumbs, about 6 pulses. Spread out over a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until golden and dry, 20-20 minutes. Let the crumbs cool, then toss with the parsley; season with salt and pepper to taste.

Something Fresh: Minestrone with Basil

Here's an 'original' idea: fresh, clean, and healthy eating for the New Year! I'm sick of the heavy foods from the Holidays (although they were great going down), and my liver is flat out exhausted (the cocktails were good going down too)! So this week it's time for a new leaf. Today I'm making one of my favorite soups: Minestrone with Basil. I pulled this recipe off of Epicurious about a year ago, and I think I've probably made it 10 times. It's fresh, lowfat, filling and healthy all at the same time.

Served alongside the soup are some yummy Cheddar Scallion Scones (also from Epicurious). No, these aren't light, "clean", or nutritious, but we're being so well behaved with our healthy soup that we're allowed to have something just slightly naughty to dunk.

Minestrone with Basil

Serves 6

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

6 c. chicken stock, plus an additional cup if needed to thin

2 c. shredded green cabbage

1 can diced tomatoes, drained

1 small onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1 carrot, diced

1 small zucchini, diced

1 medium potato, peeled and left whole

1 small potato, peeled and diced

1 T. good olive oil

1 1/2 T. minced garlic

1 t. salt

1/2 c. small shell pasta

1/2 c. chopped fresh basil, plus additional sprigs for garnish if desired

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Place beans in a large Dutch oven. Add stock and next 11 ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until all vegetables are tender, about an hour.

Transfer 2 cups of soup and the whole potato to blender and puree. Return puree to soup in pot. Add pasta and 1/4 c. basil; simmer uncovered until pasta is cooked through and flavors blend, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in remaining basil, serve with Parmesan sprinkled on top.

Cheddar Scallion Scones

Makes 12

**Note: As originally written, these were supposed to be drop biscuits. After seeing a tip for "no roll" biscuits in Cooks Country Magazine, I've used that method ever since. It's explained in my modified version of the recipe below.

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

2 1/2 t. baking powder

2 t. sugar

3/4 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

6 T. (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

6 oz. shredded Cheddar (about 1 1/2 c.)

3 scallions, finely chopped

1 c. well shaken buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then blend in butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in Cheddar and scallions. Add buttermilk and stir until just combined.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into two equal balls. Press each ball into a 6" round. Using sharp knife, slice each round three times, to create six scone shaped wedges out of each round. Transfer to prepared baking sheet and bake in the middle of oven until golden, about 15-20 minutes.

Happy New Year!

We hosted a New Years Eve party last night for some of our favorite neighborhood friends. Everyone had a blast -- they must have; we still had familes here at 1:30 this morning! I can't believe some of the youngest of the Kenilworth (our neighborhood) Clan managed to rally that long -- this cul-de-sac is gonna be filled with some sleepy headed kiddos later on today!

I wish I had taken pictures of everything we served, but I only managed to snag one of the tartare. Between handing out the party hats, serving up cocktails, and pulling hors deourves out of the oven, things were a little hectic. Here's what was on the menu:

Tenderloin Sandwiches with Rosemary Horseradish Aoili
Pizzettas with Fontina, Tomato, Proscuitto, and Basil
Tuna Tartare with Wasabi on Sesame Crackers (as pictured above)

My neighbors chipped in and brought Artichoke & Crab Dip, Spanakopita, Mini Quiches, and Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce. Everything was so delicious and suffice it to say - no one went hungry!

Soooooo happy we have leftovers and I don't need to cook tonight -- I've spent the better part of the day so far sweeping up "2008" confetti and picking streamers out of my carpet...but that goes with the partythrowing territory.

Back to cooking tomorrow.