Merry Christmas

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We had a nice and relaxing time in Montgomery with lots of time to catch up with friends and family. The bad weather really forced us to slow down, stay inside, visit with family and focus more on the true reason for our celebration. As always, the time went by too quickly, but at least we have New Years to look forward to in just a few days!

Of course there were lots of fun presents given and received...here are just a few quick highlights (that I could find quick pictures of...)

Not one but 2 jackets! Jackets are just my weakness I guess - I wore my Barbour one today, and it was perfect for the cold, rainy day. Also, lots of new luluemon gear (great because I won't usually spring for it on my own!), some hair ties (made by my crafty sister-in-law), new perfume (perfect for traveling in the roller ball so it won't spill everywhere), and a cool avocado slicing tool.

As for the favorite gift that we gave, I think it would have to be the giant (i.e. larger than life) stuffed dog that we gave our 20 month old nephew. No pictures unfortunately, but we were just too busy watching him try to drag it around the room by the ear, ride it, jump on it, etc.

Merry Christmas and thanks to all who helped make it so special!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...

Christmas! I can't believe that it is now less than a week away, and in a way I wish that we had a few more weeks to enjoy all the festivities and decorations. We are pretty much done with all our shopping and errands though, so now it is time to really enjoy the holiday and prepare to celebrate Jesus's birth with family.

Here's a little peak around our house this year:

And yes, I did get slightly OCD this year and decide to wrap all our presents in brown paper with fun different ribbons. I know it's slightly crazy, but I just like the uniform look under the tree. I had found a simple brown paper at Target a while back, but of course they were out so instead I used packing paper! It is pretty thick, so not the easiest to wrap with but at least it doesn't rip on you!

And the tags...so Andy and I were attempting to clean the attic a few weeks ago and came across some stuff from our wedding. These tags were what people wrote on at our wedding instead of signing a guest book, and turns out there were literally at least 100 left. I told Andy I wanted to keep them and would find something to do with them. Then it dawned on me, why not use them as gift tags with the help of some stamps!

And that my friends is about the height of my creativity (sad but true). 

Thankful

Thankful for a (relatively) quiet weekend that is...and a return to blogging! I know it has been quite a while since I posted, and there is no excuse really. I felt like there wasn't much exciting going on to report, but I've been reminded by a few that the every day can be fun to read about as long as there is some good food to go along with it. So I will try to be better....

After scrambling around to do some last minute Christmas errands among the masses, Andy and I wanted nothing but a quiet night at home on Saturday. So we headed to Whole Foods and came up with a steak dinner menu while wondering the aisles:

(The pictures aren't the best as I used my little point and shoot instead of Andy's big camera - clearly not back in full blogging form just yet!)

Maybe one day I can get Andy to post about his delicious steak rub, but for now here is a little more on the sides....

Up first, the brussels sprouts....now, before you skip over this section and move on to the carbs, you should think again. Brussels sprouts get a bad rap, but they really are so good not to mention good for you. Think beyond school lunch rooms or the soggy frozen variety in the butter sauce. Just roasting them  is delicious, but last night I stepped it up a bit and used this recipe (only I didn't have pecans so I substituted almonds.)

And next, the amazingly simply Capellini Gratin which is like a grown up, slightly healthier mac and cheese. Here's the recipe adapted from Frank Stitt's Bottega cookbook. Try it as a side or on its own with a salad and you won't regret it!

Capellini Gratin
(serves 2 but can easily be multiplied)

Butter
1/4 lb capellini
2 TBL heavy cream
1/2 cup grated parm
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 425. Grease a small gratin dish with the butter. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and generously salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta water.

Combine the cream and 1/4 cup of the parm in a medium bowl. Add the pasta and enough of the pasta water to loosen the consistency slightly. Season with salt and pepper then toss to combine. Transfer to the prepared dish and spread evenly. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of parm on top.

Bake until golden and crisp around the edges (15-20 min). Let the gratin cool 5 to 10 minutes before cutting.