Chrismas Eve found me at the home of She-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, per usual, and as always, the above tray was trotted out for serving hors d’ouevres. (Since it was a gift from me, it pleases me greatly that she uses it all the time. Proves that she really does like it!) Top tier down, left to right; deviled eggs (a Feisty Family mainstay at any party we give!), Triscuits, tzatziki; orange bell peppers, celery sticks, cucumbers, olives; salami, smoked gouda, soppressatta and garlic cheddar.
My brother-in-law went all out and threw king crab legs on the grill; amazingly sweet and tender, didn’t even need butter. (I’ll admit upfront that I rarely indulge in the seafood portions of these gatherings, especially those that require I get my hands dirty, but this time I dug right in… so good!)
SWSNBN’s sister in law brought over cheeses and goodies for us – jalapeno jelly in the dish, waterwheel crackers, brie, Humboldt Fog, clothbound cheddar, various crackers, pecans, dried apricots, other crackers…
She went all out and also brought two types of pate (country and pheasant), finocchiono, gherkins, salami, and… *tears of joy* duck rillettes. That little jar in the middle, which I am too poor to purchase for myself, well… my family didn’t seem too interested, so I proceeded to eat about half of the jar. And then some. Hmm… no, I never wonder why I’m fat, I just know. 🙂
My brother-in-law also put rib eyes on the grill, yummm.
A big bowl of linguine with clam sauce!
His mother also brought over a big tray of eggplant parm, mmm, so good.
Last but not least, a bowl of scungili that he made. Red sauce. Awesome.
My plate: linguine with clam sauce, broccoli, eggplant parm, and a bit of steak. I was explosively full after that, couldn’t even finish.
But I did manage to eat two slices of this awesome buche de noel… it wasn’t super sweet, but was very moist and tasty.
SWSNBN liked my idea from last year and this of dipping stuff in chocolate to give out, so she made a bunch and wound up putting some out as part of dessert.
The usual 7-layer-cake always makes an appearance. It’s someone’s favorite.
Mango… I don’t know where but they managed to get two cases of mango for super cheap, and they were pretty good even not in season.
And the next morning, the usual tradition: I cook breakfast for everyone. What did I make this year?
Actually, the same thing as last year. Corned beef hash from scratch, which went over well…
And some Trader Joe’s potato tots, which everyone seemed to like as well. (They’re nicely seasoned and crisp well in the oven.)
SWSNBN made a tray of bacon too.
Oh, and I made a plate of scrambled eggs for everyone too.
More mango.
My brother in law went all out and had steak & eggs for breakfast. NICE!!!
My own plate, fairly simple, keeping it light – hah! – as I still had Christmas dinner to attend later that day.
I simply can’t eat 3 dozen cookies in a week, so I brought the rest of the cookies from the FBM Cookie Swap and shared with my family. Everyone had their favorites, but when I tried to share the recipes with them, they just looked at me blankly and said “no, you can make them for us again.” HAH! Not happening.
So a great Christmas Eve/Christmas morning with my family!
Off to the candy tree! Every year, someone painstakingly decorates a tree with fun-size candies that they taped ribbon loops to. You can go up and just take the candy and eat it… it’s like a kid’s dream come true!
My dinner plate! Turkey, twice baked potato, creamed turnips, stuffing, baby carrots, corn… this year, no lima beans though 🙁 wahhh.
Cap the night off with a slice of chocolate cream pie… and a perfect Christmas for everyone.
One last: this year’s goodie boxes varied depending on when I saw you. I bought a huge sleeve of takeout boxes in red, and filled them…
FBM potluck got: sea salt chocolate chip cookies, nutella cakes, chocolate dipped peppermint sticks with non-pareils, chocolate dipped pretzel rods, and sea salt kahlua caramels.
FBM cookie swap got: sea salt kahlua caramels, candied orange peels, a sugar cookie decorated with the initial of the recipient, and smoked almond & dried cherry bark.
Feisty Family got: sea salt kahlua caramels, candied orange peels, smoked almond & dried cherry bark… and possibly something else, but I’m forgetting right now, doh.
In any case, I hope everyone had a fabulous, fun-filled, freakin’ fantastic holiday!!!
Happy new year!!!
TT says
impressive eats as usual.
i would much rather eat king crab legs at someone’s home where it is a lot easier to clean up than at a restaurant.
choc cream pie looks fantastic!
corned beef hash could use more meat! 😉
Feisty Foodie says
Haha, I know! Though I had a 4 lb corned beef, when I was making it I accidentally dropped in too many potatoes and was like, oh crap… 🙁 It was still tasty!
T.C. says
Yay, me like the Feisty Family celebrations with FOOD! An abundance of eats!!! Way to pig-out for dinner and breakfast. 😉
Mmm, Italian dishes and that 7-layer cake. *drool*
T.C. says
The yule log looks delicious too. Not too sweet? Looks so chocolately. 😛
Feisty Foodie says
I know! But it wasn’t too chocolatey rich where normal people eat a few bites and feel sick.
CT says
2 types of pate AND duck rilletes??! JEALOUS!! Also, the chocolate cream pie looks awesome! I could make a dinner out of just those (although TT might never speak to me again).
Feisty Foodie says
Listen, I tried to eat all the rillettes but my heart stopped beating at some point so I had to sit down… slowly… lol
Hungry says
I LOVE THAT CANDY TREE SO MUCH THAT I’M TYPING IN ALL CAPS!
Feisty Foodie says
Dude, right?! The first time I ever saw it, even though I don’t like candy all that much, I was totally like, I’m going to make that for my kids. It’s so fun and easy… I was told that it used to be a full sized tree instead of a little one, but a lot of the kids grew up and their kids aren’t quite old enough to want/be allowed to eat candy yet, so no big candy tree yet… So awesome!
aimee says
I want to come next time!