Cooking Up A Batch of 'Hell Yes'

Happy Holidays everyone!

I hope each of you had a joyous Christmas and/or Hanukkah celebrating with loved ones. Part I of my holiday concluded with some hang time with the in-laws and all the sibs, nieces and nephews from the Oz side of the equation. We also enjoyed digging out of snowstorm madness '09 which left a ton of that frozen white water outside our door. It's mighty cold out there and each time I leave the house to take the dog out for a potty break, I visualize flipping head over heels on the ice rink that has newly formed in my driveway. Guess I need to go buy some skates and practice my triple sow cow. Olympics here I come! Or, perhaps the much more likely scenario is broken bones, me in the hospital, laid up in traction. Sigh. Sorry, no blind holiday optimism. Here you will only find stark, dark pessimism. Cheers!!

Part Deux of the festivus for the rest of us will be kicking off in North Dakota. Mr. Oz and I are headed to my parents tomorrow for a 3 night visit. All the clan will gather to ring in the New Year and open up the gifts that Santa couldn't quite deliver on Christmas Eve cuz he was stuck in a snowbank. For some reason, I felt the need to volunteer my cooking prowess (and I use this word sarcastically). I will be making the New Year's Eve feast. In preparation, I've been scouring my cookbooks, online recipe sources and hitting up my foodie friends for suggestions. After much hemming and hawing, I finally landed on my menu -- a four course extraveganza. BTW, what is the deal with the phrase "hemming and hawing?" What does it really mean anyway? I just typed it and had to stop and consider, for a moment, the origin of this phrase. What does it mean to "haw?" Is it like sawing but only with your mind? I need to do some research on that one. But I digress.

Back to the holiday feast . . . I decided to take it up a notch, an extra step if you will, and add in wine pairings. What has gotten in to me? I know, crazy. We will be starting with a lovely salad comprised of roasted butternut squash, endive, apple and blue cheese. Next course will be a french onion soup gratin. Third course is an herb crusted beef tenderloin with port sauce. I'll be making some sort of potato & vegetable side to accompany the beef. We will end with a chocolate mousse cheesecake. Much like the contestents on Top Chef, I don't consider desserts my forte so I will be picking up this cheesecake at the place that knows what they are doing. The Cheesecake Factory, of course. Wine pairings include a light & crips Savignon Blanc to start, a fairly robust Pinot Noir to go with the beef and then a Saracco Moscato 'd Asti with dessert. Sadly, the soup will have to share it's wine pairing with the salad. Poor soup. Always the bridesmaid and never the bride.

All this menu planning has gotten me in a cooking mood. The last few days, I've been trying out all sorts of things. My experimentation is appreciated by Mr. Oz as he gets to eat all of my trials. I'm not so sure he like all the dirty dishes, however. Did I mention Mr. Oz does the dishes? Tonight is roasted potato leek soup from the Barefoot Contessa's Back to Basics cookbook. Nothing beats a warm, creamy soup on a cold winter night.

I'll report the success or failure of my feast in my next post.

Until then, Happy New Year!!

Holiday Shopping

Hi, my name is Lisa and I am addicted to online x-mas shopping.

Over the past few weeks, holiday purchasing online has been among my greatest joy and pleasure. True.

While some may say this form of shopping is impersonal, isolating and does not allow the shopper to fully experience the seasonal sights, sounds and smells (think evergreen trees and baked goods versus sweaty Mall Santas), I counter online shopping is incredibly convenient. Yep, convenience trumps all. Here is my general overview of "traditional" holiday shopping: Slogging through snowbanks and braving the icy cold only to spend countless minutes circling crowded parking lots looking for an open spot. Throwing elbows scrounging for the best deal . . . limited choices because stores only want to keep the best selling items in stock . . . after hours of hunting and searching, pure frustration sets in . . . solution = various gift cards.

Now, let's compare this old way with the evolution of holiday behavior: Comfy, cozy in flannel pajamas . . . relaxing with laptop on the couch with a fire roaring . . . . Amazon.com wishlist searches, researching the perfect gift by entering in facts and personality traits of your gift recipients, personalized & fun gift ideas, free shipping (hooray!!). No need to leave the house, saving money on gas and reaping the benefit of hours I can spend doing other fun stuff like baking cookies, drinking martinis or watching Glee (double hooray!!!). Seriously. Why would anyone choose to purchase their gifts any other way?

Plus, how great is it to come home from work each day to a bounty of packages on one's doorstep?

Here are just a smattering of gift ideas that I may, or may not, have purchased online this season: Who doesn't appreciate a toasty, warm towel when exiting the shower? This is the perfect baby gift when the parents are Sci-Fi, Star Wars geeks!

Hello! Cheese of the month club!! Tasty.