Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve holds a special spot in my heart -- 16 years ago this evening I was coping with horrible labor pains and nurses who really did not want to be working on New Year's Eve. Really not. But the end result was a screeching and scrawny and beautiful baby boy......who is turning 16 today! (And is no longer screechy and scrawny by any means.) So, lo and behold to mark the sweet 16 I am letting him have a New Year's Eve party in our basement.

What am I thinking you ask. Momentary insanity? Twenty 16 year old boys and girls at my house?? On New Year's Eve? And I am responsible for their safety and non-alcoholic fun? All by myself?

I will praise the new year as soon as 12:30 am gets here and they all get home safe and sound!

Meanwhile, I always have a New Year's morning party for my friends -- a come-as-you-are-in-your-jammies party, to toast the new year and enjoy mimosas and brunch. So tomorrow morning around 10 am my girlfriends and a few guy-friends will gather, jammie clad, to raise a toast. As always, the fare will be gluten free and vegetarian. I'm anxious to try the GF strata, and the cheese grits are great; they were on the menu last year. Happy 2009!!!!

Here's a pic from last year's jammie party:
GLUTEN FREE SPINACH ARTICHOKE STRATA
8 gluten free waffles, toasted
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped
1 cup chopped fresh spinach
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 Tablespoons chopped onion
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
A pinch of nutmeg, to taste
Fresh or dried herbs to taste, ie oregano, basil
12 large eggs
1 cup half and half
8 oz. crumbled goat cheese
3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan

Grease a glass 13 x 9 pan. Tear waffles into pieces and place in pan. In small pan saute red pepper and onion til slightly soft. On top of the waffles layer the artichokes, spinach, red pepper, onion and goat cheese. Mix together eggs, cream and seasonings. Pour over mixture in pan. sprinkle with Parmesan. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, remove from fridge 1/2 hour before baking. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min to 1 hour, until puffed and slightly golden.
Let stand for 10 min. Enjoy!

CHEESY GRITS CASSEROLE
1 1/2 c. uncooked yellow grits (I cooked for 10 min w/ 2 cups chicken broth and 2 cups water)
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
3 c. shredded extra sharp Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon. Worcestershire sauce
dash red pepper and dash garlic powder
2 teaspoons paprika, divided
salt and pepper
3 eggs, beaten

Cook grits according to package directions. Add butter and cheese; stir til
melted. Add Worcestershire sauce and 1 t. paprika, red pepper, garlic powder and salt and pepper. Add small amount of hot grits to eggs; stir well and return egg mixture into remaining grits. Pour grits into a lightly greased (2 quart) baking dish and sprinkle with 1 t. paprika. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Remove from refrigerator 15-30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered at 350° for 1 hour.
(serves 8-10)

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Me and My Blog!

Okay and here we go, my first blog entry! Nothing too exciting but I thought I'd get started! V cold and snowy day here in Ohio, but lovely evening last with my friends Jim and Dave and a trip to the "Holiday Hop" with all the art galleries, glowing arches in the Short North, people everywhere, good food and wine of course! Now it's Sunday and I'm off to the market but just sitting here all morning in my jammies deciding to start a blog.....and trying to figure out a gluten-free gorgeous dessert to take to a friend's Winter Solstice party in a few weeks. Narrowed down to eggnog creme brulee or frozen cheesecake "pops" or Bailey's creme brulee. Thoughts welcome. More later....

Oh yeah, and raising teenagers? Always interesting. My 19 year old daughter, we'll call her Barista, is home from college for the holiday break. Thankfully the bad boyfriend is history (yay!) but woke up last night at 2 am and she's still not home. Snowy roads, a bit concerned since she got off work at midnight and said she was going for a quick bite to BW3.

Me: Where in the heck are you?????
Her: Don't yell at me, I'm on my way home now.
Me: What have you been doing? It's 2 AM!
Her: You know that Med student who wanted me to go out with him last summer?
Me: Yeah....
Her: He came into the coffeeshop. We went to BW3 and then had a snowball fight! He's from Miami and has never been in snow! He's sooooooo handsome!
Her: And....he kissed me!
Me: (sigh)
(Then she was home safe. And pretty happy.)