Ahh, Christmas is upon us once again. I love and always look forward to this holiday due to the loving and generous mood that it puts us in as human beings. Of course, I wouldn’t be totally honest if I didn’t mention the receiving of gifts that Santa or friends and loved ones give to us. That’s one of my favorite parts! But aside from the gift giving, it always warms my heart knowing we can surround ourselves with family or close friends to share in the holiday season. I truly enjoy the time we get to share with our families even if only for one night. I am truly blessed for my family, Melody and my friends! You are the greatest!
This year was a tradition breaker for me.. My family’s normal tradition is to eat our big family meal on Christmas Eve at my parents house and consisted of my mom cooking (or ordering something from Honeybaked), play games, sit around and watch TV or finish up on some last minute wrapping. Then around midnight head off to our church and attend midnight mass with other churchgoers as we celebrate the birth of Christ. Then, after church (around 1:00am) we start to open our presents! Yes, Santa makes a visit to our house during that hour we’re away at church and drops off our gifts! Im smart I know how he works!
The first tradition breaker this year, was my parents were missing from the festivities, due to my mom’s cold. It was nothing too serious, just a cold or flu, and nothing like the Swine flu that’s been going around, thank goodness, but it was enough to take her out of the action. The second tradition breaker is Melody and I actually hosted the family gathering at our new place. Granted our new place isn’t very big, but we did a pretty good job of hosting 11 people on Melody’s side of the family. Third tradition breaker is, I actually cooked a main entree’ for dinner… from scratch…! YES, from scratch!!
Rewind back to Wednesday, December 23, 2009:
I made Boeuf Bourguignon for the very first time!! This has been a secret family recipe, that was handed down from generations of …. ok, im kidding!! I am not a cook, nor do I play one on TV. And I don’t a have generations of great cooks, or at least it stopped once I was born. Melody had purchased the Julia Child cook book (Mastering the Art of French Cooking) and suggested I try my hand at a recipe.. Of course, she chose Boeuf after seeing Julie and Julia.
Here’s the finished product of the Boeuf Bourguignon just as I removed it from its 2.5 hour simmering slumber within the oven. The onions and mushrooms were prepared separately, i just combined everything prior to taking the picture!
Here’s how clean I keep my cooking workspace as I make my masterpieces.. ok, i lie! I wanted to take a picture so I spent alot of time cleaning up while the goods were simmering in the oven!
Uhh, notice the time of 3:23 am.. Again, this is AM and I am just finishing up with the Boeuf!! I made this the night before Christmas Eve, in case I messed something up and had to re-buy all of the ingredients again and re-cook.. Like I said, im not a cook and since this was my first time making this, I wasn’t sure what the results were going to be!
In all, the Boeuf Bourguignon turned out wonderful! I wish I could take credit for it, but it was ALL Julia Child, I simply followed the excruciating recipe and 3 hour (total) cooking time! The experience however was a good one and I think I am beginning to embrace my inner Julia Child. I look forward to visiting the many pages of her cook book and will enjoy attempting to pursue the recipes of which exceed my cooking skills and knowledge. I however, look forward to the challenge!
Thank you!
Visual Exposure!
Simple lettering on the front lower right portion of the cover portrays a classy and elegance tone..
The sleeve is a perfect touch and helps keep dust away from your albums and helps protect the album. Also, the picture on the right with the book opens flat without putting additional stress on this hinge or spine of the album.
The folks at Leather Craftsmen have really out done themselves. LC may be a little more expensive compared to other album binding companies, but they are well worth the quality and the longevity of the albums they produce.
by mboardman
no comments
add a comment link to this post email a friend