HOLIDAZE 2009 - Friends, Food and Fun!

The Holidays this year were great fun here at the Inn (as was the entire month of December - we had a GREAT Yoga Retreat, and a Big Birthday Party), plus Thanksgiving and Christmas!

For Thanksgiving, it was all about the bird(s), with three turkey breasts; each done in its own theme, and each with its own set of side items to match. I love to cook but had never done just Turkey Breasts before (both because I like the dark meat and because I'd always worried that they'd be dry), but I have to say that these turned out great!

I did a Cajun Turkey (a recurring theme this year...) with Sausage, a Savory Turkey with Fresh Sage, Apples and Onions, and an Orange Rosemary Turkey (one of my favorites) - a variation of a favorite Gourmet Magazine recipe. The turkeys came out so pretty I almost (that's right - almost) did not want to cut into them.

Thanksgiving dinner was not as busy as it's been some years because lots of folks did not arrive until Thanksgiving Day, but it was still festive and lots of fun.

After dinner, the tryptophan kicked in but not so much that it kept everybody from going out to explore the bar scene here in Palm Springs. (Some of them even got "caught" by one of our local bar rags - I have the pictures to prove it - and I have to say the guys were feeling no pain when that particular photo was taken! :)

David has been decorating for Christmas since Thanksgiving week (and has not stopped n the interim). I think we have used more lights and more decorations this year than we have ever have (not that there is a shortage of decorations in storage). It looks great - even David's "art" tree.

I did the Christmas tree (my decorating contribution) in turquoise and silver - new colors (inspired by a package of ornaments I saw at Target - lol!). The tree turned out just great (Even though Stephen and David kidded me about the tree topper I got - they said it was a dunce hat).

For our Christmas meal this year, we decided to have sort of a split Lunch/Dinner so we could enjoy the sunshine out by the pool. I always like to include a Honeybaked Ham for Christmas (but still managed to also serve a Cajun Turkey - this time the whole turkey - not one, though, that I had to make from scratch, thank you Honeybaked!).

I confess that I got a bit carried away with the side items this year - braised Brussels Sprouts and Carrots with Bacon Drippings and Kumquats, Mashed Potatoes with Roasted Garlic and Gorgonzola Cheese, Dirty Rice, Corn and Black Beans, Baked yams and Sourdough Biscuits - but it was all good (even if I had so many choices I could barely get a spoonful of each onto my plate).

Alan and Michael brought Broccoli casserole, Robert Lundy brought his Cherry Cranberry dish, and Bryan brought eighteen kinds of Christmas Cookies, plus a homemade Lemon pie, a homemade Cherry pie, and homemade vanilla ice cream.

Trust me, none of this is low fat. I will be paying for it on the stairmaster for months but it's worth it! Add to that a birthday cake for Charlie House and Alan Drucker and you can see why everyone needed a nap after dinner!