Season's Greetings and Eatings

"I like to compare the holiday season with the way a child listens to a favorite story. The pleasure is in the familiar way the story begins, the anticipation of a familiar turn it takes, the familiar moments of suspense, and the familiar climax and ending."

(Fred Rogers)

Below is a photo-heavy, text-brief recap of my past month, from early December through early January. Christmas lights, gingerbread cookies, a child's excitement opening presents... The familiar scenes, scents, and comforts of the holiday season are some of my favorite things.

Christmas Craft Potluck Party

One of the highlights of my holiday season was also the very first Christmas-related event on my calendar. On Sunday, December 8, I hosted a small Christmas Craft Potluck gathering -- similar to the previous year's "Autumn Craft Party" -- and along with 4 girlfriends, made felt ornaments, holiday gift tags, and cards (for a list of craft supplies, please see the bottom of this post).

A Christmas crafternoon

Making coffee punch and white "Christmas" sangria

Coffee punch with chocolate syrup and vanilla ice cream

Cranberry & rosemary white "Christmas" sangria

Stuffing gingerbread cookies with Jacques Torres chocolate

Chocolate-stuffed gingerbread cookies

Making pistachio-cranberry white chocolate bark

Pistachio & cranberry white chocolate bark

Potluck lasagna, cookies, and lemon tart

Supplies and templates for holiday felt ornaments

Seasonal stamps, ink pads, and magazines for inspiration

Gift tags, cards and envelopes, and embellishments

Festive and glittery foam stickers

Some favorite creations by friends, including a bacon ornament

Holiday Hoops

Like last year, this past December, my husband and I went to see the University of Michigan men's basketball team play in the Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational game in our neighborhood at Barclays Center. We met up with some friends to watch the winning game against Stanford on Saturday, December 21.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Delight

For a work holiday luncheon, I made an easy dessert called Chocolate Chip Cookie Delight, which consists of a layer of chocolate chip cookie, topped with a mixture of cream cheese, confectioners sugar, and whipped cream, topped with a mixture of chocolate and vanilla pudding, topped with more whipped cream, and sprinkled with chopped mixed nuts and dark chocolate.

Layers of cookie, cream cheese frosting, pudding, whipped cream...

Chocolate chip cookie delight, sprinkled with chopped nuts and dark chocolate

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve, Sam and I went to my home church's candlelight service. We took the train from NYC to Westchester, stopped by my parents' house to borrow their car, and drove it back to Brooklyn that night, to return the next morning for Christmas.

Christmas Eve candlelight service

Christmas Day

On Christmas Day, we went back to my parents' house and spent the day there with my family, including my sister and her family, and my brother. We didn't open presents until after dinner in the evening, and I was impressed that my 4-year-old nephew Peter was able to leave them alone all day.

Before we left our apartment, I found a gift for me from Santa!

Presents I wrapped last-minute for my family

Christmas dinner, and my cranberry, pecan, and rum baked brie

Opening Christmas presents

The Metropolitan Opera

I went to 2 operas in December: Puccini's Tosca, with my friends Robyn and Christine, on Friday, December 20; and Mozart's The Magic Flute with Sam, on Saturday, December 28. I'm looking forward to returning to Lincoln Center this season for Puccini's La Bohème.

At Lincoln Center for Puccini's Tosca

Sam's music note cufflinks at dinner before Mozart's The Magic Flute

Have Yourself a Cozy Tartan Christmas (and Other Decor)

I ordered an adorable wool plaid mitten and scarf garland from Oh This Nose! on Etsy, which turned into my holiday home decor, along with a felt plaid "Merry Christmas" Threshold garland I bought at Target. In addition to those and my Christmas tree, I had just a few other simple Christmas-y touches, including cinnamon berry potpourri I got at Barnes & Noble.

Holiday Greeting Cards

I always love sending and receiving holiday greetings, whether in the form of paper cards or e-cards, and finding out what friends and their families have been up to.

Handmade cards from our nephews and nieces

Hands down the best card we got, and it was made at my craft party

Wall of Christmas cards

Our holiday greetings to you

New Year's Eve at Home 

We stayed in on New Year's Eve, and had a quiet night at home in front of the TV. Although I can't remember the last time I was home on New Year's Eve, I'm really not that keen on going out to the parties; I prefer smaller, more intimate celebrations.

Right before Christmas, we also celebrated my mother's birthday (and it was my puppy niece Emma's 10 birthday). Since we rang in 2014, we celebrated Sam's birthday with dinner at Scalini Fedeli (where I had my birthday dinner in 2011), drinks with friends at La Biblioteca and Whiskey Blue, and dinner and dessert with my family. Birthday shout-out to both Christines!

{Craft supplies: Buffalo Snow; Celebrate It Tempo Wire-Edge Ribbon in Gold; Crafts Beautiful Christmas Special 2013 felt ornament templates; Creatology Foam Glitter Stickers; Creatology 10 mm Pom-Poms in Green and Red; DMC Mercerized Cotton Tatting Thread in Ecru and Red; DMC Size 28 Tapestry Needles; Felt in Antique, Pirate, Red, and Walnut; Jolee's Boutique Snowflake Embellishments; Recollections Poinsettia Dimensional Stickers; Recollections Wreath Dimensional Stickers; Stamps in Handwritten and Manger Scene / Invitations: Paperless Post Knit Mitten}

Fall 2013 Brooklyn Eats

My long two-pointed ladder's sticking through a tree

Toward heaven still.

And there's a barrel that I didn't fill

Beside it, and there may be two or three

Apples I didn't pick upon some bough.

But I am done with apple-picking now.

Essence of winter sleep is on the night,

The scent of apples; I am drowsing off.

(Robert Frost, "After Apple Picking")

I'm really behind on updates. Since I got married over a year and a half ago and moved to Brooklyn, around the end of each season I've posted new recipes and nearby restaurants I've tried, apart from special occasions or holidays. I wanted to post this in early December, but the holidays came with a vengeance and there just weren't enough hours in the day.

There are now fewer than 3 days left until 2014, and I truly cannot wait until 2013 is over and done with. It's been a rough year, and I'm looking forward to bigger and better things to come.

A Smoothie and Baked Goods

In September, I went apple picking at Harvest Moon Farm & Orchard in North Salem, NY with my husband, sister, nephew, niece, puppy niece, and mother. With the apples we came home with, I made several days of Harley Pasternak's Breakfast Smoothie, which was like healthy apple pie in a glass.

Some of the baked goods I made included Liv Life's Whole Grain Pumpkin Banana Nut Bread and The Baker Chick's Soft Frosted Pumpkin Spice Cookies.

Peter scampering around the apple orchard

Harley Pasternak apple pie breakfast smoothie

Whole grain pumpkin banana nut bread

Soft frosted pumpkin spice cookies

Soups and a Stew

This past autumn, I tried a few new soup recipes: Williams-Sonoma's Mexican Lime Soup with Chicken; Oh She Glows' Spiced Red Lentil, Tomato, and Kale Soup (this was so delicious, I made it a couple of times and plan to make it again soon!); and Scaling Back's Red Lentil Coconut Soup.

I also made Hip Foodie Mom's Kimchi Jjigae, or Korean kimchi stew -- an adaptation of the Kimchi Chronicles recipe -- for the first time.
  

Mexican lime soup with chicken

Spiced red lentil, tomato, and kale soup

Red lentil coconut soup

Korean kimchi jjigae with chicken

Salad, Dip, Burgers, and Arroz con Pollo

The following dishes didn't fit into neat categories: MyRecipes' Greek Salad (made without olives because I didn't have any); Everyday Food's Creamy Avocado Dip; What's Gaby Cooking's Cheddar Jalapeño Chicken Burgers with Guacamole; and Women's Health's Healthy Arroz con Pollo.

Greek salad

Creamy avocado dip

Cheddar jalapeño chicken burgers with guacamole

Healthy arroz con pollo

Shrimp and Salmon

I had frozen shrimp that I wanted to use up, so I made a lighter Lemon-Garlic Shrimp and Grits. I also still have lots of herbes de Provence (which I first used in my freezer cooking spaghetti sauce), so I tried A Less Processed Life's Baked Herbes de Provence Salmon.

Lemon-garlic shrimp and grits

Baked herbes de Provence salmon

Pasta and Italian

I try to find a balance between embracing healthier recipes and sticking with the more indulgent, comforting ones. One of the lower-fat recipes I tried was Martha Stewart's Lighter Three-Cheese Mac. I made Eat, Live, Run's Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Shells a little lighter by using some part-skim cheeses, and Chef Michael Symon's Angel Hair with Olive Oil, Garlic and Chili Flake was already very simple.

Finally, Sam baked Ellie Krieger's Chicken Parmesan to eat along with whole wheat spaghetti.

Lighter three-cheese mac

Cheesy spinach stuffed shells

Angel hair with olive oil, garlic, and chili flake

Baked chicken Parmesan

Fall Meals from Local Restaurants

The list below is of local restaurants we tried for the first time this autumn.

Barbeque: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, Morgan's BBQ
British/Fish & Chips: ChipShop
Caribbean/Latin American: Ideya
Chocolate: Cocoa Bar
Italian: Peperoncino
Japanese/Sushi: Kami Asian Restaurant, Yamato
Mediterranean/Falafel: Chick P
Thai: Olieng
Turkish/Mediterranean: Istanbul Park

Next up, I'll share some Christmas-related activities and details. Happy holidays!