Christmas 2007: Hello, my beauties...

Merry Christmas, everybody! Boy, has it been a hectic two days. There was a lot of shopping to get through yesterday. I had to go to eight different stores just for eggnog. I was looking for the Nus' favorite brand: Bud's Famous Egg Nog. Unfortunately, it's only available in the Bay Area.

My dogs sure were barking last night (translation: my feet were hurting when I went to bed from walking around so much yesterday). But, bright and early, I got up and wrapped the presents.* Stillman and Mr. Nonny Nu's brother were our guests today. A few members of The Backyard Petting Zoo showed up for the party, too. Sushi was there in spirit and celebrated with us as well.

There were also a lot of foods to be eaten. Latkes were the crowning glory of the day (more on that later), but we also had chocolates, caramelized walnuts, Spanish peanuts mix, homemade cheese plate (I personally selected and cut the cheese--HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAA!!!), pumpkin and double cream blueberry pies, Beard Papa cream puffs (these are seriously delicious), and steak with asparagus, mashed potatoes and gravy, asparagus, and dinner rolls. Also available were veggies plate for dipping in ranch dressing and chips with salsa and guacamole, but we didn't get to those because the lightweights didn't have room in their stomachs.

Anyhow, the moral of this story is that latkes are fun to make, taste great, and will be a part of the Nus' Christmas tradition from now on! The recipe is simple. This is not my recipe. It is the recipe of my Jewish Mother.** The ingredients are:

1 packet Knorr leek soup mix
1 bag Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns
3 eggs

Scramble the eggs and then add the soup mix into it. Mix well, then mix in the potatoes (mix well again). Then, just heat up some oil (I used canola) and fry them in a skillet (the metal kind, not the grey fuzzy kind). Each portion should be about 2 tablespoons, when they are as brown as you like, just flip them over and brown the other side. Serve with sour cream and apple sauce.

Here are my beauties being crafted. First, their birth (background music provided by Mr. Nonny Nu):


Now, they go through finishing school:


Finally, Stillman sets the stage for their debut:


After the eating was squared away, Skillet hung out at the dinner table for a few more moments. But, Kash decided to stretch out on the couch. I crept up on him and stretched out, too. These two are such little...cutie ...pies. Stillman is allergic to cats, so we are very lucky that, armed with Claritin, she was able to withstand several hours of the kitties!

* Mr. Nonny Nu and I got a Rosetta Stone program to learn German! I'm on vacation until Jan. 7, so I'll be working on that. Can't wait!

** My Jewish Mother is not really my mom (she's not even old enough to be my mom), but she's Jewish and very motherly.