Mini Thanksgiving

Well Mini Thanksgiving went off without a hitch! Bill did a great job cooking and everything turned out great. I baked the cake Friday night so it would have time to cool and chill overnight. I realized too late that I didn't have a double boiler, so I had to come up with a makeshift one...and it turned out working alright. I looked up how expensive they are...I thought about putting it on my registry, but why bother? The makeshift one worked great & I already have storage for it ;-) All Saturday Bill cooked. I cleaned for a while after teaching a lesson on Jimmy Choo & "the dudes" (our cats) watched curiously. They're never too trusting when the vacuum comes out...

It's impossible for me to be clean in the kitchen. Really.
And - like my makeshift double boiler??

Hemmingway hiding in the pillows while I vacuumed - Mini 2010

Hemmingway hiding in the pillows while I vacuumed - Mini 2010

I washed the table runner & we don't have an iron....
Bill = iron.

THE TABLE & FOOD!! YUM!!

Close-up place setting

THE CAKE!!

To me, the appetizers were the star (sorry, I didn't take pix of them!!)...Bill made homemade ricotta & crusty french bread (which we're selling if you're interested! Homemade $5/loaf) & homemade nan with goat cheese & carmelized onions. I could eat the nan & goat cheese every day. It was phenomenal.

The gumbo was a little too hot for me, but the jambalaya and tomatoes with okra were great! We finished with my flourless chocolate cake, which I used a recipe from Epicurious and added my own little flare - a teaspoon of vanilla. I made a mixed berry puree and sprinkled the plate with a little powdered sugar for sweetness. The table turned out very well and the whole family seemed to have a great time. 2010: SUCCESS!!