For Emily

Emily and Andy gave me this beautiful table runner for Christmas along with four matching napkins.  Emily couldn't remember how long our table was, so she was nervous it wouldn't fit.  Well, it is perfect and the colors go fantastic with the dining room.  Thank you! I can't believe how much better the table looks.

Last Lunch of the Year

We are back from a week in Wisconsin!  We ate and drank an excessive amount while we were away.  The last thing we wanted to do was eat out today, but we didn't have any food in the house and needed energy to run to Costco and the grocery store to stock up the pantry.  We thought sushi was a nice, light choice.

P.S. Aunt Krystal - if you are reading this, sorry I didn't come by to pick up that pair of shoes.  I didn't have an inch of extra space left in my suitcase to transport them home.

Fish Fry!

Lake Perch Fish Fry.  Not easy to come by outside of Wisconsin.

Wisconsin

It is snowing today.  We are relaxing and enjoying family time.  We have each gained 10 pounds since we have been here.  :)

Wine Light

We got this from our friends Kirk and Amy for Christmas.  They drilled a hole in the back of the bottle and threaded Christmas lights through it. It is really cute.  I would like to make a few and build a collection for display.

Adios Faux Finish

We have been working on the stairway at the back of the house.  First, Chris installed a new light fixture back in October.  It is made of 10 light sockets hanging from one fixture.  Each socket holds a large, round bulb and the bottom half of the bulb is mirrored.

Last night we gave the stairwell a nice coat of paint, covering the last of the faux "tuscan" finish.  We used the same color as our dining room.  

Do Not Try This at Home:

Chris was holding the ladders the entire time.  I was completely safe.  Except when he left to go get his phone to take a picture and then when he stood at the bottom of the stairs to take said picture.  We both agree it was a pretty ridiculous way to get the job done.

Here is the finished product.  We painted the electrical box which is a really nice improvement: 

Last but not least, the new light and new paint.

Snow Day!

We are working from home today.  Blizzard conditions exist according to the National Weather Service.  We haven't ventured out to experience for ourselves.  It sounds blizzardy out there.

On a side note, the neighbors got a new shed this week. Not sure how we feel about it, not that it matters at this point.  We will be erecting a fence to bridge the new gap between their shed and their garage sometime this spring.  We will also be adding a peach tree in the back corner and hope it will detract from the shed as well.

Put a Mouse on It!

The tree is up!

We haven't been able to find a tree topper that we like.  So, Chris perched this Ikea mouse on the top.  We also had a little knit CU stocking hat ornament, so that went on the mouse as well.  I bought the mouse last year, along with other toys to donate to Toys for Tots.  But, it blended in with the tree skirt and we didn't realize it never got donated and was still in the house only after the holidays were we over and we were packing up the tree.

Spritz Cookies

I decided I wanted to make Spritz Cookies for Christmas this year.  I went out to Amazon to read reviews and place an order.  The Reviews and Ratings were not exactly glowing for any of the cookie presses and the best reviews went to presses that were more expensive than I would have liked.  Most of the complaints involved breaking parts after one or a few uses and cookies not sticking to the cookie sheet, making the press useless.  

After some deliberation and almost springing for this well rated $40 Kuhn Rikon Press, I finally decided to purchase the cheapest press I could get: the $12 Wilton Comfort Grip Cookie Press.  I made my first batch tonight and achieved Spritz success!  But I did use a couple tricks I gleaned from the disgruntled cookie press reviewers on Amazon:

1.  Put your cookie sheets in the freezer for a few minutes - it will help the cookies stick to the pan.

2. Don't over tighten any of the press parts to prevent breakage.

Even with the cold pans, the first couple cookies never stuck, but after that, it was smooth sailing. I also searched for spritz recipes on line, but ended up just going with the recipe that was provided on the side of the cookie press box.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 cups butter softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon no-color almond extract

Makes: 7-8 dozen cookies.

Instructions:

step 1

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

step 2

In bowl, combine flour and baking powder. In large bowl, beat butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg, milk, vanilla and almond extract; mix well. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture; beat until combined. Do not chill. Fill cookie press with dough and with desired disks, press cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet.

step 3

Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheet on cooling rack. Remove from sheet; cool completely.

Salt

After today's afternoon Christmas get together, we headed to Boulder to celebrate the birth of our good friend Brian at Salt.  Here we are enjoying cheese, charcuterie, and wine before our entrees arrived.

Tiramisu

Marscapone and Ladyfingers highlighted by a Tuscan background.

Today we are having an Italian food themed Christmas with Chris's family.  In keeping with the theme, we volunteered to bring Tiramisu.  I had never made it before, and all of the recipes I read seemed complicated.  But, it was fast and not that bad at all, especially when you have a cute kitchen elf to lend an extra pair of hands.

2 -3 cups strong plunger espresso coffee, cooled to room temp
3 tablespoons Tia Maria (optional)
6 eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
16 oz mascarpone cheese
1 cup whipping cream
ladyfingers
cocoa powder, for dusting

1 Put the egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar in a large bowl.
2 Beat with electric mixers until the mixture goes pale and thick.
3 Add mascarpone and beat until combined.
4 It does not matter if it is marbled slightly.
5 Whip the cream until stiff peaks hold, and fold gently into the egg mixture.
6 Beat the egg whites and 1/4 cup sugar to soft peaks in a perfectly clean metal bowl.
7 If there is any grease, they won't whip properly.
8 Make sure you rinse and dry your beaters well.
9 Fold the whites into the cream. It is very important to retain as much air as possible.
10 Put the coffee and liquer in a bowl.
11.Dip biscuits in coffee one at a time. Drain well.
12. Layer in your dish, covering the bottom.
13 Place half of the mascarpone mix on top and spread out. Repeat with remaining biscuits and mascarpone, finishing with a creamy layer.
14 Dust with cocoa.
15 Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but it works quite well if you leave for up to 24 hours.

Read more at: http://www.food.com/recipe/tiramisu-84612?oc=linkback

Civic Center

Erica snapped this picture on her way home from a Girls Night Out dinner at Pinche Tacos.  The restaurant was really good, especially the Pork Belly & Pescado Street Tacos.  And the Churros.

Chris started coming down with a sore throat last night, so he worked from home today.  He is snuggled up in blankets on the couch tonight.

Networking Happy Hour

Erica had a networking happy hour event tonight.

Sippin' and Paintin'

Tonight we took a much needed break from TV watching and we met our friends Kirk and Amy for Dinner at Amato's.  Afterwards, we headed to Sippin' and Paintin' where we drank wine and painted.  This was the inspiration for the evening:

Kirk won a free session in a raffle while we were there.  Looks like we will be back!  It was a lot of fun.

Christmas Cometh Early

The big unveiling.  Chris is excited.

Look how thin it is!

65"

This is the gift that just won't quit.  It also required a new entertainment center and 2 pair of 3D glasses.  The old TV and bookshelf/media stand are being moved downstairs.  The old basement tube TV is going to Best Buy to be recycled.

Flakes

We got home today just in time for the Season 3 Walking Dead Marathon.  Now we are all caught up.  I made some snow flakes while we watched.

Christmas Party

We stayed in Loveland last night for Chris's work Christmas party.  It's fun to get all spiffed up every once in a while.  Chris even bought a new suit for the occasion.