Celebrate, Food

Food, Fun, and Folderol

50 Comments

The holidays are over, and our eldest daughter is back home in New York City. What a grand ten days we had with her, and as always, I’m a little blue that all the fun and folderol are over.

We are, ahem, a family that is more than a little obsessed with food. On Christmas Eve, our tradition is to have a homemade cheddar cheese soup that I’ve adapted from a Moosewood recipe. It’s a lovely, rich soup, and we gild the lily, so to speak, by adding broccoli and tortellini.

Dee loves waffles, and whenever she comes, Clif whips up some of his wonderful, light waffles, made at the table and served hot. For a side, we had Morningstar Farms veggie sausages, which are a tasty substitute for the real thing.

For a Christmas present, Clif and I received a gift certificate to one of our favorite restaurants—The Last Unicorn—in Waterville. There was enough on the certificate to treat Dee to lunch, and off we went to Waterville. How festive The Last Unicorn was, and the food, so reasonably priced, was absolutely  scrummy.

Speaking of presents and scrummy…as is our wont, we had a dash of fantasy during this holiday. For Dee, we bought her this confection at  Scrummy Afters for a Christmas present.

It is chocolate, of course, but without too much imagination, one could imagine that a little dragon is starting to crack the egg. Dee couldn’t bear to chop it up, and she brought the whole egg back with her to New York.

This must have been the Year of the Dragon as Dee bought me this adorable ornament to add to my collection.

However, this holiday season wasn’t all food and dragons. We are a family of film buffs, and what better thing to do when the weather is cold than to watch movies? Let’s just say our tastes are what you might call eclectic, ranging from the Transformer movie Bumblebee to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse to the fabulous Shakespeare series The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses. (The latter being a DVD set and another Christmas present for Dee.)

And guess what? We liked them all. For those who are tempted to sniff at today’s popular culture, I want to remind you that once upon a time, Shakespeare was part of the popular culture in Elizabethan England.

Now that the holidays are over, it is time to get back to work. Book Three in my Great Library Series is slated to be published in 2020, which seems like a long way into the future. However, as I’ve barely begun working on Chapter one, I’d better chop-chop. A lot of effort goes into writing and publishing a book, and 2020 will be here before I know it.

Happy, happy New Year to all my blogging friends. I wish you good health, good food, good companionship, and lots of creativity.

 

 

 

50 thoughts on “Food, Fun, and Folderol”

  8. I just love that dragon’s egg! Wow! I don’t think I could chop it open either. So glad you were able to have time with your daughter. I just watched the movie “Christopher Robin” last night and highly recommend it. I am an old Winnie the Pooh fan, and Ewan McGregor is a good grown up Christopher Robin. Happy New Year!

  10. While Becky is here she is using several of her movie accounts on our TV and introducing us to films we wouldn’t otherwise see. Last night it was Love Actually

    2. Love Actually is my Christmas tradition, Derrick. I’m curious – do you feel there was a story that was less compelling than all the others? Or that seemed added in as opposed to woven together with the rest?

      2. YES!! Me too! I love that movie, but it feels like they made it and it came up a bit short in time so they threw that story line in as an afterthought. Ah, but Liam Neeson – he stops my fussing every time. : )

  13. That soup looks yummy, Laurie, as do all the pictures. Hopefully, you will soon have more snow to protect your plants. BTW. folderol is a fantastic word for your title!

  14. Oh, it looks like a great time, Laurie. I finally, just 2 days ago, opened your book. Life has been so chaotic that I hadn’t had a moment to even think of reading until then. Thank you so much for the lovely note. You are a treasure. Loving the book! Happiest of years to you and your family, my friend.

  15. I will be watching that Shakespeare series this weekend and ordering the Moosewood cookbook!🙂 You might need an extra week off after such a wonderful holiday before going back to writing!🙂

    1. What a fabulous series, and you can’t go wrong with Moosewood. Actually, I’m ready to begin work on Book Three. Took the month of December off from writing fiction. Now I’m raring to go. 😉

  16. Gosh, I want to come eat with you! I was reading Quercus’ blog, realized I missed your announcement of your book, and came over. Somehow, you dropped off my following list! You’re back on now. Congrats on the book and starting three!

  17. Oh, my–I almost didn’t make it past that soup–that screams my name!! It sounds like a perfect holiday for you and yours, Laurie! Now, go sit and write!

  19. Thanks for linking the recipe to the Cheddar soup, Laurie! 🙂 Glad you all had such a wonderful (yummy) time. 🙂

  20. Such a comforting post– love a view into your traditions and celebrations. Isn’t it wonderful to have this opportunity each year to show our love for our friends and family and bring in a tree, real or not, to decorate with what makes us smile! I enjoy your whimsy of dragons and Santas…Best wishes for a new year full of blessings! I’m anticipating your next book!❤

      1. I read the first 2 before giving to Zoë for Christmas and now a wait full of anticipation! Have fun creating! ❤

  22. Oh my goodness, girl. That food looks so yummy that I am suddenly seized by hunger! I know how it feels when they leave. And the house suddenly seems very quiet.

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