We are finally recovered from Thanksgiving (I think). It was a wonderful time with fabulous friends and I bet you want to hear all about it. Lets do it!

Just between you and me, I had no intention of hosting Thanksgiving Dinner, but when bestie Diane said she was coming home, I knew that called for something special. We bought the turkey, planned a few dishes, invited a few friends, bought a case of bubbly. Then our incredible friends from Black Tie Barbecue told me they were holding a smoked turkey with my name on it, I decided to go ahead and roast the turkey we had at home and freeze the meat for the Christmas party nibble ingredients.

Do you remember the photo of those smoking turkeys? Unbelievable.

There were seven of us at dinner and then some other friends stopped by for dessert. Diane’s beau, Jonathan, really outdid himself and spoiled us by showing up with luscious goodies like homemade Parkerhouse rolls, fresh cranberry sauce, twice baked potatoes, a pumpkin cheesecake, roasted brussel sprouts, and our new friend Jay came laden down with a wonderfully tasty pumpkin ginger soup and marvelous green beans ladled with a walnut sauce that had us all elbowing each other for the spoon. Of course there was that smoked turkey that was out of this world. I am not kidding when I tell you that the turkey was so good, not only did we get no photos of it, but there was only enough leftover to make one sandwich. Seriously.

Eric and I teamed up to make a pumpkin pie, two types of dressing and a gingered sweet potato mash. Our sweet friend Christy brought a delish black eyed pea and beet salad that I loved. So yes, there was plenty of food to be thankful for. And we were.

Before dinner, I asked everyone to jot down what they were thankful for on a post-it note and stick it to our fire lantern. Have you seen these? They are so cool.

I decided to keep the table simple this year. A burlap runner ran down the length of the table and gold chargers were layered with our plain white dinner plates, topped with soup bowls and my new linen napkins embroidered with a “D” for dinner (or Davis, either way).

But first, there was popcorn. In the new popcorn machine. Just like at the movies!

Isn't this fun? Just like the Pilgrims!

A very happy reunion indeed.

Eric and I were so happy to have Diane with us, even for only one day.

And so was Jonathan...

Table is set. With little notes of gratitude for each guest as place cards.

Post-it notes and paper lantern for later in the evening.

Jay and Jonathan get acquainted.

Sweet Christy

Okay, everyone, to the table!

Black Eyed Peas and Beet Salad

Pumpkin and Ginger Soup

Mmmm, twice baked potatoes.

Those green beans and walnut sauce...

Roasted brussel sprouts. Yum.

Oh so good Parkerhouse rolls. Homebaked by Jonathan.

Eric carving the turkey we roasted. I'm telling you, the smoked turkey from Black Tie BBQ was GONE in 60 seconds.

I would post pics of dressing and sweet potatoes, but you know what those look like.

Dinner polished off, we sat around and visited until it was time for dessert. Our good friends Johnny P, Barry B as well as darling neighbors Tracy, Denise & Rick showed up for the post game festivities.

Um, Oscar is not allowed on the furniture. Well, maybe just today, with Tracy and Colin.

So sweet having Diane and Jonathan with us.

Sharing a laugh with Rick, Denise and Diane.

Mr. Barry Belcher, caught on film.

And then it was time to light the lantern and send it off with all of  thanks for the year. Um, I’m not sure what the fire code is for this type of thing, so maybe we didn’t actually do this…

We may or may not have lit the lantern...

And maybe we didn't release it into the sky...

But our friends sure seem tickled.

Barry and Christy cuddle in the front yard.

Diane and Jonathan.

And around 11pm, everyone left for their respective homes and Eric and I assessed the aftermath.

Not too bad...

It was one of my favorite Thanksgivings to date. Great food (most of which I did not have to cook), fabulous company, a case of bubbly and a fire lantern that we may or may not have set on fire and let loose.

Perfect.

Hope yours was as much fun, Darlings.

xoxo, Patti

Today blogging to Josh Groban – Thankful

I have never wanted this blog to be anything more than my diaries of good times, great food and tipsy parties. I always felt if I tried to sell something, you might run the other way.

But I’m taking a leap of faith. I am partnering with Opensky to bring you the coolest things for your lifestyle. Your kitchen, your table, your parties. I promise never to preach or to push anything on you. Heck, I won’t even post about stuff I would never use myself.

Pinky swear.

In 10 days, I will open my very own Anatomy of a Dinner Party Store in conjunction with my buddies at Opensky. I have to tell you, a skeptic like me was terribly hard to convince. But after a swell phone conversation (who calls anyone anymore?) with the lovely Jonathan, my fears were allayed and I look forward to dishing on some cool stuff that will make your food a little more yummy, a little easier to cook and a lot lovelier to look at.

Jonathan, by the way, went to school in Atlanta. I like that. And he loves Fat Matt’s BBQ.

Dang, Now I'm Hungry For Ribs!

Stayed tuned, Darlings!

xoxo, Patti

Today blogging to Willie Nelson – Blue Skies

Miss Diane’s beau is a camera man for CNN. And to our surprise and delight, after he returned from covering the Haitian earthquake, he brought us some French MREs (Meals Ready To Eat). How he held on to those while traversing that tragedy is a mystery to me, but I am tickled that he did.

Last night Eric and I decided to break them out and give you all a report.

Here’s what our care package looked like when we received it from Jonathan:

Looks Like We Got the Kosher Meal. Sweet!

Check out all the cool little tins and treats that came in our box. This would make one heckuva picnic, I tell you what!

Contents

Before we can dig in, though, we must assemble our tiny stove. Isn’t it cute?

Like a Little Camp Stove.

Eric assembled it and we were on our way!

First course – Thon Pommes De Terre (Tuna and Potatoes) – The stove had this dish bubbling like mad. I thought it smelled like hospital food, but we both agreed the entree was hearty, like a tuna casserole.

Mmmm, mmmm...Not Bad

Next up…..

Chicken Tajine – I’ll spare you a photo since this looks pretty much like the tuna, with less veggies. Full of curry and chickpeas. Not spicy but flavorful.

Oops! We forgot to start with the hors d’ouevres! So lets try them now, shall we?

Camembert cheese fondue – I thought this tasted gamy, while Eric thought it tasted like camembert.

Stinky Cheese!

Then there was a tin of:

Rabbit pate – Very, very good. I would serve this at a dinner party. In fact, this was the only thing I kept as leftovers. It was that good. Granted, it looked like cat food, but I can overlook that.

Tin of Rabbit Pate (Doesn't Tin Sound So Much Nicer Than Can?)

The biscuits that accompanied the cheese and pate were delicious as well. And there were a lot of them. Oh, we saved those, too.

And the French, God Bless ‘Em, they love their sweets. The MREs were packed with them. First, and my favorite, was the fruit jelly. Mmmmm.

Fruit Jelly

The chocolate bar:

These Had Something Crunchy Inside. Yummy!

Next came the nougat:

Nougat Bar, Flecked With Dried Fruit.

And lastly, the caramels!

French Caramels.

I believe the only thing we didn’t open was the instant coffee. This is what the dining room table looked like afterwards:

Just About Done Here

This was a fun little experiment and we really thank Jonathan for this extraordinary gift. How many people do you know that get to try French Military Meals? Il était délicieux!

And honestly, it would have made a really impressive picnic. All those tins!

xoxo, Patti

I am a little distracted by the thought of snow coming our way and have spent most of my day reading about the snow or running to the window to look for snow. I am snow obsessed.

It’s a perfect day for getting into the kitchen and doing a little cooking and baking. For me, being alone in the kitchen is something akin to meditation. I chop, stir, season and taste test. Old R&B is on the radio. No one needs my time. It’s just me and the stove. Well, and the dogs. The dogs love the kitchen (something might fall on the floor!)

Yesterday was one such day. With Diane and beau Jonathan joining us for dinner, I spent the day in the kitchen readying for their arrival. Now, I know to some that sounds like drudgery, but for me it was bliss. Especially after being down for the count over New Year’s. First, I visited the grocery store for last minute items. Then home for prep. Here is the menu:

Seafood Dip and Crackers

Beet, Peppered Feta & Toasted Walnut Salad

Fresh Baked Bread

Butternut Squash Soup with Sour Cream and a Proscuitto Crisp

Homemade Twix Bars

Pinot Noir

I roasted the butternut squash, arranged the salad, baked the shortbread for the base of the twix bars.  The bread dough was shaped and laid out to rise.  Squash went into a pot with 4 cups of chicken stock, onions, garlic and chili powder. Shortbread baked, cooled and covered with caramel and set in the fridge to firm while I melted chocolate chips for the topping.  Topped caramel and shortbread with chocolate and put the whole thing in the freezer for hardening…..(not sure if I can recommend doing this, as it was a devil to cut with a fork, but it was sure tasty.)

With food all taken care of, the table needed setting.  I whipped out my silver chargers (plastic, but they are painted a lovely silver color…lol), dinner plates, soup bowls, wine glasses and flatware.  I finally had a chance to use the beautiful silver napkin rings I found over the holidays.

Back to the kitchen for last minute touches. The soup needed blending and the bread needed to bake.  I put the seafood dip in a pretty cut glass bowl and filled a plate with Wheat Thins (don’t you just love Wheat Thins?)

The candles were lit and there I was. Alone. In the kitchen. This is a funny time for me, this little twilight hour before the guests arrive.  I poured myself a chardonnay and thought about how the house would soon be filled with laughter and sated appetites. This bit of time reminds me of when I am almost awake in the morning, but not quite. It’s all quite dreamy and verges on surreal.

Or it could just be that I was having my first glass of wine in eight days. Either way, it’s a nice time for the cook.

Now, let’s take a look at that twix bar, shall we? I found this on Dana Moos’s blog, via Foodgawker. I think it’s a keeper recipe.

Almost Exactly Like the Real Thing!

Warm and Inviting, Yes?

Good Morning, Darlings!

It is a very rainy day here in Atlanta. I understand there will be snow up north. But here, not so much.

But it has been cold! I thought some soup was in order.  Miss Diane was sweet to pick up a gift for us and swing it by, so I thought she should have dinner with us.  She called me mid-afternoon to let me know that her beau Jonathan would be flying in from assignment in Columbus, Ohio early evening.  How exciting!  We would finally meet her mystery man.  Jonathan is a well-respected videographer and we couldn’t wait for him to join us.

And to add to the mix, we invited Crystal and Teague to join us.  I love a party!

Dinner was very simple.  Vegetable and meatball soup, dinner rolls and homemade peach cobbler made with peaches Crystal canned this summer. Yum! Oh, and wine – we have a ton left over from the party. I hate for it to go to waste.

As for the evening?  It was made fabulously sophisticated by the presence of our new friend and dinner guest.  Full of tales from the frontlines of what we only see on television, we listened intently to Jonathan’s stories.  I have to say, my husband and friends are much more in tune with politics and current events than I am (although I set a mean table!), that I pretty much sat back and enjoyed the conversation.  Not only was Jonathan interesting, he was genuinely delightful.  A great combo.  And we feel like he has hit the jackpot with Miss Diane (she’s such a catch!) They are so cute together.

So, without further adieu, here are some shots from our cozy little dinner last night.

The Best Conversation Happens in the Kitchen!

Happy Dinner Guests!

Jonathan, Teague & Crystal Enjoy Some Stimulating Conversation

The Blogger Photographs The Media Mogul and the President of Adair Park

And on top of all this fun, Teague, who is our neighborhood association President, has asked me to sign on as the official Social Director of Adair Park! I am so excited and flattered! I will be planning events for the neighborhood, all the while learning about permitting and all that goes into a public event.  I can’t wait to take on the challenge!

Keep warm and dry, my Darlings.

xoxo, Patti
PS – For a little extra treat today, you have GOT to check out NotMartha and these too cute for words gingerbread houses that sit on the side of your cocoa cup!