Eric and I are so lucky that our friends are our family. Last night was a prime example.

Each year, Crystal and Teague host a Pre-Thanksgiving dinner that celebrates all the wonderful friends and neighbors we have. Everyone gets to cook what they would like for Thanksgiving as opposed to what they might be forced to endure annually with their blood kin on the 4th Thursday of November. My dear friends really know how to throw a bash. This year the guest list totaled 30 people – wow! Not only did Teague fry a turkey, but grilled two pork butts as well. Crystal was kept busy making not one – but two – dressings. One was an old family recipe with raisins and apples and the other was an oyster dressing. Yum yum yum. But that’s not all – no, there’s more! Crystal also made an amazing cranberry sauce with a port reduction, greens, deviled eggs and artichoke dip. We brought a beet, goat cheese and walnut salad and I tried my hands at yeast rolls. There was so much food, the table was groaning with the weight of all of it. There was pear salad, waldorf salad, broccoli casserole, spinach balls, homemade ravioli with brown butter sage sauce, homemade walnut bread, killer mac and cheese, spaetzle, strawberry pretzel salad, squash medley, pigs in a blanket, peach-raspberry pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie, holiday cookies, gingerbread trifle and lots of beverages. Everything was so delicious. One of my favorite appetizers came from our friend and neighbor, Leila, who brought mutsubi, which is spam sushi, a Hawaiian specialty. Keeping an open mind, I tried it. And loved it! For those of you, like me (until last night), who have never heard of this treat, let me offer you a little photo:

Some more fun pics from our great time last night:

Our offerings:

I would have taken a picture of my plate, but it was gone before you could say, “gobble, gobble.” Everything was exemplary. Our friends really bring their A Game to every event.

The evening was rounded out by exchanging stories by the campfire and just digesting the incredible meal we all shared.

Returning home, I checked the mailbox and found this fab gift from Teague’s mother, Pat. I thought it was very timely:

This highly needed gift came with the most lovely, heartfelt note thanking us for hosting a dinner for them when they were in town. I can’t wait to delve into the cookbook and whip up some spa recipes! Fun!

But before I leave you for the day, let me share the recipe for the yeast rolls I baked for the party last night. One night, at our dinner table, Crystal mentioned that the meal I had served tasted like “funeral food.” Now, if you are from the south, this is an extreme compliment. Funeral food is made up of the best family comfort food recipes one has. It is the cream of the crop. So you can imagine my surprise when I arrived home from Los Angeles and in my new kitchen was a copy of the “Being Dead Is No Excuse” cookbook. It is a fabulous and hilarious cookbook from the belles of the Mississippi delta. So, if you need a simple, yet super yummy recipe for dinner rolls this holiday, here you go.

Mary Mac’s Yeast Rolls

Ingredients
1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup shortening
1.5 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 packages active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
6 cups flour
1 stick of butter, melted

Pour the boiling water over the shortening. Add the salt and sugar. let the mixture cool, then add the eggs. Let the yeast stand in the warm water for 5 minutes. Then stir into the shortening/egg mixture.

Mix in the flour, a cup at a time (I used my stand mixer for this). Transfer to a greased bowl in the fridge and let sit for at least two hours (the dough will keep in the icebox for several days). For the short term, a damp cloth cover will do, but longer term requires plastic wrap.

Roll the dough on a floured board. Cut the rolls out with a biscuit cutter, brush with melted butter, and then fold them over. Place in a buttered pan and brush with more butter. About 15-18 rolls will fit in an 8-inch square pan.

Let rise in 1.5 hours in a warm place.

Bake at 375F, about 10-12 minutes or until brown on top.

Gobble up!

Have a wonderful Sunday, Darlings!

xoxo, Patti