Last night Miss Diane returned from her holiday and we were lucky enough to snag her for dinner.

I had really had enough turkey (haven’t you?) and thought we were due for a little veggie meal.  Hmmm….what’s in the fridge?  I have baby portobello mushrooms, a bit of spinach, some mozzarella cheese.  What’s in the pantry?  Here’s some artichoke hearts, fire roasted tomatoes and farfalle.  That sounds like the ingredients for a cozy little meal, doesn’t it?  There are some yummy honey yeast rolls in the freezer – lets defrost them, too.

It all went together happily and handily.  As dinner baked in the oven, I received a call from Crystal who was walking little Scout and wanted to stop in to see our tree.  Of course!  And as Teague was officiating at the neighborhood meeting, I asked her to join us.  I had missed these two friends since they had both been away for Thanksgiving, so we popped some bottles of bubbly and got to visiting.  Eric finished work and joined us.  The casserole came out of the oven all ooey gooey and I set the table. Like a 9 year old.  I had put my Christmas tablecloth lovingly on my new table in the kitchen earlier this week and thought that since we were eating something that resembled Italian food, I should put out Italian-inspired dish towels as well as tiny tumblers out of which to drink the champagne.  When I stepped back, I had to laugh. Loudly.

Did this mismatched mess alter the way the food tasted? Not at all. That distinguishes the true friends from the not so true friends.

Moral of the story – always make sure the bubbly is flowing. That makes everyone happy! And hug your friends.

xoxo, Patti