New Years eve is upon us and I know what is on your mind…what do I serve my guests? You don’t want to hear “Gee, ham again?” “Gee, turkey again!” as they have become holiday staples for decades.

Our holiday meal suggestion is a wonderful recipe from Chef Scott Bryan at the world acclaimed Veritas, a  New York City restaurant.

Prepare this recipe for your family, friends and guests on New Years Eve and they will talk about it all  year long.

Roasted Chicken

Ingredients

1 to 1 and a 1/2 pounds fingerling potatoes, washed and halved
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 large parsnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
10 shallots, peeled and halved
15 fresh mushrooms, halved
5 garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon
2 fresh whole chickens (3 1/2 pound each)
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
4 sprigs each of tarragon, rosemary, and thyme
1 cup dry white wine
Fleur de sel (sea salt)

* Servings: 6-8

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the potatoes, carrots, parsnips, shallots, mushrooms, and garlic with the oil and a generous pinch of salt and pepper in a large roasting pan.

Cut the lemon in half, and rub the chickens with the lemon flesh and then the butter, and season the birds generously with salt and pepper. Place half a lemon and 2 sprigs of
tarragon, rosemary, and thyme in the cavity of each chicken.

Arrange the chickens on top of the vegetables, and roast in the lower half of the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until chickens are cooked and the skin is crisp, basting the chickens every 20 minutes. If the birds are not crisp, increase the oven temperature to 475 degrees for the last 10 to 15 minutes of cooking.

Remove from the oven, cover the chickens loosely with aluminum foil, and allow the chickens and vegetables to rest in the pan for 20 minutes.

Remove chicken and vegetables to a platter, pour the fat off the pan, deglaze with the wine, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the carved chicken and vegetables with fleur de sel, and serve with pan juices.

This is a wonderful dish that will excite the taste buds of your guests and make their visit to your home unforgettable.

Happy New Year!

(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Technorati Tags: Holiday Meals, New Years Eve Recipes, Roast Chicken, Veritas restaurant

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The holiday season is longer than we really expect. It is a hectic time for families and, especially, tough on your marriage. With family and friends dropping in and out of your lives, children home on Christmas vacation, shopping and preparing meals; it doesn’t leave much quality time for …just the two of you. When we really think about it, it isn’t just the holidays that are busy and hectic, it is really the entire year. An entire year of going from one major life event to another.

We live in a fast pace world where relationships take an effort. Relationships that are going to be long-lasting, such as marriage, are going to need tending to, attention and effort. They don’t just happen on their own.

When a relationship is new, it can be very exciting. Everything we do with the other person is a new experience, and it can be exhilarating! Just taking a walk, or maybe even going to the grocery store can be exciting and fun. However, once times goes by, you may find that doing those things that once seemed fun with the other person now just seems “old,” or “boring.” Well, you are going to need to work on finding creative ways to keep your love and romance new and exciting! Enclosed in this article are some ideas for keeping your marriage fresh, exciting and solid.

- Try to have a date every other week. Even if it is just going out to dinner and a movie, always make time for each other, just the two of you. It especially will help if you bring each other flowers, or a nice card. One person could even make the dinner for the other person. It is important also to dress up a little. Put on perfume/cologne for the other person like you did when your relationship was new. Wear makeup (women) and a dress, and men, wear a nice suit. Make it special. Don’t come to the table wearing sweats. You probably wouldn’t have done that when you were first courting each other.

-Every so often, get your spouse an unexpected gift of flowers or chocolates, or just a card. It doesn’t have to be expensive, you could even just write a love letter, sometimes that means more than the flowers or chocolates ever could. It’s the thought that counts, not the expense!

-Put a love note in your spouse’s jacket pocket/lunch before work. You can be assured, they will be very thankful and will be thinking of you during the day!

-Play a game together. Remember, the idea is to be silly. Play Twister!

-Take a walk and enjoy nature.

-Listen to music and dance- even if it is in your living room!

-Close your bedroom door, away from pets, children (after they go to sleep), unplug the phone, turn off the tv/radio/computer, and just focus on each other. Light candles, play soft music (preferably only instruments, but that’s up to you), put rose petals all around the room and watch a video. Snuggle with your spouse!

-Go to church together and really talk about what your beliefs are, what your hopes are and your dreams. Get into a very personal and intimate discussion.

-Read a book aloud, and then talk about what you both thought about it. It can be a marriage enhancing book, or it doesn’t have to be.

-Stay up late together, or all night together talking. (You’ll probably want to do this on a weekend!)

-Keep a journal together. Write down your deepest emotions for each other and your hopes and dreams.

-Exercise together. Staying in shape can also help you feel more confident about yourself, making you want to dress up more for your spouse.

-Give each other daily compliments. Don’t let a day pass without letting your spouse know how much you love him/her, and how special he/she is to you.

-Always tell each other “I love you.” Don’t just say it in passing, where it may become said out of habit and lose its meaning. Look your spouse deep in their eyes, take their hands in yours, and tell him/her that you love him/her with all your heart.

-Write your spouse a poem, or maybe even a song, and then sing the song to your spouse.

-Make time for each other! It sounds simple, but in every day life, it can hard with busy schedules. Don’t let work rule your life. Keep your spouse as a top priority.

-Just say “no” to always going out on group or double dates. You need to have time alone with just your spouse.

Try any of these neat ideas or come up with your own. Whatever turns you on. The main thing is to do something. Now, go out and enjoy some creative romance with your spouse!

(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Technorati Tags: Loving Relationships, Relationship Building, Relationships in Crisis, Relationshps

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New Year’s Eve Punch Recipe

So you thought the holiday chores were over with Christmas passed? No, you are only halfway done! The New Year celebrations are only a few days away and it is time to get ready.

Here is a easy recipe for a great New Year’s Eve punch:

Red Velvet Punch

1 (12-ounce) can frozen or fresh cranberry juice concentrate, diluted according to can’s directions
1 (6-ounce) can frozen or fresh orange juice concentrate, diluted according to can’s directions
1 (6-ounce) can frozen or fresh pineapple juice concentrate, diluted according to can’s directions
1 cup fresh lemon juice
2 cups brandy
2 (750-milliliter) bottles Champagne, chilled

1. Combine first 5 ingredients, mixing well. Chill.

2. To serve, pour chilled mixture into punch bowl and add the champagne. Add ice or an ice ring as desired.

Makes 5 quarts.

Good Morning New Year Punch

Now here is a bonus to start the first day of the year, a fruity “Good Morning New Year” punch for everyone in the family!

Fruit Punch Recipe

Yields 14 8-ounce servings

3 very ripe bananas

6 cups pineapple-orange juice

1 28-ounce bottle mineral water, chilled

1 25-ounce bottle sparkling cider, chilled

2 cups assorted sliced fruits (strawberries, oranges, kiwi, pineapples or grapes)

Peel the bananas. Remove and discard any clinging banana “threads.” Place the bananas in a blender and puree. In a large punch bowl, mix the bananas with the remaining ingredients. Serve chilled.

So, lets get moving as it is only two days from the last celebration of the year!

(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Technorati Tags: Holiday Punch, New Year Entertaining, New Year Punch, New Year's Eve Punch Recipe

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After every successful Christmas,there is inevitably an amount of food that is leftover after the event.

The question is what to do with the leftovers so as not to waste those expensive Christmas Day table fare such as ham, turkey, roasted vegetables, seafood and of course the plum pudding.

The first question one should ask, however, is not ‘what can I do with the leftovers?’ It should be, ‘what should I do with the leftovers?’ - To ensure that they are safe to utilize at a later date.

The answer is fairly straight forward and relates mostly to the temperatures at which the food has been kept and the amount of time foods spend at temperatures between 5-65 degrees Celsius, as this is the range most dangerous for micro-biological growth in food. Given that it’s safe to assume that room temperature, especially on December 25, sits smack in the middle of this it is crucial that food does not sit too long on the table, in fact the shorter the better, so after serving the chilled shellfish from the fridge get any leftover wrapped and back in the refrigerator as soon as everyone has eaten.

As for the bevy of hot foods it is best that any surplus is allowed to cool then it is wrapped well and chilled back to 4 degrees Celsius or less, again, as quickly as possible as this will extend the life of the food. Any food that has been cooked and reheated should not be utilized at a later date. The same applies to food that has been frozen as a raw product, and then cooked; you should not attempt to refreeze any food after cooking that has already been frozen.

The other food safety point to note is never place cooked food or food to be served raw, such as salads, on a chopping board after you have worked on raw food that needs to be cooked such as poultry, fish or meats or place raw item above cooked in your refrigerator, this will avoid cross contamination of your food and also avoid an unpleasant leftover banquet experience.

In the simplest terms you can’t go far wrong if you follow these general guidelines:

*Serve cold food cold (under 5 degrees Celsius)

*Hot food hot (over 65 degrees Celsius)

*Do not leave any food at room temperature for periods of time

*Only ever cook, freeze or reheat a food item once

*The safest place for food is in the refrigerator

Now for the fun part, what are the options for utilizing the leftovers from the Christmas Day dining table and how might we avoid the “not ham again” comments that seem to emanate from every family home in the period between Christmas and New Year.Be creative and use your leftovers for casseroles, hearty soups, stews, hot sandwiches…you get the idea.

Happy Holidays!

(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Technorati Tags: Christmas leftovers, Food Safety, holiday food safety, holiday leftovers

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Technorati Tags: Christmas Greetings, Christmas Traditions, Merry Christmas

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