Seafood Stew, anyone?

When I was much younger, like in my 20's and 30's,  I thought a New Year's Eve couldn't happen unless I was out there celebrating along with everyone else. I had to go to a New Year's Eve party, for heaven's sake, and of course I HAD to stay at the party until after midnight. If we weren't invited to a party, I was devastated.

Now I wonder where I ever got the energy for such shenanigans.

My idea of a perfect New Year's Eve now is to be tucked in comfortably at my own home and to be in bed by 9:00, 10:00 at the latest. I can watch a video of the ball dropping on Times Square on t.v. the next morning.

So, in the spirit of my new attitude towards New Year's Eve, I've made a seafood stew: fresh lobsters, scallops, shrimp, and haddock. (This is Maine, people. Fresh seafood isn't all that expensive for us.) I forgot the fresh crabmeat, but I can add that later if I decide we need it. This is a once-a-year indulgence for us. We'll have it tomorrow evening with our good friends, Jim and Lynn. We'll eat early, they'll head home to bed, and I'll probably be in bed before they're out of our driveway.

This is what the passage of time does to us.

(The thought of 2009 is a bit daunting, isn't it? I can't decide whether to be darned glad 2008 is almost over or to dread what 2009 might bring. Perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised and pleased at what 2009 brings. I hope so. According to this site, 21 days and 2 hours will be a major step in the right direction.)

Maine Seafood Stew

1/2 lb. butter

4 oz. fresh Maine shrimp

5 oz. fresh haddock or cod fillets

5 oz. fresh scallops

6 oz. fresh crabmeat

2 cups clam broth (I skip this.)

8 cups cream (or use some milk)

Melt butter in a deep pan. Add shrimp, haddock, and scallops; sauté them gently until they are cooked. Mix in the crabmeat.

Add clam broth and cream and simmer gently until stew is piping hot. 

Serves 8.

Christmas Reflections

It was a good Christmas.

The special sweater for a special little girl fit perfectly. And there's no harm in admiring oneself in the mirror, is there? (I like the bit of bare belly peeking out.)  

Violet and Douglas got to spend quality time together. I'm sorry, I mean Aurora and Douglas. Santa had brought a Disney Aurora dress for Violet, so she assumed that character for much of the day. Douglas is always glad to see Violet, I mean Aurora, when she pays a visit here.

The roast beef and Yorkshire pudding came out fine, although I think my meat thermometer is on the fritz.

Good friends from practically next door and as far away as San Francisco stopped in to spend some time with us.

Aurora departed, Violet returned, and she got to spend some quiet time with her Nana. Note the lady-like poses!

It was a good day, indeed.

Tiramisu!

I've finally made a tiramisu. This has been one of my goals for years; finally I've done it. This will be tomorrow's Christmas dinner dessert.

I considered several tiramisu recipes before finally settling on the one I used this morning. At first I was convinced I couldn't go wrong with the Pioneer Woman's recipe. Then I noticed she said to use Marsala wine, and that didn't appeal to me. Granted, she said brandy could be substituted for the wine, but still, I couldn't get the image of the Marsala wine out of my head.

Then I found a tiramisu recipe in a local cookbook. It sounded perfect. But then I noticed there's no mention of cooking the egg yolks. Yuck. I couldn't bear the thought of uncooked egg-yolks in the dessert.

Finally I checked out Old Faithful: Allrecipes.com. I scrolled through all of the tiramisu recipes there, read reviews, and settled on this one. As I read its reviews, I noticed a recommendation for making a mascarpone substitute. That sounded simple enough, and when the recipe also mentioned that the substitute is much less expensive than actual mascarpone, I knew I'd make it. I've never bought mascarpone, but I'm all for saving money when possible.  

Then, in the same reviews, I saw mention of a recipe for making one's own ladyfingers. Mine wouldn't win a beauty contest, as you can see from the photo, but I suspect they taste just fine. (Actually, I know they taste just fine because Ken and I scoffed down the leftover ones, and neither of us complained.)

In the midst of putting together the tiramisu, though, I realized I'd forgotten to buy heavy whipping cream when I did my grocery shopping yesterday. Ken to the rescue; he made a dash to the supermarket and came back not only with the whipping cream, but also with a half dozen fresh roses, so that worked out well for me.

I used strong coffee and rum to brush the ladyfingers before piling on the filling. That combination appealed to me. The finished product now sits in the fridge. I hope it'll be a hit tomorrow.

Winter Shots

It's officially winter today, and that's a good thing. The days start growing longer, the winter birds frequent my feeders, and the landscape is covered in a white mantle of snow.

Yesterday's storm brought over a foot of new snow, so Molly and I set out early with the camera and got some shots for you.

As you can see, the nutcracker finally made it to the front porch after spending several days in the front hallway.

Molly and I decided to take another snowshoeing jaunt into the woods this morning. It was beautiful and peaceful in there. We came across a fresh deer trail, so perhaps we were being watched from a distance.

We passed the fairy house again and noticed signs of activity. Do you see the little fairy footprints leading to their front door? I guess they set out early, too, to check out the beautiful landscape.

OK, You Win

My fussing about my non-Christmasy mood prompted my niece to double-dog dare me to get out on my snowshoes today. That's about the last thing I intended to do this afternoon, but I couldn't buckle under a double-dog dare. 

So Molly, looking slightly chagrined here, and I set out for a little jaunt down the woods road behind our house.

My snowshoes were a bit of a challenge to get on, since I couldn't remember exactly how they were supposed to be laced, but I managed

Molly and I set off on our little jaunt. It's not easy to snowshoe with a 70 lb. dog lunging this way and that. I managed to stay upright, though....for the most part. I took only one tumble in the snow as Molly dashed off to try to find DNA evidence on a small pine sapling.

Here she is checking out something buried in the snow. Probably it's deer droppings or something of that caliber.

We came across the little fairy house of last summer and were pleased to see that the fairies are obviously tucked warmly inside. I'm sure their stockings are hung by their chimney with care.

Here is Molly back home, tired from her adventure, but happy. She got a good workout in the deep snow, and so did I.

Thanks for the double-dog dare, Cheryl. I needed that!

At Least Mother Nature Is Doing Her Part

I'm still struggling to get my Christmas mojo, but at least Mother Nature is doing her part. We got about 6-8" of snow yesterday, and today a major Nor'easter is bearing down on us. We've been told to do any necessary errands this morning, then hunker down for the long haul.

I could post some photos from yesterday's storm, but I think I'll get more dramatic photos tomorrow. 

Meanwhile, see the pileated woodpecker in the tree? He visited us one day last week. I snapped the pictures through the living room window and wasn't sure they would come out at all, so I was surprised when I uploaded them into my computer. I like the crazy pattern of the tree branches in addition to the bird itself.

Most of my Christmas shopping is wrapped. I have a little more of that to do today, and I've GOT to finish addressing cards if they are to have any chance of reaching their destinations in 2008.

I've played some Christmas CDs a couple of times, and that has helped to give me some holiday spirit. Why I'm so not into Christmas this year, I don't know. I'm blaming it on the economy. I'm not being a Scrooge, and I certainly know I have a great deal to be thankful for, but I just wish I could feel some excitement about the holiday season.

Our Local Survivor

I need to brag a little bit here today, and tell you that Bob, the winner of $1,100,000 on Survivor, is a local boy. In fact, I taught with him for about 20 years before I retired. He's definitely a true survivor and is known for his ability to build a helicopter from an elastic band and two Popsicle sticks. Well, perhaps that's a slight exaggeration, but he does have a clever mind. We Mainers are proud of our guy!