a christmas miracle

Hey! Look what Santa brought....




...a three-legged Bear who is able to walk! (Much quicker than anticipated!)

christmas eve recovery

We picked Bear up after his rather distressing surgery today. He seems to be holding up okay...



... provided my dad is by his side.




Clearly, my dad has a rather abiding bedside manner. Oh... you've just got to love the both of them! x

lumen/atrum

See that sun-drenched mountain peak poking out over the smog-choked clouds threatening with imminent snow? I think the image encapsulates so much of what the Christmas season has been for many people I know this year. It's been a time of extreme yin and yang - more distinctly, I think, than it has been in the past. I see the juxtaposition reflected everywhere...


Twinkling lights and penetrating dark.


Mountains rising over valleys.


And yet, there's beauty in all of it - no? Since for the most part, I think the cold times have elicited even warmer greetings and more heart-felt gestures of love than usual.

So on that note, I offer you two lovely off-the-beaten-track Christmas tunes that each reflect a sentiment felt during this season. The first is a sing-song happy tune from Lenka and the second is a more melancholy Joni Mitchell-like ballad by Brandi Carlile - both equally gorgeous in their respectively light and dark ways.

Merry Christmas All!

Enjoy!

deck the halls

We're getting into the Christmas spirit at our house... maybe a little late this year, but with no less enthusiasm. We were without a tree when I landed, so one of the first things we did when I arrived was set off on a hunt for the all-important Tannenbaum.




The lots were a little picked over, but I think we managed to find quite a good one - perhaps this particular fir was meant just for us!


Thar she lies, waiting for her coach home...


Part of Kasey's marvelous holiday table centerpiece.



Glittering foil-wrapped candy all they way from Slovakia!



The nostalgic silos of the still-functioning Lehi Roller Mills - a *must* stop for unique Utah-made gifts.


Not only do they grind their "Turkey" flour right on the premises, our Grandma has come to expect their exceptional blueberry pancake mix in her Christmas package.



At historic Wheeler Farm - telling Santa that "yes, I have been a *very* good girl."


And what's Christmas without a sleigh/hay/tractor ride through a forest of fairy lights?


Here's my fam waiting (freezing) patiently as we await our turn - hot cocoa in hand.


Yay! After an hour... at last we board!


Giddy-up let's go!


Singing carols with brisk air against your face and a backdrop of laughing little lights in the trees...


Magic.

poor little bear pup

I'm back in Utah... and came home to an ailing/injured Bear!


He does *not* understand why we're taking such measures to prevent him from chewing on his leg.


Or *why* he has to wear this stupid bonnet.


Poor babe. Wish him well! x

abundance

It's been a while since I've posted much about cooking. Not that I haven't been.... I think I've officially mastered the art of both veggie lasagna and tarts, have created some divine chocolate chocolate cookies, and discovered that split pea soup takes an awful long time (think days) if you're starting with dried break-your-teeth peas (and therefore is *not* recommended for a dinner party....). But not only have I been too preoccupied to relay much of my cooking feats, there are also only about 4 hours of natural light in London these days, and since artificial light and food photography really don't pair well - dishes inevitably come out looking like unappetizing brown slop - I simply refuse.

Anyway, had not one but two success stories yesterday and managed to snap some pics before the sun set at 3: a gingerbread pumpkin pie and a butternut squash gratin. Pumpkin puree is rather difficult to find in the UK and I forked out too much for an imported can of Libby's at Partridge's for my Thanksgiving feast that never happened - and felt *compelled* to use it before I went home for Christmas and came back only to the glum post-holiday aftermath.

I devised a hybrid recipe, drawing inspiration from the Los Angeles Times and what I had on-hand. The dark brown sugar and extra dash of ginger is what makes it more gingerbread-like in taste. And, with absolutely no time to make a proper pastry crust, I made one out of digestive biscuits and oats with a dash of sugar and spice - the result was a struesel-like accompaniment to the pumpkin custard filling. Even Guillaume, Mr. I-don't-like-cinnamon-or-pumpkin-pie enjoyed this pumpkin pie. When you turn someone from espousing hatred for something to conceding that they like it, I always take it as a good sign.

The butternut squash and goats cheese gratin also turned out quite well. I pretty much verbatim used this recipe from Epicurious. Come to find out it is *exactly* the recipe Kasey used for our family's Thanksgiving at home - ha. Apparently, my parents thought it was a little dull, but both she and I (and my guests) thought it was amazing. To me, it seems like a decadent macaroni and cheese with squash instead of pasta. The only minor twist I put to the recipe was to add several dashes of nutmeg and I toasted pumpkin seeds instead of hazelnuts for the nutty flourish - seemed more seasonal, and hey, it was what I had!

Even though it's the holidays and time for baking extravaganzas, this squash-themed feast is likely the last bit of cooking I'll do here in the rainy dark of the UK before I head Stateside. Utah with its proper snowy winter/Christmas - here I come!

Recipes follow. Enjoy!


Anne Spice's Gingerbread Pumpkin Pie (adapted from the Los Angeles Times)

For Crust:
1 1/2 Cups crushed digestive biscuits (or graham crackers)
1/4 Cup Oats
5-6 T Butter
1/4 Sugar
1/4 tsp each of ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg

Mix together thoroughly and press into a 9-inch pie tin. Cook at 175 C (sorry! now all my knowledge of cooking temps are all over the board) for ten minutes - or until golden brown. Let cool before adding filling.

For Filling:
1 15 oz Can Libby's Pumpkin Puree
2 Eggs
2/3 Cup Whipping Cream
1/3 Cup Semi-Skimmed Milk (that = somewhere between 1% - 2%)
1 T Cornstarch
1 T brandy or vanilla extract
3/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar (lightly packed)
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. all spice
1/8 tsp. coriander
1/8 tsp. cloves
3 grinds of freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 325 F. In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin, eggs, whipping cream, milk, cornstarch and brandy or vanilla. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and spices. Whisk the sugar mixture into the pumpkin mixture.

Pour the filling into the cooled piecrust. Bake until the pie is set around the outside but still slightly wet and jiggly in the center, about 1 hour. The filling will continue to set as it cools.




Butternut Squash Gratin with Goat Cheese and Hazelnuts (from Bon Appetit)

3 1/2 pounds butternut squash (about 2 medium), peeled, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil
Coarse kosher salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, divided
3 cups sliced leeks (white and pale green parts only)
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
1 5.5-ounce log soft fresh goat cheese
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place butternut squash cubes and olive oil in large bowl; sprinkle with coarse kosher salt and ground pepper and toss to coat. Spread out squash cubes on large rimmed baking sheet. Roast until just tender and beginning to brown, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add sliced leeks and chopped sage; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté until tender but not brown, about 15 minutes. Coat 11x7-inch baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Spread half of leek mixture over bottom of prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with half of squash and half of cheese. Repeat layering with leeks, squash, and cheese. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Pour cream evenly over gratin. Sprinkle with toasted chopped hazelnuts. Bake uncovered until gratin is heated through and cream is bubbling, about 30 minutes (40 minutes if previously chilled).

Not Quite Twelfth Night

"And by and by Christopher Robin came to an end of things, and he was silent, and he sat there, looking out over the world, just wishing it wouldn't stop."

- from The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne

Happy Christmas!

Everywhere you go in the UK, every holiday event, every store sale, you'll find miniature mince pies topped with stars being handed out... people line up for these spicy crust-filled treasures.


Kasey and I brought the British tradition home with us... and with no bakery around to supply us with this hallmark of Christmas... found that it's really not that hard to make them yourself.



It wasn't this white last night... view I encountered from the upstairs landing this morning.


Blankets of snowdrifts.


Bear, the snow dog.


Still snowing...


Merry Christmas... every one!

The Nightmare Before Christmas

No, not referring to Jimmy and Leslie (above) - although that was the theme at Bungalow 8 this past weekend...these two just hadn't seen Tim Burton's claymation story, so came, well... a little more North Pole than eccentrically dark and Victorianesque. Ha! It wasn't till they got there and saw people with white faces and dark circles around their eyes that they fully understood...

Anyway, the nightmare before Christmas that I'm actually referring to is something of what the lead up to this year's holiday has been for me. I don't even mean it a smidge metaphorically; the proverbial 12 days of Christmas have been more of a walk through uncertain gloom and doom than bursting with new surprise trappings of holiday cheer. Each day of advent felt like opening a gift of coal, or maybe more accurately, nothing at all.

You see, I applied for a visa to remain in the UK, which involved shipping my passport and plenty of other documents off to the "UK Home Office" - and even though everyone else that I know who applied for the same thing got theirs within a month, mine, for whatever reason (I theorize that the Brits think I could be a Communist spy since I've traveled to way too many subversive countries, and my passport and neither of my visa photos look anything like each other) there was no sign of mine.

As a result, I moved out, but was unable to the leave country the next day as planned, and found myself, not only stranded in the UK sans family, but homeless.

Yet, as my sister told me when she departed for her flight to the States that I was supposed to be on, we wake up from our nightmares. And so we do. On Tuesday my visa came (a day late), and I was miraculously able to get a flight leaving today.

So while you all hold your breath for me that I do indeed end up home safe and sound, please enjoy these pics from one of our last 2008 nights out in London (and Kasey's last as a resident Londoner - for now) - a much more enjoyable version of "A Nightmare Before Christmas" a la Tim Burton at the uber exclusive Bungalow 8. Enjoy!

Madame Kasey caught in spider webs.



Scary snake that Jimmy found on the floor next to our table... after he terrorized people with it sufficiently, it ended up in Kasey's purse...



Who ya gonna call? Jimmy, Kasey, and Bosaina in a wretched struggle over the phone in the St. Martin's Hotel lobby.



Jimmy with me after he figured out that he should rethink the Santa theme.





The group.



Ahh... sisters... (Kasey, London and I will miss you!)

The Last Remnants

My family's rather sentimental about Christmas. By the middle of November, holiday melodies are the only songs heard in our house, and even though the only children around are in their twenties, Santa Claus still pays a visit.

This affinity for the season also makes us clingy; the idea of abandoning the holiday in December is downright unfathomable. But in spite of our reluctance to relinquish it, Christmas has a way of just seeping out of the house. This weekend it became apparent the stopper had been pulled.

First, my sestra left back for school in London. Her presence had meant Christmas could still reasonably be referred to in the the present tense. This departure signified that the holidays were truly past us.

And second, our lovely Noble Fir was expelled from our living room. It was packed up and taken to the backyard, mostly because its parched needles were about two weeks past the point of being kindling.

The Tannenbaum's disassembly was swift; stripped of its trappings quicker, and without the care taken during its adornment.




The trimmings themselves were sequestered. Lights coiled and readied for storage. Little Czech ornaments nestled in their tissue beds. And finally the angel, removed from her position of honor and placed in a cardboard box.


All awaiting a journey to the basement for ten months of hibernation. Where in a restorative sleep they can dream of their true purpose to evoke tradition and delight. Till next year.