Late December Loves

Hello, friends! Here's a roundup of what my family has been up to during these last days of December. Pao Pao tried on some festive antlers at the local pet store:

The Boy continues to help us tame down skittish, feral-born Adventure Kitty:

I worked a dog adoption, where this beautiful pit bull puppy was waiting patiently for her chance at adoption. (She has a mild skin problem on her muzzle; it's being fixed with antibiotics):

(Puppy update: She was rescued by a private adoption group, which means she's on her way to a forever home soon.)

Lovely Daughter #2 spent some time in the beautiful seaside town of Morro Bay and texted me this photo:

I baked up a storm. These cookies were all destined for a Christmas-dinner celebration with family in Santa Barbara, CA:

The Boy continued to wow us with his blossoming culinary talents. For dinner one night he made us  Smitten Kitchen's Braised Short Ribs:

If you don't know of the "Smitten Kitchen" cookbook, I highly recommend it. Deb Perelman's photos are gorgeous, her recipes consistently wonderful, and her sense of humor shines through the commentary. This is how The Boy served the short ribs--on a bed of silky, puréed parsnips, with caramelized onions and the hearty, rib-based stock over it all:

 (BTW those are my Nana's dishes--about 90 years old at this point. Thank you, Nana!)

For Christmas Day, we travelled to Santa Barbara for a family dinner at a local restaurant. That is, the restaurant was closed, but one of my nephews-in-law is the manager, so he opened it for our private gathering. We made the dinner in the huge commercial kitchen. Here's The Boy and one of my wonderful nephews, making guacamole dip to start off the festivities:

 (Aren't they good-looking chefs?)

The restaurant has a great bar (loved the house-made pepper-flavored vodka!). We had a great deal of fun playing bartender (and drinking our results). This is The Boy again, with another nephew-in-law of mine:

 (Sooo many good-looking young men in this family!)

I contributed the Christmas desserts: Molasses, thumbprint, and sugar cookies, plus a dense, sherry-laced "pudding" in the English sense of the word, served with a bright lemon sauce:

Back home in Los Angeles, Christmas day ended with The Boy enjoying a sweet midnight cuddle with Adventure Kitty, who--when swaddled in a blanket--magically transforms into a calm, purring, happy bundle of fur:

Enjoy the last few days of 2013, everyone. And sweet dreams.