Celebrate the Harvest

Every year for the past 5 years I have thrown a Christmas Dessert party.  Seeing that I am pretty pregnant, I opted to move it to November and call it the Celebrate the Harvest Party.  It was kind of fun to put all the fall decorations together.  All the people that come to my house yearly, only see the Christmas decorations.  And while I love my nativities, I do love my house as it normally is.  It was nice for a change of pace.  Here are some pictures and recipes!

The Drink Table

We served Beer, Wine, Apple Cider, and Coffee.  That copper container was Ryan's Grandmothers and a perfect addition to the drink table this year

Just a Fun Fall Decoration

I saw this decoration idea on Pinterest.  Ainsley, Anne, and I went out to a local farm and picked up all the gourds and pumpkins.  Ainsley was responsible for the small gourds.  I actually didn't even look at them until we got home.  She did a great job picking them out.

The Dessert Table

I loved the "pumpkin" centerpiece.  Since the addition of the new red curtains, I didn't want to go overly orange.  I found a bunch of white and green pumpkins that looked so fabulous. 

Pecan Pie Bars

Think pecan pie but in smaller bites.  It was so gooey though that the cupcake liners were necessary. This recipe came out of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies

I found this one on Pinterest.  Brownie on the bottom, Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough on the top, a splash of chocolate on top of that.  What's not to love. 

Here's the recipe for those that have asked.

http://www.recipegirl.com/2011/06/02/chocolate-chip-cookie-dough-brownies/

Chocolate Ginger Twists

These were an attempt to use some puff pastry dough that I had.  I wanted a different flavor and this one hit the spot.  The addition of Crystalized Ginger was pretty cool

Chocolate Chip Turtle Cheesecake

I would have to say this may be my signature dessert.  It has been at every party I have ever thrown.  It's amazing. 

Plain Cheesecake

Sounds boring but I think it's the best plain cheesecake I have ever had.  The recipe calls for a fruit topping but honestly you don't need it.  My stomach wasn't feeling great last night and this was the only dessert I actually ate.  Oh my heart is this good.  Thanks Ina Garten

Here's the recipe for this one:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/raspberry-cheesecake-recipe/index.html

Pumpkin Cookies with Cinnamon Icing

These cookies are so yummy.  Fall in a cookie.  Mmmm, mmm, mmm.  I didn't cook them as long and made my icing a bit thicker.  Both improvements.

Here's the recipe:

http://fortheloveofcooking-recipes.blogspot.com/2011/10/pumpkin-cookies-with-cinnamon-icing.html

Baked Pumpkin Donut Holes

These were a surprise hit of the party.  I actually only had 3 left.  I must say that they are pretty good.  Again, thank you Pinterest.  The recipe said to make them as full sized muffins but the smaller size suited the party better.  I cooked them for 20 minutes and it was perfect.

Here's the recipe

http://fortheloveofcooking-recipes.blogspot.com/2011/10/baked-pumpkin-donut-muffins-and.html

Cappuccino Mousse Trifle

I love a good trifle.  Ever since that episode of Friends, it's an excuse to say that I did not put meat in the trifle.  It's really just layers of goodness.  I added a little Kaluha this year to the milk you pour over the pound cake and it worked really well.

Here's the recipe:

http://www.pamperedchef.com/our_products/recipesearch/recipedetail.jsp?recipeId=72878

And while I had a blast throwing this party, I am glad that it is over and I can concentrate on the last 8 or so weeks of pregnancy.  I have some sorting and washing to do.

Time Does Indeed Fly

I just sent out the Evite for our annual Christmas dessert party.  It's my 5th year doing it.  It's hard to wrap my head around the fact that we will be celebrating our 5th Christmas back in NC and yet it's hard to fathom that we ever lived in NY. 
The best gauge of how fast time is going is by watching our little girl grow up.  5 years ago she was a thought and a hope.  4 years ago she was a strong desire of my heart.  3 years ago she was about the size of a blueberry.  2 years ago she was an infant.  Last year she was stumbling around having just learned to walk.  And now she is a full blown toddler.

Case in point...

Last night I put my baby to bed for the last time in her crib.  (Side note, do you notice how she made her bear sleep on his tummy just like she does?)

And today she is napping in her Big Girl Bed. 

Oh my heart.  Time does fly but I can honestly say that we have enjoyed every second of it. 

Now excuse me while I have a panic attack because I just sent out 96 invites to a party in my house in less than a month and I haven't even begun to think about the menu.

Christmas Cheer

This time of the year is busy for so many people. We are no exception. This week I am prepping my house for our annual Christmas party (current head count at 58 and counting) and working on Christmas cards.

I just have to keep reminding myself to stop and look at the cuteness that is in the midst of Christmas. Because she's there, right in the middle of it all.

Red Shoes and all...
If you do have time, go over to Emily's blog and take a look at how everyone else is stopping to enjoy the moment.

I Big Red Heart My New Kitchen

As many of you know, we have been remodeling our kitchen for the past few months. It's been a project of phases. 4 to be exact. First we ripped down a cabinet. Then we tiled the floor. Then we put in granite counter tops. Finally, we added trim to the cabinet doors and repainted them, replaced the drawers, and painted under the chair rail.

It's been a turbulent couple months of tearing down and rebuilding, BUT it's so worth it. I love it! And it didn't cost the $20K that we were originally quoted. This was a kitchen remodel on a budget, but you could never tell.

Let's tell the story in pictures....

The Cabinets Before...
The Cabinets After...

The Eat In Before...

The Eat In After...

The View From the Family Room Before...

The View From the Family Room After...

The Left Side of the Kitchen Before...

The Left Side of the Kitchen After...

The View In Before...

The View In After...

So as you can see, there were some big changes, some little changes, some paint, some hardware, some sweat, and some love. All of that leads to a kitchen that I can't wait to use...Oh and I'll be using it prepping for our Christmas party on December 19th! Happy Unwrapping to me!

A Great Time Was Had By All

Last night was our annual Christmas Dessert. It was a great time. We ended up having about 65 people show up. There are always a few that cancel at the last minute. We had a great time and want to thank any of you who came. I took some pictures before people got here. For some reason I didn't think to take a picture of Ainsley in her cute Reindeer PJs. Sorry.

Here is the drinks table. There was coffee, punch, sangria, and beer (that red bucket was full shortly after I took this picture - Thanks Bob).


One of the hits of the party was the Hershey Bar Cake. It looked pretty if I do say so myself. Also notice the labels for each of the desserts.

This Chipsy Turtle Cheesecake is amazing. It's one of my favorite desserts of all times.

This is the other cheesecake. It's a Chocolate Cheesecake that I got the recipe from Emerill. Can't go wrong with him!

I had to have a few desserts that weren't chocolate so I made this Strawberry Cake. It tasted great even if it was leaning a little.

Of course we had to have cookies. I made Spritz Cookies and Double Chocolate Chip Cookies (which really should have been called butter chocolate cookies with how much butter went into them). I also made some mint covered pretzels.

In the past I have always made candies. This year it was too much but I decided to make fudge instead. I made chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge. Yummy!

Not pictured are the things that other people brought. I would like to thank...

Jody for the Better than Sex Cake

Krystal for the Millionaire's Cake

Lori for the Chocolate Pie

Mary for the Pumpkin Roll

Ashley for the Chocolate Covered Rice Krispie Treats

Jessica for the Pound Cake

Debbie for the Chocolate Chip Cookies
Beth for Peanut Butter Toffee Bars

Anne for the Honey Bun Cake

I sure hope I didn't miss anyone but if I did, Thanks! Until next year...

I May Be Insane

Every year since we have been back in NC, we have thrown a Christmas Party. Its a dessert party. I love to bake and it's my one time a year that I commit to it. I usually make a ton of desserts. I make cheesecake, layer cakes, cookies, brownies, candies, eggnog, sangria, punch, and more. I even make fancy place cards to label all the food. Every year people tell me that I have done too much.

Last year, I was 11 weeks pregnant and I had a very bad cold. Of course, I couldn't take anything for it because I was pregnant. I plowed through and ended up flat on my back in bed for 5 days after it.

I sent out my evite yesterday. It wasn't until this morning that I actually looked at the numbers. I sent it out to 120 emails. Holy crap. 120 emails means that it could be 240 people if everyone brought a guest. Of course everyone won't come. But what if they did?

Am I nuts? Be prepared for my blogging to cease leading up to December 20th.