Scenes from the Holiday Season 2014

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Well hello, my friends! I know... it's been a full 10 days since my last blog post. I have noticed that many of my blogger friends fell into the same hiatus as I did over the season which makes me feel a little better, but still, apologies for the silent treatment, ok? Moving on, today I'll bring you a complete photo dump from the Holiday season. Parties, dinners, etc. You know what I realized when I put this together? 1) I have recently become the WORST at remembering to take photos of and with humans. 2) I'm even worse at remembering to take photos with Rob. I have zero.  I remember the days when I used to shove a canon camera next to my flip phone into a tiny clutch to ensure that I took as many pics as possible (about 2-3% were flattering) from nights out in the city. Now, I completely forget (and sometimes sigh) when it comes to taking photos. Oye. I need to find a happy medium. Anyway, here's what I have for you! I hope you all had a great holiday and are looking forward to a happy and healthy new year! Cheers!

First Christmas movie of the season? Christmas Vacation, of course!

The only picture I took from Mark & Kristen's party. And no, I have no idea why they were embracing so emphatically. 

What my kitchen looked like before my Mistletoe Mingle. Cheese. Prosciutto. Dough.

The one table setting pic I remembered to take. The snacks? Stuffed jalapeno poppers courtesy of Andres, my deviled eggs, calzones, homemade hummus, cecchi, brie, castelvetrano olives, prosciutto, salami, gouda, chips, cheese, french bread, guacameyer (billy & kim's guac), and m&ms of course.

The one human pic.

And, the one Rachael sent me. That's my Sherri-Cutout from my 30th, not me. he he

So many pizzelles.

White Russians and Christmas Trees.

Just laying on the floor of the hall at the D'Alessandro Family Christmas Party with my cousin's youngest babe, Kellan. 

Told you I'm an elf.

Give me all the cheese.

Cheers from the tiniest Waterford champagne flute. (so cute)

"Sherri lets take a seffie"

Light savers.

And finally, capping off the season with my favorite guy. 

Happy New Year! xo

Friday Favs_12.19.14

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I had another week off from Friday Favs... want to know why? I actually had about zero new photos in my phone. Last Friday, I looked back at the prior week and there was so much fun that was had, Christmassy activities, parties, delicious food and I documented NONE of it. The thing is though... it actually means that I was having so much fun that I just forgot to take out my phone and 'capture it'. To be honest, this is actually something that I'm proud of... it means that I'm being present in my conversations and enjoying the moment. That being said, as a blogger - it's kind of necessary to take photos - HA! I was little better with capturing some moments this weekend, but, let it be known... I was still very PRESENT.

And so I bring you... my favs of the week! I hope you are all enjoying every moment of this holiday season and are also scheduling in some quiet time. Things can get pretty hectic and it's important to just relax, watch a movie and enjoy the season. This weekend, we have a nice amount of relaxation 'planned', and I'm really looking forward to it. Have a GREAT weekend! xo 

The ONE picture that was taken from my Mistletoe Mingle last Saturday.

The spread.

Our annual "cookie day" was on Sunday morning and of course, I made my annual batch of pizzelles.

Amongst others...

And, espresso martinis in the North End with my besties lat night. Perfection.

Ok? Ok!

xo

The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg (& Deviled Eggs)

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Deviled eggs have been a hit in my family for YEARS! I didn't love them so much when I was a kid. Well, I don't think I actually tried them until I finally caved in my early twenties. Once I did, I was hooked. As I got older and started entertaining for my friends, I would make deviled eggs - knowing that they would be a crowd pleaser and also a healthy appetizer option. In addition to deviled eggs, I started really enjoying hard boiled eggs as a lunch option or snack. So, as you can imagine, I was hard boiling eggs OFTEN.

After A LOT of trial and error, and a couple of tweaks... I've finally discovered the perfect hard boiled egg technique. It is PERFECT and FAIL PROOF. The shells peel of quickly and easily and the yolks are always brilliant yellow. Ready? Follow it EXACTLY. It's actually QUITE simple.

1. Bring lightly salted water to a rapid boil in a large pot
2. Gently add eggs to pot using a spoon (if you drop them in, they may break)
3. Bring the water back to a boil as quickly as possible (put a lid on it until it starts boiling again) and set your timer for 14 MINUTES for 8-12 eggs and for ONLY 11 MINUTES for 1-3 eggs. 
4. Prepare to move quickly and get A LOT of ICE ready
5. (This step is very important) When the buzzer goes off, take the pot off the burner, put it in your sink and start running cold water all over it and then dump a tray (or so) of ice into the pot as you continue to pour cold water in the pot. Essentially, just try to get that water as icy and cold as possible, as quickly as possible.
This process does two things: 1) It makes the shells easier to remove later 2) It stops the cooking process ensuring YELLOW YOLKS
6. Keep the water cold and icy and leave the eggs in there until they are cool to the touch

Pictures for Guidance...

 

Then, removing the shells will be easy. Remember, crack them on a surface, not the side of a pot.

 

 

Check out that perfect peel!

 

Yellow.

 

Now, I'm going to give you my formerly SECRET deviled egg recipe. Again, I've made these about a million times and this past year, I finally mastered the perfect classic flavor. I'm not bragging. I know this because my *extremely honest* family (and my friends) have raved about them for the last five or six parties. If they weren't great, I'd know. haha

Ok so here it goes (And apologies in advance for not providing EXACT measurements. I typically eyeball it. Definitely TASTE as you add the ingredients... I always do)

- 8-12 Yolks
- 1/3-1/2 Cup of Organic Mayo
- 2 or so Tablespoons of Rice Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon of Salt (give or take)
- 1/2 - 1 Teaspoon of Dry Mustard
- Dash of Black Pepper

Mix thoroughly and move mixture into a quart ziplock bag, cut one of the corners and squeeze the mixture into each halved egg like a pastry squeezer bag. Sprinkle with paprika and SERVE! Here are a few photos from a couple of recent parties.

I wish you all happy eggs for future days!

QUESTION OF THE DAY: What is your GO TO appetizer??

Have a great week! xo

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