Best F'ing Christmas evah!!!

Fun, Family and Friends (thanks to M,J, M, D, C, J, B, P and P)

Flaming candles and Fancy gifts

Fine Food, Full tummies (aka Fat) :-( (thanks to me and D’s cookies)

Fascinating stories (thanks to P)

Fantastic musical toast (thanks to the other P)

Frosty,Foaming beer and Fine, Fruity wine.

Plenty of Foolishness to go around.

We’re so, so Fortunate to have such Fine Family and Friends!!!

Fondly, Elenka and Birdman (my Fav!)

Merry Christmas to all....

....and to all a good night.

New Painting....

Deering Oaks Bridge in the spring.  Tempera Paint.

Deering Oaks is a park in Portland, Maine.

Hot Artichoke Spinach Dip

My last recipe from Thanksgiving is presented here. Mr. Downeastdoingstuff claims he doesn't like artichokes, but he seemed to have no problem wolfing it down pre-turkey. The artichoke hearts are pulverized essentially, so no one is the wiser. I, myself, thought it was excellent. I liked the addition of the pepper jack cheese for that extra bite.

Here ya go.....

HOT SPINACH/ARTICHOKE DIP

Ingredients
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach
2 (13 3/4-ounce) cans artichoke hearts
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 cup grated pepper jack cheese
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a casserole dish with nonstick spray.

Heat the spinach in a microwave oven on high for 5 minutes and squeeze dry. I REPEAT: SQUEEZE THE EVER LOVIN' CRAP OUT OF IT OR ELSE YOU WILL BE SORRY! Devote a clean dish towel to the job and dry the sucker.
Drain the artichoke hearts and coarsely chop in a food processor.
Combine all the ingredients except the jack cheese in a large bowl. Stir well. Scrape into the prepared casserole dish and sprinkle the jack cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Transfer to a chafing dish and keep warm over a low flame. (OR NOT)
Serve with bagel chips.

Enjoy.

Emergency dessert......

There are times when basic instincts take over. Survival of the fittest.
I often find myself in a situation that takes drastic measures, or at least creative measures, or......well, I do what I can.
Such is the emergency dessert. In between holidays, it's slim picking around here in the dessert department. So here is the solution, in my mind anyway. It does the trick.

One container of chocolate syrup that has been in the fridge since summer.

One container of whipped cream. LIGHT whipped cream. I hear it contains no calories as opposed to it's heavier brother, HEAVY whipped cream.

Carefully pour the chocolate syrup into a teaspoon. I don't use a tablespoon because that would be pigging out, tempting though it is.

Squirt out a healthy dollop of the light whipped cream. Deposit into mouth.

Do it again.

Yum. Emergency solved.

Outside my window pane.....

Could it be? Oh, it be.

Huh??

I was just sitting here, fooling around on my laptop, with my jacket still on, because Mr. Downeastdoingstuff, aka Birdman, was making a fire in the woodstove, and it wasn't balmy enough in the kitchen to de-jacket.

I suddenly feel my phone vibrate in the pocket of my jacket and reach in to retreive it.

But my phone wasn't in my pocket.

It was out on the hutch cabinet 6 feet away.

And it wasn't ringing.

Or vibrating.

What do you make of that??

(keep it clean.....)