Hellooooo out there!

Seems to me that all the bloggers on this blog are sleeping!!! Aren't you all tired of listening to just me? I am!

Aunt Bea had asked in a previous blog about our food related Christmas gifts. Well let's see, I got a pan for making mini madeleines that I have been wanting forever! And (I'm really excited about this one) I got Ina Garten's new book "Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics". It's wonderful!

We've already made several recipes from it and each one has been a hit. For New Year's Eve we did the "parmesan and thyme crackers". Now I am usually one that when I make a recipe for the first time I follow it to a T and make modifications the next time around. But seeing as I still have a gorgeous rosemary plant from this summer (I know! Can you believe that???), I decided to use that instead of the thyme. May I just say...wow! Totally delicious! And pretty darn easy, actually. These are absolutely addicting. With a glass of wine? Fageddaboutit!!!

Thinking "no way can we top this!", we made the "roasted shrimp cocktail". Okay I'm going to admit it...I had a moment. Actually, I had many moments. This stuff is incredible. Ina says that it came to her "since roasted chicken breast tastes so much better than poached chicken breast, I wondered if that wouldn't be true for roasted shrimp as well--and it was!" And boy is she ever right! It blows the old boiled shrimp cocktail out of the water; so to speak :-p

Anyway, here is a link if you're interested in the recipe http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-shrimp-cocktail-recipe/index.html
I beg you, if you only try one new recipe this year make it this one! I promise you that you'll love it. And don't forget to let me know what time it comes out of the oven...I want to "help".

So there are the cooking gifts Santa brought me for Christmas 2008. Tell us what you got!!!