Not much going on...

Hello,

I know it's been a few days since I wrote so I thought I would check in, but not much is new over here! The holiday season isn't very difficult for me because I do not give into temptations for sweets, but I think just having a break from my routine is the challenging part... Too many days off in a row feel like weekend days, which starts to feel like a vacation, which makes me think I don't have to be as good as I usually am. I had popcorn last night (not reduced fat) and a half of a salami sub. I wouldn't normally eat those things. I also had a half of a piece of lemon bread, but in my defense, I made 12 loaves, and I wasn't going to give them out without trying it first!

Today is another day of baking - I'm making a cheesecake, mint brownies (Dorandi family tradition), and mincemeat fold overs (Carroll family tradition). Tomorrow night, we are having an Italian Christmas Eve at our house. Ravioli's, meatballs, braciole, an anchovy pasta dish that Dennis is making, and roast beef. They don't even usually serve potatoes with the roast beef - they have it with the pasta and red sauce. Whaaaaaaaat? This little Irish girl is definitely making potatoes and gravy as a side. Meat is pointless without a potato product! ;-)

I bought this Stonewall Kitchen Wasabe & Horseradish spread that I want to use as a base for a roasted garlic crust for the roast. The little Italian girl is horrified at this concept, however, because how is that going to go with ravioli's? (The little Irish girl is wondering how any roast beef goes with ravioli's to begin with...) So apparently, I'm making a roast, half crusted and half plain.

Christmas day shouldn't be as much of a challenge. I'm making Beef Wellington, but I couldn't bring myself to use pate because of the whole cruelty to animals thing, so I'm using pesto instead, and I think it's going to be fabulous! I was going to make twice baked potatoes as well, but we are visiting my grandmother for brunch on Christmas morning, and I'm doing the cooking for that as well, so I don't want to have to rush around so much that I don't enjoy the day. Instead, I will just make the filling to twice baked potatoes with cheese and sour cream, and I may bake the mashed potatoes in the oven briefly to give it that crisp texture on top. Other than that, we're having asparagus with Bearnaise sauce, corn, bread...and that's really it. I don't think the menu will be very challenging, but I do think it will be delicious!

I haven't gained any weight since I last wrote, and I haven't lost any either. My appetite is definitely bigger than it was before, and I'm looking forward to my fill on 1/2. If I can make it to then without gaining any weight, I'll be happy. If I lose more on top of it, even better.

Happy Holidays!

KC