Well, 2014 has been a good year. We spent some time on a houseboat in Portland, OR. We saw my brother and sister in Jacksonville, FL – I had not seen them for “too many years”. We saw old high school classmates in Florida, too. Had a great time in the kitchen and will be making our own pasta from now on – we got a pasta machine for our Kitchen Aid – and we will be making our own pie crusts now. The store bought ones although being good, have too much salt in them. Buddy, pictured here with his Teddy Bear, is now 12 years old. Here is how we are preparing for the New Years celebrations – Our menu.

New Years Eve
East Coast Crab Dip
Stuffed Mushroom Caps
Fried Baby Artichokes with a Yogurt Dip
Bacon Wrapped Scallops

New Years Day
Open House at Meadowlark Farms in Nampa. We are making an Italian Pot Roast with as much local products as possible; Beef, onions, carrots and potatoes are all local.

Here are some photos of our meals for the past few days; Our New Years Prep meals.

Start off with

Shrimp Pasta
Acme Bake Shop Garlic Sourdough

5 Hour Chicken
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Creamed Onions and Spinach

We have done 5 Hour Goose, 5 Hour Chicken and the original 5 Hour Duck. The duck is by far the best.

Baked Ham
Grilled Zucchini Squash
Baked Yam

So there is our Lead-Up dinners and then our menu for New Years Eve and New Years Day. And of course, there will be wine from our cellar and Martinelli’s also. What are you having? Staying home? Going out? Be careful and have a Happy New Year! Cheers!