An Evening Fireside
When the weather finally turns cold enough to justify an inside fire, I love to celebrate with an evening fireside. This particular evening also included the celebration of our 17th anniversary.
Double the celebration, double the fun!
Come take a look at how we spent the evening fireside including our table setting, our favorite cocktail, and what we ate (with kids).
PEDESTAL (SIMILAR) / CHEESEBOARD / STICK CANDLES - COTSWOLD MARKETPLACE
Sitting on the floor for a meal fireside might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s one of my favorite cool weather traditions. And when you swap the conventional floral centerpiece for a cheeseboard, you can really get me to sit just about anywhere.
Because space is limited on the table, we used a pedestal to elevate the cheeseboard allowing room for our other dinnerware … it’s a win-win, not only does it look good but the goodies are that much closer!
Another great way to kick off an evening and make it feel special … a signature cocktail.
One of our favorites is the New York Sour, check out the recipe here.
PS you can make it with or without the egg whites, yummy both ways!
I’m telling you, that centerpiece makes it all worthwhile.
Everyone has their own way of creating a charcuterie board, mine is clearly a “more is more” style. I like a combination of different cheeses (always something soft & stinky paired with something hard & mild), fruits (dried or fresh), nuts, meats, and something pickled.
While I don’t usually include candles (I did use battery operated) on my boards, I really like the festive touch they add to the centerpiece for this special occasion.
Some of the other inclusions are: my new fave - Parm Crisps (so yum, and great if you’re trying to cut the carbs) and some of my favorite standbys pickled okra , truffle almonds , and hard salami .
BOWLS - COTSWOLD MARKETPLACE
Believe it or not, we kept eating after that beautiful board was gone.
For the main course we enjoyed beef short ribs, a recipe by Ina Garten … get it here.
I love to do a slow braise recipe for a special occasion, all the work is done in advance so I can enjoy the evening instead of being stuck at the stove. (Note: We usually puree the sauce once the ribs and herbs have been removed - that way the kids don’t see all the veggies!)
We paired the ribs with homemade ricotta gnocchi, little clouds of cheesy heaven. IMHO.
The gnocchi came from this recipe, which I have made several times as is, but decided to make just the gnocchi for our anniversary evening.
SHOP-ABLE LINK: Gold Servers, Tea Towels
Of course no special occasion is complete in our household without a celebratory dessert! At least that’s what our kids tell me.
Truth: baking is not my favorite activity, but I’ll do it on occasion … if absolutely necessary.
Instead, I opt for an easy semi-homemade dessert that works perfectly for times exactly like these - when I don’t want to put a lot of effort into it.
One of our favorites easy dessert recipes is Pioneer Woman’s cherry dump cake. Get the recipe here. The name leaves a little to be desired but it’s super easy, super fast and supper yummy. Especially with a big ole scoop of vanilla ice cream!
The whole family had a wonderful evening by the fire (until some kid/dog roughhousing resulted in a glass of red wine landing on a chair - but it came out, thankfully).
Happy belated anniversary to my number 1 guy. I wouldn’t want to be on this crazy life journey with anyone but you. love you long time…
until next time,