OK, I'm definitely ready to be done with the holidays. Turned all the
leftover roasted veggies, marinated mozzarella, and pesto from NYE
into a lovely pesto pasta salad. Chopped all the fruit real fine and
tossed it with yogurt and coconut to make a fruit salad. Cheeses will
get used in cheese sauice for baked potatoes with broccoli later this
week. Dolmas and feta and hummus are getting served tomorrow night
alongside avegelemono with artichokes. The cooked shrimp became
lunchbox shrimp salad. My daughter is delighted at all the Christmas
cookies and sweets that are getting packed in her lunchbox for dessert.
So I'm through most of what's left. The rest will simply have to get
trashed - I'm tired of looking at it!

I am soooooooo ready to eat simply again. Nothing decadent, nothing too
creamy or cheesy or rich. No courses. (Well, techincally, I guess that
would be no meal. Okay, I'll settle for one course.)

Tonight's supper was perfect. I made a nice pilaf, using I believe it's
Barb's concept - rice and broken vermicelli noodles cooked in stock -
using a combo of 1/4 c each white rice, brown rice, wild rice, and
pasta. Topped that with chopped roasted hazlenuts (also leftover!).
Served alongside a nice warm and cozy pot of white beans. I like to
cook them all day with a couple tablespoons of butter, so the 'pot
likker' or whatever yuo like to call it, becomes thick and yellow.
Cooked them with some carrots, celery, parsley, salt& pepper, and sage.
Topped with carmelized onions and shredded parmesan. Yum! One of my
favorites! Rounded it all out with a simple salad of romaine, grape
tomatoes, and green bell pepper. Thinned down my invented-in-a-pinch
dip of stilton, chives, and walnuts with some buttermilk to make a
dressing for it.

Dessert - well, there's plenty of candy from the stockings, and the
cookies and sweets that i'm getting tired of looking at. But I think
I'll probably have some fresh berries instead. Maybe a macaroon or 2
with it.

And I'm ready for some winter soups and stews, since this is going to
be a chilly and wet week here. Thick and hearty but definitely NOT
company food!

New Year's Resolution food - homemade whole-grain oat/wheat bread with
beef vegetable soup made with beef soup-bone stock and at least half a
dozen different vegetables. Yum.

Kathy