A Weekly Serving - 12/26/2010

Happy Holidays to you! Normally this is my usual weekend post done on Saturday, but because it fell on Christmas, it's a day late. I hope for those celebrating Christmas, you had a wonderful and memorable day with loved ones. I had a very blessed Christmas this year since it was the first for my son, Joel. But before all the holiday talk, here's a recap of posts this week...

 May this holiday season
fill your home with joy,
your heart with love,
your life with laughter,
and your belly with delicious eats!
Happy Holidays From Our Kitchen to Yours...
Joelen, Louis & Joel

Here's what I cooked up in the kitchen this past week...

Candy Cane Fudge

A festive treat for those who love chocolate & peppermint...

Magic Cookie Bites
When you just want a bite of a classic treat...

Christmas Corn
Popcorn gets dressed up for the holidays...

Gingersnap Crumble Cupcakes
Gingersnap cookies make these cupcakes taste like eggnog...

Here are the recipe collections I've posted this past week...

7 Fudge Recipes for Your Sweet Tooth 
Fudge for the holidays is a sweet gift to give...

5 Last Minute Holiday Treats
Still need some quick gifts to make? Try these!

5 Pancake Recipes for Christmas Morning...
For that special morning with loved ones...

4 Main Dishes for a Holiday Feast
Here are ideas for dishes to grace your holiday table...

Some recipes that caught my eye and I bookmarked, which I hope to try out soon!...

Chocolate Cookies & Cream Cookies (Jessica @ My Baking Heart) - Double the cookies in this recipe means double the fun!

Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows (Jen @ Beantown Baker) - This was on my list to make this year but alas, next year I'm tackling it for sure! 

Double Ginger Crackles (Erin @ Erin's Food Files) - Ginger is one of those flavors I especially love during the holidays.. 

Baked Chai French Toast (Kelly @ The Pink Apron) - I love the use of chai in this recipe!

Celebrating Two Kings (Nikki @ Pennies on a Platter) - Please check this out & help a family in need...


My weekly musings on Family, Food and Fun...

Family - Joel celebrated his first Christmas this week and it was certainly a fun one to remember. I've never seen such a happy, giggly baby and I'm so blessed that this one is all mine.

We spent Christmas Eve with my family in the suburbs and Joel got all decked out in his little man outfit. Grandma & Grandpa were so thrilled...

Our families aren't especially big on gift giving for Christmas and we tend to fill our holiday table with more food than gifts that fill the bottom of a tree. With Joel sharing his first Christmas with us, it certainly made it more special. To see the brightness in his eyes while we opened up his first envelope gift (thank you Grandma & Grandpa!) and first Christmas gift (thank you Megan, Matt & Will!) was a beautiful thing.

On Christmas day, we spent it at my in laws in the city and Joel woke up smiling as usual. We spent the day here and just feasted with family and friends, watching movies, karaoking and just enjoying the company of loved ones while eating, eating and more eating...

As a family, we decided on one large Christmas gift rather than small ones for each other. We previously drove my beloved Mini Cooper S, which was pretty impractical with a baby... so we got ourselves a brand spanking new 2011 Scion XB which much more practical. It's big enough for all our needs and then some, yet small enough for city living.

Overall, it was a fantastic Christmas full of blessings all around... and we hope you had a wonderful Christmas too!

Food/Restaurant News - This past week at the restaurant was spent testing and tweaking more recipes that will be on our menu. In fact, I prepared a number of them for our family to enjoy for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Here's a sneak peak of some items that will be on our menu...

'Kamayan' Shrimp
Spicy sautéed shrimp in a calamansi citrus sauce

Lechon Kawali

Roasted seasoned pork belly

Kare Kare
Slow braised oxtail and Asian vegetables in a rich peanut sauce

We're all taking a week off from work to spend it with loved ones for the holidays but we will still be working behind the scenes with quite a few logistics. But this past week, we created a Facebook Page along with a Twitter Page. Please follow us as we count down and prepare for our soft opening in a couple of weeks. You can also jump in our discussions on restaurant musings too!

Fun - This past week's fun included some last minute shopping and the ever popular picture with Santa. Joel had his first picture with Santa and wasn't phased a bit. I think he was more interested in all the glittering lights...