Merry Christmas Eve! My fingers are about to fall off :P

Whew, it's been a whirlwind of holiday prep the last couple of days! We're hosting again this year for a crowd of somewhere between 17 and 21 people. I never did post the ginormous menu I made last year (5 entrees alone, never mind the bazillion sides, desserts, appetizers, etc.), but I think my family felt bad for me after seeing everything I made because this year they all volunteered to bring big dishes rather than just sides like they did last year. Or they just hated the food I made last year :P

Anyway, even though I'm only contributing one main dish--a phyllo-wrapped salmon--I've been prepping and cooking for the last two days. Willy has been doing a great job on errand and cleaning duty, freeing me up to focus on working in the kitchen.

I actually made my first items a few days ago, molasses sugar cookies which I gave to the neighbors (they're sooooo good!). Yesterday I made pumpkin bread and chocolate pots, and cleaned and chopped a lot of veggies in preparation for tomorrow. Today I made corn chowder, honey corn bread, stuffing, two apples pies, rice krispy treats, and sangria. Tomorrow I'll do mashed potatoes, pasta salad, baked brie (which will be served with a Wensleydale cheese too), Vietnamese cold noodles, sugar snap peas, and yu choy (had to have something traditionally Chinese for Grandpa). Oh, and the phyllo-wrapped salmon of course :)

So what's the family bringing? A roast, a ham, a turkey, mini cheesecakes, mini brownies, green & yellow beans w/mushrooms, kimchi pancakes, and probably more. Yeah, we eat a lot when we get together.

My hands are feeling the effects of constant dish and hand washing, but otherwise things have been pretty painless this year. I can't wait to see everyone tomorrow and start the celebration!