an easy schmeasy yummy decadent dip...

Are you looking for something to make for New Year's Eve that is delicious, fast and easy? For all you guys that want a dip you literally can throw together in less than 5 minutes (plus the 30 minutes bake time)- this one's for you. I'd forgotten all about it for years, until The Husband requested it for Christmas Eve luncheon. It was gobbled up. Then we made it Christmas Day for another crowd- still good and still decadent.

Four Ingredients

The halogens don't make for the best photo lighting,

but the jumbo lump crab made it tasting extra special.

Hot Crab Artichoke Dip

1 can artichoke hearts (not marinated)
6 ounces crab meat, drained
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375º F. Chop the artichoke hearts into bite size pieces. In a medium bowl, combine the artichoke hearts, crab meat, mayonnaise and parmesan cheese. Put the mixture into a 10x7 oval gratin dish (an 8x8 square is fine too) and bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and is the top is golden.

peace • love • joy

photo courtesy of The Son

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas,
a Happy Hannukah,

and a wonderful, buttery New Year!

xo

Rebecca

cranberry cobbler

I bet when you saw the title, you were envisioning some type of fruity baked dessert with a biscuit/dough/streusel topping. I'm sorry if I disappointed you, but there are cranberries, yes. Flour, no. Gin, yes. Butter, no.

You start with some cranberries cooked slightly in a simple syrup,

 cooled and muddled with citrus fruits, steeped with gin and sherry,

 strained, poured over crushed ice 

 and then topped with a sprig of mint.

butterscotch snowball cookies

White and powdery. Fun and tasty. Round mounds of snowy perfection. Doesn't this cookie epitomize the season we're in? I make these every winter and rarely at any other time- don't ask me why. Probably too busy making other cookies. But the recipe comes out every December, no fail.

Snowballs, aka Mexican Wedding Cookies/Russian Tea Cakes, are typically made with some kind of chopped or ground nut; in this iteration, I've included butterscotch morsels with the chopped pecans. Make sure the dough is chilled, otherwise the balls become disks- still tasty, but flat.

the best cranberry nut bread

Though I did not personally name it the best, (Cook's Illustrated did,) I would whole-heartedly agree that this is a hard recipe to beat. The bread has much to offer:

it is spongy and tangy from buttermilk,

 citrusy with orange zest and juice,

 and tart from the cranberries.