Thursday, September 9, 2010

Shana Tova!


Our Rosh Hashanah Dinner Table... for TWELVE!

Last year, I made the rookie mistake of assuming we would be invited to a Rosh Hashanah dinner or somehow, miraculously I would come home from work and all of my mother's traditional Rosh Hashanah fare would be warming in the oven after preparing itself while I was away at work. Alas, I was disappointed with my lack of foresight and vowed to take matters into my own hands if I were ever faced with another High Holiday away from home and without a surrogate family.

Wednesday evening, the Santa Monica Luskeys hosted our first Rosh Hashanah family dinner! I was so proud of us for the hard work we put into our dinner - as a family - and of our friends for filling our cozy one bedroom apartment with so much love. The preparation began Monday night with a hefty grocery run. Tuesday night was reserved for food prep (we wanted to have each dish ready to go, minus baking, because we both worked on Wednesday), another grocery run and a strategically coordinated folding-table-parking-lot-pickup. We were up all night (literally) cooking, prepping, transforming our living room into a romantic dinner party setting featuring a table for twelve and a coffee table turned buffet with the magic of bed risers!

The Santa Monica Luskey's Rosh Hashanah Menu:

Grandma's Famous "Mock Chop" Bean Dip
Green & Black Figs with Goat Cheese, Honey & Cracked Pepper

Beef Brisket with Carrots and Potatoes
Panko-Crusted Salmon with Lemon & Dijon Mustard
Sweet Raisin Noodle Kugle
Creamed Spinach
Two Round Challahs (Raisin & Sesame)
Apples & Bill's Bees Honey

Farmer's Market Fruit Salad
Vanilla Ice Cream

The evening was lovely, the food spectacular (if I do say so myself) and the feeling I had looking around our Rosh Hashanah table with Brian by my side couldn't be beat. Although we had a long evening of dishes and deconstruction after the last of our guests said goodnight, it was worth the late nights and large donation to Whole Foods. (Let's just say the Santa Monica Luskeys will not be having twelve children!)

Our appetizer/dessert table: Figs, Cake, Challah & Dip!
Our coffee table turned buffet!
View from the buffet: Our hungry guests ready to eat!

I love having leftover flowers after a dinner party!

We always prefer to be with family on the High Holidays, but this year, although we were not with any Luskeys or Harbergs, at least we were with close friends in a home full of love.

No comments:

Post a Comment