Genuine friendship, mutual gratitude and warm hospitality are rare qualities to find collectively within a group of friends. I hosted a holiday pot luck, climber-style, at my house last night, and enjoyed a great evening of homestyle cooking, rowdy conversation, marshmallow roasting and even a mini-baking lesson – but let me digress.
I spent all afternoon preparing treats for my guests. I started off by baking about 20 cupcakes, then moved on to a batch of sugar cookies. Naturally, I doused it all in creamy frosting. During my kitchen escapades, my housemate’s boyfriend wandered over to the smell of warm pastries. I was in the midst of putting colorful gel frosting on a cupcake when he offered to teach me a little trick. Check out my fabulous Seminoles cupcake!
After a few hours of furious baking and cooking, my personal pot luck spread consisted of chicken and ground 
turkey handmade dumplings, a pesto spread with loads of bread rounds, frosted sugar cookies, decorated cupcakes and a bowl of dried fruit bits with nuts. Not too shabby, right? Well, I was quite upstaged by the buffet of treats contributed by my lovely guests. Our final selection included: spinach and artichoke dip, a phenomenal green been casserole, freshly baked crescent rolls, garlic mashed potatoes and a sweet potato with cinnamon apple casserole. Not to mention the enormous sampling of different beers, ranging from good ‘ole Pabst Blue Ribbon to the entire holiday line of Magic Hat brews.
Naturally, we made a huge mess of my kitchen, but I was hardly worried about the chaos in the midst of all my festive cheer. When I finally decided to tackle some of the dishes, I opened my dishwasher to a surprise – one of the climber boys had slyly filled it up with dirty plates and utensils. How often do you find a strong, burly hunk of man who will also clean your kitchen?
It was a wonderful evening spent munching on holiday foods and warming our fingertips by the fire. The event reminded me how incredibly fortunate I am to be able to associate myself with the folks that make up our community at Tally Rock Gym. If you are looking for a simple way to celebrate the holidays with friends, I highly suggest a pot luck. Tell everyone to bring either food or booze, and you’ll see your kitchen become overloaded with delicious treats. I love this season!
The post On Holiday Potlucks, Cupcake Decorating and Climber Boys Who Do My Dishes. appeared first on The Morning Fresh.
