Gingerbread Raptors

This December flew by in a haze of work presentations, holiday parties, volunteering and wrapping gifts. Here’s how 2019 finished up for me:

  • Nicole took me to an event at the Hot Docs Cinema to see one of her culinary obsessions, Alison Roman. I’m not quite sure how I didn’t know about her before this, but I promptly became obsessed as well. Alison has a bi-weekly column in the New York Times, and was promoting her new book, Nothing Fancy (which I have on hold at the library and am still waiting for!). I loved listening to her talk about her approach to cooking and entertaining, and she just automatically became my new foodie crush.
  • My favourite Gen Z co-worker left us to take over the world for a new job and I was (and still am) so sad. She was just the cutest, most funny, best eater of my treats, and the only one in the office who understood my obsession with Gourmet Makes. I decided to make her a cake that expressed my true, heartfelt feelings (she loved it):

Jude's Cake

  • We had a Cookie Exchange at work, but I was so cookie’d out after Champagne & Cookies, that I kind of half-assed it and made these Chocolate Chip Snickerdoodles. They were okay, but I definitely overbaked them. I’d make them again, but pay closer attention next time!
  • My friend Francis and I had our annual cookie decorating afternoon, and I followed the same strategy as last year: I baked the cookies in advance and then mixed up royal icing and poured it into squeeze bottles for him to use. Of course he ate more sprinkles than he decorated with, but I think that’s part of the fun! I also FINALLY bought a set of Christmas cookie cutters, and had so much fun stamping out stockings, bells, candy canes and gingerbread people (“That’s a gingerbread MAN” said Francis – so much for trying to introduce the gender neutral movement to a 3 year old!).
  • Jen was home from Zurich for the holidays and we met up with Krishna for dinner at The Keg Mansion! This was in the works since the summer when they were shocked to hear I’d never been there before! First of all, it’s gorgeous, but totally haunted, and our waiter even brought over a binder with the background on all the ghost stories in case we wanted to learn more. Reader, I did not. I wouldn’t even go to the bathroom by myself after that.
  • It was Lydia’s big birthday this month, so I made her her fave: Banana Cream Pie. I’m not really a fan, but I trust her when she said she loved it.
  • For our big family Christmas dinner this year, I got to be in charge of the menu! I proposed three different plans to my mom, but I already knew what she would select: Beef Bourguignon, Mashed Potatoes,  and a big green salad. Classic. Dessert was brownie sundaes with the Baked classic recipe, vanilla ice cream and homemade hot fudge.
  • Now that I have Gingerbread people cookie cutters, I also couldn’t resist making those Gingerbread Raptors up above!

Other non-foodie things I was obsessed with this month, YEAR END EDITION:

  • My favourite books of the year, in order: Ask Again Yes, Mrs. Everything, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones & The Six (those last two are tied, same author, don’t make me pick), The Wedding Party and Evvie Drake Starts Over. Non-fiction MVP is Becoming by Michelle Obama.
  • My favourite movies of the year, in order: Always Be My Maybe, Long Shot, Avengers: Endgame, Hustlers, Booksmart
  • My favourite TV of the year, not in order because I watched too many things that I liked: Hannah’s Season of the Bachelorette, Euphoria, Dead to Me, Glow Season 3 (set in Vegas!), Temptation Island, Patriot Act (do yourself a favour and watch the episode on fast fashion immediately), Unbelievable, Queer Eye, Four Weddings and a Funeral (which inspired a Mindy Project re-watch!)

Flashback!