Komet

I've eaten komet as long as I can remember ... in fact, I'm not even sure of the accurate spelling. It's a recipe that was handed down from my Mother's parents who immigrated from the former Yugoslavia. They were from a region that would later become known as Macedonia. It's basic ingredients and quite easy to make ... although a little labor intensive with rolling out 24 layers of dough. As with most family heirloom recipes, it was never written down with accurate measurements. I forced my mom to do so a few years ago while she taught me how to make it. I've made a few tweaks over the years and am happy to carry on the family tradition. Every time I make it, I wish my Grandmother could have lived long enough to know this ... and share her version of the recipe.




Crust:
3 c. flour
2 T. oil
1 t. salt
warm water (enough to bring dough to a ball)
Let dough rest 30 minutes

Seperate dough into 24 balls. 12 layers will become the top crust and 12 layers will become the bottom crust. Roll each ball into a 6-8 inch circle. Brush melted butter on each layer before adding the next. Leave the twelfth layer of each stack dry as this will become the top of your bottom layer and top of your top layer. Roll each 12 layer stack into the size needed for your baking sheet (I use a 1/4 sheet pan size).

Filling:
12 eggs
32 oz. cottage cheese
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper

Whisk together and pour into bottom crust. Add top layer of dough and crimp bottom and top layers together. Brush generously with melted butter. Place in a preheated 450 oven for 15-20 minutes (until top is lightly browned). Reduce oven to 350 and bake until done (approx. 30 min).

Exchange

Every December my friend hosts a "Make, Bake or Create" party. The idea is to make handmade items for a gift exchange. It's really an excuse for a bunch of girls to get together, drink wine and chat. This year I made cookies ... which is a step up from last year when I merely watched the exchange. The little snowman is filled with hot cocoa and marshmallows.

Christmas Trees - The Lazy Version

When I was not in the mood to drag out all my holiday decorations I copied an idea from my in-laws. They placed a tree on their patio decorated with colorful lights. Festive and instant gratification accomplished in under 30 minutes!





This year we have two trees outside ... we're thinking we need three for next year.

Christmas Tree

This is the first time in about 3 years that I've decorated for Christmas. The backstory is that we were in remodel for a while ... then I didn't want glitter all over my new house ... then 'someone' had his hip replaced ... then I didn't want to drag all my stuff out ... then we weren't having any parties ... we don't have kids ... blah, blah, blah.



This year, I put up my fake, 3-ft pre-lit tree the day before Thanksgiving. And I am loving it. For a nod to one of our favorite places on earth, I added this single figurine.

Origami Tree

My sweet niece made me a stock pile of beautiful origami for our tree. She made so many that I put the miniature ones on our dining room tree. So sweet and colorful. They reminded me of Hawaii so I added the hula girl in place of an angel.

Wine Tasting Thanksgiving Weekend

We kicked off our holiday season by going wine tasting Thanksgiving weekend. It's so festive and relaxing. Thanks to black Friday, the wineries tend to be pretty quiet. One of our favorite wineries had the caves open for touring and tasting.



Fun day with good friends ... even if one of them was a little tired ...

Snow and Sand

After the 12 hour (most of them sleeping) cabin experience, we booked a hotel which is way more our speed ... you'll see that someone immediately crashed upon arrival ... (when you're 47 and have a fake hip, futons aren't really your idea of a great sleep).



Imagine our surprise to wake the following morning to snow! This is the view from our balcony.





It was so cool! Especially considering this was the day before ...

Winter Camping

I had a crazy idea about 9 months ago. We would try winter camping ... I guess not really camping considering we would be in a "rustic" cabin ... in a state park. The website looked so appealing. I happily booked this 2 day adventure the early part of Thanksgiving week. How bad can it be? And besides, we love the beach!

We packed up half the house and headed out ... through snow.



Finally, arriving at the cabin ...





You'll see what became the two most invaluable items I packed on the counter ... Lysol wipes and alcohol. We were to be in the cabin 48 hours ... we made it 12. Turns out we're hotel people.