New Year's at Hotel Monteleone

Whenever I visit New Orleans I love to stay at the Hotel Monteleone, not just because we are related to the owners, but because it exudes the essence of the city. It is easy to understand how it has earned the title of “Grande Dame of the French Quarter.” Its beaux-art architecture blends in beautifully with the rest of the Vieux Carre.

 

It is conveniently located on Royal Street (Rue Royale), home of some of the swankiest antique stores in New Orleans. A lobby display case features collectibles from Moss Antiques… 

…showcasing colorful oyster plates… 

…and fancy epaulettes in the original box.

Another display case boasts of the hotel’s rich literary history… 

 

…including a letter written by Tennessee Williams. 

 

The lobby flowers are always spectacular, but the lobby is at its finest in December, with the traditional Christmas tree… 

…and the antique grandfather clock… 

 

… all gussied up for the holidays. 

I like to tag the spot in front of the clock where the years have worn a dip in the marble floor.

 

The decorative wood panels by the elevators add a flair of elegance. 

 

 

*** 

One year ago, one hundred of our closest relatives converged upon the Hotel Monteleone for a family reunion. We decided that the week between Christmas and New Year’s Eve was the perfect time to gather because all schools, universities, and many businesses are on holiday. 

When my husband and I were getting ready for the reception in our room upstairs, I watched the sun set from our window. I held my breath as I watched a barge make the impossibly tight turn at the bend of the Mississippi.

 

The reunion gathering was in a downstairs meeting room overlooking Royal Street.

 

The hotel’s catering staff did a spectacular job preparing and serving a delicious and beautiful buffet of fruits… 

 

… and crudités. 

The soup buffet offered a choice oyster artichoke, white asparagus and brie, and seafood gumbo served in demitasse cups. I can attest that all three soups were fantastic.

 

I can also tell you that the martini glasses with grilled artichoke heart with lump crab and avocado brunoise with radish sprouts and lemon for garnish were scrumptious. As for the shooters with tomato, basil, and dilled watercress pana cotta - my goodness, they were delicious.

 

I forgot to take photos of the barbecue buffet and I didn’t have room for the sliders, but I did stop to admire the gorgeous jewel-toned floral arrangements by Perfect Presentations.

 

Most of all, though, I loved catching up with relatives I hadn’t seen in a long time and meeting new ones that I never knew existed. 

 *** 

Two nights later, on New Year’s Eve, my daughter, my sister and I had a cocktail the Carousel Bar, where you can literally feel the room spinning every fifteen minutes.

 

Earlier in the week, my father-in-law reminisced about his courtship with my mother-in-law when they used to listen to Liberace play here.

After weighing all our options, we chose to bring in 2011 in the comfort of our room upstairs, watching the fireworks across the Mississippi while sipping mango bellinis. 

Here is a glimpse of the fireworks at Jackson Square about seven blocks away.




From the comfort of my home in Palo Alto, I wish you all a Happy New Year!

Happy Holidays

Wishing you all a happy holiday season. 

I snapped these photos when I had lunch with my mother and sister at the always-elegant Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto.

Even though it's not cold here this Christmas day, this duet by Norah Jones and Willie Nelson reflects the spirit of the season perfectly.

Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now, Prancer, and Vixen!

Sami and his reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)

"On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donder and Blitzen!

This Sami reindeer herder is making sure that Santa's reindeer are well fed before their long journey ahead. Another day, I will write more about meeting this reindeer at the North Cape (Nordkapp), inside the Arctic Circle, and the indigenous people who practice reindeer husbandry. In the mean time, I hope you have a Merry Christmas!

"To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

"Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

- excerpt "A Visit from St. Nicolas" by Clement Clarke Moore

UPDATE: My post about the Sami People and their reindeer is here.

Santa for Sale

Braved the mall yesterday; this picture sums it up for me.

Merry Christmas

Photos taken at the 2008 Filoli Holiday Faire

Happy holidays to all of you!

Homemade Peppermint Bark

My daughter has been perfecting her homemade peppermint bark recipe for the past three years and she kindly agreed to let me share it with you. These are the ingredients she used this year (I only show one bag of each chocolate but this recipe requires two of each). Most bulk chocolates work well also.

2 bags (12-oz each) of semi-sweet chocolate chips (Whole Foods 365 Organic)
2 bags (12-oz each)of white chocolate chunks (Whole Foods 365)
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 cup crushed candy canes (use individually-wrapped candy canes)
Spray oil (Pam)

1. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with oil. The cookie sheet must have a lip all around.

2. Slowly melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Remove from heat right before the last little bit of chocolate is melted. It will finish melting on its own, do not overcook.

3. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract to the melted chocolate.

4. Pour the melted dark chocolate, while it is still hot, onto the prepared cookie sheet and spread evenly with a spatula.

5. Place in refrigerator until it is completely cooled, about 20 minutes.

6. Now is a good time to crush the candy canes between two sheets of wax paper.

Update: To avoid a spectacular spray of red and white, leave candy canes in their wrappers during crushing.

This is an excellent task for a teenage brother.

It takes self-control and finesse to get just the right granularity:

7. Slowly melt the white chocolate chunks in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Remove from heat right before the last little bit of chocolate is melted.

8. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract to the melted chocolate.

9. Pour the melted white chocolate, while it is still hot, over the completely cooled dark chocolate and spread evenly with a spatula.

10. While the white chocolate is still soft, sprinkle the crushed peppermint on top of the white chocolate and gently push them into the chocolate.

11. Place in refrigerator until it is completely cooled, about 20 minutes.

12. Break into large hunks using a butter knife.

13. Best if served cold.

Here is the text of the recipe:

Peppermint Bark

2 bags (12-oz each) of semi-sweet chocolate chips (Whole Foods 365 Organic)
2 bags (12-oz each)of white chocolate chunks (Whole Foods 365)
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 cup crushed candy canes (use individually-wrapped candy canes)
Spray oil (Pam)

1. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with oil. The cookie sheet must have a lip all around.
2. Slowly melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Remove from heat right before the last little bit of chocolate is melted. It will finish melting on its own, do not overcook.
3. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract to the melted chocolate.
4. Pour the melted dark chocolate, while it is still hot, onto the prepared cookie sheet and spread evenly with a spatula.
5. Place in refrigerator until it is completely cooled, about 20 minutes.
6. Crush the candy canes in their individual wrappers and between two sheets of wax paper.
7. Slowly melt the white chocolate chunks in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Remove from heat right before the last little bit of chocolate is melted.
8. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract to the melted chocolate.
9. Pour the melted white chocolate, while it is still hot, over the cooled dark chocolate and spread evenly with a spatula.
10. While the white chocolate is still soft, sprinkle the crushed peppermint on top of the white chocolate and gently push them into the chocolate.
11. Place in refrigerator until it is completely cooled, about 20 minutes.
12. Break into large hunks using a butter knife.
13. Best if served cold.

Bon Appetit! Smakelijk eten!

Oma's Apartment 6

I used to be a Christmas neurotic. For years and years, I had a goal to be finished with Christmas shopping by Thanksgiving. Some years I actually achieved this goal, which meant I picked up presents year-round and stepped up my game in earnest by about September.

I still buy gifts throughout the year when I see something perfect for someone on my list, but every year I get more relaxed about finishing early. I never got to the frenzied state of last-minute preparations - until this year.

This year, Oma suddenly had a vacant apartment right around Thanksgiving. Up until this year, she was always able to prepare her apartments for the next tenant by herself. Though she is 90 percent recovered, her illness did weaken her. We also can't forget that she is 82 years old, not to mention that the apartment is on the third floor. Oma has five huge pins holding her hip together from an injury thirty years ago, so it is excruciating for her to climb up and down those stairs. By the way, climbing the stairs does have its reward; this is the view from the living room and the bedroom:

And if you squint your eyes and know where to look, you can see the tippy top of the Golden Gate Bridge:

Oma did quite a bit of the work, supervising and working alongside a few favorite workers, but she still needed help. My sister, brother-in-law, and I spent the last few weeks shopping at hardware stores, Benjamin Moore paint stores, lighting stores, and Home Depot, plus we hired some extra workers and managed the tenant selection.

We never had an open house during the holidays before so it was fun to decorate the unit with a few holiday touches. Overall we were all pleased with the end result:

This past Sunday, we held an open house while it was pouring rain outside. It was lightly attended, but we think we found a lovely, responsible tenant.

We usually get our Christmas tree around mid-December. This year, we didn't get our tree until the morning of the open house, December 21st, because I always had to take our big car so I could schlep around light fixtures, curtains, shower heads, and staging props for the apartment.

As for our Christmas preparations, my lovely daughter managed to cook our entire Christmas dinner while I was a wrapping fool at the kitchen table, preparing the rental contract, and trying to perform credit and reference checks while everyone was at the mall instead of answering my phone messages. I abandoned the task of decorating the tree because the Christmas tree lights decided to have a mind of their own. Fortunately, my sister and brother-in-law came to the rescue and decorated the tree before we sat down for Christmas dinner.

While it was hard work, it was also strangely liberating. Our holiday expectations were suddenly brought down to a human level and I was much more relaxed about getting it all done. Next year, I hope to take a page out of the same book.