It's My Birthday and I'll Eat if I Want To...

When is the one time of the year that I don't feel too guilty about sticking to our food budget? When going to Marzano on Garfield St in Tacoma is fine, even though the price could feed our whole family for almost a week?
On my BIRTHDAY!

So, here's to my favorite restaurant, my favorite husband, and finding a babysitter on Dec 31 who not only didn't charge us but brought me flowers for my birthday (Gracias, Paula!).
P.S. You're probably dying to know what we ate. Ok, I'll share.

I had a salad with greens, prawns, shaved fennel, slivered almonds, sectioned grapefruit, and pomegranate dressing. And yes, it was as amazing as it sounds. All sorts of flavors and textures married in my mouth to produce a more-than-pleasant lunch. Dan ate Linguini Aurora, which had speck (a smoked prosciutto), porcini mushroom, and tomatoes in a heavy cream sauce over linguini.

Tradition!

I love food-based traditions. Especially the ones that involve yummy food, like eating lamb on Easter, candy on Halloween, and massive amounts of steak on my birthday. My favorite, though, is Christmas Eve.
There's nothing I dislike about Christmas Eve: the music, the lights, the anticipation, the smells, but most of all the FOOD.
Our traditions 24th menu isn't extravagant, but to me it equals Christmas. We don't eat turkey, like is so common.
Instead, we eat roast chicken, Russian potato salad, empanadas (if I'm feeling ambitious), and for dessert, flan. Not only are these nostalgia-inducing foods delicious, but they are extremely affordable.
What is your traditional Christmas meal? Not the cookies and such, but the food -- if it were up to you -- you'd make every Christmas because it just isn't Christmas without it?

Winter Frittata

I'm a sucker for squash, both the sport and the food. But since this is a food blog, I'll focus on the food.
Yellow squash and zucchini are excellent fall/winter food. They are inexpensive (I bought 2 small of each for a total of $1) and their flavor profile lends itself to nearly anything you can imagine.
Yesterday, I added the squash to onions, cumin, oregano, garlic, sauteed, and we ate that as burritos. Today I took the leftovers and made a frittata.
There was between 1-2 cups of this mixture left. I added 8 slices of cubed Canadian Bacon which I crisped up (bacon or panchetta would have been yummier, but this is what I had on hand). Then I whipped up 4 eggs and 2 egg whites with a smidge of milk and a bit of kosher salt. I poured the mixture over the leftover squash and ham and cooked it over low heat for 10 minutes, then tossed it in a 350 degree oven for another 10 minutes.
I sliced it like a pie and served up one slice per plate, along with some toast. It was a delicious and filling dinner, not to mention very healthy and wallet-friendly.

My Green Love

When I was in junior high, my friends and I would sing this song all the time. It mentions "some of those tasty sprouts, the ones that they call Brussels." I had no idea what it was talking about, and it didn't matter because we changed it to "Russell" after the boy my friend Jeta had a crush on.

My first experience with Brussel sprouts was a terrible one. Imagine spending all day on the train, then finally arriving at a youth hostel in Prague, where I was promised dinner but given instead a bowl of greasy broth with one floating Brussel sprout. I was 16 and didn't know that this was the first course. I thought that was it. That's the day I discovered that my mom was right: when you're really hungry, you actually will eat what's given to you.

A few years ago, I decided to give said sprouts the benefit of the doubt. What has resulted is a life-long love affair with Brussel sprouts. I love them steamed, boiled, and especially roasted. I love them in butter, drizzled in olive oil and sea salt, or marinated in balsamic. I love them the way Dan made them last night, steam roasted in lemon pepper marinade mixed with pork sirloin.

I have yet to follow an actual recipe for Brussel sprouts because I haven't felt like it was necessary. They are inexpensive if you catch the right season and a good grocer. I just bought a stem for $2 and it fed us plenty with leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Even the frozen sprouts, when doctored correctly, are inexpensive and delicious.

Do you have a favorite way of eating Brussel sprouts? Or are you phobic?