Saturday, December 22, 2007

Office Christmas Party

My boss just finished building his new house (the mansion is pictured above). It took two and half years to build. It is one of the most elaborate homes I’ve ever been in. It’s 9,000 square feet and has three floors. The grand entry way is impressive between the stairs and all the tile and woodwork. There are five bedrooms, each with its own bathroom (he has five kids). The master suite has two separate toilets (his and hers), a big bathtub, a shower that has so many jets the dirt just flies off of you and a fireplace. There is a living room, dining room, an eat-in kitchen with a family room off to the side. The top floor has the three girl’s bedrooms and a large common area. The basement has the two boy’s bedrooms, another family room, theater, exercise room, bonus room, pool room (changing area, lockers and full bathroom), wine cellar and bar. For those who are curious there are ten bathrooms and seven people living in the house. The oldest two children are away at school. The pool he calls a lap pools is two meters short from being Olympic size. It’s a very beautiful home.

My boss wanted me to cook a fancy meal at his home when it was complete. He’s been saying this for the last two years. My wonderful husband agreed to help me. Instead of going to work, I went to his house and got paid to cook Christmas dinner for the office staff and spouses. Tom and I cooked over six hours straight to get this meal together. I had a nice budget from the boss which I went over about twenty dollars.

We started off with appetizers: stuffed mushrooms, fresh mozzarella slices with tomato (seasoned with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and spices), artichoke hearts, olives, provolone cheese, roasted red peppers, cherry peppers and pepperoni. Next up was Shrimp Caesar Salad. The main course consisted of stuffed sea food shell dish in vodka sauce. The pasta shells are stuffed with ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, Italian seasonings, shrimp, crab meat and scallops. Tom made his version of individual Beef Wellington. It consisted of beef tenderloin, roasted red pepper, gorgonzola cheese, bacon bits, portabella mushroom wrapped in puff pastry. The side dishes were roasted potatoes mushrooms sautéed in wine sauce, glazed carrots and asparagus. For dessert we had cheese cake, fresh blackberries and raspberries with fresh whipped cream presented in a large bowl, and mini puff pastry shells stuffed with raspberries and whipped cream.

We were so tired and our feet hurt by the end of the night. I’m grateful I had Tom to help or else I would not have been to do it. My boss was very appreciative and everyone got to take home leftovers.

Below is a slide show of some of the food and the house.



© Nadine Z. 2007

25 comments:

Tammy said...

Oh wow, Nadine...what a beautiful home and what an incredible experience you and your husband had being like caterers for your boss!
The food you prepared looks so elegant and scrumptious...
And wow, the details on that home are so elaborate...such as the ceilings!

Hope you can kick back and relax and that you're pretty much ready for Christmas...
So wishing you and your family a truly blessed Christmas, dear Nadine!

Knit-Wit said...

Oh Yum! How wonderful to be known for your cooking! No one is going to ask me to cook for them (except my family, of course).

Have a wonderful Christmas!

Jen(n) said...

Holy Crap... He's not paying you enough!

a woman who is said...

Amen Jenn! WOW! WOW and double wow, I don't know what to say. Man, are you two for hire ;>)
Every thing sounds and looks so delicious. I notice you are not given out any recipes this time????
Come on now???

EM said...

Okay Nadine you made me very hungry reading about all the wonderful food. Plus I have sampled some of your cooking and I know how good it is! What a blessing you are to your family, work, and friends. Enjoy the holiday!

Jill said...

Wow- how pretty. And what a neat idea to have you cook. Wish I could have been there for the meal. Yum!

Deb said...

*Cough**sniff**choke* Sweet Shack!
Looks like a great meal!!!


Have a very Merry Christmas and a New Year full of joy and blessings.

Ann(ie) said...

How cool!! SOunds like the feast was as scrumptious as the house!

Anonymous said...

fun how are you?

chelle said...

Wow that home is fabulous! I cannot even imagine cleaning something like that!

Hope you have a very Merry Christmas!
May your family's wishes all come true this coming year :)

Scarlet said...

Amazing story and photos to go with it! Wow! You have so many hidden talents. The meal looks fantastic! I would love the recipe for the stuffed sea food dish a la vodka.

The slide show was out of this world! The house is over the top with the beautiful staircase and my personal favorite, breakfast nook, especially the ceiling. I would drink coffee all day if I had a room like THAT!

Thanks for sharing and may you and your family have a wonderful Christmas!

palmtreefanatic said...

WOAH! What a place! Wonderful display of food! I would love to eat all that now;)
great pics!
Thanks for sharing all this with us;)

Cheri said...

WOW! I would love to see a house like that.
Have a Merry Christmas Nadine!

Elle*Bee said...

Your menu sounds fabulous. I hope you and yours have a very Merry Christmas!

Anonymous said...

it looks amazing! and that was pretty neat to be able to do that! I'm glad you had fun!
Merry Christmas Nadine!

Dawn said...

My word! I can't imagine anyone needing that much room! What does he do to make that kind of money? I hope he shares his wealth with his employees! What do you do in your job?

Susan said...

I was just in a home very similar to this recently on our Church woman's group progressive dinner. Beautiful.
Susan

Damselfly said...

Wow! Who knew you are such an amazing cook?! I love stuffed mushrooms, btw.

That house is something else, and what really gets me is the his and her toilets. No more "Put the seat down!" ;)

yours truly B said...

beautiful house thanks for shareing happy Holidays and may God Bless you and your family this coming year.
Billie

Demara said...

Wow Nadine that's quite the place!

Kate said...

mmm stuffed mushrooms

Merry Christmas!

Anonymous said...

What a breathtaking party! Hope your holidays were happy- good luck with your book in the New Year!

PinksandBluesGirls said...

Oh my gosh, that house is incredible! What a nice thing for you to have cooked for your entire office (with Tom's help)! You must be SOME cook!!!

I hope you had a special Christmas, Nadine!

Jane, Pinks & Blues

~Crystal~ said...

How was your Christmas?

Anonymous said...

Nadine, your food sounds WAY better than the house, and I can almost taste it.
Houses like that, however, upset me. It is such a waste of money. But I wouldn't mind 2 toilets in the bath (his and hers).