I can't believe it!

Not only am I finished shopping three whole days before Christmas, but I have also wrapped and tagged everything. I got the packages that needed mailing mailed in time (I hope!) earlier this week... this is unheard of. The tree has been up and decorated for a week. The holiday party at work went off without a hitch. I have my oyster stew makings ready for Monday night (it's a Christmas Eve tradition around here, since the kidunit's usually at his dad's so I can cook seafood!). The only thing I didn't do this year was holiday cards. I didn't see any that really grabbed me, other than some at the Tattered Cover featuring two ravens, which I should have bought the day I saw them. But I didn't, and I didn't want to make a special trip to Denver just to get holiday cards so I went without. Ah well.

I made an impromptu dessert a bit ago and it turned out amazingly well, so I'm sharing the 'recipe' such as it is. I was craving something a little sweet but am a bit tired of cookies, so I took a Pink Lady apple, cored and peeled it, evened off the bottom and put it in a small baking dish. Then I filled the core with a mixture of brown sugar, coriander, cinnamon and nutmeg, and drizzled a couple of tablespoons of Marsala wine mixed with a drop of vanilla extract over the whole and baked it in the toaster oven at 400F for about half an hour. The Marsala caramelized, so when I pulled it out of the oven I melted a tiny bit of butter into that to loosen it up, then cut up the apple into bite-sized pieces. Cutting the apple, of course, released the brown sugar/apple juice into the caramelized Marsala and made a fantastic syrup. The apple was still nice and firm, and it was warm and spicy and delicious.