The brief time between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve is filled with parties, gifts, food, relatives, shopping, friends... It's enough to make you throw your hands up in defeat.

This year Clare and I decided to have an open house luncheon. We picked a weekend afternoon in December and asked guests to drop by any time between 11am and 3pm. We got to see all of our friends and they got to fit us into their busy schedule. It was a win-win.

The recipes we chose were simple, and all shared the convience of being at least partially make-ahead. When more guests showed up than planned, we just assembled and heated another batch.

We have also included some of our favorite holiday things, homemade extracts, delcious cookies, a festive napkin fold and directions on how to temper chocolate.

We hope these ideas make your holiday a little less stressful and more joyous.
A Big Slice is proud to present our very own wine tasting kit, the Bacchus Box, a complete evening of fun in one rosewood box! Challenge your friends to a taste off. May the best wine win! No one, not even the host, knows the identities of the selections. Observe, smell, taste, rank, vote. Was yours the nectar ...or the salad dressing? A relaxed and fun way to discover new favorites. And remember, there is always a next time with the Bacchus Box. Includes everything you need (except wine and glasses) and a free 12 minute instructional DVD. Great gift! To check out the Bacchus Box, click on the bar above. A Big Slice is a very large website (including over 200 recipes!) that is organized thematically. But if you know what you are looking for, just click on the bar above and it will take you to our search page. Type in the term, or recipe in the space provided and it will take you directly to that page. If any links appear to be broken, please let us know at:

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Click above to return to the A Big Slice homepage. From there you will be able to visit our wine and international dinners sections. Plus we have a recipe and craft archive so you can quickly find what you are looking for. If it is contact information that you seek, that is also on the homepage - near the bottom. Thousands have already signed up for our newsletter. In 2009 we are focusing on the monthly holidays in a different way. How about a Mardi Gras Fais Do Do? Or a hearty St. Patrick's Day Irish Breakfast. We include holiday trivia and history, table settings, napkin folds and of course recipes. All we need is your email address. Click on the bar above to sign up. Thank you!
Click on the above link to return to the main entertaining page. There you will find complete menu, decorating and craft ideas for every month of the year. Don't know Burgundy from Bordeaux? Or Merlot from Cabernet? Then click on the above link to see our wine pages with compete menus.