Hurrah! The Annual Girls’ Holiday Dinner was an unabashed success (even though the stuffed chicken was much too salty, even for my taste…).

The Reason(s)
The main reason I began having these Annual Dinners was because The Girls were convening – with great difficulty – perhaps once every six months, and I thought it was time we had a standing yearly event to which we all looked forward. That is precisely what The Annual Girls’ Holiday Dinner has become, a reputation that is well earned because it really is an ‘event’, and not merely a dinner party. The second and much more important reason I do this is because I like presents! And The Girls come bearing gifts…

To the bouquet of flowers where red and white lilies were present, Di added yellow ones

Tasha gifted me the gorgeous gold earrings I’m wearing; Laura brought a box of specialty tisane teas, and Cleo brought a candy-cane candle & 8 different scented body creams. (I enquired if she thought I was stinky. She laughed and walked away without answering, but not before she told me to watch myself as I walked past the stairs “because [I] could fall and really hurt myself”.)

The Attendees
Di & Cleo

Laura & Tasha

(Di was the designated photographer and within moments, the ladies had been lined up both against the wall, and by the sofa so that their portraits be taken. It was really quite fantastic as the shutter bounced up and down, Tasha and Laura did a little tango, while Cleo and Di opted for a more discreet revival of The Outsiders video box, minus one Tom Cruise.)

And I, your BlogMistress

(Di was attempting to capture the length of the dress and I was yelling back responses to Cleo as she rummaged through my closet and queried “Why haven’t I EVER seen you in THIS dress? And what’s BEDO? And are all of these CDs yours? And if your mom ever wants to give away the dress you’re wearing and you don’t want it, will you give it to me? And don’t fall down the stairs, you could really hurt yourself!”)

Although mama was not present in body (she’s in Dubai until this coming Friday), she was present in soul as the dress I wore was in fact once hers. I believe she purchased it in her early 20s and wore it much lovelier than I could ever dream to wear it.

The Drink
Over the course of the six hour meal, we consumed two bottles of IKEA’s Sparkling Apple Drink and two bottles of IKEA’s Sparkling Pomegranate Drink that are wrapped up as though they are champagne. These drinks are fun because by glass no 4, we were all hit by an incredible sugar rush that left us hysterical and prone to confessions. (To add a slight more ambiance to the drink, I placed strawberries in each glass.)

As though these four bottles weren’t enough, I brought to the table at least three gallons of water and rose oil. By the end of the evening, The Girls = Race Horses.

The Meal
The seven courses were presented once an hour on the half hour, as follows…

6.30pm
Asiago Cheese Puffs
Stuffed Baby Potatoes with Shrimp

6.30pm for Dianna, a vegan
Bruschetta & Babaghanoush

7.30pm
Curried Sweet Pepper soup (served with a dollop of sour cream, a dash of sweet paprika & a blackberry)

8.30pm
Arugula, Pear & Asiago Cheese salad (served with roasted walnuts and breadsticks)

9.30pm
Angel Hair Pasta Nests with Shrimp, in Heavy Cream (fresh basil served as the garnish)

10.30pm
Stuffed (with Borsin Cheese & spinach) Chicken Breast

10.30pm for Dianna
Yellow Pepper stuffed with cous-cous, garlic, cashews & dates

11.30pm
Lemon Sorbet…which, sadly, went unphotographed…

12.30am
Vanilla Pound Cake with Vanilla Bean ice-cream, fresh berries & fresh mint

Pretty spectacular, indeed. So spectacular that I was allowed to wear Laura’s tiara and crowned by myself and only in my own head: Culinary Goddess. (Look how large and cow-like my eyes are.)

The Soundtrack
Apart from the incredible company and food, we were joined by the very sexy Tom Jones, Platinum Blonde (Yes! We know they are of The Gay variety, but we love them still in ‘that’ way…), Bono, Terence Trent D’Arby & the boys from Chicago. As only the best Holiday Dinners know, The Eurythmics, The Spice Girls and Justin Timberlake completed our evening’s soundtrack.

The Final Confession
Naturally, there were no lulls in the evening’s conversation. In fact, this year’s theme seemed to be that of The Confession, with the Weirdest Topic Award going to: Gas (not of the petrol variety).

If I were to sum the evening up into one line, I could…and I will…

We promised we would never discuss who said this, and so you must excuse my adherence to this code…

As one of us was staring down at her dessert plate, she quietly and very seriously announced: “I don’t know if I’m seeing things, but I’m pretty sure my cherry just vibrated.”

And that line, my friends, is the line that best wraps up the 2007 Annual Girls’ Holiday Dinner. I do hope you had as much fun ogling the photos as we did devouring the food. Feel free to stalk the entire rest of the photos here.