Epiphany Feast!

"Oh God, who by the leading of a star didst manifest thy only-begotten Son to the Gentiles; Mercifully grant that we, who know thee now by faith, may after this life have the fruition of thy glorious Godhead; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

-the book of common prayer

Tonight we celebrated Epiphany with a feast which, since it was basically the same menu as last year's Epiphany feast, is now officially our traditional Epiphany feast.  :)

Usually when I am preparing a special meal, I begin early in the day; make the cake, maybe chop a few ingredients...  Not today.  No, today I pulled in the driveway from my errand after picking up the kids from school, about 5 minutes before my husband, with nothing started for dinner.  I was just putting the water for the polenta on to boil when he walked in the door.  Ah...well, thankfully a little over an hour was perfect for him to fix the leak in the radiator of my car.

Here's a fun trick:  butter the pan for the cake with the stick of butter you are about to soften for the batter.  If you are melting butter for a recipe, pour the melted butter into the batter, and then use a pastry brush to collect melted butter out of the measuring cup, and paint the inside of the pan you will use to bake in.

 Once, I cracked an egg straight into the bowl with the rest of the batter I was making, and the egg was bloody!  I crack eggs into a separate container first now...and I put the shells into the empty spot in the egg carton, that way I don't have to worry about clogging drains or dripping egg white all over floors and counters to get to the trash...

 How fun is it that leeks are so gritty with dirt, that you slice them and then submerge the rings in water, swishing it around to clean all the grit off!?!?

 Chopping.  Is there anything that can make you feel more like a professional chef?

 When I reached for butter to add to the cooked polenta, I realized I could use some of the special garlic and herb butter my friend left after our dinner party earlier in the week.  Isn't it pretty?

 Well, when we realized that the grill was out of propane, it was plan B to heat the sausage...

 There it is!  Fresh venison sausage, parmesan polenta, romaine salad with anchovy dressing, and cheese bread with garlic butter....

 and Epiphany cake!!!

After dinner, of course the children had to get the wise men to Jesus, so they moved the wise men as slowly as possible for a 7, 5, & 3 year old to move when they have wise men in their hands!  They made their way from the dining room to the living room, where they took great efforts to arrange the men just so in front of Baby Jesus, all the while asking questions about how this really was...when it really happened...