As has become another one of our traditions, we invited friends over for a new year's eve dinner. While Mark spent the day hunting, I spent the day gathering supplies and preparing for the meal: Rice cracker shrimp hor douvre Mixed baby field greens salad with dried cranberries, cherries, goat cheese, pear shallot or cappuccino vinaigrette (dressings c/o one of our favorite nooks to eat The Mighty Oak Barrel). Choice of triple squash soup or tomato bisque c/o Whole Foods. Ciabatta served with D'Affinois cheese. Roasted Salmon with red pepper and corn relish Dessert: Burnt Almond Torte, the very same torte that served as our wedding cake. We simplified matters this year by using some prepared foods from a couple of our favorite places. After last year's somewhat poorly planned meal which used just about every pot, pan and dish in our house as we tried to execute too many dishes to suit all the different tastes and eating habits of our friends, this year went so much more smoothly. We also didn't have an ingredient mishap that threw our cooking off course either. We both love to cook and experiment with food and cuisines, but it is important when entertaining a group to minimize the day-of-dining stress by using tested dishes or dishes that can be prepared well in advance (or at least portions of said dishes).