Our friends, two sisters – YS & HS, are notorious for their elaborate dinners – all made from scratch, with no substitutes or shortcuts.  We have been fortunate enough to know them for more than a decade and had enjoyed many Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners over the years.  YS just finished renovation of her apartment and was ready to try out her new kitchen.  To feed ten of us on Christmas day, they selected recipes from epicurious.com (a site used by many of my cooking-enthusiast friends, follow links to recipes):

• Pear, Arugula and Endive Salad with Candied Walnuts
• Standing Rib Roast, Spinach-Porcini Stuffing, Irish Whiskey Gravy, and Horseradish Cream
• Wild Mushroom Potato Gratin
• Broccollini with Pecan Brown Butter
• Cranberry Granita

Evan made the mushroom potato gratin.  Our contribution was a store-bought, christmas-themed, sweet-potato cake.  Some of these pictures will make it into our Amateur Food Porn series.