2013 PJ PARTY

I just received my first Christmas gift of 2013...seeing so many of my friends, mom and sister at my PJ Party! This year, the guests brought an appetizer and I supplied the cookies...and oh! what wonderful eating we enjoyed! (To my dear mother-in-law, Michele and Kasey: You were missed!) Here are some of my favorite pics - To enlarge each pic, click in the upper right or left corners:

Group Pic!

Man...it's COLD outside!

Rina and Ken

Part One of Cookies

Part Two

Mrs. Claus and Her Helper Elf

Kelly and Meg

(Kelly gave me the best tip of the night:

For my SUPER dry hands, try Cetaphil Restoraderm -

an over-the-counter drugstore item!)

Some of Rina's favorite cookies from Peru!

Judy, Fran and Nancy

Thanks, Fran, for taking this pic!

Tara, Michelle and my Sister, Janie

Rina, Rachel, Mom and Jimena

Me, Alice, Christie, Katie and Tiffany

Food Pic #1

Food Pic #2

Nancy's YUMMY Marinated Ham Buns

(Many of you asked for the recipe.

It's provided at the end of this post.)

Safe in Grandma's Arms!

So happy to see our newest neighbor!

Nancy's Monkey Feet

Katie's Reindeer Feet

Janie's Bunny Feet

Janie at the Coffee Bar

Christie's New Hair Bow

Cookbook Steal #1: From Mel to Katie

No Hard Feelings - We Hope!

Cookbook Steal #2 by Rachel

...and Mel Steals the Santa Mugs from Christie!

Wine and Opener for Christie

Tara and Nancy

Meg's New Scarf

One Final Gift Swap!

...and now....THE COOKIES!

1st up...my two favorite finds for the party - 

MINI WAFFLE COOKIES - YUM!

MARINATED HAM SANDWICHES

A quick and easy recipe from Ken's sister, Jan. It's one of our family's all-time favorites! Thanks for making me happy by bringing this treat to the PJ Party, Nancy!

Make the day before serving then bake right before serving. If only half the recipe is needed, freeze the remaining rolls after assembly and bake at a later date (adding a few more minutes of baking time if frozen).  These rolls can be served as an appetizer or as a main dish for lunch or dinner.

Marinade:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter

1/4 cup sweet onion, minced

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

(or toasted sesame seeds)

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons hot or spicy mustard

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

24 (2 packages) of King Hawaiian rolls

     or your favorite dinner rolls

mayonnaise to spread on rolls

24 (about 3/4 pound) thin slices of deli ham or any meat      of your choice

24 (about 1/2 pound) thin slices of Swiss cheese,          peppered jack cheese or any cheese variety you desire.

Line two 9” x 13” baking pans with non-stick foil (or use disposable aluminum baking pans for quick clean up). 

To prepare marinade, sauté minced sweet onion in butter over low heat until onion is soft and translucent. Add poppy seeds, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and brown sugar. Stir until brown sugar is melted into the sauce. Remove from heat and stir in parsley. Set marinade aside. 

Slice the buns in half. Spread bottoms of buns with a thin layer of mayonnaise. Fold ham slices to fit the bottom of each bun. Repeat with cheese slices to fit buns. Replace bun tops. Place ham and cheese buns into prepared baking pans. Spoon marinade evenly over both pans of buns. (The sauce ingredients will separate. Use a large spoon and get equal parts of butter and remaining ingredients to pour over the buns.) Cover tightly with foil. Refrigerate overnight. 

Preheat oven to 350°and bake marinated buns covered for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes.