A Family Christmas

T’was a day over Christmas and all through the air

the cooking proceeded with such savoir-faire.

The table was set and the oysters were fried.

Our generous host took the whole thing in stride.

With a sharp watchful eye as food paraded out

I knew in a moment there was nothing to doubt.

Refreshing my oysters as not to be rude

We opened up gifts as I savored the food.

The man of the house showed his usual charm

Ate a little too much but what is the harm?

What more can I say the man is a chef.

The sharing of food nearly needed a ref.

The kids were enjoying this family affair,

and all was well as I settled in my chair.

When suddenly there rose a gastronomical alert,

thank goodness I’d made some room for dessert.

 The day moved along at a near record pace,

a time filled with joy and remarkable grace.

We had such a day full of love and good cheer.

Just hope we can do this whole thing the next year.

Now before I forget please allow me to say.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good day.

Handy Randy

It is simply one thing to be a great cook.

It would just mean that that is your nook.

But it’s quite another to go out in the yard

making the rest of us guys seem like a helpless retard:

By making that furniture out of old crates,

in between your lifting of weights.

And laying down all those patio bricks,

Is there anything more in your bag of tricks?

Might it not be time to throttle back a little?

Go back in the kitchen and tackle the vittle.

Common Food & Uncommon Taste

Some of our cooks have a way with all food.

The ingredients are common but their methods are shrewd.

A quite ordinary dish transforms to gourmet

and they are just not giving their secrets away.

In case you are wondering there aren’t recipes,

just one dish after another, their own specialties.

My mother would cook in this extraordinary way

and her great expertise has passed down to this day.

The torch has passed to my first daughter Lynn

who is cranking out winners all over again.

From savory soups to great turnip greens.

I think it simply must come through the genes.

Brunch

Some people like to go out to lunch.

Others might say I am already there.

But what I prefer is more of a brunch,

because it has all my favorite fare.

 

The restaurant selection is a bit of an art

finding a balance of savor and setting.

Some might just order their brunch a la carte

but a prepackaged palate is what I am getting.

 

 When served late and cold, the food is just awful.

I’d just as soon have my meal in a place

where they always do serve the best coffee and waffle.

a long wait’s annoying when feeding one’s face.

 

Of course I can count on my great son-in-law

for a dining out experience without leaving home.

So there’s really no need to hem and to haw

or end up with leftover polyurethane foam.

My Christmas Menu

Christmas is coming

and I am getting fat.

Please don’t make cookies

or anything like that.

 

Just Smithfield ham

maybe on a biscuit

and a few oysters

served on a triscuit.

 

It’s all about family

and I am so lucky.

Please don’t overdo it

I ‘m really not that fussy.

Family Thanksgiving

Antipasto and joyful noise

as cooks arrange their specialties,

I’m just trying to keep my poise

while surveying those amenities.

 

The family slowly gathers in

to tell of journeys on the road.

At last on hand are all the kin

now spreading ’round this small abode.

 

The food is more than meets the eye

for through the meal a guest arrives.

He is that love we can’t deny

Who overflows in all our lives.

 

We now give thanks for this fine day,

for all the health which we enjoy.

When sharing love along the way

 those darker days does Light destroy.

Grandma Millie

We all remember Grandma Millie

who never did things willy-nilly.

The antipasto, a tour de force,

was simply just a starter course.

With each new course she soon brought out

I knew that I would soon be stout.

 But something grand was now in-store

surpassing all that came before:

Gourmet lasagna expertly made

leaving all else in the shade.

We all knew she was a saint

who exercised so much constraint,

for when she met her Pavarotti

she was not the least bit naughty.

Certainly not a lost Lone Ranger

cause she never meet a stranger,

Grandma touched the world with love

with direct connections from above.