blodeuedd

So I could write up a long, detailed account of Easter in Mitaka, complete with insightful commentary and recipes and... oh, who am I kidding, we all just want the pictures posted as soon as possible, right? So here is part I of III, with a sprinkling of words for good measure.

For the first time ever, I had absolutely nothing to do with dessert! No baking was attempted by yours truly. My challenge was this little beauty, which at that moment was bathing in a marinade of sage, oregano, cumin powder, rosemary, olive oil and lemon juice:

Six pounds of deboned Australian lamb, which we christened YES!!, because that was everyone's reaction to it. And I was banned from saying "hunk of meat" because Sarah has a dirty mind. I'd never cooked a roast before (I'd seen G do it many times, though), and not only did I have to learn how to cook it, I also had to tie it up and carve it! I passed with flying colours on the cooking part, but totally failed at meat bondage and at carving. Oh well, it was still delicious!

Sarah was the first to arrive, and she taught me that cookies can be baked in a rice cooker!

My rice cooker was taken by surprise.

People trickled in, and snacks were set out.

I'd never seen a Peep before! Shocking colour, if you ask me.

I sent Alexis to the store to buy some wine for the sangria, telling him that cheap stuff was fine. So he brought back a box of wine!

Emily samples my sangria. Hannah clearly has doubts about the wisdom of allowing this to happen.

Nana's turn to try the sangria, while Eda does something dirty to a poor, innocent Peep.

ETA: Holy hell, it was only 5 o'clock and the whiskey was already half gone?! No wonder people were so happy! XDDD

Kimberly chops up the ham she brought and spears it on toothpicks, instantly upping the sophistication factor of the party by at least 20%.

Suddenly, there is hot chocolate action going on in my bedroom!

Hannah is all, "I see what you did there." William subtly gives the photographer (Emily, I believe) the finger, Kira disapproves, and Eda sleeps. And look, it's the back of my head!