9th Birthday Celebration – The Family Dinner

This past Saturday my older daughter turned 9.   Hard to believe 9 years ago I became a mom.  My life hasn’t been the same ever since.   Take that as you may.  Either way you are correct.

Staying with tradition of the 3 part birthday celebration, Saturday was Part I – The Family Dinner. For their birthday, the girls get to decide the menu. The one night there are no rules – anything goes. This is what this year’s looked like:

 

 

For the recipes…

Yellow Soup With Bacon (aka Ina Garten’s Cheddar Corn Chowder)

I like to garnish with bacon, shredded Canadian Sharp White Cheddar and sliced scallions

Roasted Broccoli With Breadcrumbs

This is my daughter’s own creation and she is very proud of it!

1. Wash, dry and cut up broccoli and place on a sheet pan
2. Drizzle With Olive Oil
3. Sprinkle with salt and Italian breadcrumbs
4. Roast at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes

Puffy Noodles

These are actually Asian cellophane noodles that can be purchased at any supermarket.  We got these at Stop & Shop.

1. Heat up oil in a pan or wok (we used Canola Oil)
2. Gently place handfuls of noodles into the oil. In a matter of seconds, the noodles puff up!
3. Place on a paper towel to drain and sprinkle with salt

Chocolate Babka With Nuts

Purchased at Mother’s Bakery in Riverdale, NY

I got off easy – I usually bake and decorate their birthday cakes every year.

After dinner, some friends and family from our building came down for birthday treats.  We had a chocolate fountain with marshmallows, strawberries and bananas.  It was so good!  Sorry – too busy indulging to take photos!  It turned out to be  a really fun evening!

Do you have any special birthday traditions?