An Italian Feast

Posted: December 12, 2010 at 3:24 pm

We had snow flurries here today!!! That calls for some excitement in Georgia. Especially before Christmas. And on our holiday filled weekend. I already told you all about my Christmas cookie exchange party on Friday night. Well, last night we had a holiday dinner with our friends from small group at church.

IMGP9004

We all have kids in this group and decided that spending the evening out to dinner together sounded more appealing than any one person hosting a party. We all wanted to get out for an adults only evening and a nice dinner. I would say we succeeded.

For our dining venue we chose Maggianos to do the family style dining together. Plus, Italian tends to be a meal most everyone can agree on. I had never been to a Maggianos, but I was pleased with our meal. I was also pleased with my special beverage. I got a taste of an alcoholic drink! It was non-alcoholic, but tasted great – mint, lemon, raspberry sangria. Yes, I loved it that much.

IMGP8999

We started with appetizers and salad – stuffed mushrooms, tomato caprese, and spinach salad. And of course, soft bread. I think I could have made a dinner out of the spinach mushrooms and spinach salad. Love.

IMGP8991 IMGP8998

The main course included traditional lasagna, a sausage angel hair pasta, mushroom ravioli, and a chicken dish. I put a sample of the sausage pasta, lasagna, and mushroom ravioli on my plate.

IMGP9000

Last night was one of those times my stomach feels full very quickly, so I didn’t eat much of the main courses. I really only liked the mushroom ravioli anyways, so just ate the portion of that.

Dessert, though? I saved room. Cheesecake and tiramisu? Yes, please!

IMGP9002

I could not have asked for a better evening. I was especially happy because Peter managed to make it to dinner. He flew up to New York and back yesterday. His grandmother’s health has started deteriorating even more and he decided it would be better to visit quickly to say his goodbyes rather than go up for the funeral, whenever that happens. I can’t travel at this stage, especially with all of my contractions, and he didn’t want to leave me for long, so he made a day trip of his visit. I hated not having the option or chance to go, but sometimes life just happens that way. I hope she knows that I care and have been praying for her. Prayers matter across any distance. I’m happy Peter got the chance to go, though.

Well, we will be heading out soon for another holiday evening. Part of which occurs outside. It should be interesting for this chick who hates the cold. Stay tuned for the fun, tomorrow!

  • Do you like Italian food? What’s your favorite? I actually prefer my sauteed veggie bowls with a bit of pasta and lots of marinara over things you order at most Italian restaurants. I don’t like how heavy a lot of it tastes.
  • A powerful quote to share - Prayer may not change things for you, but it for sure changes you for things.  ~Samuel M. Shoemaker

Tags: , , ,

 
45 Comments to “An Italian Feast”
  1. Tatianna says:

    Peter must be one amazing guy. I can’t believe he made all that travelling work and still managed to not leave your side for too long. Your a lucky girl 🙂

  2. I love Maggianos, but I always leave with that uncomfortable stuffed feeling. You know, the one that doesn’t go away until 2 days? Sounds like you have a wonderful small group!

    Will be praying for Peter’s grandmother as well.

  3. Heather says:

    i adore italian food…SO good! and maggianos is one of my favorites. it’s where we ate for our first anniversary 🙂

  4. Camille says:

    You know, I’m actually not huge on pasta, so Italian isn’t my favorite. However, I can eat my way through a bread basket like a pro!

  5. Me-Linh says:

    I hope Peter’s grandma is ok! What a great guy to make it to NY and to dinner.
    The food looks delicious, especially the CHEESECAKKEE. I’m a sucker for that stuff. I used to make one and eat it for breakfast when I was in high school.

  6. I feel like I’m the only person in the world who hates family-style dining…I just want my own meal!! Haha. That being said, the whole meal looks fantastic, especially the bread and the dessert!

  7. Julie says:

    Mmmm. I love lasagna…or spaghetti WITH my bread. I put a spoonful on my piece of bread and bite. Repeat. Probably not the prettiest thing to watch me do…but you have to love someone enjoying their food!

  8. The snow was beautiful while it lasted. Sounds like a great night with adults! I love a lot of veggies in my Italian food and I love the bread with rosemary! Have a good time tonight and try to stay warm!

  9. I haven’t had Italian in ages, and now you have me craving it!

  10. I’m sorry you and Peter are going through a rough time. Your words about prayer are really inspiring!

  11. Who doesn’t love Italian? I agree it seems to be the easiest to agree upon and while I love it, I long for the general public to get equally as excited for other ethnic foods!

  12. Becca says:

    We’ve had a lot of snow this weekend. It started Friday night and stopped Saturday afternoon. We didn’t want to risk driving up north, so I missed the wedding that I was looking forward to. My sister left Friday night with friends, though, so some of our family (and church) were represented. 🙂

    I’m eating lasagna tonight! Our youth are sponsoring a lasagna dinner after the kids’ Christmas program. Yum! I like lasagna. Like, a lot. 😀

    Another quote about prayer that I found a couple years ago:
    “Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.” ~Soren Kierkegaard

  13. Katie says:

    I really, really like that quote. I find that to be so true. I have always tried to think of prayers answered not in a way that changes circumstances right away, but powerful in that it gives you inner strength to deal with them.

    Thoughts for strength for you and Peter and family through this hard time. God bless!

  14. That drink looks yummy even alcohol-free! I love italian food, but I definitely feel overly full when I get done my meal ha! Prayers for Peter’s grandmom 🙁

  15. Yummy sounding sangria. I love tiramisu. Yep, being Italian, I think it’s mandatory that I love Italian food 😉

    So sorry to hear about Peter’s grandmother.

  16. What a fun get together!! I love italian and lasagna is my favorite!! I am so sorry about Peter’s grandmother. Keep us updated.

  17. Jess says:

    YUM! Maggiano’s is so good!! I’m glad for your fun-filled festive weekend! I am, though, so sorry about Peter’s grandmother. How sad. I’m very sorry to hear it.

  18. I love the quote. So true! 🙂
    Peter’s grandmother is in my thoughts and prayers and I hope everything turns out ok. I’m very sorry to hear about her health.

    Looks like you had a great night! We have Maggiano’s here in Jacksonville (actually one of my sorority sisters works there), but I have never tried it! I should one day! 🙂 Looks tasty!

  19. feener says:

    i love italian food, but i like a real old school italian the best. i just learned how to make kick ass gravy and meatballs and i find them heavenly…..nothing is really healthy healthy but i like it all..

  20. chelsey says:

    Maggiago’s is my all time favorite italian restaurant! We go there every year for Easter – always the family style! Last year was my first time there after finding out that I was gluten free, so the chef came out and personally designed a dish just for me. It was PERFECT! I love their spinach salad – it’s the best!

  21. I love Maggiano’s!! We have one in walking distance from here — they are so gluten free friendly as well! I love the caprese salad that you had on you plate… sometimes I just order that with a salad for my whole dinner and it’s scumptioous!

  22. lindsay says:

    oh I love a good italian feast. I usually don’t get it though, unless we’re at a gluten free pasta place. We have one here in Austin and we go there A LOT just for the GF pizza, ravioli, and more!!
    What a merry time with great people.
    LC

  23. Maggiano’s is the BEST! So jealous of your yummy meal.

    You are absolutely glowing in the photo!

  24. lindsay says:

    p.s.
    So glad the peter was able to visit his grandma during this time. I am in the same situation so I know how it feels.

  25. That all looks so good. I think my favorite Italian food is ravioli … especially mushroom and cheese stuffed ravioli. Mmm.

    But I’d never turn up my nose at those desserts!

  26. Priyanka says:

    I am huge believer of the power of prayers, I really like that quote!

    I love Italian food, love the marinara sauce and spaghetti. Eternal combination 🙂

  27. Kristi says:

    I love Italian food. I just started eating gnocchi and it is super good. I try to stay away from pasta as much as I can, but I do like to eat it on occasion.

  28. glad you enjoyed your drink. it’s the little things. Really, they make ALL the difference 🙂

    My prayers are w/ peter’s g’ma!

    Italian food..no, per the garlic/onion dislike i told you about the other day…not an italian food fan!

  29. Errign says:

    I do like Italian food, but I usually only choose to eat it if it’s at a special place, with homemade pasta or something. I don’t do Olive Garden or anything like that. I like eggplant rollatine & homemade raviolis, yum!

  30. Fun! 🙂
    Whenever I am pregnant, I’m sure I’ll enjoy mocktails all the time. I drink them now and hardly miss the liquor!
    You look great, btw!!

  31. My thoughts and prayers are with your family! I’m sure Peter’s grandmother can feel your love and prayers, even if you can’t travel to be right by her. HUGS!

  32. Kat says:

    I so agree that Italian is usually the best idea for big-group outings. Vegetarian? No big deal. Need to OD on carbs? Superb. In the mood for meat? It’s everywhere.

    I do love Italian food, but I definitely prefer authentic Italian to American Italian…American Italian just feels…so heavy, like you said.

  33. Lee says:

    Sounds like fun. I am not a huge Italian food fan. I like it when Italian restaurants have mussels with marinara (Maggiano’s does!), that’s my favorite.

  34. I love Italian food! I could alternate it and Mexican food every night 😀

  35. Natalie says:

    I love minestrone soup and tiramisu! My favorites 🙂

  36. I love italian food! The cheesecake and tiramisu look delicious. What a fun get together 🙂

  37. laura says:

    I am italian, so yes, i do love it 🙂
    so many christmas festivities!
    sorry to hear about your husbands visit. You are so strong.

  38. jen says:

    Oh man! Everything looked SO good!!!!!

    Jen

  39. Oh man I love Maggiano’s in a major way. My fav is their spinach salad with the bleu cheese and purple onions. It’s delicious!

  40. I love Italian food — and you are so right, everyone can find at least ONE Italian dish that they like.

    I love mounds of pasta covered in marinara sauce, but my favorite is ravioli — its a “fun” food to eat and they are so cute 🙂

  41. Nichole says:

    I am so bummed I missed the snow.

    Maggiano’s is divine. Great pics:) Glad you could be with friends and family:)

  42. I adore Italian food. My mother is Italian so I always grew up with the best, homemade pasta sauce, homemade meatballs, chicken parm, ziti, etc. I could eat it all the time! Though I’m sure my waistline would disagree…Your dinner is making me hungry!

Leave a Reply to Maria @ Oh Healthy Day

(required)

(required)


 

 
Catch Up With Recent Posts

Announcement Time

Posted: November 23, 2011 at 7:47 am

Well, I have had a whirlwind of a few weeks over here. I missed all of you so much! I can’t express enough gratitude for your patience while I got some important things sorted out. Some scary things. Are you ready for the announcement? Here goes! I will no longer be blogging at Faith Fitness […]

88 CommentsRead more →

Self-Love Reflection: The Road Not Taken

Posted: November 20, 2011 at 11:47 am

Hello FFF readers! Nice to meet ya! My name is Carissa and my husband and I blog at Fit2Flex.  Well, I blog…he consults! We are both certified personal trainers with a passion for healthy, active living and clean eating.  I am also studying to become a registered dietitian, a race announcer, and a runner.  Stop […]

24 CommentsRead more →

Healthier Eating For Kids

Posted: November 19, 2011 at 10:56 am

Thanks to Plum Organics for sponsoring my post about tips for baby feeding magic. What if you let baby choose what’s for dinner? Check out their cute "Quest for Yum!" video and see what happens! As parents, we want the best for our children. We help them to feel loved. We strive to teach them […]

14 CommentsRead more →
 

Announcement

Posted: November 17, 2011 at 3:36 pm

Hey, everyone! I wanted to pop in and say I am working on some new and exciting changes.  As a result,I may not be posting as much during the coming week.  Please stay tuned for the big announcement! Love you all! And still feel free to find me on Twitter and Facebook for the time […]

21 CommentsRead more →

Where The Change Happens

Posted: November 16, 2011 at 7:54 am

It’s kind of funny. I become a certified personal trainer and the first workouts I turn to this week come from someone else. The book came in for me at the library last week and, after flipping through it, I couldn’t wait to give the circuits a go. Making The Cut includes a lot of […]

79 CommentsRead more →

From Beginning To End

Posted: November 15, 2011 at 11:53 am

Good morning! First off, thanks for the many congrats yesterday. Love you all bunches for the tons of support you have given me in so many things this year. I hope I can return a little bit of that love through this here blog as well. So yesterday I had my first parent-teacher “conference” for […]

55 CommentsRead more →