Friday night warmth

Dealing with the 16 degree temperatures last week turned out to be a walk in the park - or maybe a walk in the Loop - compared to the last few days.  I dealt with yesterday's -17 degree early morning temperature by only venturing out of the house once:  to retrieve the papers at the end of the driveway, and then spent the rest of the day cooking, baking and getting ready for dinner guests.  

The house has been pretty warm, with the exception of some cold spots around the front door.  From the inside, a thick layer of frost has developed around the metal of the deadlock bolt.  We had an easy remedy for this...a strip of duct tape, and then pulled a rug up against the bottom of the door. Not too attractive, but it works.

There is something comforting about fending off the brutal cold by spending time in the kitchen. As Martha Stewart yammered away about Persian cats in the background,  I started by making a killer Bolognese sauce (no thanks to Martha) that ended up simmering on the stove for six hours.  And it is so true that the longer it simmers, the better it tastes.  I also used one of the last frozen containers of pureed tomatoes from my garden.  Combined with some porcini mushrooms - a hint from my mother who makes the best Bolognese in the world - the sugo was outstanding.  We had it with farfalle pasta, a salad, garlic bread, wine and the company of best friends.  Some brownies and hot apple crisp for dessert rounded out a great meal.

It's amazing how the cold outside simply melts away, at least from our thoughts, when there is so much warmth within - and not just the warmth generated by the furnace.  Our table conversations covered our kids, work, the upcoming inauguration, some politics (although not too much - we still want to remain friends) and a few disagreements on American history (was Gerald Ford ever Speaker of the House?) that were settled with a quick Google search.  

At gatherings like these we always, gratefully, toast our friendships that have lasted decades. And as the candles on the dinner table dimmed, the warmth remained.