Thursday, December 26, 2013

The Feast of Stephen


Today is St. Stephen's Day or The Feast of Stephen,
you know, Good King Wenceslas looked out on it.

St. Stephen, deacon in the early church of Jerusalem, was
accused of blespemy and was stoned to death.



My St. Stephen's celebration started with a Christmas feast.
It was quite an elaborate meal of onion tarts on Swiss fondue, crab cakes,
duck confit, roast venison and beef tenderloin with sides of mashed potatoes,
chestnut stuffing, pureed butternut squash, Brussels sprouts and creamed onions.
We were later escorted to a chilled room of glass with snifters of hazelnut mousse,
delicate plates of cakes, napoleons, cannoli, panettone and truffles.   I apparently
went into culinary overload because I have no photos of the feast after the bread.



St. Stephen's Day celebrations continued 
today with the selection of stone at the warehouse
of International Stone in Woburn, MA.

Their warehouse website has a nice variety of
images of the different stones they sell.



It didn't take long for me to zero in on what I wanted.

This is Carrara Bianco with Calacatta just beyond.

(The stripes on the slabs are strips of rubber added to
protect the stone from getting scratched.)



Cararra Gioia.



Closeup of Cararra Gioia.



My slab of Cararra Bianco.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and St. Stephen's Day!

27 comments:

  1. Incredible food plus a romp in a stone yard? I just might convert. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. oh my...feasting and stone. a regular renaissance man!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, a chilled room of glass with snifters of hazelnut mousse… They have those? I am jealous of your marble since I've been spending a lot of time this holiday making dough, and a big marble slab would make that easier (and nicer)!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, the dessert room was like a dream! I know, I'm looking forward to perfecting my pie crust.

      Delete
  4. Happy St. Stephen's Day!
    As I try to envision the Feast and the Chilled Room, I find myself wondering what you wore.
    :D

    LOVE the Marble! There's nothing better than that!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Happy St. Stephen's Day, Stephen! Your Christmas dinner sounds wonderful; I would have been happy with just the bread and the butternut squash! And the Cararra Gioia is gorgeous! Clearly, your new kitchen is going to be the heart of the house!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mark,
    I can't even tell you how much fun it was walking around the stone "yard." Every slab is a masterpiece made by mother nature.

    ReplyDelete
  7. My God, you know how to live! I bought a new sweater, jeans and some band aids in honor of your name day.

    Glad you didn't get stoned while picking out your marble!

    xo j

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love the picture of St. Stephen, and your feast sounds memorable!

    Stone yards are amazing---when I first visited one (in New Jersey) I was transported--I think everyone should see one--kids should take field trips to them...

    ReplyDelete
  9. Carrara is a city in Italy. Bianco means white. You can see the marble quarries of Carrara on Google maps.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow, what a feast you had! Where did you have all that amazing food?
    Your slab or Carrara Bianco is lovely, and I look forward to seeing it installed in your kitchen. The link to the company's site with photos of all the slabs is interesting. Some of them are so busy and colorful, like the Aquarama and Blue Maddalena! It's nice that you can go there and choose your exact slab. The veining and patterns vary so much.
    Claudia

    ReplyDelete
  11. I would wish you a happy feast day, but apparently you certainly had one...sounds like a scene out of the Great Gatsby. I love your Carrara Bianco. It will look scrumptious in your new kitchen.
    Best...Victoria

    ReplyDelete
  12. your feast of St Stephen sounds so decant and lovely
    Cathy

    ReplyDelete
  13. Love it (in a high pitched opera voice)! The perfect choice for your home. Of course. ;-) And where were you for that slice of culinary heaven??

    ReplyDelete
  14. When I lived in Italy as a youngster, we could see the Carrara quarry in the distance on the mountain. It was a white scar in the midst of the dark, wooded hills. Cool to think that that's where Michaelangelo and others got the raw material for their masterpieces. Now you are in their fine company!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. So, will you be getting a second job to pay for that marble? Ann

    ReplyDelete
  16. Progress...especially at the dessert table! franki

    ReplyDelete
  17. I love your stone selection...I think since I can't keep my mind off of trying to envision the rest of that meal and you waddling around afterwards. Happy St. Stephen's day!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Gorgeous selection!!! And your feast? My mouth is watering. Salivating, actually :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wow, you had me at hazelnut mousse! Sounds like an amazing meal. I think you are going to love the marble! I left a kitchen I remodeled with Carrara Bianco and I miss it every day. It was a joy to be in that kitchen and use it. The granite we have now just doesn't do it for me. So excited to see your finished kitchen. Merry Christmas! Kim

    ReplyDelete
  20. I'm glad you decided to visit stone rather than get stoned on St. Stephen's Day. And the meal was a brilliant choice too. Love the marble.
    R.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Dec 26 is also my twins' birthday :) That stone yard looks grand-how did you ever choose?

    ReplyDelete
  22. We had no feast at all. Our power has been out since Monday. Just got back on Saturday night with another storm coming today(Sunday) Sucks!
    p.s. I love your marble choice.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Beautiful stone! Love the cararra.
    All that food sounds amazing!!! Hazelnut mousse? truffle panettone?

    One of my favorite churches in Italy (Assisi)
    is Santo Stefano. Would that be the same one?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Oh that stone is wonderful. That's just what I would have chose - light and airy.

    Happy New Year to you and the kitties. xo Terri

    ReplyDelete
  25. That Cararra marble makes my mouth water! (Himself says 'beautiful stuff to carve'.) All the very best for 2014 from us both. (Himself asks, 'is the house nearly finished?' All I did by way of reply was laugh!)

    ReplyDelete