Papa Lippert's Birthday Din-din

Anyone who knows me very well knows that I am very close to my dad, Jerry, so it's only appropriate that my sister and I celebrate his birthday with a meal composed of all his favorites. Happy Birthday Daddy, and we hope you enjoyed your special day and your birthday din-din.

One of Daddy's favorite cakes is lemon, so Nikki made him this delicious and decorative vanilla iced lemon cake.

The spread:

The plate:
French Bread - lightly buttered, garlic-ed, and baked in the oven on 350 for 15 minutes.

Baby Spinach Salad - with raspberry vinaigrette, bacon bits, croutons, and cheese.

Mashed 'taters and gravy - Peel one large potato per person and cut into medium sized cubes. Boil the potatoes and then once soft, mash (or use mixer), add in butter and milk to taste. For gravy, use some of the saved grease from the fried porkchops, add some milk, and some flour in a small saucepan on medium heat and stir continuously until gravy reaches the desired consistency.

Breaded Porkchops - Mash up crackers, melt butter, dip the raw porkchop in the butter and then the cracker. Fry in large frying pan.
Green beans - This time, I first blanched the green beans before baking them in the oven. Then lay out on a cookie sheet, drizzle with olive oil, bake for 15-20 minutes at 350, and then I sprinkled these with a little parmesan cheese.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese - Nikki actually made this for us, so as soon as she sends me the recipe that she used, I'll post it. It was really good.

Happy Birthday again Daddy! You deserve to have your favorites everyday, so Nikki and I were glad to be able to serve you all of these on your special day. We love you. :o)