The week leading up to Christmas and beyond

(This post might be a bit long because.....) Busy times all around what with picking up a few smallish gifts/treats, getting everything wrapped, decorating and figuring out how to fit in all our favorite foods throughout the days before Christmas. I do love this time of year, not only because of the spiritual aspects of the season, but also because it seems like many people are on their best behavior, using small acts of kindness to spread the good cheer around.

Let's start with a southern favorite - collards. I was in Walmart the other day and spotted a great looking double bunch of collards for a very good price and I was not to be denied! I got them cleaned up and cooked one day then let them develop their flavor overnight. The next day we had the collards with BBQ chicken quarters, half a sweet potato and cornbread. I forgot to take a picture but it was pretty & yummy. Here's a shot of the greens though.

Totally worth the effort, probably 5 meals worth
for the 2 of us to pair up with pork chops or ham.

Don't forget about the pizza, also a big time favorite and easy to throw together after a busy day.

I participated in a Christmas Brunch & Cookie Exchange on the 14th which was wonderful and rather low key with about 9 of us. Definitely less noisy and chaotic than last year with 20+. It's always a treat to spend time with ladies; neighborhood ladies, lady friends of ladies. I don't get enough of that now that I'm practically a recluse at times, lol. (Self-imposed I must add, I like my solitude quite a bit.) Anyways the Peppermint Crunch Chocolate chip & pecan cookies were a hit.

I don't do too terribly much decorating these days but I did get my mantle fixed and the tree(s) up. That was fun! We had 4 up; the micro tree I made from coat hangers last year went on the fireplace hearth, the fiber-optic mini goes in the dining room, another small tree on a table in the craft room and the 4' tree in the Florida room where all the festivities take place, and viewable by the neighbors across the lake.

Micro tree on hearth - so cute.

Mini fiber-optic tree in dining room

Craft room tree with some tiny
bobby-dazzlers for ornaments

Florida Room tree where the gifts
end up and our big meal is served.

Anyway, after that was all taken care of, I turned my attention to the treats I was taking to our neighborhood Christmas Dinner Potluck. I wanted to bring some gluten-free cookies and some regular ones, so first were the Pecan Pie mini muffins. I used 1 to 1 GF flour for these and they turned out just great. The recipe is on the Food page just below the header photo. So-o good. 

Pecan pie mini muffins. I made a 1 & a half batch and got about 50.

I also tried Peanut butter cornflake cookies with a few butterscotch chips in them - very addictive! Lastly were the Chocolate Brownie Peppermint macaroon bars, to die for - so moist with the brownie layer then a coconut, pecan and peppermint crunch macaroon layer on top. Several extra's went into the freezer for later, 😉. The Potluck was very nice. Lovely decorations, a nice turn-out and super good home-cooked food.

We have a wonderful neighbor that owns this great meeting hall
and she graciously allows us to use it at various times.

Merry Christmas! It's finally here, and what a beautiful start to the day, thanks Ed for capturing it.

Christmas morning, what a beauty. Crisp and cool too.

First things first, the gift giving, ahem, right after breakfast I mean, lol. Lots of fun stuff, cool tee-shirts from various Nat'l Pks for him, a dream interpretation book for me (what do those lost-in-the-airport dreams mean?!), a great new purse, and a slingshot for me!, a gorgeous framed pic of St. John's USVI featuring Trunk Bay for him, and some other odds/ends.

He's always been like this! Gotta love him.

My goodies.

Finally time for our Christmas dinner prep. We went with a Cornish hen again this year, as it's the right size to have for 2 special dinners, one on Christmas and one a few days later. This is our 50th Christmas together - YAY!

The hens, cut in half, with root vegetables
 to join the rest; cornbread dressing, rice and gravy.

The table got dressed, the Saraceni Blumond sparkling wine got chilled and around 2:30 dinner was served. So thankful to our Father for all our many Blessings.

We were going to get into the fruitcake that's been mellowing for a few weeks with our hot tea later, but were too full to partake. Dinner was MM-MM-good.

And as if that wasn't enough, I got my first video call (through FB messenger) from my gorgeous niece and nephew & his family from California. So wonderful to actually see everyone. It's been 20 yrs (I think) since we last met up in person, but we made some plans for a Colorado visit next summer. I sure hope it comes to fruition in some way, shape or form!! ❣️

Counter clockwise, beautiful Nicki, her brother Joe behind her, and his extended
family ending with his wife Deia and her Mom, visiting from Brasil.

That was so cool! A great way to end a wonderful Christmas. Thanks for coming along for the ride. I hope your Holidays were just as special wherever you were. Wishing you a Happy, Safe and Blessed New Year.

Day-to-Day activities plus a delicious Thanksgiving Dinner

Our days have been rolling along like clockwork. The temp's are drifting lower and we have wonderfully crisp, clean air with blue skies most days. We have had occasion to eat out on the deck - generally it's breakfast, as it's too chilly and dark at dinnertime.

I can tell that that is egg on pizza, a familiar favorite.

But some days it's too chilly in the morning (this AM it was 49°), and we retreat to the Florida Room.

Another favorite, here's a yummy ham, tomatoes, scrambled eggs 
and french toast (a nice finishing treat).

 

A Florida Room breakfast, the above plates plus a bowl of fresh fruits.

Last year I was able to round up boneless, skinless turkey thighs, (our favorite part of the bird), but this year the grocery stores were complaining that they were only receiving necks and wings from the meat processors, who stated that they have been short staffed due to covid - bummer. 

As a result, I waited until Monday of Thanksgiving week to decide on Plan B. By the time I got to the grocery store all they had left were 18+ lb. frozen turkeys for wa-a-ay more $$'s than I wanted to spend. Besides which, much too big for 2 people! Instead I picked up a pair of Cornish hens and endeavored to do them proud. 

I had never done a "dry brine" before but decided to give it a shot. The day before baking, I washed and patted dry the birds, placed on a small baking sheet, then piled on the brine (including the cavity). The brine was 1/4C each kosher salt and brown sugar, with a heaping tablespoon each black pepper and garlic powder. I then covered the birds with a layer of plastic wrap and refrigerated them overnight. In the morning I rinsed them thoroughly, and again patted dry, then let them rest, covered, in the fridge for about 45 minutes.  I used some of my homemade garlic & herb compound butter under the skin of the breasts and slathered it all over the rest of the birds. Dusted with paprika, salt and pepper and baked @425° for 55 minutes. Oh wow, they really turned out great! The flesh was nicely seasoned and very moist. A definite winner.

We split one bird and paired it with cornbread dressing, rice & gravy and roasted carrots, plus cranberry sauce, the relish plate and a nice Pinot Grigio wine. AAAHH... stuffed and replete for sure.

What are we waiting for, I'm ready to dig in!

To any readers out there that get bored with food-related posts, sorry, but that's the way it goes. We're not travelling right now and not much else is going on, so "foodie-ism" is the way it is.

I caught a modest yet pretty sunrise a day or two later. It hit a cloud layer and fizzled out pretty quickly.

A promising start but it didn't last long.

And lastly, I've been playing around with my dehydrator from many, many years ago. Just checking it out and trying to reduce the carrot load from my vegetable drawer in the fridge. We'll see whether or not it's worth it.

Amazing just how much they shrink when dried!

I thought I'd round things out with a shot from this time in 2012. We had a bigger crowd than now, for sure, and as usual, my wonderful mother-in-law hosted it at her house. We sure miss her!

Thanks for checking in with us, and feel free to leave a comment!