Cookie Makin' Day

Today is our annual cookie (and other treats) making day. We start off with a list of our favorites and everyone pitches in, making those items that they enjoy the most. Our kitchen is small, and we're often tripping over one another, but with the Christmas music cranked up and the laughter floating around, no one seems to mind. This year is especially fun because our oldest is home from college on Christmas break. If I close my eyes and listen (and smell) it's "almost" like years past, but not quiet the same. Bittersweet indeed.

When we're all finished we'll have a large tray of assorted cookies that we'll enjoy through the rest of the week. We'll also have goody "gift" bags made up for friends that we'll see on Christmas Eve, and some baked goods that we'll enjoy on Christmas day.

Here's another perennial (and easy) favorite recipe.

MINTY RITZ

This is one of those recipes for which I never had a recipe. Just buy as much as you think you'll enjoy (which will never be enough), and have at it!

Ritz crackers
Milk (or dark) chocolate melting wafers
Mint or Peppermint extract
Cookie sheets lined with wax paper

In the microwave, melt 1 or 2 cups of melting wafers at a time. Once melted, stir in 3 or 4 drops of the extract (to taste). Using a fork, dip Ritz crackers, one at a time, into the melted chocolate mixture. Drop gently onto lined cookie sheet. Cool until hardened (my front porch works great for this).

Enjoy!
~Judy

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Church Christmas programs

Our 2008 church Christmas program is now a thing of the past. I'm heaving an extra sigh of relief this year since I was the director. I have always loved this annual chance for kids to dress up in shepherd costumes, and memorize lines, and sing like angels. And what an awesome opportunity for homeschoolers who may not have the benefit of a local drama group. Here's their chance to experience and overcome stage fright, and to perform for family and friends, all wrapped up in the ultimate opportunity to share the story of Christ's birth. It's an exhausting process ... but so very worth it when you watch the toddlers singing a song about baby Jesus at the top of their lungs, complete with hand motions. Or when you listen to that 16 year old young man (who I'm sure was one of those toddlers just yesterday!) recite Luke chapter 2 in his deep, grown-up voice. Somehow it serves to re-focus my mind and my heart on the true message of the Christmas season ... the love of God all wrapped up in swaddling cloths.

Following our church service, and the treacherous ride home in blustery, blowing, snowy weather, we enjoyed some yummy homemade soup by our woodstove. Here are a couple of recipes for our all-time favorite soups ... perfect for making ahead and having available during the crazy, busy holiday.

SHRIMP AND CORN CHOWDER

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup diced ham or kielbasa
3 Tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon Thyme
3 cups milk
1 - 16 oz package frozen corn
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup brown minute rice
1 can tiny shrimp (can substitute frozen shrimp defrosted and diced)

Heat oil in 4 quart saucepan. Add onion and meat. Cook and stir until tender. Stir in flour and Thyme. Add milk, corn and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Stir in rice and shrimp. Return to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 5 minutes. Serve piping hot.

POTATO SOUP

3 Tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, diced
4 cups potatoes, diced
1 1/2 cups carrots, peeled and sliced
3 cups milk
4 cups chicken broth
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 teaspoons Basil

Melt butter in pan. Add onions and cook until tender. Add chicken broth, potatoes, carrots and seasonings. Cover and cook gently until potatoes and carrots are tender. Stir in milk and crumbled bacon; bring back to a simmer. Thicken, if desired, with potato flakes or flour/milk paste.

Note: Additional veggies can be added as desired. This is a great soup for emptying out the refrigerator left-overs!

Enjoy!
~Judy

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Christmas Eve Traditions

Christmas Eve is all about food in our house (is there any part of Christmas that isn't about food?). We generally attend the Christmas Eve service at church (candlelight and beautiful music), then head home for an evening of Christmas movies and a buffet of delicious foodstuffs.

We're all suckers for a good Christmas movie. And what a fun family tradition that we share with Grandpa & Grandma (who live with us). I'm certain that for years to come we will have fond memories of our Christmas Eves together. On our list of favories:

• White Christmas - with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye. Our number one, all-time, hands down favorite.
• The Homecoming - the original Walton movie. One of my favorites. Not so favorite among the teen set.
• The Santa Clause - with Tim Allen. No matter how many times we watch these, they make us laugh.
• It's a Wonderful Life - a favorite of only my husband, but one to which we are all subjected at some point during the holiday season.

One of the favorites that will appear on our buffet table, along with the traditional egg nog, will be our "beanless" version of Mexican dip.

MEXICAN DIP

1 - 8 oz brick of cream cheese
1 - 15 oz can of Hormel Chili without Beans
Favorite shredded cheese
Bag of tortilla chips

Soften cream cheese at room temperature. Using a rubber spatula, spread in the bottom of an 8x8 baking dish. Spread chili over top of cream cheese. Sprinkle shredded cheese over top of all. Pop into the microwave for 5 minutes, or until cheese topping melts and dip begins to bubble. Serve with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!
~Judy

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Another holiday tradition

Since our kids were little, we've had a fun tradition of making "goody bags" to share with friends and family. This primarily involves decorating some sort of container/bag and filling it with baked and hand-made creations from our kitchen. Some years I've purchased a package of brown paper lunch bags and my kids have used rubber stamps or stencils to decorate the outsides. Other years I've visited our local WalMart or other craft store and found brown paper gift bags (with handles) which we've decorated with stamps, stencils or glitter and cut-outs. Whatever the outside decoration might be, it's the stuff inside that's always a huge hit!

Here's a perennial favorite ... easy (and inexpensive) to make.

Toffee Chocolate Crunch Bars

Line a greased cookie sheet (jelly-roll style, with sides) with one layer of saltine crackers. Set aside.

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, melt 1 cup of butter and whisk in 1 cup of brown sugar. Bring to a boil, and boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour sugar mixture evenly over layer of saltine crackers. Bake for 7 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with a 12 oz package of chocolate chips. Using a rubber spatula, spread the chocolate evenly over the top once the chips have melted. Cool and break apart into irregular pieces.

Enjoy!
~Judy

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Holiday Enticements

I love this time of year, and I love sharing the traditions we share as a family, and those I hear about from others. Over the next couple of weeks I hope to post more regularly (notice how I didn't commit to anything?!) with some quick ideas for holiday gifts, treats and traditions.

When my kids were little, we loved to express our creativity every Christmas by making paper snowflakes. A friend recently shared this phenomenal paper snowflake project which I can't wait to try. Definitely a grown-up version of paper cutting! I'll try to snap some photos and post here once we get them done.

Earlier this week another friend asked for a good recipe to use in a cookie press. Here's my grandmother's recipe ... an all-time favorite:

SPRITZ

3 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Stir together flour and baking powder. Beat butter for 30 seconds, add sugar and beat till fluffy. Add egg, vanilla and almost extract; beat well. Gradually add dry mixture to beaten mix. Beat till well combined. Do NOT chill. Force dough through a cookie press onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 7-8 minutes.

I usually do a couple of recipes and add different food coloring to each of them. This makes a gorgeous platter of cookies to take to your next holiday gathering.

Enjoy!
~Judy

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Giving Thanks . . .

Unlike my friend Luke, who is enjoying the holiday in an undisclosed location (how much will you pay folks to keep your location a secret?!) ... I'm giving thanks from chilly, snowy upstate NY today. Our college student is home with friend in tow, we're enjoying the Macy Thanksgiving Day parade in front of a toasty fire, and goodies are lined up on the counter in the kitchen. As we enjoy today with family and friends, I've purposed to stop periodically and appreciate what God has provided and to thank Him for all He has done.

Speaking of those goodies out in the kitchen, here's our fresh pumpkin pie recipe ... a real favorite with a dollop of real whipped cream.

FRESH PUMPKIN PIE

Pie pumpkin(s) (cook and puree to produce 3 cups pumpkin)
1 cup sugar
1.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3 eggs
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
10-11" pie crust

Mix all ingredients well and pour into pie crust (mixture will be very runny). Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 45 - 60 minutes longer until a clean knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

May you be blessed today with whatever goodies and traditions your family usually enjoys.

Blessings ...
~Judy

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Of squirrels and hoarding

It's that time of year again when I inevitably slip into my winter hoarding mode. Here in the infamous snow belt region of upstate NY, I face each winter wondering how many months it will be again before we see green grass and warmer temperatures. And while we're waiting for that first snowfall (which I love, by the way), we spend our days hiking hills through the multi-colored leaves that are falling, and harvesting vegetables from our garden to can or freeze for the coming cold months. Autumn is my favorite season of the year ... hands down.

I also find myself cleaning out bookshelves, storing or giving away books and curriculum we no longer need, sorting through summer clothes that have seen better days, and just organizing overall. I think I know the dreaded months of January and February are coming (this homeschool mom's most hated months!), and I'm subconsciously attempting to prepare for them in advance.

All of this canning, sorting and organizing definitely put me in the mood for recording one of our latest Podcasts over at Sonlight.com. Jill, Kelly and I put together a fairly extensive series on goal setting, homeschool time management, conquering the clutter in your household, and overall organization. We had a great time sharing practical ideas and swapping stories from our homeschooling and child-rearing memories. If you find this time of year inspiring you to sort, clean and organize, take a few moments to listen to some of our tips and suggestions. I think you'll enjoy them!

And just to share some of the great "smells" floating around our household, here's my time-tested spaghetti sauce recipe. I canned 42 quarts of this delicious sauce which we will enjoy over all sorts of pasta throughout the cold winter months to come.

Judy's Spaghetti Sauce

(I use a combination of whatever canning tomatoes are available and Romas)

4 quarts (16 cups) of processed tomatoes (I remove the stem end and puree them in my blender, skin and all)
1 teaspoon Garlic powder
3 Tablespoons Parsley Flakes
1 teaspoon Basil
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon Pepper
6 teaspoons Salt
3 Tablespoons Sugar
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1 chopped Onion

Combine in a large stock pot. Simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes. Stir in 1 - 12 oz can of Tomato Paste. Cook 30 minutes more (or longer) until sauce thickens to your liking.

Yields 7 pints of spaghetti sauce

ENJOY!!

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