A Scrumptious Christmas Dinner with Romance

Everyone knows that it just isn't "Christmas Dinner" without the stuffing(dressing), but you can spruce up your dinner with more than just the food!

Let's Set The Stage:

It's Christmas day, and if you have children, they are likely in the mode of "adrenaline and sugar rush", with treats from their stockings filling their bellies, and toys askew everywhere. The man of the house(father or other), "the almighty knowledgeable one", is once again trying to put together the toys......."WITHOUT" reading the instructions. :)

You (Mother or other), are busy tidying up, and some of you are worrying about the "In-Laws"(or OutLaws) approval, on "Your abilities to actually cook a fabulous Christmas Dinner" (which of course every woman knows will never be as good as Mom's).......but that is for the most part, probably, just because you didn't have to cook it! HA!

So, I decided, to take a little of the worry away for those that are still unsure of their cooking abilities, and throw some of my tried and true recipes your way. So here is to your success!

Check Out what's all available in this blog:

• Potpourri Simmer Recipe (fill your room with a pleasant Aroma)
• Savoury Bread Stuffing Recipe
• White Rolls Recipe (for the 3 cup Breadmaker)
• Apple Pie Recipe
• Fancy Whipped Potatoes (a trick that I like to do to create a beautiful presentation)

The table set with all the extras:

• Cranberry Jelly, ( trick for presentation- I like to take the whole can out in one cylinder piece,-arrange in a long slender dish and slice rows of cranberry jelly- then each row falls slightly overlapping the other slice, if your dish is long enough )
• Pickles- we use homemade Lady Ashburn , beets, Dill pickles - sliced into circles
• Homemade rolls or biscuits- (arranged in a wicker basket with a cloth napkin under and overlapping them to keep them warm)
• Candles of your choosing- (always a good idea not to place overly fragrant ones at this time-as you will want the Aroma of the dinner to capture their senses)
• Tableware,plates, glasses, utensils and napkins--you know those favourite ones that you have been saving for a special occasion :)
• Wine, for those that par-take and enjoy
• Flowers, Floral Arrangement, or a Christmas Centerpiece!

AWW!!! Now that "The Apple Dumpling Gang" has been fed!

Now, that you have successfully cooked your little hearts out, everything is delicious and all have happy tummies. For fun, we will assume the cleanup is already done :), and now it is time for you to relax in a nice bubble bath, candles galore with glass of wine in hand, "soft, sultry music playing"- (ok, maybe, that is to drown out the hoops and glee sounds of your delightful little ones, having a second round of competition,- on who can make the most noise with their new toys!)! Oops-- didn't mean to burst your bubbles! Ha! Just pretend I didn't say that.

Hopefully, if you have children, they are headed to bed early, since of course, they were probably up at 5am :). The kids have had their stories read, and are in slumberland-- or at least we hope! Now, it is time for you, to "treat yourself and your partner" to an evening for each other, after a job well done. So, why not put on that "little black dress" (or sexy lingerie), nylons and all, and don't forget the "high heel shoes"-- it gets "them" everytime! :)

Turn up the music, shoot that "devilish come-hither glance" that we know we all have! Take off his tie, that is if he is wearing one, wrap it around him and pull him close and dance! "Grab Your Honey and Shake It Up!"

It doesn't matter if you have been together, 2 years, 20 or more, you can always afford to sing and dance in the; Kitchen, Living Room, or--teehee-- "The Bedroom". Spruce up your love life, -be adventurous with each other, do a "flirtatious" dance for your significant other-- don't be shy, after all, they know you and love you anyway! Break out the massage oils and treat each other to a full body massage. I have a book that is awesome, however, a little annoying at times, It is called "The Art of Erotic Massage". The book actually teaches you wonderful massage techniques but encourages you to hold back on the "sex". HMMM!! HA! Well each to their own. Merry Christmas to you all and I hope that this has been a fun, informative, helpful, and enjoyable blog for you.

Bye for now!

Your "Canadian Country Chick" - Debb

Pot Pourri Simmer--- A nice scent on a budget!

Ingredients:

1 Quart (4 cups) Water

3 Tablespoons Cinnamon

2 Tablespoons Cloves

1 Teaspoon Nutmeg

1 Teaspoon Ginger

Directions:

Combine and simmer on stove or potpourri suitable dish, stir occasionally. Add Water when necessary. This will make you think it is Christmas anyday!

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Savoury Bread Stuffing

Ingredients:

1/4 cup minced onion

1/4 cup butter or margarine

4 cups very dry bread crumbs or cubes

1/2 cup chopped celery

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tsp crumbled herbs (to taste) of thyme, marjoram, rosemary

poultry seasoning (to taste)

Stock(broth) { I roast another small turkey or chicken with 2 1/2 inches of water in the roaster, either the day before, or earlier--you can freeze and thaw--to create the broth}. You can also use store bought broth if easier.

Directions:

Cook (saute) onions and celery in butter until soft. Mix together the bread crumbs, spices and seasonings in a bowl. Stir in some of the crumbs and a little broth and cook  on medium tossing often until golden and warmed through. Mix lightly into remaining crumbs and seasonings. Let cool. Than happy Stuffing The Bird! :) Remember not to overstuff the cavity of the Turkey.

Yields: 4 & 1/2 cups of stuffing. For larger Turkeys just increase your recipe amounts accordingly. 

 
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White Rolls Breadmaker Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons yeast (I use the one for breadmakers--but the reg. works too)
• 3 cups of flour
• 2 tablespoons of white sugar
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 & 1/2 tablespoons of Butter
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

Place yeast in bottom of breadmaker pot, then add flour sugar an salt. Place 3/4 cup milk in microwave safe measuring cup, add the 1/4 cup of water, and butter. Slightly warm in microwave-- I put mine in the microwave for one minute. Then pour in on top of dry ingredients and add egg. Set your machine to just knead, don't cook. When done kneading, shut machine off and let rest until you see the dough start to rise. Spread a little oil or shortening on hands and shape into rolls. Cover with clean cloth. Let rise in a warm area for 30 minutes. Place in pan and bake in preheated oven at 375 until golden.

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Decorative Creamy Whipped Potatoes!

Ingredients:

• Potatoes (amount to suit your needs)
• Butter 1/4 - 1/2 cup (for regular large pot size)
• Milk or cream (just enough to make the potatoes whip nice--not too much though- so the potatoes hold their shape when piped)
• salt, pepper to taste
• garlic powder or other seasonings (if desired) to taste
• parsley
• Juice from one- two large onions- no pieces of onion though-(grate onion on finest shred side of grater- strain juice out of onion that was grated.-you can reserve this for another dish)

Directions:

Peel potatoes so that no spots are left anywhere, boil until done. Strain, mash with potato masher and add butter right away to melt as you mash. Add juice from onions. Mix at low to medium speed adding just enough milk to whip smooth. Add in seasonings. Let cool slightly--Place 2/3 of your potatoes in a lightly greased roasting dish. Then spoon remainder of potato mixture into cake decorating, large, icing (piping) bag, place the large star nozzle on end (or one of your choosing). Squeeze out Star Potato Florets all over the top. Melt another bit of butter and drizzle or mist over top of potatoes. Sprinkle with parsley. Bake in oven at 325 until warmed through and slightly golden on top.

Variation: Sprinkle a little of your favourite shredded cheese over top.

Tip: Because some potatoes have more moisture in them than others, if you find that your mixture won't pipe well, you can grate cheese finely (type of your choosing) and add to mixture. This is another way to also play with the flavours.

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Traditional Apple Pie

 Ingredients:

• 5 cups sliced pared apples
• 3/4 cup white sugar with 2 tablespoons of white flour mixed in
• 1 Teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 Tablespoon shortening

Directions:

Combine apples, sugar(with flour mixed in) and cinnamon, in a bowl. Turn mixture in bowl until apples are coated. Turn mixture into pastry lined 9" pie plate. Dot the shortening, in little amounts, over top the mixture. Cover with top pastry dough and flute the edges. Bake at 400' for 30-40 minutes or until done.

Tip: when baking pies, if you find that the edges are browning too fast or too much place tin foil loosely over the edges by cutting out a circle edge. Or you can also buy a commercially available cover for pie crust edges. 

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On The Topic of Christmas! One of my readers wanted me to Share This With You!

This is in regards to: Saying "Christmas Versus XMas"

With permission, I copied the following and totally agree with it so I am passing it on... Debb

Enough already. This time of year, under the guise of 'political correctness' more and more people are wishing others 'happy holidays.' The thinking being that the recipient of the well wishes might not be Christian and therefore might somehow be offended or feel alienated by hearing, "Merry Christmas." Consider these three factors when choosing your greeting:
Christmas is a religious event. Were it not for the Christian faith there simply wouldn't be a Christmas. We have other days of the year devoted to celebrating the birth of our nation and to honor our mothers and fathers. Christmas however, was not created as merely a day-off (that's called Labour Day).

How do you suppose a Jewish person would feel if rather than saying, "Happy Hanukkah", a non Jewish person just said "Happy Holiday"? Do you suppose a Muslim fasting during the period of Ramadan would appreciate a non Muslim calling it a 'holiday'? The word holiday in the English language no longer conveys the original meaning of holy-day. Instead it's become a colloquialism for a vacation (British vacationers are commonly referred to as 'holiday-makers').

For those people who do practice Christianity, simply wishing them a "Happy Holiday" is to avoid calling the event by its proper name and to demonstrate our intentional or inadvertent disregard for one of their most sacred religious events of the year. To me this is the height of political incorrectness.
If our purpose is to send a non religious greeting to our clients then perhaps we'd be better off sending cards on Groundhog Day. In the meantime, here's wishing you a Merry Christmas!

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Merry Christmas Everyone!!!


Your Canadian Country Chick!

Debb
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This Christmas! Be Thankful! Pay It Forward!

http://hubpages.com/hub/My-Story-Chapter-1-Be-Thankful


This Christmas! Be Thankful! Pay It Forward! This is about Christmas, Caring for others, gift giving, charity,self help, being optimistic no matter what your circumstances. I am sharing my story and much more, would love to hear your comments.

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My Hub Explaining One Of The Ways That I am Paying It Forward!

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Diamond Jewellery (Brooche)and an Antique Asian Rosewood Table for sale. Please take the time to read "my story", so that you know where 20% of the proceeds from the sale will be going! This is one of the ways that I am choosing "To Pay It Forward!"

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