Its the Day Before The Day Before Christmas! Christmas Eve, Eve-Day! BWAH!! I am so excited to be entering into the hand clapping excitement of “almost Christmas” WEEEEEEEEE!
If you are not clapping your hands with glee, more like stomping your feet in frustration. I have been there sisters and brothers! I can testify to the sad sack Christmas, the rip your hair our Christmas and the I give up Christmas! Check out Flylady and start smiling!
We did some cooking and baking yesterday and possibly more today. It was a calm day for the most part. A last minute trip to the grocery had us playing bumper cars for a bit, but the bell ringers were out and even though we could have worn shorts it was a beautiful pre-Christmas Day.
At home, Nathan and I made Chex Mix, Cheese Dip, Cheese Balls, Veggie Pate’ and Amish Pudding yesterday afternoon. Okay, I did the last two on my own because Nathan lost interest in it along the way, but that was cool. I needed a little alone time with my mixer. Baby I missed you! LOL!
I would like to make blueberry pie-lettes, and mix some cookie doughs, bake some and sock some away to cook tomorrow. But if it doesn’t happen or only some gets done…I am okay with it. I put off this baking thing to work with the DSO team more closely leading up to Christmas and I don’t regret it. I would if I rushed to make things happen ( like cookies) at the last minute. So I am not rushing! HOOT!
It was a wonderful day yesterday, warm, so we opened the doors and windows to vent the heat we were making in the kitchen. Georgie, our guinea hen came in the door a bit to stand on the entry tile and get out of the wind. It WAS blowy out. The southies were blowing up a little moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and it felt good! Poor Georgie-Girl she tumbled over a few times in the yard that I saw! LOL! That got her feathers all out of place and she looked perfectly indignant about it! I set her up with a lawn chair just outside the door so she didn’t have to move every time a dog went in and out. I got a lot accomplished not having to keep letting them in and out. What a great idea it was to leave the doors open. Birds singing, wind blowing. It was yummy! I think I will do that again today.
Veggie Pate’
I thought this recipe up when the kids were first learning to help me in the kitchen hadn’t used it since. So I found it bland this time around. More garlic perhaps or some other spice. But this is how they liked it back then. *grin* I am going to give it a day in the refer to see if the flavors just needed to mature. I can’t remember the details of how far ahead we made this one…all those years ago! LOL!
- 1 Cup Ground Pecans (kids can beat nuts in plastic bag with rolling pin)
- 2 Cups Frozen Broccoli tips, thawed, diced. ( kids can run the microwave to thaw)
- 3 Hard Boiled Eggs, diced fine. ( kids can lower eggs into water with ladle)
- 1 large yellow onion, coarse chopped. ( kids can leave room while you cut! LOL!)
- 8 ounces of Mushrooms.
- 2 Tablespoons of Garlic ( 3 cloves) diced.
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil.
- Lemon.
- Salt/Pepper.
- Dash of Worcestershire Sauce
- 4 Tablespoons Mayonnaise. See this post for Homemade Mayo
When teaching small children to cook, chop onions before inviting them to the kitchen.
1. Bring salted water to a rapid, rolling boil. Add room temperature eggs. Cover. Stop heat. Time for 13 minutes for hard boiled. Drain and cool. Peel off the shells, rinse. Dice.
2. While the water is boiling get out the food processor or your handy dandy knife. Dice Broccoli, Onions, Garlic. Dump into a large bowl. Kids can learn to cut or if they are too young for knives run the food processor. Squeeze lemon juice onto all this chopped stuff.
3. Start a skillet on the stovetop with the olive oil. Saute’ onion till translucent, then add Mushrooms. Salt and Pepper. Kids can dump in Mushrooms.
4. Eggs should be ready to cool in the sink about now. Dump the boiling water out, fill will cool water and set in the sink.
5. Finish with the mushrooms and set them aside to cool slightly.
6. Peel Eggs.
7. Dump Mushrooms/Onions into food processor, chop fine. or chop fine on cutting board. Dump into large bowl with all the rest.
8. Mix all. Add Mayo. Mix again. Add Worcestershire Sauce. Mix again.
9. Press mixture into small bowl.
10. Cover with plate. Hold down with Jar of Rocks! LOL! These rock are ones Jack and the boys have found and gifted me over the years. They are love rocks. *grin*
Refrigerate. Turn the bowl upside-down on a plate large enough to hold it and crackers to serve buffet style. To pre-top crackers for fast eating…Press it into a plastic bag, press out air. Refrigerate until needed. Snip corner of bag and squeeze onto crackers pastry bag style. Keeps in the fridge 3-7 days. Do not freeze.
A messy cook? ME! LOL! You bet you buns!!
Happy Christmas Preps Sweet Friends!
