[libertarian27]

Merry Christmas!

[Mercat]

I just made these. I haven’t tasted them yet but they sure smell good.

Banana Nut Muffins Recipe
INGREDIENTS
3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tbsp espresso or strong coffee (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cup of flour
1 cup chopped walnuts (toasted or raw)
METHOD
No need for a mixer with this recipe.
1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl.
2 Mix in the sugar, egg, espresso and vanilla.
3 Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in.
4 Add the flour, mix until it is just incorporated. Fold in the chopped walnuts.
5 Pour mixture into a prepared muffin tin. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Check for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin. If it comes out clean, it’s done. Cool on a rack.
Makes 12 muffins.

[libertarian27]

~~FReeper Weekly Recipe Thread Ping~~~
(to be added/deleted - please post here or PM me)

Last week’s recipes:(Dec 17th)

Appetizer __ Post # 08 __ Cheese Ball

Cake __ Post # 20 __ Chocolate Sin Cake
Cake __ Post # 21 __ Babe’s Apple Cake
Cake __ Post # 23 __ Inga’s Cheesecake
Cake __ Post # 26 __ Trifle

Icing __ Post # 22 __ Marshmallow Microwave Frosting

Pastry __ Post # 37 __ Trillian’s Frittelle

Pie __ Post # 24 __ Key Lime Pie

Salad __ Post # 05 __ Cranberry Pecan & Greens Salad

Soup __ Post # 15 __ Two Noodle Soup

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2821635/posts?page=43#43

[Mercat]

This is my old tried and true which is always demanded at pot lucks:

Killer salad:

a bag or box of spring greens (romaine and spinach work too)
grapefruit and orange sections
strawberries and any other berries you want
maple walnuts or pecans or candied in some way
gorganzola cheese crumbles
raspberry vinagret dressing (go easy with it, the salad has enough going on)

easy breezy and always gets the raves.

[ladyvet]

Merry Christmas all! Today is all about appetizers at my house. Tomorrow is Prime (okay,choice) Rib with all the trimmings. I bought a goose this year but never having cooked one I decided to try it on a stress free day. Anyone familiar with cooking goose? I could use some tips.Thanks.

[MissMagnolia]

Mmmm, bacon ..... I haven’t made this yet, but I’m going to & thought I would go ahead and share the recipe which appeared in our local paper recently:

CARAMEL BACON PEANUT BARK

12 ounces maple or brown sugar bacon
Two 12-oz. packages milk chocolate bits
1-1/2 cups chopped peanuts (salted or not)
10-oz bag soft candy caramels
Large flake sea salt

Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.
Heat a large saute pan over medium-high.
Working in batches, add the bacon and cook until very crisp, about 10-12 minutes.
Transfer to paper towels to drain, then repeat with the remaining bacon.
Set aside to cool completely. Once cool, crumble the bacon into small pieces.
Place the chocolate bits in a medium microwave-safe bowl.
Microwave on high for 1-2 minutes, stirring every 20 seconds, or until melted and smooth.
Pour the chocolate onto the prepared baking sheet, then tap it on the counter to settle the chocolate into an even, smooth puddle.
Immediately sprinkle the bacon and peanuts evenly over the chocolate.
Allow the chocolate to fully harden, about 15-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, place the caramels in a medium microwave-safe bowl.
Microwave on high for 1-2 minutes, stirring every 20 seconds, or until melted and smooth.
Drizzle the caramel over the bark, then sprinkle lightly with the sea salt.
Allow to cool and harden, then break into pieces.

[MissMagnolia]

My grandmother always made corn pudding for the big holiday meals .... it just isn’t Thanksgiving or Christmas in our family without it. We make it for any meal where company is coming and we need a good side dish

SOUTHERN CORN PUDDING
(serves 12)

6 eggs
3 cups milk (see Note 1)
6 cups fresh corn, cut from the cob (see Note 2)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper (white pepper looks best)

Lightly grease a 9 x 13 pan (Crisco works great)
Spread drained corn evenly in the bottom of the pan
Combine eggs & milk, beating well (I give it a quick whirl in a blender)
Add flour, sugar, salt & pepper & give another quick whirl to combine
Pour blender contents evenly over corn
Do not panic when it looks like corn soup!
Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until set and top is a nice golden color.

Note 1 - frozen or canned corn (drained) works fine

Note 2 - substitute half & half for all or part of 3 cups milk for a very rich recipe

This recipe is easy to cut in half (serves 6) - use 1-1/2 quart baking dish

[sauropod]

.

[edpc]

One of my favorites around Christmas.

1c softened unsalted butter
1/2c confectioner's sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
1/2tsp salt
3/4c pecans, chopped finely
2 1/4c all purpose flour
1/3c confectioner's sugar for dusting

Mix butter and 1/2c confectioner's sugar until smooth. Add vanilla and salt. Add pecans. Add flour 1/4 cup at a time until dough is blended and smooth.

Roll dough into 1in balls and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 mins at 400F. Once thoroughly cooled, shake cookies, a few at a time, in bag with 1/3c powdered sugar.

Great with tea and other hot beverages. Enjoy!

[wizr]

Put a cup of water in a pan on high heat

Go look for instant coffee. I know it was here yesterday? Still looking, looking.

Uh, oh. Water’s GONE! Burnt the pan!

Don’t try this at home.

Merry CHRISTmas anyway!

[red-dawg]

I haven't posted on this thread before but I usually lurk when I have the time.
I have a recipe I want to contribute:

NEIMAN-MARCUS COOKIES (Recipe may be halved)

2 cups butter
24 oz. Chocolate chips
4 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
2 tsp. Soda (baking)
1 tsp. Salt
2 cups sugar
1 8 oz. Hershey Bar (grated)
5 cups blended oatmeal
4 eggs
2 tsp. Baking powder
2 tsp. Vanilla
3 cups chopped nuts (your choice)

Measure oatmeal, and blend in a blender to a fine powder. Cream the butter and both sugars.
Add eggs and vanilla, mix together with flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and soda . Add chocolate chips, hershey bar, and nuts.
Roll into balls, and place two inches apart on a cookie Sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees.

Makes 112 cookies.

[Gabz]

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

[prisoner6]

MERRY CHRISTMAS to ALL!

Posted this on another thread but thought I'd share here as well. I found the ham recipe on a website - mrfood.com IIRC. I think it was called "Anytime Ham."

Here is what I am doing for Christmas dinner.

Serves: 10

Ingredients:
1 (4- to 5-pound) smoked semi-boneless ham
1 (29-ounce) can yams, drained
2 (15-ounce) cans whole white potatoes, drained
1 (29-ounce) can peach halves in heavy syrup, drained and syrup reserved
1 (16-ounce) can apricot halves in heavy syrup, drained and syrup reserved
3/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Trim ham of all excess fat and place cut-side down in a large roasting pan. Bake 45 minutes then drain off any pan drippings and reduce heat to 350 degrees F.

2. Meanwhile, place yams, white potatoes, peaches, and apricots in a large bowl and toss gently; set aside.

3. In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup reserved peach syrup, 1/2 cup reserved apricot syrup, the maple syrup, dry mustard, and ginger; bring to a boil over medium-high heat then remove from heat. 4. In a small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons remaining reserved apricot or peach syrup with the cornstarch and add to hot syrup mixture, stirring until thickened.

5. Place potatoes and fruit around ham and pour syrup mixture over everything. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, uncovered, basting occasionally

Of course I went OVERBOARD and bought a 13 pound ham. Sooo...It's going to be cut in half. I'll do the above recipe and Mrs p6 will do her half the way she likes, but she wan't let me know the recipe until it's done. She likes it simple so it will probably be ginger ale and brown sugar glaze.

It'll kinda be a Christmas Ham Contest to see which one the family likes best.

Meanwhile here's another recipe I found soemwhere.

Recipe For Happiness

2 Heaping cups of Patience
1 Heart full of Love
2 Hands full of Generosity
1 Head full of Understanding
and a Dash of Laughter

Sprinkle generously with kindness, add plenty of faith and mix well. Spread over a period of a lifetime and serve to everyone you meet.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

[llmc1]

Christmas French Toast

Panettone, 1/2” slices
some eggnog
some milk
a couple eggs
dash nutmeg
butter
syrup

Mix nog, milk, eggs, and nutmeg. Quickly dip the panettone into mixture and fry in butter until browned. Top with more butter, if desired, and syrup.

Have a Very Merry Christmas, All!

[susannah59]

I am making these tomorrow AM for breakfast along with bacon and sausage links. I rarely cook breakfast but always on Christmas.

Cranberry Orange Scones

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cups sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup butter (no substitutes)

1 tsp. finely grated orange peel

1 cup chopped fresh or frozen cranberries

3/4 cup buttermilk Combine dry ingredients in mixing bowl. cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add cranberries (I will probably used dried ones, soaked for just a bit in water and drained). Add orange peel. Stir in buttermilk just until moistened. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead 6-8 times. Divide in half; Pat each half into an 8-inch circle. Cut into 8 wedges. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks. Serve warm. Serve with butter!!

[illiac]

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

One of my grandmothers best....

Devils Food Cake with Divinity Frosting

1 - boxed devils food cake mix prepared using directions on the box.

When cool, frost with the following:

EASY NO - COOK DIVINITY

1 pkg. fluffy white frosting (dry)
1/3 c. Karo syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. boiling water
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 c. chopped pecans

In small bowl, combine frosting mix, Karo, vanilla, and boiling water; beat on high until stiff peaks form (about 5 minutes). Transfer to a large bowl - on medium speed, blend in powdered sugar gradually. Stir in nuts.

Melt one bag semi sweet chocolate chips in a double boiler with a touch of heavy cream.

When completely melted, pur over the top of the divinity frosted cake making sure some of it drizzles down the side of the cake.

MMMM MMMM good

[susannah59]

When I was little I remember my mother making cookies she called Tea Cakes. They were a lot like Sugar Cookies except I think a little thicker and maybe not quite as sweet.

I got to thinking about these and started looking for a recipe. Most of the recipes I found looked pretty much alike and I tried one. Not bad, but not what I was looking for. I finally found this one in a cookbook, and then altered it after the first batch to make it taste more like what I remembered.

Tea Cakes

1 cup butter, softened but not melted

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 eggs

3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar together. Add flavorings, mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, alternately with flour (about 1 cup at a time). Add enough flour to make a slightly stiff dough. (Using a stand mixer works better than a hand mixer). Using a cookie scoop, scoop out and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle a pinch of sugar on top of each cookie, then flatten each with a wide-bottom glass or cup (dip bottom of glass or cup in sugar to prevent sticking). Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until lightly brown around the edges.

You can roll these out and cut them out but I prefer my method! It is easier and you handle the dough less. You could also use colored sugar for the holidays if you wish.

[patriot08]

Please, FReepers, learn to make your cranberry sauce from scratch- don't serve that grey glop out of the can!

Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup (200 g) sugar 1 cup (250 mL) water 4 cups (1 12-oz package) fresh or frozen cranberries

Method 1 Wash and pick over cranberries. In a saucepan bring to a boil water and sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add cranberries, return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries burst.

2 Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.

Cranberry sauce recipe makes 2 1/4 cups.

If you don't want whole berries, strain it.

And NO, there's no need to add anything to this recipe. NO orange.. No cinnamon..NO nothing. Anything you add masks/takes away from the delicious taste of fresh cranberries.

[illiac]

This year we have to stray from our normal prime rib ($12.99/lb at Costco) because we have 16 to feed. So we decided on the following:

Orange Glazed Ham

Ingredients
1 (14 to 16-pound) fully cooked, spiral-cut smoked ham on the bone
6 garlic cloves
8 1/2 ounces orange marmalade
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 orange, zested
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the ham in a heavy roasting pan.

Mince the garlic in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the marmalade, mustard, brown sugar, orange zest, and orange juice and process until smooth. Pour the glaze over the ham and bake for 1 hour, until the ham is fully heated and the glaze is well browned. Serve hot or at room temperature.

CEDAR PLANKED SALMON

One cedar plank soaked in water for several days.

One salmon filet

Dill sprigs

Meyer lemons (if you can find them - other wise plain old lemons will work) Sliced thin.

Butter

Capers

Lay out the filet on the cedar plank and sprinkle with dill. Lay the lemon slices on top of the filet. Place a few pats of butter n top of the lemons. Sprinkle with capers. Place the plank with the filet on the BBQ and cook at about 350 degrees until done (20 - 30 minutes)

[trisham]

Merry Christmas! Thank you for the thread!

[Joya]

Peanut Butter & Pretzel Truffles

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup crunchy natural peanut butter
1/4 cup finely chopped salted pretzels
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips, melted (see Tip)

PREPARATION
Combine peanut butter and pretzels in a small bowl. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 15 minutes. Roll the peanut butter mixture into 20 balls (about 1 teaspoon each). Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper and freeze until very firm, about 1 hour. Roll the frozen balls in melted chocolate. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

TIPS & NOTES
Make Ahead Tip: Store airtight in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Tip: To melt chocolate, microwave on Medium for 1 minute. Stir, then continue microwaving on Medium, stirring every 20 seconds, until melted. Or place chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, but not boiling, water. Stir until melted.

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/peanut_butter_pretzel_truffles.html

= = =
Hat-tip to Granny for alerting me to the eatingwell dot com website.