Egg Nog

At a Christmas party this year, one of my children tried store bought egg nog. He was so disappointed that it was nothing like this recipe that Allan has been making us for years. He was sure to request that Daddy make some “real” egg nog soon.

I know that some people prefer alcohol in egg nog, but I think it is non essential! Using freshly grated nutmeg is the best, but use powder if that is what you have.

If you are concerned about eating raw eggs, either buy pasteurized eggs, or look online on how to make them yourself.

Cinnamon Rolls (with Caramel Option)

This recipe is one we often use for Christmas or for the children’s breakfasts as they head to summer camp. They are easy to turn into caramel rolls by a simple step that I included.

If you prefer to make the dough early, you can form the rolls, place in pan and then cover with heavy aluminum foil. Place in the refrigerator at least 12 hours, but not longer than 24. Then, when ready to bake, place unwrapped pan in cold oven and bake until golden brown (35-40 min).

Cream Cheese Truffles with Variations

When we first started learning to make desserts, this is one of the first, and easiest truffles we learned. Have fun experimenting with your own variations!

Caramel

This is our favorite caramel recipe. We have tried a few other ones, but always come back to this.

Artichoke Spinach Cheese Dip

We found this recipe after we tried some very expensive appetizers at a restaurant. It is simple to make and you can personalize it by adding more or less spinach, sauteed onions or chives. This is our favorite way to have it.

The recipe calls for fat free ingredients, feel free to substitute low fat or full fat if desired. They are all very good.

Cranberry Sauce

I grew up on canned cranberry sauce. I was never fond of it even though I enjoy the tart taste of cranberries. Then one day, I discovered homemade cranberry sauce!

After much experimenting with different recipes, Andrea and I settled on this one as an easy favorite. Feel free to make it a few days early and store tightly covered until needed. We almost always double the recipe and rarely have leftovers.

Cornbread Stuffing

When I asked what type of stuffing to make for Thanksgiving, I was told “cornbread!”. Then we discussed the difference between “stuffing” and “dressing”. In case you do not know, you stuff “stuffing” and bake “dressing” in a casserole dish.

Athenian Chicken

The weather has been perfect for grilling. We wanted a new recipe and discovered this one. It is best grilled over a charcoal fire.

You can cook it whole or placed over an aluminum can half filled with chicken broth and a few tablespoons lemon juice. Or, spatchcock the chicken by removing the backbone and laying it flat to grill. Another option is to buy your favorite chicken pieces instead.

However served, it is extra nice with a greek salad on the side and fresh lemons to squeeze over the top. Or, make a nice honey mustard dressing to drizzle over chicken.

Pumpkin Seeds

When ever we buy a pumpkin, we always save the seeds to roast. We also roast the seeds to butternut squash and spaghetti squash. The seeds may be different sizes, so be sure to watch so they do not over cook.

There are so many different ways to make pumpkin seeds. We did an experiment many years ago where we compared boiling the seeds first and with different oven temperatures. They were all so similar tasting, that we kept with this simple recipe from our friend Miss Krista.

Wishing Cookies

Aunt Bonnie made us these cookies for the first time nine years ago. She told us that “if you break them into three pieces without talking, your wish comes true”. It has never been proven, since my kids can’t stop talking long enough to break a cookie into three pieces 🙂