Remember December: D is for Decorated Houses

I love houses that are decorated outside at Christmastime. Our house isn't seen by very many people so we only hang snowflake lights in the greenhouse and snowmen in the patio windows. When people really get into house decorating, it is really fun to drive around and enjoy them. These are a few images I captured last year during the holiday season. I am eager to tour around this year to see if it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Remember December: C is for Cookies and a Keeper from the Recipe Box

I love to make sugar cookies during the holidays. I wish I had a picture of my own cookies, but I had to settle for this beautiful getty image. Cutting out large Christmas trees and frosting them are my favorite type to create. I also like to crush up candy canes to decorate the trees. I do other shapes also and love the frosting recipe I have listed below for decorating. I don't know if it is the smell of sugar cookies when they are baking or that first taste of a warm cookie off the wax paper, but I do love sugar cookies. If you haven't tried them lately, this is my favorite recipe to use.

Deluxe Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
granulated sugar

Mix together sugar and butter. Add egg, vanilla, and almond extract; mix well. Blend in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Cover and chill for 2 to 3 hours. Heat oven to 375 F. Divide dough in half. Roll each half 3/16 inch thick on lightly floured cloth-covered board. Cut into desired shapes; sprinkle with granulated sugar. Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown on edges. I watch them and sometimes they are done in 5 minutes. There is nothing worse than an overbaked sugar cookie.

Instead of sprinkling them with sugar, I frost them with Cream Cheese Frosting. I like this kind of frosting because it spreads easily and isn't so sweet. Warning... it doesn't harden up like Royal Icing so you can't stack them as easily without having the frosting stick.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 lb. box of powdered sugar

1 cube butter, softened

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. vanilla or almond flavoring

Mix until smooth. Freezes well!

This recipe is taken from the 1969 Betty Crocker Cookbook which was the first edition I owned myself. It is also called Mary's Sugar Cookies.

Remember December: B is for Bows

" Anything that has real and lasting value is always a gift from within." Franz Kafka

Christmas bows define memorable holidays from my childhood. Curling ribbon seemed like something magic when I was very young. I loved watching my mother pull the curling ribbon with a pair of scissors, making it all pretty after she tied the ribbon around a package. I tried and tried to also curl the ribbon. I couldn't get it on the right side and I would do it over and over so it ended up in shreds.

Then came the colorful readymade bows with the sticky square on the back. I was amazed when bags of these would be hanging with the Christmas wrap and every color you could imagine was available. I think my mom has bows that have been recycled enough times that the bright colors have faded and the sticky stuff needs scotch tape to help it stay on a package. Even to this day she still shouts,"Don't forget to save the bows" on Christmas morning. Bows always seem to end up on dog heads, the backside of a bathrobe, or in somebody's coffee. I still do like those bows, mostly because of the nostalgic feeling that goes with them.

Then came the raffia phase. When bags first became popular and were more crafty type bags, raffia was tied to dress up the bag. I still love the simple look of raffia. I also like spools of ribbon to dress up packages. One thing is for sure. As much as I love the color, texture, and patterns of bows and ribbons I cannot tie a decent bow. At least I can curl ribbon now. Perhaps I should go back to the readymade ones and get some new ones with the sticky backs! When I Remember December I always have fond memories of bows. There is nothing like a beautifully wrapped gift with beautiful bows to give to someone at Christmas.

Pacific Northwest Feast: Keepers from the Recipe Box

Trying new recipes can be risky at a family gathering, but this year it paid off as we broke tradition and had a Pacific Northwest Native American Feast (that way if I found a recipe that wasn't quite traditional to the native people... it had ingredients from the Pacific Northwest!)
This salad was very popular at Thanksgiving dinner. It tasted delicious and had a colorful presentation. I didn't have the rose petals and pickled my own onions by marinating red onions in red wine vinegar for a day ahead.

Scarlett Autumn Salad
Serves 8

Salad:

Red mesclun salad mix including any combination of baby red leaf, red oak leaf, radicchio, red baby romaine (eight servings)

12 ounces Chevre rolled in herbs de Provence

1 cup pickled shoestring beets, drained

1 cup pickled red onion, drained

Pomegranate Vinaigrette:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup pomegranate juice

3 garlic cloves, minced fine

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon medium grind black pepper

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup to 1 1/2 cups canola oil

Blend first six ingredients; then slowly whisk in canola oil.

Toss greens with half of vinaigrette. Place salad mixture in center of individual or large serving plate, place a slice of herbed goat cheese on the side, then mound onions and beets around salad. Garnish edge of plate with black cherry rose petals. Pass remaining vinaigrette.

The salad can be adapted to summer by substituting huckleberries or blackberries for pomegranates in the dressing. - Chef Alexandra Hannah, Morrison's Lodge on the Rogue River

Grilled Salmon with Lemons, Limes, and Herbs

Ingredients:

* 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets
* 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* Fresh herbs ( I used rosemary, dill, and thyme)
* 8 lemon slices (about 2 lemons)
* 8 lime slices ( about 2 limes)
* 1/4 cup lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
* 1/2 cup Marsala wine (or white wine)
* 4 pieces of aluminum foil

Directions:
Brush top and bottom of salmon fillets with olive oil and season with salt, pepper, and herbs. Place each piece of seasoned salmon on a piece of foil large enough to fold over and seal. Top the each piece of salmon with lemon and lime slices, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of wine. Wrap up salmon tightly in the foil packets.

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Place the foil packets on the hot grill and cook for 10 minutes for a 1-inch thick piece of salmon.

I found frozen wild Alaskan salmon that was presliced which worked well on the grill.
This last recipe I borrowed from JBelle's blog. I know any time I use one of her recipes it will be spectacular. This is such a delicious combination of flavors and worked well as a side condiment for the salmon. It can be made ahead and has time for the spices to blend with the cranberries. You can find her blog here.

Pacific Northwest Cranberry Chutney

24 ounces apricot preserves
3/4 cup raspberry vinegar
or
3/4 cup white distilled vinegar plus 1 1/2 tsp raspberry preserves
a pinch of salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
2 bags fresh cranberries, nasties discarded
1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
1 1/4 cups dried tart cherries

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the apricot preserves, raspberry vinegar or vinegar and preserves, salt, cloves, and Grand Marnier. Stir to mix, and place over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, and continue to cook. It will bubble aggressively, and you should stir regularly to keep it from scorching--about 10-15 minutes, or until thickened slightly. Reduce the heat to medium, add the cranberries, and cook until they are soft but not popped. (They are ready when you can hear one or two of them pop; that's a good indicator that most of them must be getting pretty soft.) Add the ginger and cherries, stir well and remove from heat. Cool completely before serving. The chutney will thicken considerably as it cools.
JBelle
Bellemaison
The 'Kan EWA

The dinner also included Honey Hazlenut Squash, Indian Fry Bread with Huckleberry Honey, Dried Deer Meat, Roasted Vegetables and a variety of desserts.

Remember December: A is for Advent

This month I will present my own ABC book called "Remember December" as I celebrate memories, traditions, recipes and songs of the holiday season.

A is for Advent: Advent (from the Latin word adventus, meaning "coming") is a season of the Christian church, the period of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, in other words, the period immediately before Christmas. It is the beginning of the Western Christian year and commences on Advent Sunday. Wikipedia Encyclopedia

At the United Church in Kellogg, Idaho I remember an advent tradition involving advent candles and the church choir. Each Sunday of advent a candle was lit and as the choir entered the sanctuary each of those Sundays we sang a verse of O Come O Come Emmanuel. This advent song has been a favorite of mine since that time. Advent was culminated with the Candlelight Christmas Eve service. Here is one of my favorite versions of the carol:

Counting My Blessings #30: Sibling Assignments

This week marks the 83rd Sibling Assignment I have created . My sister Silver Valley Girl came up with the idea right after our brother had started his blog October of 2006. At that time we wrote them and sent them to each other. Now we all have blogs. Another reason it began was to get different points of view of stories of our childhood. A few years ago I started a collection of recipes with memoir pieces attached. It has been put on hold a bit as I have done more writing on my blog, but some stories were left unwritten because I was concerned I wouldn't get them right. Three points of view always add to the depth of a memoir piece.

It has been meaningful for me to reflect on my blessings this month as I wind down my "Counting My Blessings" series. I am thankful for the sibling assignments because it has opened my eyes to events I don't remember, it has given us many opportunities to share our stories with our mother, and it has kept me writing consistently.

For Sibling Assignment #83 Silver Valley Girl asked each of us to depict Thanksgiving Day through our own eyes. You can see a photo series of events on SVG's blog here and Raymond Pert will share his when he returns home.

It was harder for me to capture great photos because I was in the thick of the Thanksgiving preparations. Awhile back I learned that my brother-in-law and turkey didn't get along. At that point I planned a Pacific Northwest Native American Feast . JEJ helped out by bringing home a deer which was made into smoked venison. Indian Fry bread is a staple food at school and on the reservation, so it was fun to serve it for the first time. We added huckleberry honey on the side for added richness. I also gathered recipes for other traditional native foods such as salmon, cranberries, squash, root vegetables, nuts, fruit, and greens. I will post some recipes later.

I am a traditionalist at heart, but it was interesting to create a whole new menu for Thanksgiving. Learning about rituals of the native people was part of the fun. Between colleagues at work, some research, and browsing recipes I was able to identify and present many native foods.
Having a snowfall reminded all of us of many Thanksgivings in the past when we attempted to go "over the river and through the woods of north Idaho to a grandmother's house" or navigated the slick roads of Kellogg after a gathering with friends uptown. This year everyone arrived here and arrived home safely and for that I count my blessings.