The week, which I was hoping was going to be quiet, has been ridiculously busy. So this will be a brief post, but cute puppehs to make up for it:
This was last year, in front of my half-decorated tree, LOL. There just hasn’t been time this year. How is that possible? The days are years long, but I guess so is my list of things to do.
Merlin, in his incarnation as Xmas Cat in the Middle of Everything.
Tomato Queen sent a Merlin update. Look at that cutie!
Okay, some food photos with links to recipes because if I had to actually post the recipes, it just wouldn’t happen.
Starting with this year’s Sweet Holiday Gifts:
Gluten-free Peanut Butter Cookies (recipe here)
Sesame Brittle (love this stuff, and great addtion to ice cream sundaes) Recipe here.
Dark Chocolate Chip cookies, Spritz cookies and Pecan Cookies – all recipes here.
For more Holiday Gift baking ideas, this link.
And finally Christmas Eve Dinner (recipes here)
Very simple: Spinach Lasagna, Butter and Lemon Green Beans and Garlic Bread. Dessert is an ice cream bar.
What’s on your menu?
Respite open thread
ETA: Here’s raven’s Christmas present, it’s lovely:
My wife … gave me my Christmas present early. (I pretty much knew because she’s been working on it upstairs and I’ve caught a couple of glimpses. This is a thread painting of Lil Bit. She really captured the little squirt, especially those eyes.
raven
We had a couple of dear friends come by for a quick masked-porch visit. My wife wanted to show them some of her work so she gave me my Christmas present early. (I pretty much knew because she’s been working on it upstairs and I’ve caught a couple of glimpses. This is a thread painting of Lil Bit. She really captured the little squirt, especially those eyes.
Elizabelle
@raven: That’s beautiful.
TaMara (HFG)
@raven: Can I add that up top? It’s stunning.
raven
@TaMara (HFG): Sure
raven
She was a good little doggie!
debbie
@raven:
Beautiful!
ETA: I hope you pretended to be surprised!
laura
@raven: Winsome and Enthusiastic! What a lovely gift.
raven
@debbie: She knew I knew so it’s all good. I hadn’t really seen the finished work and she knows how much I appreciate it. It was her birthday last week and I gave her this cool cocker that you nail into a tree.
ruemara
This year’s cookie list was white chocolate cranberry, mint dark chocolate & 2 new flavors, chipotle chocolate/ green tea raspberry brookie & peanut butter sesame rose GF cookies. There was also mixed berry scotch bonnet prosecco jam, bacon jam, turkey bacon jam and the candied bacon is now in chocolate and mexican chocolate.
For Christmas, I make a lot of Jamaican food but this year I’ve limited it. Bulla bread, BBQ lamb patties & veggie patties & Jamaican Black Cake. Dinner is going to be a rib roast I currently am dry aging in the fridge, broccoli and wild rice, mushroom gravy & blue cheese.
raven
@ruemara: No akee and breadfruit?
Black_onion
I just saw this and hadn’t seen it on Bj yet, unless I missed it.
https://youtu.be/SWYnVepM8VM
Starfish
That sesame brittle looks good. 😋
Scout211
@Black_onion:
Thank you for posting that. It was cathartic. 😊
debbie
@raven:
That’s a sweet silhouette.
debbie
@Black_onion:
Perfect!
ruemara
@raven: Forgot to buy some. Which sucks because now I am totally jonesing for ackee. I might make some fried dumpling and scrambled tofu.
CarolPW
@raven: I have a cigar box full of multiple colors of J & P Coats deluxe cotton embroidery floss ( 6 strand) that are probably about as old as you or me. They are beautiful, in both solid and variegated colors, and are in perfect condition. Is that something your bride would like? I no longer embroider and would hate to have them end up in the trash.
I should ask Not Max about the cigar box.
Black_onion
@Scout211: I felt it too, and needed to share it.
Kristine
Everything looks wonderful. L’il Bit is an lovely workpiece.
I’ve made sesame brittle before and really liked it.
TaMara (HFG)
@Black_onion: That was cathartic
Barbara
@ruemara: Wow. I made 3 kinds of cookies last Saturday, including biscotti, but nothing elaborate. I plan to make duck Wellington on Friday, but I am not making the puff from scratch. Just don’t feel all that ambitious and work is kind of busy.
Ken
My family has two Christmas traditions. One is chocolate fudge, but we just use the recipe off the back of the marshmallow creme jars. The other is my grandmother’s nut cookies, which are usually called “Mexican wedding cakes”; her recipe uses almonds.
Mary G
@raven: Lil Bit! What a lovely idea. She is so talented.
Mary G
@CarolPW: If Raven’s princess doesn’t want them, and you can get them to a thrift shop, they will be snapped up in no time, and for a good price. I once had a lady offer me a $20 bribe to call her if a certain craft item came in and I saved it for her, seriously. People love those old threads; the quality is so much higher.
Barbara
@raven: That’s so sweet, and so lifelike.
Ms.Skink
Having recently determined I had “gluten sensitivities”, your recipes without da gluten are a bonus treat. Thank you!
dww44
@raven: As I’d never actually seen a photo of Lil Bit, I’m glad to finally see one. A beautiful cocker.
This post has been a nice antidote to the news from Trump. Pardons for criminals, a veto of funding for the military, and an apparent pocket veto of Covid relief for the masses of Americans. He is simply a horrid human being and I am so angry at all who voted for this man, most especially my relatives who should have and likely did know better. But they couldn’t not vote for the R candidate.
JanieM
@Starfish: No kidding. I’m going to try it out tomorrow. Good thing I laid in a supply of sesame seeds for other purposes!
rikyrah
@raven:
Gorgeous😍😍
Yutsano
@Barbara:
That makes you smart. Why would you put in all that work just for a small payoff?
Benw
Lovely piece of Lil Bit! Sweet doggo.
Bixby and Scout are lorge lads, and good doggos!
Comrade Colette
@CarolPW: Oh no! I am SOOOO late to this party, but I still do crewel embroidery and would love to have some vintage floss. I’d pay for your postage, time spent, and a coffee on the way to AND back from the PO. And if you’re not into it, then what @Mary G: said. I would hate to see that go to waste.
ETA: I know WaterGirl has my email address and other front-pagers probably do, too. Happy holidays!
raven
@CarolPW: I’ll ask but it sounds like CC would like it so I’ll defer.
CarolPW
@Comrade Colette: @raven: There are at least 50 different bundles in the cigar box, so should be plenty for both of you if Raven’s bride is interested.
Glidwrith
@Comrade Colette: I, too, am late but I have 10 unused bundles of J&P thread floss and three partials. They date roughly 40 years old.
How the hell did that much time pass?
Glidwrith
@raven: on my phone, but offering to your bride as well
raven
Thanks ya’ll, she appreciates it but it’s not what she uses.
TaMara (HFG)
@Glidwrith:
@CarolPW:
@Comrade Colette:
You guys, I’m late to the party, but if you need me to put you together, I can do that. I can shoot you a group email and you can take it from there.
TaMara (HFG)
@Ms.Skink: I’ve got quite a few at this link
CarolPW
@TaMara (HFG): Please send my email to Comrade Colette, thanks!
Glidwrith
@TaMara (HFG): Please do. The email I list is good, but stuffed with spam. Have something like ‘embroidery thread’ in the subject line so I can pick it out of the junk.