Family Foodies

How often does that happen? Everyone is coming, and now some of the single guests have called and want to bring a friend. Usually, several to sometimes a third of the invitees cannot attend due to scheduling conflicts. Holiday entertaining can be difficult when you invite both friends and family at the same time. This means providing a larger roast, more vegetables, more gravy, more appetizers, more drinks. More everything!

Moving a Large Roast.

Large holiday party roasts are difficult to move from pan to serving plate. The easy way to avoid burnt fingers and bent forks is to purchase a roasting rack and a set of turkey or roast lifters. Roasting racks are flat or V-shape. Lifters have multiple prongs. Lifters insert deep inside the roast and others go underneath from both sides to help move the roast to the serving plate. We purchased both a rack and lifter set to help prevent dropping a heavy roast.

Keep Beverages Hot.

Cold beverages are easy to place in coolers with ice, but what about hot beverages? There will not be room to keep them heated in large pots on the kitchen range. Insulated pots or carafes are an ideal way to serve hot cider, coffee or tea you can make in advance and stay hot. Create labels and lightly tape on the front for instant recognition of contents. These beverage keepers come in a wide variety to suit your needs. Choose from vacuum pots that pump a beverage or simple ones that only need the lid flipped open.

The next party will be either friends or family, but not both at once. What was I thinking?

We fondly call these Appeteasers here.

Refrigerated crescent dough forms the base.  Pantry staples and imagination create the fillings.  Refrigerated dough appetizers bake golden brown and are very enticing.  These work equally well for picky little humans and party guests.

Basic ingredients.

1 can refrigerated crescent dough, separated into 4 equal pieces
1 16 oz. package frozen spinach cooked, liquid removed and chopped fine
1 tablespoon butter
6 slices cooked crumbled bacon
2 tablespoons shredded parmesan cheese

I refuse to diet during the holidays and parties, the goodies call to me by name.

Remorse can come later, and it usually does.

I had found a recipe for a butter crust that sounded good and wanted to add a home made filling. It needed to be simple because there were errands to run, so it was best not to be tied down to something that would take too much time.

The recipe for the butter crust.

Two cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup cold salted butter
4 to 5 tablespoons cold water

I was raised on hot tea with lemon, but somehow ended over on the dark side with all the flavored coffees and tempting gourmet beans available. It was just too easy to buy specialty coffees sold in local stores, cafes, or other specialty retailers. It started out innocent enough. Now there is just one rule, no Kopi Luwak, ever!

Cuisinart

Our old coffeepot is a 10-cup Cuisinart coffee maker that automatically grinds and brews fresh coffee at a pre-set time. I was thrilled with that for a while, but the novelty wore off rather quickly due to the extra cleaning and extra time it takes to dry it when you want another batch quickly.

Mr. Coffee

My online stealth shopping located a no frills Mr. Coffee 12-cup coffee maker for under $30. We have a bean grinder, so that is not a problem. Since capacity is a little bigger, it will serve more holiday guests per pot. That is a big plus in its favor; however, only white is available and would look out of place. Sometimes you just want to go back to basics on appliances and this model in black would work. Another downside is that we would not be able to wake up and smell the coffee brewing.

Back to online shopping now, a water purifier would be a terrific addition to help make the perfect choice of coffee beans taste even better.

Are you tempted to purchase bakery cakes?

Preparing cakes yourself for holiday dinners does not require hidden talent. The right toppings and fillings will make it special.

Chocolate cake with fresh strawberries – two layer.

1 boxed mix chocolate cake prepared
1 container prepared white icing for two layer cake
1 pint (or more) whole fresh strawberries (smaller ones)
Chocolate flavored topping or strawberry glaze
Whipped cream

This works best right before serving and is very quick. Frost your first layer and arrange plain sliced strawberries in a single layer (do not add sugar). Add second layer and frost. Cut remaining strawberries in half and press into icing. Serve cake portions with a drizzle of strawberry glaze or chocolate topping. Finish with swirled whipped cream.

Spice Cake with canned apple pie topping – one layer (Approximately 9” x 13 or 14”).

One boxed mix spice cake prepared
One container prepared white icing
One small can apple pie filling
One jar maraschino cherries w/stems well drained or blotted dry

Transfer cooled cake to flat sheet cookie pan. Create 10 servings by piping frosting to form raised edges on each serving to contain apple filling. Remove excess syrup from apple filling, reserve for other use. Dice apples in remaining syrup and stir well. Spread apple mixture to cover exposed cake on each serving inside the ridges. Add a cherry to top each servicing. Pre-slice the cake between icing ridges.

Cake is very versatile and lends itself well to baking ahead of time. Just bake, freeze, wrap in plastic, and return to the freezer stored on a metal baking sheet to prevent breakage. Remove plastic wrap and thaw before frosting or filling.

Steaming hot soup full of tummy satisfying ingredients is particularly well suited to cold weather and to begin your holiday dinner.

Soup has many advantages over other foods. Vegetables can be hidden inside and the picky eater will never know the difference – pulverize them in a blender. Just stifle the urge to ask, “Do you know what you just ate?” or giggle uncontrollably when they eat it and ask for more.