What a terrific Christmas we had! We had the blessing of having our older daughter, Whitney and her husband Paul with us, as well as my mother-in-law. How thankful we are to celebrate with family and share the joy of our Savior’s birth!
What’s been cooking in the parsonage? Well, on Christmas Eve I made:
Sausage Balls
Country Ham Biscuits
Avocado Dip
Corn Chips
Fresh Veggie Tray
Assorted Cookies
Christmas Day’s menu:
Country ham
Herbed Turkey breast
Mashed Potatoes
Sweet Potato Casserole
Green Bean Casserole
Corn Saute’
Pear/Blue Cheese Salad
Angel Biscuits
Peppermint Punch/Iced Tea
Kentucky Derby Pie
Custard Pie
I’m sure it’s the same at your house – everybody requests their favorite dishes or desserts. My mother-in-law made the comment after we ate – “All that cooking and baking for days, and it’s over in an hour.” But if you really love to cook, and you enjoy pleasing your family, it’s truly a blessing. I enjoyed the preparation as much as sitting down with my family to share it together. The other truth is that we’ve been enjoying the fruits of the work for many days now and we’ll enjoy the leftovers for many days to come!
I ordered the ham from a special place in my hometown – Winchester, Kentucky. It was sliced up in nice thin pieces, perfect for the ham biscuits on Christmas Eve, and also for serving as the second meat at Christmas dinner. It’s not overly salty at all, but tender and delicious!
We had the added blessing, just as dinner started, of getting a quick phone call from Alli in Antigua! How sweet to hear that she’s having a blessed Christmas day. They were headed to the beach for a picnic! Serving the Lord has many grace blessings along the way! Whitney, who is missing her little sister very much, was the one that got to speak with her during dinner (we’d had our chance on Christmas Eve). The phone call did not stop the rest of us from digging in! =) Her call reminded me of this verse: As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country. Proverbs 25:25 How true.
The tablecloth on my table was given to me recently from my mom. It’s been in our family since the early 80’s when they lived in Georgetown, Kentucky. Each Christmas, whoever was there for the meal would sign their name and draw a little something – kind of like a guest book. Then my mom embroidered over it, and it now serves as a keepsake from year to year. This was my first Christmas to possess it and we had a good time reading the guest’s names on the cloth. Then we each took our turns writing and drawing for this year’s remembrance. It’s up to me now to embroider over the pencil markings. I love this and am thankful to keep the tradition going. Thanks, Mom!
If you’re going to have a New Year’s Eve party and want an easy and yummy dip, try the Avocado Dip here. It’s by Kraft and is so easy and so good! Also, the sausage balls are an old recipe that I hadn’t made in years, but they are always a hit. They’re great for breakfast, as well as an appetizer.
Avocado Dip
2 medium sized Avocados, peeled and mashed
1 8 oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 Tbl lemon juice
1 Tbl finely chopped onion
Dash Worcestershire sauce
pinch Salt
Mix cream cheese and avocado until creamy and smooth. Add remaining ingredients. Serve with tortilla chips. Keep refrigerated.
Sausage Balls
1 lb sausage, room temperature
10 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
3 Cups baking mix
Mix sausage and cheese. Add baking mix, one cup at a time. Make into golf ball-sized balls. Bake at 325 degrees for 12 minutes or until browned. Serve warm.
It was a blessed Christmas, indeed. I’ll share some other photos with you on Wednesday. Tell me about your Christmas. What made it special this year?
From my parsonage Kitchen,
