Christmas Brunch

We saw both my parents and my brother and his family over the recent holiday period.

Not on Christmas Day itself. But we managed a Christmas brunch two days early.

I figured that wasn't bad going!

Christmas brunch laid out (with the girl's art gallery behind!).

Having it the day after Charlotte's party meant a bit of hard work. But fortunately Grandma and Grandpa were on hand to help out. And we cheated with a few purchased items.

The fresh fruit Christmas tree prepared by Grandpa.

The menu included:

• bircher muesli (dairy free)
• parfaits with fancy granola, thick greek-style yoghurt and fresh strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and pomegranate seeds (I invented the recipe)
• croissants (purchased from Costco)
• danish pastries, including maple pecan twists (also purchased from Costco)
• fresh fruit Christmas tree (following a picture I found on Pinterest, but couldn't locate a site to give credit to)
• Christmas cake (purchased from Costco)
• mini pancake stacks with maple syrup and blueberries (my recipe, presented as I had seen in some pictures online)
• zucchini, feta & basil muffins with cherry tomatoes (from a recipe found here)
• scrambled eggs
• roast tomatoes
• breakfast potatoes
• mushrooms with butter, garlic & thyme
• orange, apple and tomato juices

Breafast parfaits with granola, yoghurt and fresh berries.

Mini pancake stacks with maple syrup and blueberries.

Zucchini, feta & basil muffins with cherry tomatoes.

The weather was a bit cool, which thwarted my plans to eat outside. But we were able to put two folding tables together lengthwise to make one long table we could all sit at comfortably on the back porch.

I purchased four metres of hessian from Bunnings to make a rustic tablecloth, over which I placed a centrepiece I already had, and two little red planters with thyme and oregano in. The glasses had red and white striped straws, we used red paper serviettes, and there was a bon bon at each place setting. It was all thrown together pretty much at the last minute, but I thought it worked OK.

The table looks pretty - but where's the food?

The family ready to eat (Emma & Ruben not pictured).

My handsome hubby.

Lucinda enjoying herself as always.

Everyone had a good time eating, then it was time to head inside for presents.

Grandpa Santa with his three little helpers.

Charlotte unwrapping a present.

Grace doing the same.

Ayla seems pleased with this one.

Charlotte playing with the special dominos Grandpa made her.

Grace's other cousins gave her a pig dress up suit.

It is lovely to see the children get so excited. And for me, it was really nice to spend time with the majority of my family at such a significant time of year.

I wonder what we'll do next year?

Christmas Cupcakes

It seems this has been the season of cupcakes at our house.

For the Beginner's Sabbath School Christmas party at church I made some mini Christmas tree cupcakes. And I must admit, I was very proud of the results:

Mini Christmas tree cupcakes

I baked little lemon and sour cream cupcakes because I know they're a hit. The kids don't seem to go for Christmas spices that much.

A quick online search for Christmas tree cupcake images provided decoration inspiration. I piped some green buttercream icing on top to make the trees, and topped each with a candy star I'd found in Spotlight. Then I just sprinkled some hundreds and thousands on top for the decorations.

The finished product.

A few were slightly lopsided, but the kids didn't seem to mind!

Each Christmas since we've been married I have made something to give to our neighbours for Christmas. This year, it was reindeer cupcakes. Chosen as I was into the swing of cupcakes, and thought the girls would enjoy helping me make them.

A chocolate reindeer cupcake.

Once again, I used ideas from a couple of different websites, so don't have a link to share. But the cupcake is chocolate, and is iced in chocolate buttercream icing. The nose is a red M & M, and the antlers are mini pretzels.

I cheated a little bit for the eyes, and purchased some pre-made icing eyes (once again in the cake decorating section of Spotlight). Grace and Charlotte helped me put them on. Consequently, the reindeer are looking in all directions, and some of them look a little bit scared!

I packed them in little boxes, and Neil and the girls delivered them to some of the people on our street.

I wonder what we'll make next year?

The most wonderful time of the year??

On Sunday I purchased a new CD.

The Christmas Album, by Human Nature.

I thought the great harmonies and Christmas tunes would cheer me up.

And the music is great. I love it. But the lyrics got me thinking.

"Have yourself a merry little Christmas,

Let your heart be light.

From now on

Our troubles will be out of sight."

Really?

Contrary to the movies, there is no special magic about Christmas.

It's just a day.

A day on which some people have accidents. Continue to battle chronic illnesses. Run out of money. Lose babies. Die. Problems will not suddenly disappear when Christmas day dawns.

When I think about it, there are a lot of Christmas songs that build up unrealistic expectations of the festive season. One of the worst culprits (fortunately not on the Human Nature album) is 'It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year'.

"It's the hap-happiest season of all

With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings

When friends come to call

It's the hap-happiest season of all."

I don't know about you, but friends calling unannounced over Christmas usually sends me into a panic. The house is a mess. The kids are misbehaving. I haven't got a present to give them. My baking didn't turn out - if I actually got around to doing it. I'm happy to see them. But it's so much work!

Do the expectations of Christmas wear you down?

On Christmas day, I am expected to prepare a fancy meal and have it all on the table at the correct time, perfectly cooked.

I'm expected to buy presents for my family and friends that they will love, while at the same time not blowing the budget.

Everyone is expected to get along famously, even if they haven't spoken all year.

And we are all expected to feel happier than at any other time.

This was all getting a bit much for me, when I came to another song on the album:

"Amazing grace

How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me ...

My chains are gone

I've been set free

My God, my Saviour's ransomed me

And like a flood His mercy reigns

Unending love

Amazing grace."

Christmas day isn't magical. But what it celebrates is miraculous.

Jesus was born. God became a human.

His birth sets me free.

God has no expectations, except that I come to Him.

I can be physically broken. Emotionally drained. A failure.

I can be worn out. Broke. A mess.

But if I come, He will accept me. He will love me. He will change me.

And that really is wonderful.

Christmas Decorations 2011

There wasn't a themed decor at our house this Christmas. No colour co-ordinated decorations. Nothing breakable. My precious souvenir and gift decorations from overseas stayed in their boxes. But I was quite happy with it that way.

Instead, we went for handmade (mixed in with other bits and bobs).

Grace and Grandma painted and put stickers on some shapes to hang on the tree.

Our friend Margaret from Sabbath School knitted little bears and rabbits for us.

Dylan and Owen in England were assisted by their mum Sarah to make some beautiful personalised baubles for Grace and Charlotte.

There was even a decoration Charlotte made at childcare.

We strung the Christmas cards we received across the stone fireplace like last year. At first it seemed ambitious having three strings up, but we filled up four again. And that was our Christmas corner!

You'll note the play pen protecting Charlotte from the tree (and vice versa)! And the stockings hanging from Grace's new kitchen because I wasn't sure where else to put them.

One final note. I haven't got a picture of it, but this year I purchased the Fischer Price Little People Nativity Set. I can't recommend it highly enough. Grace played with it for hours, pressing the angel to make the star shine on baby Jesus and the music play. And it is completely children-who-like-to-chew-things-or-throw-them-on-the-floor friendly!

Christmas Dinner Recipes

As promised, here are the recipes for the two main savoury dishes I make each year for Christmas.


Sweet Onion & Ricotta Cheesecake with Cranberries & Sage


This is a recipe by Celia Brooks Brown, one of my favourite cookbook authors. Her book 'Entertaining Vegetarians' (Pavilion Books, 2003) remains one of my favourite recipe books of all time. I love how it is divided into events, with a sample menu for each one. And there are some really simple and yummy recipes. This is one of them.


Ingredients:


1 kg fresh ricotta cheese (best from the deli, so it isn't too watery)
3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing and drizzling
350g onions (approx. 2 large), chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
10 fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
4 eggs, beaten
6 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper
150g/1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (or recently I've been using craisins, which works well too)
55g cracker crumbs, finely crushed
whole fresh sage leaves, to garnish


Method:


Preheat the oven to 190º C. Place the ricotta in a sieve and stand over a bowl or the sink. Leave to drain thoroughly while you cook the onions.


Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a low heat. Add the onions and cook gently, stirring frequently, until very soft, but not coloured. Add the garlic and sage and cook for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.


Beat together the drained ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, salt and pepper (ideally in a food processor) until totally smooth. Stir in the onion mixture and cranberries and mix thoroughly.


Brush a 22 cm springform tin generously with olive oil. Sprinkle the cracker crumbs evenly over the bottom and sides, then pour in the ricotta mixture and smooth the surface with a spatula. Garnish the top with whole sage leaves and drizzle a little olive oil over the top, especially the sage leaves. Place on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes - 1 hour, until firm and golden. Leave to cool for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a serving plate. Serve warm or cold.

Cheese, Cashew and Walnut Roast


I found this recipe a few years ago, when searching online for vegetarian nut roast recipes. It was contained in an article in The Guardian (UK) in December, 2006 written by Julia Ponsonby. It comes from a recipe book entitled 'Gaia's Kitchen' (2000), which is a collection of the most popular recipes from Schumacher College in Devon during their first 10 years.


This recipe makes quite a large quantity, and serves at least six. I am sometimes a little loose with measuring the ingredients, but it really doesn't seem to matter.


Ingredients:


175g onion, finely diced
175g chopped mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium red pepper, finely diced
2-3 sticks celery, finely diced
1 tbsp mixed herbs
250g cooked brown rice (about 100g before cooking)
110g walnuts, finely chopped
110g cashew pieces
5 medium eggs
175g cottage cheese
340g grated cheese (I use cheddar)
50ml chopped fresh herbs, incl. parsley, rosemary and thyme (I've never figured out that measurement!)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil


Method:

1. Sauté the onion and celery in olive oil until they begin to go transparent.

2. Add the mushrooms, garlic, red pepper, dried herbs, salt and pepper. Cook until mixture is soft, stirring regularly to avoid burning.

3. Combine the cooked ingredients with all the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

4. Line a 1kg loaf tin (or I use a flatter, wider baking dish) with baking parchment. The simplest way to do this is to use two pieces that will cross over on the base of the tin - a narrow one for the length of the tin and a wide one for the width. Fill to, at most, 7cm (3 inches) deep. Fold over paper, to help prevent drying out. If the mixture is too deep, the outside may get rather leathery before the inside is properly set. Avoid using ordinary, old-fashioned greaseproof paper as it lacks the non-stick properties of silicone parchment and this is a very sticky mixture. If you have to use it, make sure it is generously buttered.

5. Bake at 180°C for 1-1½ hours until firm. A knife inserted will come out wet but relatively clean showing that the eggs have set. Remove from the oven and allow to stand for five to 10 minutes before turning out and serving. Garnish with roughly chopped parsley. Carve into generous slices. Can also be served cold.


There you go! I've only included the metric measurements, but if you search online you'll find the original recipe with more details. Let me know if you give either recipe a try, and what you think. 

Christmas Day 2011

Christmas Day started in our home around 6:00 am (as most days do), with Christmas stockings to be emptied ...

... followed by lots of presents to be unwrapped!

Grace spotted her toy kitchen straight away. It was a bit hard to wrap! She loves it, and has played with it for hours already. Many thanks to Grandpa for his superb assembly work.

Grace also loved the play dough toys Aunty Janelle and her family sent ...

... and looked lovely in the new top Mummy bought her (playing with Charlotte's new camera).

The morning was spent enjoying all the new toys (including Daddy's new coffee machine), while I prepared for lunch.

We had thought it would just be the four of us, but were really pleased to be joined for lunch by my good friend Nicole, and her sister Michelle. They spent Christmas with us two years ago, so it all felt very relaxed and like family.

About 12:30 pm we sat down to a lovely Christmas dinner (recipes will come in another post) which included:

• Sweet onion cheesecake with cranberries and sage
• Cashew, cheese and walnut roast
• Gluten steaks with homemade gravy (made by Michelle)
• Baby potatoes with rosemary and garlic
• Little corn cobs
• Honeyed carrots
• Steamed broccolini
• Roast pumpkin
• Roast cherry truss tomatoes
• Salad with orange, grapefruit and walnuts (I don't know it's official name, but it was a contribution from the girls and was very yummy)

After dinner, my wonderful husband achieved a miracle, and managed to convince both little girls to have a nap, at the same time, for about two hours! Bliss! I promptly went off for an hour's nap of my own (the best present I could have asked for!), and Michelle also had a rest. Neil and Nicole kindly cleaned up and solved the world's problems in our absence.

After waking up, Grace was delighted when Nicole brought out a gingerbread house kit. Together they assembled and decorated it, and were very proud of the results.

Daddy and Charlotte enjoyed watching the creation take shape, until it was all too much and they needed a rest.

Rosie felt the same way!

We hope no matter where you were, and what you were doing, you were also able to enjoy some special time on Christmas Day this year.