Christmas is nearly upon us. Do you have your shopping done? I hope so because the malls will be even bigger nightmares tomorrow. I tell you what, if you don’t have a gift for that certain someone, buy them an online gift card and call it good. I would.
Tonight we’ll attend the annual Nash Christmas party which unites both sides of my husband’s family along with their extended loved ones. I bet we’ll have sixty to eighty people there. What to feed them?
Roasted (insert your favorite meat here if you do indeed eat meat);
Green bean casserole;
Baked beans;
Cheese platters;
Cheese balls, crackers;
Homemade candies like Grandma Bo used to make, i.e., divinity, Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy (an Oklahoma tradition), fudge, peanut brittle ; and
Loads of dips and chips and veggies. I’m bringing humus which I purchased at the newly-opened, local Mediterranean eatery, Simply Falafel. I shouldn’t be telling you this because I’ll never get a table again, but it’s in Edmond right by the Target on 2nd Street next to Tao, and it is good.
I bet you didn’t expect Oklahoma to be so multicultural did you? So diverse? Well, Edmond is a college town too (along with Tulsa, Stillwater and my favorite, Norman), and the University of Central Oklahoma worked hard to attract students from other countries, so we live in a thriving multicultural haven of sorts (around 2nd Street at least). That’s where my beloved Thai Delight is too. Ate there yesterday in fact.
Mediterranean cuisine is great for gluten free diets. Just leave off the bread.
So, this morning after braving coffee with NGBF Aimee at 7:30 a.m., I ran home and made lemon bars from Gluten-Free Baking Classics
Oh, and we made the Texas sheet cake from Gluten Free Betty. Clever blog name. The only differences were I used my favorite non-dairy buttery sticks and Silk’s great almond milk (with cider vinegar to sour it). The cake is wonderful especially because I used Penzey’s natural cocoa. Yum.
Tomorrow I tackle cherry pie and those cookies for my family’s celebration. Along with the sugary treats, we’ll have Schwab’s hot dogs (in flaming Oklahoma red) with chili and saurkraut, tamales (red and green from our friends at El Parian in Edmond), shrimp, potato salad, baked beans and Nani’s fruit salad.
Again, everyone say it with me, “YUM!”
Note that this meal has no rhyme or reason. Nani’s fruit salad is from the great aunt of my sister’s ex-husband. He wasn’t very nice, but the salad was divine. We kept the salad. I’ll share the recipe next week. I can’t eat it because it’s loaded with whipped cream, but it’s a family tradition, and where would we be with tradition I ask you?
So, enjoy whatever y’all are having on Christmas Eve, and I’ll raise a glass of sparkling grape juice to you.
Thank you so much for being my friends, and Merry Christmas.
What are you making for Christmas?
We also have a madcap family meal for Christmas. At least one of everyone’s favorite foods, and you can eat whenever you want, as we play board games, computer games, and look through family photos.
I also had a lovely Christmas. Mostly calm, too much food, and just the right amount of love. I hope all is well there in multicultural red dirt country.
Layanee, it sounds like a lovely Christmas full of rest and relaxation.
Dee, I had a lovely Christmas~very calm with just some dear friends and our darling only son and his gf! It’s been years since we had a big family get together~It’s not easy when family lives all over! Your get together sounds delightful, as do those mouth watering treats~I love lemon bars! xxoogail
Gail, my dear, I’m glad your Christmas was so good. Nothing like seeing our dear ones each year.
Hope you had a wonderful Christmas Dee, sounds like it was filled with yummy treats. 🙂 We had Ham, Green Bean Casserole, Candied Sweet Potatoes, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes with Gravy, and of course Pumpkin Pie. 🙂
Racquel, it was full of yummy treats. Yours sounds delightful too.
We kept it really simple this year, and I loved it! Ham, potato salad from the Walmart deli, Pamela’s cornbread, frozen green beans made in a way they taste like fresh, canned baked beans, and canned cranberry sauce. GFCF apple crisp for dessert. We were all happy.
Love seeing photos of your beautiful home.
Xxxooo
CurtissAnn
Curtiss Ann, that sounds so good. Merry Christmas to you sweetie!
Hope you are having a Wonderful Christmas. Wishing you a Blessed New Year.
Hi Lona, it’s been a wonderful Christmas. I can tell yours was too.
Merry Christmas Dee. Hope this day and the ones to follow find you happy, healthy and full of inspiration! Sure have enjoyed getting to know you this year. Thanks for all the kindness. Cheers!
Hi Jim, I’ve loved meeting you too. Thank you for your friendship.
You have made me hungry Dee. We head out tomorrow to meet up with family at my Sisters house. Indeed we eat meat, standing rib roast for dinner with all the trimmings. I will be making a ceasar salad. I have to drive the furthest so they take pity on me. 😉 I am wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas.
Hi Lisa, now you’ve made me hungry. I love standing rib roast.
Merry Christmas to you and yours Dee.
Wow, that’s a lot of people coming together to celebrate Christmas, but what fun!
Yummmm to most of the food you mentioned, love hummus.
Making mulled wine and baking cookies, otherwise not so much as I’m dining out. Yup, I live the life of luxury. 😉
My best wishes for the New Year with loads of happy gardening!
Yolanda XXX
Hi Yolanda, a very Merry Christmas to you too. I’ve never had mulled wine. It sounds interesting though.
I love Mediterranean food! We are having roast, asparagus, green beans, and salad. To wrap it up, there will be pecan pie and brownies. Of course, we will lay out sugar cookies, fresh out of the oven, for Santa. You have a Merry Christmas!
Dear Dee, your family get together sounds fabulous, if crowded! I look forward to the salad recipe, glad you kept that. I have a newspaper clipping from the Norman paper that my grandmother had clipped for Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy, which seems to be pralines to me. Ah, sweet memories. Hugs and kisses from Tennessee!
Merry Christmas to you and yours, Dee!
Merry Christmas…I am visiting relatives so I am the cooks helper…and the taste tester….
The girl & I cut out the sugar cookies today, but we still need to frost them. I have no clue what I’m bringing to the big Christmas Eve get together, whatever I can make from what’s on hand. It’s a great idea for the extended family to get together before Christmas. I hope you have a good one.
We are having duck, green beans, yams, and apple pie. Here for Christmas then visiting my brother in Arlington. Happy Christmas Dee. H.
Helen, that sounds so good and gentile. I love hearing what others will have. Safe travels to Arlington my friend. You’ll be in my thoughts and prayers.
I am going to my sister’s (where my niece, 15, and brother-in-law also reside) and we are having who-knows-what, because last week their kitchen floor sprung a leak and things got worse from there! No kitchen, but we will improvise merrily anyhow.
Maybe I will bring along a picnic.
Happy holiday to you, Dee. The menu above is positively madcap, and it all sounds like a very good time indeed. Enjoy!
Margaret, if only I’d thought of that word. Madcap is perfect.
Yes, a picnic might be in order. No kitchen. That would be tough.
I’m making a fruit salad. Oh, and a special breakfast casserole. And I’m going to make some fun and merriment along the way. Merry Christmas, Dee!
Sounds like fun for all at your house too Carol. Merry Christmas my dear, dear friend.