Christmas Dinner in a Post

Okay, here are enough recipes to make an entire Christmas (or Thanksgiving for next year) dinner. For the meat choose either a ham (Honey Baked Hams are great, and as I've said before, so are the ones from Walmart with the purple wrapping) or a turkey (I prefer to do mine by brining, makes it extra juicy). I hope this gives you some ideas and gives you a jumpstart on your grocery shopping. I'm off to spend the day helping at school.

Raspberry Tossed Salad

1 pkg salad greens
2 apples, sliced
1 c. pecans, toasted
1 c. craisins
1/2 c. red onion, sliced
3/4 c. raspberry vinigrette

Toss all but dressing. When ready to serve, add dressing. Toss, serve immediately. Serves 8.


Cranberry Salad

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c. lemon juice
1 (16 oz) can whole cranberry sauce
2 c. mini marshmallows
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 c. chopped pecans
1 (8 oz) tub whipped topping

Combine milk and lemon juice; mix well. Add pineapple, cranberry sauce, marshmallows, and pecans. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into a 13x9 dish. Freeze 4 hours or overnight. Let thaw for 10 minutes; cut into squares. 12-16 servings.


I don't stuff my turkey. You have to be so careful about cooking it properly. I just cook it on its own and then there's no worry. This is Jon's mom's recipe. I love it. This is to make a big batch for Thanksgiving. You can cut the recipe down by 1/3 for everyday use.

Bread Stuffing

12 c. prepared bread crumbs
1 c. melted butter
3/4 c. chopped onion
1 1/2 c. chopped celery
1 Tbsp. Lawry's season salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. Bell's seasoning (comes in a little yellow box with a turkey on it, spice aisle)

Day old bread is best. You can buy 2 packages of that thin Pepperidge Farm bread. One and one-half packages will give you just what you need. Pull the bread apart into about 1/2" pieces. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet. Add onion and cook until tender. Stir in about 1/3 of the crumbs, stirring and heating through. Put this in a deep bowl and add celery and spices, stirring to coat. Add remaining crumbs and stir well. You can bake it for 30 minutes in the oven at the same temp as the turkey if you want. I don't. It's good just like it is to us. You can make it early (day before if you want) and heat it up before serving.


Here are four different vegetable dishes. Yes, I know there are two potato dishes. The sweet potato is an absolute must. The spinach sounds weird but is so worth it, even if you think you don't like spinach. And it's not like quiche, I hate anything that tastes eggy and I still love it. And green bean casserole always goes with the holidays. The Potatoes Supreme are Jon's favorite, so we have to have them.

Sweet Potato Souffle

2 (40 oz.) cans sweet potatoes, drained and mashed
1 stick butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
5 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. allspice
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Topping:
1/4 c. butter
1 1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
1 1/4 c. chopped pecans

Stir butter into potatoes. Beat together remaining ingredients; add to potatoes. Pour into 13x9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Combine topping ingredients. Sprinkle over casserole. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 minutes.


Spinach Ricotta Pie

1 lb ricotta cheese
2 pkgs chopped spinach, drained (takes a while to thaw, wring it out hard, get it as dry as possible)
1/2 lb mozarella, grated, plus more (get a pound)
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 c. parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
salt & white pepper to taste (a little white pepper goes a long way)
dash of tobasco
1 clove garlic, minced
2 slightly cooked pie crusts (just enough so they won't get soggy)

Mix all together and pour into pie crusts. Top with more mozarella and a sprinkling of Parmesan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hr. This doesn't have to be served straight from the oven. Bake it when you first put your turkey or ham in, remove and cover with foil. Cover with towels or place in one those pyrex warmers until ready to serve. It'll be fine at almost room temperature. It'll even be good next day cold for breakfast.


Green Bean Casserole

3/4 c. milk
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 cans green beans, drained
1 1/3 c. french onions, divided
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Combine milk, pepper, soup, beans, Worcestershire sauce, and 2/3 c. onions. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Top with 2/3 c. onions. Bake 5 minutes more.


Potatoes Supreme

1 c. sour cream
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 c. melted butter
1/3 c. sliced green onions
1 1/2 c. swiss cheese, shredded, divided
10-12 c. cubed, cooked potatoes (cook about 14 fist sized potatoes)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. cracker (Ritz usually, but others will do) crumbs

Mix 1 c. of cheese with sour cream, soup, butter, onions, salt, and pepper. Fold into cooked potatoes. Mix 1/2 c. cheese with cracker crumbs. Sprinkle over potatoes. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Dessert is a good thing to ask others to bring. But if you want to do it all, here are a couple of make ahead options. I like the balance of something chocolate and something else.

Pumpkin Pie (Jon's mom's recipe)

3 c. pumpkin
1 tsp. salt
1 can evaporated milk plus regular milk to equal 2 1/2 c.
4 eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cloves
2 pre-baked pie shells

Beat all ingredients together. Pour into pie shells. Bake in the bottom of the oven for 15 minutes at 400 degrees, then 40-45 minutes at 350 degrees.


Brownie Delight

1 brownie mix
2 boxes vanilla pudding
1 (16 oz) tub Cool Whip
1 Skor candy bar, grated

Bake brownies as directed. Cool completely. Mix pudding as directed. In a trifle bowl, layer 1/2 of each--brownies, pudding, cool whip, skor. Repeat layers. Keep refrigerated.