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Do Your Pets Factor into Your Holiday Plans?

Do you make your holiday plans around your pets? That’s an assertion that the Associated Press recently made in an article: pet owners revolve their late-December events around their pets. Examples given by the AP include taking holiday-themed photos of pets, using these or other pictures with the animal for seasonal cards, buying pets gifts (the article maintains that just over half of pet owners do this), and even creating special menus for the pet so it can have a holiday meal alongside its human family. There are two sides to this: one, in which a little holiday cheer is … Continue reading →

It’s the Final Countdown…to Thanksgiving

An old song is swimming in my head, “It’s the final countdown…” Yes, the final countdown until Thanksgiving. Instead of spending the weekend planning and preparing, I enjoyed it…which wouldn’t have been so bad except that as soon as Monday hit, I realized how far behind I was. Of course, I didn’t find out until Friday that I would be hosting Thanksgiving anyway. Every year we switch off with family, the other side does Thanksgiving and we do Christmas. But I guess this year we somehow ended up with both. That’s another story… At any rate, I sit here at … Continue reading →

Christmas with Family

In some families what happens at Christmas is that the family takes turns about whose place it will be held at for the rest of the family to gather. This sounds fine in theory, but it can be a problem if someone is set in their ways and refuses to accept something different. For example, if Mom always cooks certain meals for the Christmas season, there’s no reason it always has to be that way and that everyone else in the family needs to follow suit when it’s their turn and do it the same when it is held at … Continue reading →

Simple Tips for Hosting a Christmas Party

A Christmas party at home can be fun or it can be stressful for you and your spouse. It all depends on the way you approach it. The first thing is to decide on a date with your spouse. There’s no point setting aside a date only to find out your spouse has important meetings that day and will come home tired or will not be around or has something else planned. So communicate on the date first. Next decide together what sort of party you want. Unless you and your spouse are both at ease with the big sit … Continue reading →

Have a Merry Meaty Christmas

Meat is big at our home around the holidays. Whereas I am a huge proponent of twice weekly meatless meals, when Christmas and New Year’s roll around I give into temptation and pull out my favorite red meat recipes. The following dishes are perfect for large groups. If you are planning to host a holiday party, you might consider adding these recipes to your menu. Not only are they simple to make, but they also hearty enough to satisfy the meat lovers at your table. SPICY SLOW COOKER POT ROAST Ingredients: 3 to 5 pounds boneless beef chuck roast 2 … Continue reading →

Quick Green Living Tips for Christmas

Do you want to know what you can do during the holidays to be more environmentally responsible, but you don’t want to slug through a bunch of explanations on why you should or how you should? Take a look at the following simple green living tips that you can practice this Christmas season. Recycle your gift wrap. Reuse your gift wrap. Make your own gift wrap from cloth bags, newspaper or paper bags. Buy a locally grown Christmas tree. Recycle your cut tree. Buy a living tree that can be replanted. You can also rent a living tree. This is … Continue reading →

Gluten Free Christmas Cakes

Have you made your Christmas cake yet? I know some people who have. Somehow I’ve never got around to it. I’m usually one who makes it in the last week. Of course the other reason is I adore fruit cake so the less time it is around the better. This is my sort of recipe, because it is so easy. It’s an all in together recipe that came from a dear friend who invariably caters to me, her gluten free friend. Thanks, my friend. Gluten Free Fruit Cake 2 generous cups Gluten Free S R Flour 2 cups of Mixed … Continue reading →

Edible Christmas Masterpieces

Have you ever considered molding an igloo out of cream cheese to spice up your holiday buffet table? What about crafting a Christmas wreath from crescent rolls and chicken? Does it sound like something you’d leave to professional chefs? Well, think again. There are a slew of simple recipes that allow you to create amazing works of art for your holiday dinner table, without having to take a culinary arts course. Here are a couple of my favorites: CHICKEN AND CRESCENT ROLL CHRISTMAS WREATH Ingredients: 2 packages refrigerated crescent rolls 1/2 cup chopped red pepper 1/2 cup chopped frozen broccoli … Continue reading →

Easy After Christmas Recipes

Christmas is over, but your houseguests haven’t left yet. When leftovers just won’t do, consider feeding the troops these super simple dishes. The recipes are ideal for large groups and hold up well in situations where not everyone can make it to the table at the same time. But, the best part is that you won’t have to spend hours in the kitchen making this feast while the rest of the family is gathered around the TV. HEARTY BEEF DIP Ingredients: 2 pounds lean ground beef 1 cup chopped onion 2 cloves garlic (crushed and minced) 1 can (4 ounces) … Continue reading →

Super Shepard’s Pie for Christmas

Shepard’s Pie ranks up there as one of the most popular comfort foods in the world. This classic homestyle dish exudes warmth and is especially welcome on a cold winter’s day. If you are looking for an affordable Christmas dish that is loaded with flavor, you might consider making the following recipes. The first is for a Traditional Shepard’s Pie with ground beef. It is rich and hearty, but doesn’t require a ton of prep time. The second recipe is for a Ground Turkey Shepard’s Pie. It appeals to those who might be watching their fat intake, but still want … Continue reading →