Christmas Goodies

Merry Christmas! I hope you have a happy and healthy holiday season. I also wanted to remind you of Christmas recipes I have posted previously, should you decide to make more healthful goodies for your family this year and need some ideas. All of these recipes are very yummy--my kids love them all--and none of them uses refined white sugar:

Christmas Cranberry-Orange Bread (part of our traditional Christmas morning's breakfast)

Gingerbread Cookies (a must for this time of year)

Pumpkin Pie (I didn't make one for Thanksgiving this year, but it's still in season, right? I'll be making one soon!) Along with this, check out my post on how to make a better pie crust.

Delectable Cheesecake (seriously divine)

Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake (most people call it "bread," but we all know it's actually cake made in loaf pans--and scrumptious)

Cranberry-Orange Caramel Corn (yum!)

Homemade Egg Nog (a favorite at our house)

Pumpkin Bread (addictingly delicious)

The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (with no refined sugar)

I recently adapted this recipe from my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe (which comes from a friend's mom), then added cinnamon and nutmeg. It turned out perfectly, so we ate way too many in one sitting. :)

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Yield: About 4 dozen (scoop small because they spread!)

1 c. butter
3/8 c. honey
3/4 c. raw sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 c. oats
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. hot water
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 c. raisins

Cream together butter, honey, and raw sugar until smooth.
Add eggs and blend well.
Add water and blend. Add vanilla and blend.
Add oats, flour, and other dry ingredients and mix well.
Add raisins at end and mix briefly.
Drop small scoops on greased cookie sheet two or three inches apart (they spread).
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
Let cool before removing from pan or they may be too crumbly.

The Value of Nothing

This idea really intrigues me and I am very interested in reading the book. So here's some food for thought:

Stuffed Mushrooms

Dishes such as this never end up looking very attractive, but for me this dish is a delicacy. If you don't like mushrooms (as my daughters don't--yet), you're missing out! This is a traditional family recipe from my mother's side that I remember eating at special family gatherings as a small child. Nowadays I still don't get them very often, but when I do make them, I relish every bite, and so does my husband. (I suppose not having to share them with our two daughters isn't such a bad thing after all...)

Stuffed Mushrooms
Yield: about 12 mushrooms

Wash 8 oz. container fresh mushrooms
Trim any problem spots and carefully pop out stems
Chop up stems
Cook and crumble sausage (I use Jimmy Dean's All Natural 16 oz. roll pork sausage. Only 1/4 of package or less is needed for this recipe, so I just save the rest of the cooked sausage in the freezer for another recipe)

Remove sausage from pan when fully cooked and cook the following in the drippings:
1/4 of small onion, chopped fine
Chopped mushroom stems
Once onion and mushroom stems are soft, add 1/4 of 8 oz. package cream cheese to pan until melted and mixed well. Add a few sprinkles of powdered sage. Add crumbled sausage back in (see sausage note above).
Stuff mushrooms with cream cheese mixture and place in small square casserole dish. Cook at 350 degrees for 20-30 min. Serve warm.

Bean Salad Wraps

Last week I got to craving this dish so bad it surprised me, but when I made it, it hit the spot like nothing had for a long time. With its few ingredients married in the perfect combination, this dish is satisfyingly delicious.

Recipe source: Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, p. 83

Bean Salad Wraps

4 8-inch whole wheat (or other variety) tortillas
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. chopped green sweet pepper
2 Tb. snipped fresh cilantro
1/3 c. mayonnaise dressing or salad dressing
1 Tb. lime juice
Leaf lettuce

In medium bowl, mash black beans slightly. Add sweet pepper and cilantro. Stir in mayo and lime juice.

To serve, spread bean mixture evenly over tortillas. Top with lettuce leaves. Roll up tortillas.