Glühwein

Glühwein

Last year at Christmas my mom made a delicious batch of Glühwein for our family.

This weekend our Wine Club was over so I made it for everyone.

When I was young we lived in Germany.  In the 7th grade my class took a trip to Nürnberg at Christmas and we visited the Christkindlmarkt (outdoor Christmas market).  There I saw this huge batch of Glühwein for sale by the mug to adults needing a hot toddy while they shopped. 

While it didn't look delicious then, I think it would hit the spot now on a snowy December shopping day outdoors in Germany!

source

Glühwein is also known as Mulled Wine.

It's served warm and can be garnished with a cinnamon stick or thin slice of orange.

I made a double batch last weekend and it was just about gone.

Here is the recipe for the single batch.

You heat water in a pan and add the cinnamon sticks, honey, and spices.

Then you cut the orange in 8ths and poke the cloves in and add to your pan.

Add the wine and heat to almost boiling then remove from the heat.

Once it's cool enough to taste, check for sweetness and add sugar to your liking.

I added 1 Tbsp and stirred it to dissolve completely.

Mine was simmering so could be served in mugs or glasses.

Note:  I did not have whole clove so I used ground gloves.  They don't dissolve well so I will use the whole clove next time.



Asparagus Casserole

Asparagus Casserole

This is one of my favorite holiday dishes from David's side of the family.  I absolutely love it.

I'm going to share with you two ways to make it.

When we lived in Mexico I made a big Thanksgiving meal one year and we had several American families over.  In addition we asked our nanny, Nahila, and her three sisters to join us.  They were really excited to see what an American "Dia de Gracias" was all about.

Nahila's sister, Raquel, fell in love with Asparagus Casserole.  Asparagus isn't plentiful in Mexico, so I surprised her for her birthday with a double batch of Asparagus Casserole instead of a cake.  She was so excited!

Raquel (expecting at the time) is on the left with her sisters Elisa and Nahila

For a party Sunday evening, I made a large batch.  You can easily halve this recipe.

Start by draining two cans of asparagus and laying them in the 9x13 baking dish.

Have your helper slice boiled eggs and arrange them on top of the asparagus.

Crush two sleeves of Ritz crackers and season with salt and pepper.

At this point you can make a white sauce (my preference) or open 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup (David's preference).  You'll then alternate layering 1/2 crackers, 1/2 cheddar cheese, and 1/2 white sauce/soup.  Then you cook for 40 minutes at 350.

The white sauce takes a little longer to make, but I love the flavors together.

David shakes his head and says it wouldn't be Asparagus Casserole without cream of mushroom soup.

Your choice!

To make a white sauce, melt 6 Tbsp butter in a saucepan.  Add 6 Tbsp flour and mix well.  Add 2 cups milk and whisk constantly over medium high heat until it becomes a thick sauce.  Season with salt & pepper and a little nutmeg.

As always, my photos don't do the delicious dish justice. 

Also because I had 20+ people over and I'm surprised I even remembered to snap a photo!

Try it sometime - it's really good.

Double click to print recipe as a 5x7 card.

Happy Holidays!



Feta Dip

Clover Lane's Feta Dip

I saw this delicious appetizer on Sarah's cooking blog and had to try it out.

We went to a neighborhood Christmas party yesterday afternoon and I wanted to take something that didn't involve cooking.  This looked delicious.

You start by pouring a generous amount of olive oil on your platter.

Then you chop tomatoes, green onions, and a block of feta cheese and add it to the platter.

Top with Greek seasoning and mix it up.

Serve with baguette slices.

I could have eaten it with a spoon :)

It was a big hit!

Double click to print as a 5x7 recipe card.

Kalí óreksi!

(Greek for Bon Appetit!)



Melissa's Chocolate Chip Cookies

When we visited our friends Melissa, Gary, and new baby Addie last week, we had the most delicious chocolate chip cookies.  The Boatwright men devoured them during our visit.

Gary tells us that Melissa developed the recipe on her own, trying out a lot of varieties, trying to find one that rivals a Pillsbury cookie.  Mission accomplished.

Melissa and baby Addie

I asked Melissa if I could have her recipe to make cookies for a Christmas Cookie Exchange party we are heading to tonight.  Each family takes 3 dozen homemade cookies to share.

The cookies are really delicious and I made 4 dozen so my family could enjoy some as well.

You mix the wet ingredients.  Then mix it in with the dry ingredients.

I placed the cookie dough on Silpats on top of cookie sheets.

Mmmmm.  Sooo good right out of the oven!

Platter fixed up for tonight's party.

And a few extras for my cookie monsters.

Melissa shared variations on this recipe that I wanted to share as well!

Sugar Cookies - use all white sugar instead of brown+white

Oatmeal Cookies - use 1 1/4 c flour and 3 c instant oats

Double click to print as a 5x7 recipe card.

Thank You Melissa!



Quick Cookie Platter

Quick Cookie Platter

I am going to Book Club tonight and offered to take a dish to share.

Luckily our host suggested something sweet for us to nibble on and I had a great plan.

Every year at Christmas I stock up on various kinds of gourmet-like cookies and tuck them in the back of the pantry for such occasions.

I have plans almost all day today so this will be perfect - a quick cookie platter.

I am embarrassed to even call this a recipe, because it's not at all.

It is nice to have on hand though and I thought I'd share with you and remind myself that it's easy to pull together, even on a crazy day.

This is the assortment I picked up at Wal-Mart this year.

I ended up using a larger platter than in the photo above.



Topped with biscotti and ready to go.

 

Covered with Saran Wrap.

And the leftovers for the cookie monsters at my house. 

Happy Holidays!