12 Days of Christmas {Treats}

About that Christmas thing:

1. According to an old wives’ tale if you bake bread on Christmas Eve then it will be fresh forever. (I know that it’s just a superstitious folk tale, but I just may try this. Even if it does go stale, I can always use the bread for a French toast recipe.)
2. The customary Christmas dinner in England included a pig head with mustard sauce. However, this is not followed anymore In England. (My grandma tells me that her family used to use pig head to make hogs head cheese. I’ve seen pig cheeks prepared like bacon in fine dining. I’ve seen pig’s ears in the mystery basket on ‘Chopped’….yet I will never eat any meat from a pig’s head. Especially not with mustard sauce. Not gonna happen.)
3. Oliver Cromwell stopped the celebration of Christmas in England during 1647- 1660. According to him it was immoral to celebrate the holiest day of the year. It was a criminal offence. He or she could find him or her behind the bars if he/she was found guilty of celebrating Christmas. (What.. a …tool.)

(Source: http://www.theholidayspot.com)

Christmastime was so much fun for me growing up.

Seriously, I wish every kid could have had the chance to grow up in my house if for nothing else, for the Christmases. First of all, we were the type of family that decked the whole house out in yuletide gear. We had outdoor lights and wreaths hanging on the doors outside. Inside there were Christmas ornaments, decorations and cards displayed on empty tabletops and on the walls. Assorted nut trays and bowls with red and green Hershey’s kisses were out for guests. Our tree may have been fake, but it was pimped out to the maximum; every available branch held ornaments, candy canes, and the ugly little art projects me and my sisters made in school and at Sunday School that the adults put on the tree anyway. We wound lights, tinsel and streamers from the top and tucked them in between the branches. One of the clearest memories I have as a little girl is sitting in the living room at night with all the lights out just watching the Christmas tree.

Church was really busy and bustling at that time of year because we were always in the Christmas pageant/show that the kids put on for the rest of the church. I can still remember the year where we all were given bells to shake during the song “Come on Ring Those Bells”. I dropped my bell on the ground. So I just started shaking my hand up and down, hoping that no one would notice. Good times.

I’m huge fan of those butter cookies you buy in the shiny blue tins at the store. They’re simple, but filled with so much flavor They tend to make more of a visible appearance at this time of year, and while I could have bought one, I (of course) decided to take the ‘scenic route’ and try to make my own. I found a recipe on Food.com that is actually very similar to the original. After they were done, I topped them with a simple icing (powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract) and sprinkles. Aren’t they purdy?

There are so many reasons why this movie is a ‘must’ at Christmas, I couldn’t even start to name them without boring you all. Hopefully I’ll just be ‘preaching to the choir’ rather than just actually trying to convince anybody out there that Elf is something you must make apart of your yearly traditions and rituals. It really doesn’t seem like it’s been that long since it first came out, but in reality it was released in 2003.

That’s ten years ago guys. Long enough for anything to feel like a classic. Also long enough for me to feel like I’m getting old.

Anyway, back to Elf. Will Ferrell plays Buddy, a human elf from the North Pole that comes to NYC to try to find his long lost  birth father who is on Santa’s “Naughty List” (dundunDUN). Safe for all ages, it’s a really sweet, feel-good story meant to get you in the Christmas spirit (literally). It’s also friggin hilarious….one of the few truly hilarious movies that Ferrell has been in. (Oops, did I just say that?) 

Friends don’t let friends be a cotton-headed ninny-muggins. They tell them to watch Elf for Christmas. That’s what I’m doing for all of you: watch it. It’s for your own good.

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Danish Butter Cookies

Recipe Courtesy of Food.com

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE VERSION

Ingredients

• 8 ounces unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Beat the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla together until smooth and creamy.

2. Mix in the egg yolk until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl at least once.

3. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated.

4. Scrape onto a lightly floured board and knead a few times, just until the dough smoothes out.

5. Turn onto a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a log, wrap up and refrigerate for several hours or freeze.

6. Before baking, preheat the oven to 325°F.

7. Line your baking sheets with parchment.

8. Slice the dough into slices about 1/8″ thick and place them on the sheets about an inch apart (they won’t be spreading very much, but they need air room around each cookie).

9. Bake until JUST beginning to turn golden around the edges, about 10-12 minutes.

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