Homespun Holiday Garland

I love this little gingerbread-man garland!  It was made of calico by a very talented crafter in San Antonio.  I think it would also make a nice bunch separately--arranged in a basket, perched on Christmas tree branches, or handed to a child to play with in anticpation of the big day.

Each figure is about 6 inches high.  All you have to do is use a large gingerbread man cookie cutter as a pattern, trace around it on some calico prints, stitch together, stuff, and join hands.

Spiced Pecans

If you're looking for a holiday snack that's not sugary or eggy, this is for you.  Thanks to my dear friend, Kay, for sharing her recipe.

SPICED PECANS

1-1/2 lb. pecan halves

1/2 cup butter, melted

1-1/2 tsp. soy sauce

1-1/8 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce (or more)

Preheat oven to 300 deg. F.

Combine all ingredients in a large metal pan, like a lasagna or jelly roll pan.  Stir well to coat the pecans, and spread them evenly in the pan.

Bake for 20 minutes, stirring twice.  Remove from oven and scoop the pecans out onto paper towels.

When completely cool, store in an airtight container.

Absinthia Returns, Part 1

Shopping mall in Toronto, 2008  (photo by Benson Kua)

Living a Simple Life

My Swedish friend, Absinthia, has kindly agreed to have another conversation with me for this blog.  In 2011, we posted an 8-part series of emails, starting here.  The current series is about living a simple life, and I think you'll enjoy her perspective.

Dear Absinthia,

I have been thinking about you a lot, lately, and I hope we can have another conversation--this time about simple, basic living. As humans, we must start making the transition. Global warming is happening faster than we expected, and we’ve just got to take swift, major steps to correct the way we are living on this Earth.

- amanda

Hello!

I wanted to think if I have something to say and share about simple living, and I think I do :-) We have been living a small simple life for some years now so I have learned quite a lot, remembered lessons my granny and grandfather taught me, read some, heard some, realised some and thought some too ;-)

I am now a teacher fiber crafts, and I also do commission work.  It may sound strange, but I am much happier and feel physically much better now, even though we have approximately a third as much money as we did before.

I hear and read that many people think that Christmas is a very stressful time. I think that may be because they are focused on the material stuff “Buying, buying, buying!!!” instead of making an experience “let´s have a lovely holiday together: read, tumble around in the snow, and drink hot cocoa!”

And this is the core of the climate-disaster in the making, don´t you think? If we stop the “buying, buying, buying,” then the big businesses cannot enslave the poor countries into child labour, and then the international traders will no longer get rich from all those poisonous mass-producing industries that contaminate the water and the earth, and all the cheap stuff will no longer be transported hence and forth, bought by us and then hardly get any use before we exchange it with some new cheap bad-quality stuff, and then get thrown away at the junk heaps everywhere.

We have completely stopped buying Christmas gifts. We buy trees in an agroforestry-project and send their gift-cards as Christmas cards :-) It saves the earth and gives the growers and their families a way to support themselves. I am happy to have found such a nice project to support. We have supported them for more than 10 years now :-D

- Absinthia

The conversation is continued here:

  Absinthia Returns, Part 2.

Maple-Pecan Fried Slaw

This is a wonderful veggie side dish, which I adapted from a recipe in Gourmet Magazine. Originally calling for shredded Brussels sprouts, I tried cabbage once, and found that it tastes much better. So here's my version, which the whole family likes--even the kids.

MAPLE PECAN SLAW

1/2 cup pecan pieces (approx. 1/2”)
1/2 stick (4 Tbsp.) butter
1 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. salt
1 lb. cabbage, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp. black pepper
2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

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In a dry skillet, toast pecans over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until fragrant and slightly browned. Add 1 Tbsp. of the butter, the maple syrup, and 1/2 tsp. of the salt. Turn heat to low and warm the ingredients until butter is melted and pecans are coated. Set aside.

In a large, open pan, such as a stock pot, melt the remaining butter with the black pepper and the rest of the salt over medium heat. Add the cabbage and toss. Sauté until wilted but still crisp-tender--about 3-5 minutes. Add the vinegar and cook for 1 more minute.

Add the pecan and maple glaze from the skillet, and cook for another minute, stirring well.

Serves 8

adapted from a recipe by Shelley Wiseman found in Gourmet Magazine, Nov. 2003
http://www.gourmet.com/recipes/2000s/2003/11/brussels-sprouts-maple-hickory-nuts


For more of my favorite cabbage recipes, see
How to Cook Non-Yucky Cabbage
Barely Borscht
Cabbage Soup
Colcannon
Onion Pie

Butterscotch Bark: A New Decadence

Here's the new recipe I tried... well, thought-up... this year for Yule and Christmas. With my new step-grandson visiting, I was careful to avoid chocolate and red food coloring, as requested. So, I came up with this super-easy variation on peppermint bark (couldn't find white peppermint candy this year, anyway). It tastes totally sinful!

Now I want to try this with other hard candies, like lemon drops or root beer barrels.

BUTTERSCOTCH BARK

11 oz. (1 pkg.) white chocolate chips
4 oz.(1/2 cup) butterscotch hard candies, unwrapped

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Place candy in a heavy plastic bag, and hit with a hammer to break up into 1/4” or smaller pieces. For best results, do your hammering with a folded towel under the bag, placed on a hard floor or cement. This will leave some candy powder, so a few layers of plastic wrap or paper towels under the bag will help.

Place white chocolate in a microwaveable bowl. Cover and microwave for 2 minutes or less, depending upon the wattage. Stir until smooth, then stir in the butterscotch.

Spread the mixture 1/4” to 1/2” thick on waxed paper placed on a cookie sheet or in the bottom of a large, flat pan . Cool in refrigerator for about 45 minutes.

Break into bite-sized pieces and store in an airtight container.

Wassail

Another one of our Yule favorites is this nonalcoholic wassail. My kids have loved it since they were little.

WASSAIL

1-1/2 quarts (32 oz.) apple juice
2 cups pineapple juice
1 cup orange juice
juice from 1 lemon
9 allspice berries
9 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 small orange (optional)

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Place spices in a spice infuser, tea ball, or cloth bag. The wassail can be made with ground spices instead: use about 1/4 tsp. each.

Combine juices in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Add the spices and boil for 1 minute. Turn down the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes or more.

Turn off heat and serve with a ladle, or turn down to a very low simmer to keep warm. This can also be transferred to a crock pot for serving and keeping warm. If desired, you can add a clove-studded orange or orange slices to the punch bowl.

Serves 8 - 10

Note: It comes out sweeter if you use apple juice without vitamin C added. You can also use apple cider, but there will be a bit of alcohol, which is mostly cooked out by the time the wassail is served.

Elf Warmers

Short and cute, these wristwarmers make a fast crochet project... great for stash-busting too. The instructions for making them are included in the Witch Warmers in Crochet pattern. Just use the short version notes in italics. You can make short anklewarmers, too, and a matching neckwarmer to complete the look.

If you prefer, you can knit these using the original Witch Warmers pattern, designed for knitters.

The yarn for this project was I Love This Yarn Sportweight by Hobby Lobby. It's 100% acrylic, inexpensive, and it has a lovely, soft feel when working with it and wearing it. In order to make this project, I broke down and bought acrylic to save money, and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. Since these wristwarmers were a holiday project, I don't expect to be washing and drying them a lot, so they will probably continue to look good for a long time.

You can find another variation for Witch Warmers in Crochet here:
Evening-Length Winter Warmers