HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS DINNER....

We are on our own this Christmas as all of our relatives live across the country.  Still that doesn't stop the five of us from having a wonderful, merry little Christmas dinner.....  This menu includes dinner plus lots and lots of leftovers which in my opinion is the best part of the holiday meal!  The recipes borrow from my experimentation with classic soul food recipes.  These recipes are tried and true with our family and have lots of flavor!  The best part though is none of the recipes call for expensive, exotic ingredients so they are easy to make and relatively inexpensive.  Our family tradition is to make lots of side dishes for variety and then have great leftovers! 

 

OUR MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS MENU

 

 

 BROWN SUGAR BAKED HAM

OLD FASHIONED POTATO SALAD

PEPPER JACK MACARONI & CHEESE

SLOW COOKED GREEN BEANS
BEST EVER BROCCOLI SALAD

DEBORAH'S AMBROSIA SALAD

 JIFFY CORN MUFFINS

CHRISTMAS POUND CAKE

 

 

recipes -

DEBORAH'S AMBROSIA

1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained

1 (15 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained

2 cups sour cream

1 (12 ounce) package shredded coconut

1 (8 ounce) jar maraschino cherries, for on top

2 medium diced apples 

Drain juice from fruit. Let stand for about 10 minutes before mixing ingredients. Stir the sour cream and coconut together. Add the fruits. Pour into a pretty clear dish if you have it. Place the cherries on top.  Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving

SOUTHERN GREEN BEANS

1 (16 ounce) bag frozen green beans or 2 (14 ounce)cans green beans, do not drain

4 -6 slices bacon

1 large onion, sliced large chunks

1 dash red pepper flakes (optional)

salt and pepper 

Put green beans in pot- if canned add juices, if frozen add water enough to see but not cover beans- cook on medium heat.  Fry bacon until cooked but not too crisp- drain on paper towel.  Cut onion in large (thick) slices and break rings apart in to beans.  Crumble or rip bacon apart add to beans.  Add spices to taste.  Let cook for a few hours on low heat.

If want to serve sooner- turn heat up and cook until water boils down.  OR can put in crockpot on low all day long and let simmer.

EASY BAKED HAM

15 lbs whole bone-in ham

1 lb brown sugar

1 T ground cloves

1/2 cup yellow mustard

aluminum foil

 In a medium size mixing bowl, mix yellow mustard, cloves & brown sugar until you have a thick"paste".  Take all wrappers off of ham and trim away excess fat.  Line baking pan (I spray with Pam in case some of the brown sugar mixture escapes, clean up is easier) with Aluminum foil.  Place ham on foil and spread brown sugar/mustard paste on top.  Fold and seal foil.  Do not open again until ham is done.  Bake at 350° for 4 hours.  Let set for about 1 hr then carve.

BAKED PEPPER JACK MACARONI & CHEESE

10 ounces elbow macaroni 1 (8 ounce) packages shredded pepper jack cheese ( 2cups)

1 (8 ounce) packages Velveeta cheese, pasteurized processed cheese, cut up ( 1 cup)

1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces

3 eggs, slightly beaten

1 (12 ounce) cans evaporated milk

1 (10 3/4 ounce) cans condensed cheddar cheese soup

1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper ( white if you have it)

Let cheeses and butter stand at room temperature.  Cook macaroni according to package directions until almost aldente'.Drain macaroni and transfer to a large bowl.  Add 1 cup shredded cheese and Velveeta cubes to hot pasta and stir gently til cheeses start to melt.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, butter, milk, soup, salt and pepper.  Stir this mixture into the cooked macaroni mixture.  Transfer half into a 13x9 sprayed baking dish.

Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.  Top with remaining macaroni mixture.

Bake covered at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.  Uncover.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.  Return to oven and bake 15 minutes more until cheese is melted and bubbly brown.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving to meld flavors.

DIVA'S POTATO SALAD

2 large russet potatoes

5 eggs

⅓ of a white onion

¾-1 cup of Mayo

¼ cup sweet relish

¼ cup dill relish

1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon celery seed

½ teaspoon white sugar (optional to balance out the salt)

 2-4 dashes seasoning salt + more if desired

2-4 dashes of black pepper

Paprika (to cover the top)

Wash, peel and dice potatoes into small, uniform cubes.  Bring a saucepan half-full of water to a boil and add potatoes. Cook for 7-8 minutes until firm to the touch but tender to the bite. Do NOT overcook. Potatoes will need to be firm enough to withstand being tossed around when we add the mayo mixture.  In a separate pot, bring 5 eggs to a boil and cook until done.  Drain hot potatoes and place in a large bowl.  Peel the eggs. Separate the yolks from the egg white.  Mash up the yolks in a bowl and dice up the egg whites in a separate bowl.  Place the potatoes, eggs whites, yolks, and onions in the refrigerator to until cold.  In a large bowl add egg yolks, egg whites and the onion.  Next add in the mayonnaise, dill relish & sweet relish.  Add in the mustard, seasoning salt, black pepper, celery seed, Worcestershire sauce and sugar.  Stir it all up.


BROCCOLI SALAD

 

1 head broccoli, diced into tiny pieces (about 3 cups)

½ red onion, diced small

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

8 oz bacon, cooked & diced

1 cup mayonnaise

½ cup ranch dressing

1 tablespoon parsley

*optional ingredients* raisins, sunflower seeds, green bell pepper,

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Set aside.  In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise, ranch and parsley.  Add dressing by the spoonful to broccoli mixture just until coated. (you will have dressing left over)
 

CHRISTMAS POUND CAKE

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

1 1/2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup maraschino cherries, drained and halved

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour an 8 inch tube pan. Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.  In a large bowl, cream together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and almond extract. Beat in the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Dredge cherries in 1/4 cup flour, then fold into batter. Spread into prepared pan.  Bake in the preheated oven for 80 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.