Pumpkinnog

4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon 

2C. whole milk
1 C. heavy cream

1/4 C. pumpkin puree
1/3 C. bourbon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

1 tsp. vanilla

4 egg whites

With your stand mixer, beat egg yolks with 1/3 C. sugar until sunny yellow and sugar is dissolved.  In a two quart sauce pan, heat milk, cream, pumpkin puree, and pie spice until warm, but not boiling. Remove from heat.  Mixing quickly (speed 4) and pouring slowly, temper eggs by adding warm liquid to mixing bowl with eggs.  After combining, pour mixture back into sauce pan, and heat to 165*.  Remove from heat, add vanilla, and bourbon.  Refrigerate mixture for several hours.  When you are ready to assemble drink, whip egg whites with 1 Tbs. sugar until still peaks form.  Fold egg whites into your custard base. Garnish drinks with nutmeg.

Orchid

My orchid finally bloomed!! I was able to take a better picture with assistance.

Bourbon Chicken

Surprisingly not made with bourbon.

2 lb. chicken breasts cut into small pieces
1 Tb. olive oil
1 tsp crushed garlic
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes or 1 tsp. Siracha
1/4 C. apple juice
1/3 C. light brown sugar
2 Tb. ketchup
1 Tb. cider vinegar
1/2 C. water
1 Tb. cornstarch

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add chicken pieces and cook until lightly browned. Remove chicken. Add remaining ingredients, heating over medium heat until well blended and dissolved. Add chicken and bring to a hard boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes uncovered. Serve over hot rice. Sprinkle with green onions if desired.

Blue Christmas

This summer I wrote an article on the saddest songs ever written, but I excluded Christmas songs.  They have their own unique way of making you feel alone and sad during what should be a happy time of year. The count down:

12. "Christmas In Jail" Leroy Carr
Old blues song lamenting decisions "The blues come fallin', they fall like drops of rain,  I've got to spend my Christmas locked up in jail again"

11."The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot"
Time are tough when you are poor, and even harder without a Dad. Ouch! "In the street, he envies all those lucky boys, Then wanders home to last year's broken toys. I'm so sorry for that laddie, he hasn't got a daddy. The little boy that Santa Claus forgot."

10. "Fairytale of New York" Poguesis
The basics of the song are about a drunken man thinking back to past Christmas celebrations while incarcerated in a New York City jail. "Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed, You scumbag you maggot, You cheap lousy faggot, Happy Christmas your arse I pray god it´s our last."

9. "Same old Lang Syne" Dan Fogelberg
The tells the autobiographical story of meeting a former love on a snowy Christmas Eve. "We went to have ourselves a drink or two, But couldn't find an open bar. We bought a six-pack at the liquor store, And we drank it in her car. We drank a toast to innocence. We drank a toast to now, And tried to reach beyond the emptiness, But neither one knew how."

8. "Did I Make You Cry on Christmas Day? (Well, You Deserved It!)" Sufjan Steven
This original song depicts simmering anger and sadness during the holidays. "This time of year you always disappear, You tell me not to call, You tell me not to call, And when the door is closed you're wearing different clothes, Or hiding in the paper, pretending not to hear."

7. "Please Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)" John Denver
Nothing as depressing as addiction. "Please daddy, don't get drunk this Christmas, I don't wanna see my mamma cry. Just last year when I was only seven, now I'm almost eight as you can see. You came home a quarter past eleven, fell down underneath our Christmas tree."

6. "Hard Candy Christmas" Dolly Parton
A hard candy Christmas is when the family is so poor that all they could afford was a penny bag of hard candy to give their kids.  This is more of a general distress song, but lyrics count. "Fine and dandy, Lord it's like a hard candy Christmas. I'm barely getting through tomorrow. But still I wont let sorrow bring me way down."

5. "If We Make It Through December" Merle Haggard
Well Christmas has been cancelled because of lay offs. Wonderful. "I got laid off down at the factory, And there timings not the greatest in the world.  If we make it through December every things gonna be alright I know. It's the coldest time of winter and I shiver when I see the fallin' snow."

4. "Down in Yon Forest" English folk song
It is a mystery to me how anyone could ever have read/heard the Corpus Christi Carol and decided “Hey, that would make a great Christmas carol!” But apparently someone did, and with a few twists and tweaks a song about death and mourning become a song about birth and joy. The song is still relatively close to the 16th century text; a few chorus have been added and the last stanza has been substituted with verses dedicated to the birth of Christ.  The most chilling verse is: “Under that bed there runs a flood:
The bells of Paradise I heard them ring:
The one half runs water, the other runs blood:”

3. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" Band Aid
There is no snow in Africa. "And the Christmas bells that ring there, are the clanging chimes of doom.
Well, tonight, thank God, it’s them instead of you”

2. "Christmas Eve Can Kill You" The Everly Brothers
Homeless on Christmas and no family left to go to. "And forget about the stranger in the cold. And Christmas Eve can kill you when you're trying to hitch a ride to anywhere. And as I walk I'm singin' to myself, Oh Silent Night "

1."Christmas Shoes" Newsong
The song's story about a little boy wanting to buy his dying mother the perfect gift. "Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please. It's Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size.  Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there's not much time. You see she's been sick for quite a while, and I know these shoes would make her smile.  And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight"
Seriously? Did anyone think there would be a #1 Most depressing Song EVER? Didn't think so.

M&M Shortbread

1/2 C. powered sugar
1 C. butter, soft
2 C. flour
1/2 C. M&M's to make this M&M shortbread

Preheat oven to 350ºF.  Beat together the butter and powdered sugar.  Slowly add the flour (about a half cup at a time), mixing a bit in between each addition.  The mixture will look crumbly at first, but the dough will come together after a few minutes.This dough should not be sticky.  Gently mix in the M&M's with a spatula or wooden spoon. Turn dough onto a lightly floured silicone baking mat or parchment paper and roll out to a 1/4" thick rectangle. Using the parchment or baking mat, life the dough onto a baking sheet (leave the parchment or silicone mat as the lining). Cut dough into 24 squares with cookie cutter set you got for Christmas last year. Bake for 20-25 minutes until edges begin to turn a light golden brown. Let cool completely. on a wire rack. Drizzle the melting candy over top and sprinkle with additional M&M's if desired.

Candycane Suckers

1 box (40) miniature candy canes
1 bag white chocolate candy discs (melt in microwave pastry/candy bag)
sprinkles!
sticks

Do not touch candy canes immediately after removing them from oven.  Do not use your finger to smooth out the (boiling hot) candy melts. Do not freak out and try wiping the chocolate on your 350* cookie sheet.  This project probably requires adult supervision.

Holiday Decor

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My favorite aunt made these lovely holiday decorations.