'Tis the Season to get Distracted!

We have so much in common the two of us. With Christmas arriving, we are both preparing for our 4 children to return for the holidays. They will be coming in from all over the world: Berlin Germany, Brighton England, New York, Montreal, Toronto, and they'll be bringing friends too!… We are so excited and have so much to do, so this weekend, with our husbands away on a ski trip, we decided to get busy. But, first things first – we had to sit down with a glass of wine and watch the Christmas episode of GLEE! 

There seems to be some consistency to this pattern.  Recently, we were having a conversation about how crazy busy we were, and the next thing we knew, we switched gears and spent the morning at the St. John's Pudding Factory  helping pack 2,700 pounds of Christmas pudding at the St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church in downtown Kitchener. Our good friend Bev invited us to join her and her sisters to fill the orders this year –they will raise ~$18,000, with proceeds supporting local charities including as Saint Monica House, Mary’s Place, ROOF and St. John’s Kitchen.  What a great group of women!



 

Just the other day, we were both battling the demands of sick dogs (now that gets in the way of things, but Pepper and Pluto are high on our lists of prioritites), when before we knew it, we were sitting at The Cake Tutor, with our friends Bev and Mary Ann. Three hours later, we had learned everything that we ever needed to know about cookie decorating, and we both left with 8 beautiful cookies. Goodness, what is going to happen next week at the annual Christmas Bake and Booze when we gather with our walking friends and each have to make 9 dozen cookies?  We will have to kick it up a notch.

Try your hand at decorating your own cut and bake cookies.  We love Grandma Harris' Sugar Cookie recipe:

3 ½ c flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 c shortening

1 ½ c sugar

2 well-beaten eggs

1 ½ tsp vanilla

Beat sugar and shortening. Add eggs and vanilla.

Sift dry ingredients together. Stir into wet ingredients.

Do not chill dough. Roll out immediately.

Bake 400° 6 – 8 minutes.

The moral of this story is: life is too short to not be enjoying it! So, in light of the fact that we are encouraging everyone to enjoy the distractions of family and friends at this time of year, we are giving you this super easy recipe, as always, a real crowd pleaser.

                        Cedar Plank Salmon with Asian Ginger Marinade

                                                                                    1 6-pound  salmon fillet, skin-on

                                                                                         Asian Ginger Marinade:

1/4 cup white wine

1 orange, finely grated zest  and juice

1 tablespoon sesame oil                          

1 teaspoon, ginger - grated                

1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon asian chilli sauce 
salt and pepper -  to taste
1 untreated cedar plank                                                                                      

                                                                        

To begin with, soak an untreated piece of cedar in a container of water for at least an hour. You may need to place a weight on top to keep the wood immersed.

                                                                                       

Meanwhile, combine ingredients for marinade in a large, flat shallow glass dish and  marinate  the salmon fillets, skin-on, in the refrigerator for half an hour.

Preheat barbecue on HIGH for 10 minutes.

Pat dry plank and oil the upper side. Place plank directly on the grids and heat until plank begins to smoke. Place the salmon, skin side down in the middle of the plank and grill until just opaque at the thickest part. A 6 lb. fillet may take 30 minutes.

Next week, look for our recipe and tips on using your grill to roast your turkey! It is guaranteed to be one of the highlights of your Christmas dinner.