Merry Christmas Ya'll

[jabberwocky]

Here is a true southern dish that we make every year at my house for Christmas Dinner.

Holiday Sweet Potato Bake

2 (16 oz) cans cut sweet potatoes, drained
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1/3 cup apricot nectar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup miniature marshmallows

can also add:
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1 can crushed pineapple (drained)

Combine first 7 ingredients in a mixing bowl; beat at low speed of an
electric mixer until well blended. Stir in 1/2 cup pecans, raisins (and
pineapple and/or coconut if desired); spoon into a lightly greased 8 inch
baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup pecans. Bake at 350 degrees for
25 minutes; sprinkle with marshmallows and bake an additional 5 minutes.

Here is the recipe for my (in)famous cranberry sauce as well:

Cranberries Braised in Red Wine

16 oz. bag of fresh cranberries
1 cup of red wine
1 1/2 cups sugar
peel of an orange (finely chopped)
1 cinnamon stick

Happy Holidays!!

is that pudding?

Oh wow! Thanks sooo much for posting that - my best friend lives in Alabama and while she and her family was here they made this for us but I never knew what it was to find it again!!

I've never thought of it as pudding CD but would probably qualify as that in the UK.

I tend to leave out the pineapple and coconut myself. If you feel really racy you can substitute apricot brandy or just brandy for the nector. (Haven't tried that one on the family yet, although might be a good year - see post brother isn't speaking to me)

So glad to bring up fond memories for you zephyrcat. I love the way food does that for people. I heard somewhere that smell is more strongly linked to the memory retrieval process than sight. Interesting, eh?

Anyway, I so love being on MN it's my way of having a virtual Christmas dinner with you all. Maybe afterwards I'll post a "Who Cooked Jabberwocky"s Recipe for Christmas" thread

Just noticed I left off the rest of the cranberry recipe:

Sort through the cranberries and get rid of any bad ones. Combine wine and
sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the rest of the ingredients,
cover partially and reduce hear to medium. Cook until cranberries have burst
and sauce is slightly thickened, about 15 - 20 minutes. Cool to room
temperature and serve.

so jabberwocky, do you eat that with your xmas lunch? Or stuff the turkey with it? It sounds unbelievably rich!

May have to try it out on my lot!

You eat it as a side dish. We also tend to cook the "stuffing" in a separate pan and call it "dressing". It cooks a little better that way, not soggy, still moist though.

I do hope someone tries it out. Would love to see how it goes over on the other side of the Atlantic!

As far as rich, yep, that's the South for you!

Hi Jabberwocky, saw the 'Ya'll' in the thread title and came a'runnin! I make something like this for Thanksgiving every year and will be making a big batch this week (Thanksgiving is Thursday). You're version sounds amazing. I usually just boil and mash sweet potatoes with some butter, brown sugar and nutmeg. Then cover with the marshmallows and grill until gooey and toasty. Sooooo yummy.

We have it as a veg side with the main meal but there is a recipe for sweet potato pie which makes a nice dessert with some ice cream on top. Very similiar to a pumpkin pie.

Glad to see others enjoy the potato and marshmallow combo. When I serve it to British friends for the first time they always look dubious and then end of loving it!

Ooooh, Jabberwocky do you make cornbread dressing too? I'll be making that this week too. Such a treat.

you got a cornbread recipe there? I know i could get it off the net but i prefer 'personal' recipes as opposed to 'textbook' !

My mom still holds sway over the dressing. I don't even know her recipe to this day!!! Someday she'll have to give it up.

This Sweet Potato Recipe came straight out of Southern Living (1991 cookbook) and it's been a family staple ever since. Before that, my mom served the sliced "candied" version.

Glad you saw the post. I thought about you when I was writing it

Hey tex, why don't you post your cornbread dressing recipe?

Zephyrcat, sorry my Mom sends me packets of Southern Maid cornbread mix! Her recipe for dressing, which I follow now, is one of those packet of this, can of that kind of 'recipes'. It's cornbread (made from a packet), a can of cream of chicken soup, a can of cream of mushroom soup, some fried onions and celery.... can't remember the rest off the top of my head but you get the idea. My mom loves to cut corners!

Jabberwocky, that's so nice that you thought of me! Ah, Southern Living. That brings back some good memories.

I'll see if I can strongarm my mom into giving it up. Could very well be like tex's - she loves to cook with cream of mushroom soup. Actually, I think that is a separate food group in the south

Be back later.

Here it is: Mom's Cornbread Dressing

One pan of cornbread crumbled (about 4 cups)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can chicken broth (I use half a pint of hot water with an Oxo cube)
1 tbsp of dried mixed herbs (Mom uses poultry seasoning)
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 cup butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown onion and celery in butter. Mix cornbread and herbs together. Stir in soup, broth, celery, onion (with juices). Mix well. It should be moist to wet but not soupy. I usually put in the broth a little at a time. Sometimes I don't need it all and sometimes I need to add a little more water. Put in a dish and bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes at 200 degrees.

It's definitely one of those recipes that turns out a little different every time. I've made it with crumbled sausage meat and that was really good too.

Forgot to say to salt and pepper to taste before baking. Mom also sometimes adds quartered boiled eggs. Sounds very strange but tastes great.

excellent -I'#m definately going to try that out. I should have known really thaqt there would be a packet of mix for cornbread these days!! Might just try one of those instead!!

You cook the sausage first, right tex?

Got my mom's recipe

Cornbread Dressing
1 large chicken, or hen, boiled , deboned & chopped
1 (12-inch) pan cooked cornbread
2 slices of light bread
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10 3/4 oz can cream of celery soup
1 stick butter, melted
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 T sage
1 T poultry seasoning
use broth from boiling chicken, or 2 cans chicken broth

Crumble cornbread and light bread. Melt butter, saute' onion & celery. Add to cornbread mixture. Stir in eggs. Mix well, add seasonings. Stir in chicken. Mix in broth to moisten mixture to desired consistency. Needs to be very moist, or will be too dry when baked. If it should cook too dry, tho, the giblet gravy will compensate.
Pour into casserole dish (Pam sprayed) and bake at 350 deg for 40 to 50 min. until brown on edges and slightly brown on top.
If you want Giblet Gravy. Chop the chicken giblets and add broth (from chicken, or canned), 1 can of cream of chicken soup and thicken with a little flour if needed.
Mom

i could eat that right now! Is there anywhere in uk that you can buy cornbread mix?
Thanks you both for posting your recipes! (and your Mom!!)

Yep, I cooked the sauage first. I forgot that my Mom would sometimes add chicken too. I'm going to try your recipe for Thanksgiving this week Jabberwocky. Sounds gorgeous!

The only place I know that sells cornbread mix is Harrod's Food Hall! I used to go there for my US fix but now my Mom is in the habit of sending things, which saves me a lot of money. I've had trouble finding corn meal here on the rare occasion that I make cornbread from scratch so I don't know where you could get the mix. Sorry.

Sounds like I need to send over a care package of Jiff Mix.

That's Jiffy Mix

Just wondered what traditional Christmas food there is in the UK that Americans are unfamiliar with?

I would say definitely Christmas pudding. I felt like I was in a Dickens novel the first time my MIL lit the pudding and brought it out to the table. Also sausage rolls, beetroot (which always seems to come out only at Christmas with us). And I'd never had parsnips or brussel sprouts until my first Christmas in England. Maybe the pomegranates and clementines at Christmas too. I had had pomegranates and clementines in Texas but never associated them with Christmas. Chocolate advent calendars too, though they may have them in the States now. It's been a looooong time since I spent Christmas in America.