My Traditional Christmas Breakfast

By Erin Danzer

Every Christmas morning when I was growing up,my brother, parents and I would wake around 7, turn on Christmasmusic and take turns opening the gifts Santa had left us during thenight. While we opened gifts, the meat pies my mom had made earlierin the season would heat in the oven. The sharp smell of sage mixedwith the meat would permeate the house, making us salivate withanticipation. Finally, it would be time to eat. We would go to thetable, cut the pies in quarters and dig in, always with a chilleddill pickle on the side.

According to my Aunt Sharon, a history teacheras well as family historian, meat pies have been passed down thefemale side of my dad’s family for several generations, brought tothe States by my great grandmother DeRosier. Correctly calledTOUQUERES (pronounced like “two cares”), meat pies are thetraditional French pastry eaten after mass on Christmas Eve/Day. Thattradition is the one my aunt, dad and their family followed growingup. The meat pies would be baked during the day on ChristmasEve. Then after midnight mass, they would come home, heat up and eatthe meat pies, open presents and then go to bed well fed and alreadyknowing what Santa had brought them while they were at church.

Meat pies have been my Christmasbreakfast for as long as I can remember. Now, I share the traditionwith my husband and two sons. Someday (many years from now), I hopeto pass on the tradition to my future daughters-in-law. But for now,I’m happy to share the tradition with all of you.

Meat Pies

You will need (for 3-5 Pies)

3lb ground pork

2lb ground veal

Enough pie crusts for top and bottom crusts forall pies

Salt, pepper and sage to taste

Brown meat until all brown. Drain just aboutall fat off. Add enough water until meat is slightly covered. Addseasonings (I’m not sure on measurements here. I put a few dashesof salt and pepper and about 2-3TBP ground sage) and let simmer 20minutes.

Make pie crusts and line pie pans. Fill abouthalf full or little more with meat. (I add a couple spoonfuls ofwater here to keep it moist while baking.) Cover with top crust andseal. Put hole in middle of top crust.

Bake in 400-degree oven until golden brown(roughly half hour).

For Freezing:Bake 15 minutes. Cool and cover with aluminum foil. Later bake in425-degree oven for 45 minutes.

Thank you, Brea, for having me on your blogtoday and sharing my favorite holiday tradition and recipe. Toeveryone, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Christmas is in fourdays and so many people lose sight of what this day actually reallyand truly means. For the kids, it means toys, to the teens it means,an iPad, cellphone, laptop, money. To the parents it means, can I payfor all of this and not use a credit card?

But for me, Thomas Amo,it means in a world that has become sometimes not a very nice placeto be, God is still God and a beautiful little girl named, AlyssaMowrey will be spending this Christmas with her family thanks be tohis mercy. Christin and I became friends via Twitter earlier thisyear. We spoke on the phone once and instantly she has that abilityto turn a complete stranger into more than just a friend, she makesyou feel like family. We tweeted and even came up with the hashtag#BNFF which stands for Best Nerd Friends Forever. Because we werenerds and nerds stick together. This caught on and others joined ournerd herd, but when the terrible accident that happened in Octoberthis year, when three little angels were hit by a car while crossingthe street, Christin reminded me that her unwavering faith in God andher humble attitude towards the events that would put virtually anyparent on a razor’s edge, she set the example to me of what aChristian is.

Sadly, Mia, one of threeangels lost her life in that terrible accident. Some will feel if Godis so merciful then why didn’t all 3 survive. None of us can everknow that answer and I won’t speculate on it. My heart aches forthe loss of little Mia, because even though I did not know her, I amcertain her smile was brighter than any star in the heavens. For herfamily this is a time that they will need all the support and love wecan muster. Please include them in your thoughts and prayers.

Alyssa has come leapsand bounds from where her life was two months ago. This is not to sayit’s an easy road ahead, Alyssa has a long way to go, but she has amother who will be right there taking every step with her. Christinhas never wavered in her faith and that is something we could alltake a good lesson on. So I look at the presents under my tree with adifferent eye today than I did last year. Instead of saying, I wantthis or I want that, I can say, I’m so blessed to have this andhave that. I thank the Lord for his mercy and letting us see Alyssaas the miracle and blessing she is and I thank Christin for showingme how to appreciate what Christmas really does mean.

Merry Christmas to all ofyou,

Thomas Amo

25 Days of Christmas continues with Felicia Rogers!

Healthy Holidays

On December 25, 2008, somethingwonderful happened. It was the beginning of a lifelong journey. This was the day my fabulous thoughtful husband gave me Billy Blank’sAmped Tae-Bo workout set. No worries ladies, I asked for thegift.

On this day three years ago, I startedeating healthier and exercising. Since then I’ve lost over sixtypounds. I’ve done things I never dreamed of doing such as hikingeleven miles (round trip) to Mt. LeConte in the Great SmokeyMountains, lowering my cholesterol, and dropping four sizes inclothing.

But even though I’ve enacted thischange, I still struggle to maintain a healthy diet during theholidays. I’m an avid couponer and one site I frequent is EatBetter America. This site is great for more than just coupons. Byjoining I received recipes to try. And boy, have I! You mention alow fat cheesecake and I’m so there! From this website, I’vetried Sweet Potato Casserole(http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/recipes/special-occasions/healthified-sweet-potato-casserole.aspx),Healthified Creamed Corn(http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/recipes/featured-brands/healthified-creamed-corn.aspx),and many others. So if you’re trying to eat delicious tasting,flavorful food this holiday season while maintaining your figurecheck out Eat Better America (http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/).

Now that I’ve shared some of myfavorite healthy recipes I wanted to share one other. This is afamily favorite.

Cherry Yum-Yum

Ingredients:

~1 stick Margarine

~3 cups graham cracker crumbs

~2 cans cherry pie filling (yes, thebig cans)

~2 envelopes of Dream Whip

~1 cup of sugar

~1 cup of milk

~8 oz. Cream cheese (room temp)

Combine:

Melt the margarine and combine with 2cups of graham cracker crumbs. Line bottom of 9×13 pan, reserving 1cup of crumb mixture. Over this spoon, 1 can of cherry pie filling.

Combine in a mixing bowl:

Dream whip, sugar, milk, and creamcheese. Whip at high speed until stiff. Once stiff, spread over piefilling. Next, spoon in the next can of cherry pie filling. Garnishwith reserved crumbs. Chill until firm, then serve.

I hope you enjoy my favorite recipe. And remember, if you’ve struggled in this area, I’m right therewith you. And keep in mind, with perseverance lots of things canhappen, even becoming a published author!

My latest work, There Your heartWill Be Also, a historical suspense with an inspirational twist.

Christmas is a time for celebrating,and while we are celebrating the true meaning behind the festivitiesI like to add a personal tradition of my own. Taking time out tolook back over the previous twelve months and be thankful for*all* ofit.

So one of the Christmas traditions Ihave set myself is Gratitude. This may seem like a strangeand too personal a tradition for it to count, but it has become anintegral part of my Christmas. I’ll try to explain why.

There comes a time when life appears toget on top of you and feels like it’s out to break you. I had sucha year during 1992/3.

“Everything comes in threes.” Sothe saying goes. I heard that almost more often than I had hotdinners at the time. What no one mentioned was that threes also comein multiples of three! Suffice to say, it was a *bad* year! But,and I do mean ‘but’, tough as it was to get through, it was alsoa period of some of the sharpest and most numerous lessons I’veever experienced.

It may sound odd to say ‘thank you’for such turmoil, but in retrospect it made me who I am today. I metpeople I may never have encountered if I hadn’t had to go to courtbecause I’d been burgled. My marriage is stronger now because backthen it was tested to the point of destruction. And I am moreprepared to face my shortcomings 🙂 Yeah! I have shortcomings. Somany of them, they all come out to party while I’m busy looking forthe key to keep them locked in the cupboard! LOL.

Seriously, gratitude was something thathovered off on the periphery of my life. Yes I paid lip-service to‘please’ and ‘thank you’. Now I learned the true meaning ofdeep heartfelt gratitude for things and people I may never meet butplay an integral part in my life.

I’m talking about all those peoplewho ensure I am kept safe when out on the streets, and for the lightsand heating I come home to every day. The people who deliver mymail, empty my bins every week. The night workers, who are rarelyseen but help to keep things running smoothly during the dark hours.

I’m talking about the nurses, police,firemen and rescue crews who are prepared to put their own lives onthe line for others, as well as everything else in my life.

So every year, I take time out tomeditate on all these things.http://sevennightwriters.blogspot.com/2011/12/when-you-meditate-upon-star.html

I have often found that when I stop,really stop to list all the events in my life, the good far outweighsthe bad, but more often than not I discover I’ve paid morelip-service to the bad than it deserves.

Every New Year I promise myself I’llredress the balance, but like diets……

For Prince Liam, families meant badnews, unwanted commitments, and the loss of his personal freedom. Love spawned white picket fences, slippers at the hearth with a wifeand kids making demands, so why did those images disappear when hemet Melanie Babcot?

Melanie Babcot fought hard to escapethe horrors of her youth and vowed to remain single and free, so whenpaid to protect Prince Liam from insurgents why did her personalpledge fly out the window?

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D7sLoMWp0o

nookhttp://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/sherry-gloag-from-now-until-forever?keyword=sherry+gloag+from+now+until+forever&store=ebook

Multi-published author Sherry Gloag isa transplanted Scot now living in the beautiful coastal countrysideof Norfolk, England. She considers the surrounding countryside asextension of her own garden, to which she escapes when she needs”thinking time” and solitude to work out the plots for hernext novel. While out walking she enjoys talking to her characters,as long as there are no other walkers close by.

Apart from writing, Sherry enjoysgardening, walking, reading and cheerfully admits her books tend totake over most of the shelf and floor space in herworkroom-cum-office. She also finds crystal craft work therapeutic.

My Website: http://.www.sherrygloag.com

My Blog: http://sherrygloagtheheartofromance.blogspot.com/

FB: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/sherry.gloag

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/SherryGloag

Eighteen year oldVirginia didn’t ask to be the oldest daughter of the current SantaClaus, nor did she ask to be betrothed to a complete stranger. Whenthe elf elders turn her world upside down by announcing that she mustconvince her fiance, Nick, not only to marry her but also to becomethe next Santa Claus, Virginia has no desire to have any part of thecraziness.