A Traditional Tree Trimming & Tom and Jerry Gathering

Tree trimming parties are one of the most traditional ways to spend a holiday evening. In this family, we love a certain amount of tradition. A gathering around the perfect Christmas tree, holiday music playing in the background, holiday beverages and don't forget the appetizers! Thanks to Uncle Kerry, we had a large assortment of our great grandmother's Christmas decor and tree ornaments. 

For the holiday beverage, we chose something that has been a tradition in our family for as long as we can remember- TOM & JERRY's. The recipe is said to have been invented sometime around the 1820s. While our Grandma Von isn't that old we inherited  the recipe below from her. She got the recipe from a friend in Atlanta Idaho, Berdine Schraft-Goddard.  It can be found in an Atlanta cookbook but those are hard to find!

Tom & Jerry Batter

1 Dozen Eggs Separated

2 Cups Granulated Sugar

2 Cups Powdered Sugar

1 Can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

Beat the egg whites with the granulated sugar until peaks form.

Beat the egg yolks and powdered sugar.

Add the sweetened condensed milk to the yolk mixture.

Fold egg whites into the yolk mixture.

To make the cocktail add 2 ounces of your favorite dark rum or White Christmas, a big spoonful of the batter and top with hot water and a sprinkle of cinnamon. White Christmas is a combination of rum and brandy.

The right cups really make this cocktail! Lucky for us my mom had our grandma's set that she let us use for the night. You can sometimes find the traditional Tom & Jerry cups at an antique store.

If you want a little more history on the Tom & Jerry click here for a nice article. 

For appetizers we had a nice cheese plate, Abbie's homemade spinach and artichoke dip, and Asian meatballs. These were super easy to make and a big hit. Here is the recipe. 

We hope everyone has a very very MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Give Thanks

We took over Thanksgiving hosting duties from our grandmother almost ten years ago and have always wanted to have an outdoor gathering.  This was the year.  Sixty degrees in November!? We worry a lot about Global Climate Change but in this case it worked in our favor.

Through trial and error we have fine-tuned our menu.  No one will forget the year Abbie used self-rising flour (by accident) in the gravy.  The result was a big mass that could have been used as mortar to build a brick wall! Or the sweet potato balls rolled in coconut that were almost like dessert. A dessert you would not want seconds of! Now Skylar makes candied yams using fresh yams and organic vanilla bean marshmallows.

The Menu

• v Salad of Mixed Greens with a Red Wine Vinaigrette
• v Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
• v Sage Dressing with Apples and Sausage
• v Citrus Cranberry Sauce
• v Rolls

And turkey of course! Josh prepared the turkey this year using a recipe from The Idaho Preferred Cookbook, Live Eat Local.  This one is similar  or buy the cookbook!  It has great recipes using ingredients produced in Idaho.

The Cocktail: A Pumpkin Old-Fashioned

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp. pumpkin puree
1 ½ oz. bourbon such as Bulleit
1 oz. maple syrup
½ oz. Orange Liqueur such as Patrón Citronge

Dash of orange bitters
To Make

Combine pumpkin puree, bourbon, syrup, orange liqueur and bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into a chilled old fashioned glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with orange twist.

Please refer to our Pumpkin, Pumpkin, and more Pumpkin post on how to make fresh pumpkin puree.  That ingredient alone really makes this cocktail.

So, in summary we love the holidays and most things that come with them.  We have come up with a few tips for hosting a family gathering.  We always make a list of everything we are going to need by going through each recipe.  You will need twice as many bottles of Champagne as you think you do.  Do as much chopping and ingredient preparation ahead of time as you can. Make sure your old gram (or comparable relative) is not mixing her own cocktails or she will not make it until dinner! And last, but not least, make a detailed time line of all the things that need to be done and at what time or your mashed potatoes will be cold while your dressing is still waiting for its turn in the oven.  Thanks for reading!!

FCM Bookclub: Wild

Our meeting to discuss the book Wild by Cheryl Stand was hosted by Jamie at her parents beautiful Syrup Creek home.  We were delighted to have Jamie's mother, Kris, join us for dinner and the discussion. To start the evening Abbie took us on a Wild-esque tour of the dirt roads of Elmore County! She said she knew where she was going! Well, she did not.  After dirt roads, spotty (at best) cellular service, some cows and a late arrival (45 minutes!!) we were ready for a stiff drink and had a better appreciation for Cheryl's journey (even though we were in a car, our feet did not hurt, and we had eaten plenty of food that day)! Ok, it was not really the same at all.

Kris served Champagne cocktails with raspberries from her own garden!

Sticking with a Fall theme rather than the awful food documented in the book Jamie served a pumpkin crème sauce over stuffed ravioli.  A fresh green salad with vinaigrette and hot rolls rounded out the meal.  A decadent cheesecake was for dessert…Thanks to Jamie’s hunk of a dad, Mike Taylor!

Poppy made a new friend!

Thank you ladies for the wonderful time! We missed Katie this meeting but don’t worry she is BACK for the next two! Go see the movie Wild staring Reese Witherspoon openeing December 5th. Next up is Abbie hosting a brunch for What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty.

Margaritas and Chili Verde

Every fall Abbie has one request for her birthday dinner, Josh's delicious Chili Verde. To make this dinner even better the tomatillos were harvested that day from our garden.

Garlic from My Dad's Garlic in Rupert, ID

Sugar Skull Shot Glasses with fresh flowers.

Skylar & Josh's newly painted deck with beautiful new lights.

Even though it was the end of October it was a beautiful evening. We decorated with paper flags and our new lighting (Thanks mom!) made it the perfect setting. 

Goldie in her dress from Mexico

Of course the drink of the evening was the classic margarita and in our opinion you can't beat the recipe from Rick Bayless. He knows how to make a good margarita! Here is a link to the recipe. It is simple, easy and delicious. 

Toppings

The chili verde was topped with homemade Mexican sour cream, flour tortillas, cilantro, and lime.

When I asked Josh if I could share his recipe he laughed. So I guess you won't get the exact recipe but this one is pretty similar -Margarita Carmona's Chili Verde

Happy Birthday Abbie!