Santa, Horses, and Christmas Cooking

We spent the weekend recovering from the week with lots of togetherness, Christmas traditions old (seeing Santa) and new (Cora not crying when seeing Santa), Christmas movies (The Santa Clause, Home Alone 1, AND Home Alone 2, because sometimes the best family time is when you're all looking in the same direction and no one is talking), and baking and cooking ALL of the Christmas things.

Our Christmas food traditions have expanded over the years, so I thought I'd jot them down now, with recipes at the bottom, to preserve them in 2017 form. I don't think I can handle adding many more, but they're all so delicious I don't begrudge a one. (I also played Christmas music every minute a Christmas movie wasn't actively playing on the new living room TV. James hates Christmas music, he hates it, but he loves me, so he endures. This was his face at dinner Sunday night when I realized the music was off because it had reached the end of my 127 song playlist and I jumped up to restart it, and then captured this shot as I sat back down... He looks like he's trapped in a nightmare. He loves me so much.)

So the food traditions all started with the sugar cookies. They're amazing, they're my great-grandmother's recipe, and they are a sacred holiday task.

I remember decorating them every Christmas of my childhood (and young adulthood... my mom would wait to bake them until I came home from UT just so I could partake) and as soon as Landon was old enough to hold a plastic icing knife, I started making them for him (2009, apparently; I was pregnant with Claire!). They're a pain in the ass and they're DELICIOUS and totally worth it. Two bags full are already in the freezer to travel to Colorado this year.

About 7 years ago I started making homemade cinnamon rolls. It started as a whim, I think on New Year's Day, and has now turned in to a pre-Christmas requirement so we can eat them on Christmas Day with our brunch. Another pain in the ass, but oh so delicious. I usually make several trays and freeze them. Last year we had the last day with our Easter brunch and it was perfection. The kids now view them as a mandatory part of Christmas morning and two trays are coming with us to Colorado along with the cookies.

I still haven't found my perfect recipe yet, but it's because I like all the ones I date and can't decide on the one I should marry.

A few years ago I added the Santa Hat Chex Party Mix. A bigger pain in the ass than the cinnamon rolls (but probably less than the cookies), but also so delicious. This year I cheated and just made the chex mix and nobody yelled at me, so unless I have a bunch of extra free time or feel a need to punish myself, I'll probably stick with the simple pretzels + chex + m&m's + almond bark mix because it's super easy and quick (less than 10 minutes) and the Santa Hats are SO much work and I don't actually like eating them. James loves dark chocolate, so I often melt some and drizzle it over the finished product. So good, and pairs well with red wine and opening your presents late at night on Christmas Eve.

Cheater version

Then this year I made a new seasoned savory Chex Mix over thanksgiving. This quickly became my new obsession. I've fiddled with the recipe and now have my perfect ratio of spices and components of the mix (my recipe below). I've made at least 8 roasting pans full since the end of November and it's only mid-December. Be warned, while your first bite may not blow your mind, you will slowly but surely become addicted and reopen the gallon bag you keep the mix in every time you walk into the kitchen, no matter what time of day, until the bag is gone and you stare in shock and genuine horror. I can't explain it. You just keep eating it. (And yes, two gallon ziplocs-full are taking the trek up the mountains with us on Saturday, along with their sweeter cousins from above; if you're going to stay up late opening presents, you need to be properly fueled with sweet and salty snacks.)

Photographed with a giant pot of turkey chili that will also journey to Colorado.

In between all the baking, we headed to the historic Fort Worth Stockyards to see Cowboy Santa. Last year, Cora was SO excited to go and then filled with reluctance and dread upon the actual face-to-face event. Luckily there was a pony ride that blew her mind and made her spirits bright once again. (Re-posting the pony picture below because it's one of my best ever; it's peak-Cora-before-Disney levels of excitement.)

But this year, THIS year, she was ready. She is WAY into Santa and Christmas and her "Christmas house" and I was pretty sure our looks of betrayal were over. And so they were. She told Santa ALL about Disney World, her princesses, her desire for a new Jasmine dress and Tiana shows and an Ariel doll... they were besties right away.

The kids got stuffed horses as a parting gift- I guess Santa is sponsored by Wells Fargo? We absolutely did not need three new stuffed animals in our life, but they LOVE them SO MUCH and will love them FOREVER AND EVER. I guarantee you not one of them has any idea where their beloved horse is sleeping this very second. I can see one under the living room couch from here.

But yes, magical and special. I did enjoy the accidental jewel tone coordination of their outfits. You should know Landon is only in this long-sleeved shirt because all of his short sleeve ones were dirty. It was 45 degrees out and very windy. He told me the sleeves "felt weird" and he "didn't need them" about 75 times.

It really was a fun afternoon. We ate BBQ in the Stockyards, something we last did a year ago, in the same place for the same reason (neither of us like BBQ enough given where we live, but every now and then I remember that it can be delicious). There was a balloon animal guy floating around the restaurant and, because we were feeling the magical specialness of the outing, we got each kid an unnecessary balloon object to go with the horses they didn't need.

The balloons did not last the car ride home, but they brought much joy in their 45 minutes of life.

$3/kid well spent I suppose.

There are little mechanical rides everywhere. Neither James nor I had change or any interest in acquiring any, but that did not stop the kids from "riding" every single one.

(This horse is not moving. Cora loves it anyway)

It was a fun afternoon. We got home and I made more chex mix with the fireplace roaring and Home Alone playing on the TV. I love all of these things.

(My other love: this view of my living room just before midnight Sunday night as I was walking to bed. All the other lights off, the tree and mantle the last to go... it just makes me feel so warm and cozy inside, seeing the twinkling lights and knowing the kids are all cozy in their beds... Cora has dubbed our house "my Christmas house" since I put up the decorations and that's exactly how I think of it now... My Christmas house. It makes my heart happy- the fireplace, the lights, the coziness, the excessive movie watching, and the chex mix. It's our Christmas.)

And now the recipes. And a few pics of the aftermath of my kitchen on Sunday when I did the cinnamon rolls, savory chex, and turkey chili all at once. It was a mess. The Christmas music got me through it and it is now all back to normal. But I didn't want you to have any unrealistic expectations of what these recipes will do to your kitchens.

They're worth it though.

Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter (you can do all butter, but half and half is the original)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, well-beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp lemon extract
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

(I usually triple the above and that yields about 8-9 dozen good sized cut-out cookies, and also nearly breaks my KitchenAid)

1. Cream shortening, butter.
2. Add sugar, eggs, extracts.
3. Add dry ingredients.
4. Chill dough (at least 6 hours or overnight).
5. Roll out dough (with lots of extra flour for the board and the rolling pin) and cut out shapes.
6. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes until set, but not brown.

Sweet & Salty Chex Mix

~ 10 cups total of Rice chex, Corn chex, Pretzels (also nuts if you're a nut person; I am not)
Almond bark or white candy melts
Dark chocolate m&m's (or regular m&m's if you like that sort of thing)

Pour all the cereal and pretzels into a really big bowl
Follow the directions to melt the almond bark, stirring frequently until it is smooth and very liquid
Pour the almond bark over the cereal and gently toss to coat with a spatula (not a spoon; pieces get stuck inside the curve and nothing tosses)
When coated, pour out onto wax paper and spread with spatula so everything is in a thin layer
Sprinkle generously with m&m's
Let cool (or put in fridge; it sets better)
Break into pieces.
Eat so much so fast you won't believe how much is gone when you come up for air.

Rebecca's Savory Chex Mix

2-3 cups each rice chex, corn chex, wheat chex
2 cups bugles
2 cups cheez-it’s
2 cups pretzels
1-2 cups mixed nuts (or not; I prefer not and just go with a heavy 2 cups of everything else)

1-1.5 sticks butter (do 1.5, you will not regret it)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce (or less; we just like it)
1 tsp seasoned salt (more if using unsalted butter)
1 Tbl onion powder
1 Tbl garlic powder

1. Set oven to 250 degrees. Melt butter in roasting pan in oven.
2. Once melted, add seasonings to butter and stir.
3. Add cereals and snacks to pan, toss to coat EVERYTHING.
4. Bake one hour at 250, stirring to re-coat every 15 minutes.
5. Devour. Feel ashamed. Do it again.

Cinnamon Rolls
I still don't have a favorite "go to" recipe and I need one. So far I've tried the following:

Epicurious: Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze (traditional; 2 rises; delicious)

Sally's Baking Addiction: Easy Cinnamon Rolls (fluffy; small batch; 1 rise)

Pioneer Woman: Cinnamon Rolls. (Never fails; detailed directions; makes a million) (My notes: I don't melt the butter for the filling and do a different glaze.)

Ambitious Kitchen: Best Cinnamon Rolls

Storebought Faves
Because we don't have to make everything from scratch

- Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Joe Joe's. There is nothing better.
- Trader Joe's Mix popcorn. Chicagoans know that caramel popcorn goes PERFECTLY with cheddar popcorn, but I never found an acceptable (not equal, but acceptable) substitute for Garret's until TJ's started making this mix. It's amazing. Trust this.
- Other popcorn. Any popcorn. We eat it while we open presents on Christmas Eve. It's a sacred Swedish tradition. (It is not, but it IS better than Lutefisk)
- Tamales, to go with Christmas morning brunch. Homemade from a local Mexican restaurant are best; store bought from Central Market, HEB, Trader Joe's, or somewhere I haven't tried is acceptable. Steam them and serve with whatever else you're having for breakfast. They're delish.

Let me know your favorite Christmas foods (homemade or not!) in the comments. As I'm learning, there's always room for more. Maybe just not on the counter all at once...