Christmas recipes-ez desserts and dinner items?!


Question: I like the Southern flair- but i am very open to suggestions..thanks everyone and happy holidays..


Answers: I like the Southern flair- but i am very open to suggestions..thanks everyone and happy holidays..

fruit salad...take a can of mixed fruit, drain, add cool whip (nuts, shredded coco nut if desired) and call it a day!! Thats one of the easiest, quickest things that I make....especially if I am on low on time & on $$$>

well, in greece we make very interesting christmas biscuits. here are the links with some recipes:
for Almond Cresents

www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/32/Gree...

for Honey Biscuits

greekfood.about.com/od/dessertspastrie...

Southern Red Velvet Cake

Vegetable oil for the pans
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons red food coloring (1 ounce)
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting, recipe follows
Crushed pecans, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil and flour 3 (9 by 1 1/2-inch round) cake pans.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In another large bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.

Using a standing mixer, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined and a smooth batter is formed.

Divide the cake batter evenly among the prepared cake pans. Place the pans in the oven evenly spaced apart. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through the cooking, until the cake pulls away from the side of the pans, and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean, about 30 minutes.

Remove the cakes from the oven and run a knife around the edges to loosen them from the sides of the pans. One at a time, invert the cakes onto a plate and then re-invert them onto a cooling rack, rounded-sides up. Let cool completely.

Frost the cake. Place 1 layer, rounded-side down, in the middle of a rotating cake stand. Using a palette knife or offset spatula spread some of the cream cheese frosting over the top of the cake. (Spread enough frosting to make a 1/4 to 1/2-inch layer.) Carefully set another layer on top, rounded-side down, and repeat. Top with the remaining layer and cover the entire cake with the remaining frosting. Sprinkle the top with the pecans.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 pound cream cheese, softened
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand-held electric mixer in a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar, and butter on low speed until incorporated. Increase the speed to high, and mix until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. (Occasionally turn the mixer off, and scrape the down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.)
Reduce the speed of the mixer to low. Add the vanilla, raise the speed to high and mix briefly until fluffy (scrape down the bowl occasionally). Store in the refrigerator until somewhat stiff, before using. May be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Yield: enough to frost a 3 layer (9-inch) cake
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baked ham with marmalade-horseradish glaze

1 18-pound fully cooked bone-in smoked ham, room temperature
48 (about) whole cloves
4 cups water
1 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup prepared cream style horseradish
1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

2 cups fresh orange juice
Preparation
Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 325°F. Place ham on rack set in large roasting pan. Using sharp knife, score ham in diamond pattern. Press 1 clove into center of each diamond. Pour 4 cups water into roasting pan. Roast ham 1 hour 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, blend marmalade, horseradish, and sugar in medium bowl.

Remove ham from oven. Transfer ham to baking sheet. Discard pan juices. Return ham to roasting pan. Add orange juice to roasting pan. Brush top of ham with 1/3 of marmalade glaze. Bake ham 10 minutes. Baste with orange juice in pan, then brush with half of remaining glaze. Bake ham 10 minutes. Baste with orange juice in pan and brush with remaining glaze. Roast ham until heated through, basting every 5 minutes, about 20 minutes longer. Let ham rest 15 minutes. Transfer to platter. Serve ham hot, warm, or at room temperature.
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scalloped potatoes with three cheeses

3/4 cup (packed) grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
3/4 cup crumbled Danish blue cheese (about 4 ounces)
1/3 cup (packed) freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/4 ounces)

4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
4 tablespoons (§ stick) butter

3 cups whole milk
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Mix cheddar cheese, blue cheese and Parmesan in small bowl.

Arrange half of potatoes in prepared baking dish, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Sprinkle onion over, then flour. Dot with 2 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle half of cheese mixture over. Top with remaining potatoes, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 2 tablespoons butter. Reserve remaining cheese.

Bring milk to simmer in medium saucepan. Pour milk over potatoes (milk will not cover potatoes completely). Cover baking dish tightly with foil. Bake 45 minutes. Uncover dish (liquids in dish may look curdled); sprinkle potatoes with reserved cheese mixture. Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender and cheese is deep golden brown, about 45 minutes longer. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Cover and rewarm in 375°F oven about 20 minutes.) Remove from oven; let stand 15 minutes before serving.
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green bean and lemon casserole

2 lbs slender green beans
3/4 stick unsalted butter
few drops olive oil
1 lemon
sea salt and fresh pepper
Preparation
Bring a big pot of water to the boil, while you top and tail (trim) the beans. Once the water has come to the boil, salt it and cook the beans until they have lost their rawness (about 6 minutes after the water comes back to the boil), but retain a bit of crunch.

Strain them, and put the pot back on the stove over a low heat with the butter and olive oil. While the butter melts, chop up the lemon. Put it on a chopping board, cut a slice off each end, just enough to remove skin and pith, and then cut downwards, turning the lemon as you go, to peel the fruit fully. Don't worry if in order to remove all the pith you cut into the fruit a bit: just take the pieces of fruity peel over to the pan and squeeze in any juice you can. Then cut the lemon up on the board: I just slice and let each slice tumble into bits on its own. Add the lemon pieces and all the juice that collects to the melted butter and stir well with a wooden spoon, adding the drained beans.

Swirl the pan vigorously and turn the beans in the lemony butter. Add salt to taste and lots of freshly ground pepper. I love white pepper (out of deference to my mother's taste and practice) or the much-abominated 1980s restaurant-style mixed pepper, but neither is crucial.

Remove to a warmed casserole making sure you don't leave any lemony, buttery juices behind.
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whole wheat dinner rolls

3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups (or more) white whole wheat flour*
or regular whole wheat flour
3/4 cup instant mashed potato flakes
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
3 tablespoons sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons quick-rising active dry yeast (from two 1/4-ounce envelopes)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 large egg yolk
1 large egg white, whisked with 1 tablespoon water (for glaze)
3 to 4 tablespoons quick-cooking oats
Preparation
Bring 3/4 cup whole milk and 3/4 cup water to simmer in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add butter; stir until melted. Attach instant-read thermometer to inside of pan; let milk cool until thermometer registers 120°F to 130°F.

Meanwhile, combine 3 cups flour, potato flakes, dry milk powder, sugar, yeast, and salt in large bowl; whisk to blend. Add warm milk mixture. Stir to blend; mix in egg yolk. Knead mixture in bowl until dough comes together (dough will be sticky). Turn out onto floured work surface and knead until very smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls as needed, about 8 minutes. Place dough in buttered bowl; turn to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Butter 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan or small baking sheet. Turn dough out onto floured work surface and divide in half. Knead each piece lightly until smooth. Cut each dough half into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into almost smooth ball. Arrange dough rounds in 4 lengthwise and 4 crosswise rows in prepared pan, spacing about 3/4 to 1 inch apart (rolls will not fill pan). Cover shaped rolls with kitchen towel and let rise in warm draft-free area until rolls have almost doubled in volume and have expanded enough to touch each other, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Gently brush rolls with egg-white glaze, then sprinkle generously with oats. Bake dinner rolls until light golden brown, about 28 minutes. Let rolls cool in pan 5 minutes, then pull rolls apart and cool on rack at least 15 minutes.

A LITTLE AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cool rolls completely, then wrap in foil and let stand at room temperature. Rewarm foil-wrapped rolls in 350°F oven about 10 minutes, if desired, or serve at room temperature.
FURTHER AHEAD: Can be made and then frozen up to 2 weeks ahead. Wrap in foil, then place in resealable plastic bag.

*White whole wheat flour is milled from 100 percent hard white wheat. It contains all of the germ and bran (and nutritional value) of regular whole wheat, but has a naturally lighter color and milder flavor. It's available at some supermarkets and specialty foods stores and from kingarthurflour.com.
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Christmas cheesecake with English toffee filling

Crust
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 5 ounces graham crackers)
1/2 cup toasted almonds, finely chopped
1/2 cup English toffee bits (such as Skor)
2 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
8 ounces chocolate-covered English toffee (such as Skor or Heath bars), cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Topping
1 16-ounce container sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Assorted candies (such as gumdrops and holiday M&M’s)
Preparation
For crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix first 5 ingredients in medium bowl. Add butter; stir until moist clumps form. Press mixture over bottom and 1 inch up sides of 10-inch-diameter springform pan. Bake crust until just set, about 5 minutes. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

For filling: Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until blended. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, blending well after each addition. Beat in both extracts. Pour half of mixture into prepared crust; sprinkle with toffee pieces. Pour remaining mixture over. Bake until edges are puffed but center is barely set, about 55 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare topping: Mix sour cream, sugar and vanilla in medium bowl until smooth. Pour topping over hot cheesecake. Bake cake until topping is just set, about 5 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool 10 minutes. Run knife between cake and pan sides. Chill cake uncovered overnight.

Remove pan sides and place cake on platter. Garnish top with candies.
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amaretto-cranberry kiss

2 cups cranberry juice cocktail
1 cup vodka
1/2 cup amaretto
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
Ice cubes
Clementines, peeled, separated into segments
Preparation
Mix cranberry juice, vodka, amaretto, and orange juice in pitcher. Cover and chill until ready to serve. DO AHEAD: Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.

To make 2 drinks, fill cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Pour in scant 1 cup vodka mixture. Cover and shake vigorously. Strain into 2 Martini glasses. Garnish each with clementine segment. Repeat 3 times with ice cubes, remaining vodka mixture, and clementine segments.
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blood orange champagne cocktail



1/4 cup crème de cassis (black-currant liqueur)
1 1/2 cups strained fresh blood orange juice (from about 6 oranges)
1 750-ml bottle chilled brut Champagne or dry sparkling wine
8 blood orange slices (optional)
Preparation
Spoon 1 1/2 teaspoons crème de cassis into each of 8 Champagne flutes or other glasses. Add 3 tablespoons juice to each glass. Fill each glass with Champagne, then stir gently. Garnish cocktails with slices of blood orange, if desired.

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