There is nothing better than indulging in a little gluttony during the holiday season. Recipes have the ability to do quite a bit: bring back old memories, start new ones and put a smile on a face. I want to pass along these recipes that have become a part of my holidays over the years. They’re to die for.
First, I want to start with some simple side dishes that will get your mouth watering. My personal favorite is my mother’s potato salad. For this recipe you will need the following ingredients:
-6 potatoes
-4 eggs
-1 tsp. dill relish (or pickles if you cut them very finely)
-celery (half of one piece)
-1/2 an onion
-3 tbsp. mayonnaise (I use low fat mayonnaise)
-2 tsp. mustard
This recipe is very simple and fairly quick to prepare. You will need to cook the potatoes and boil the eggs first. The potatoes can be boiled on the stove or cooked in the microwave. You want to cook them until their center is soft. While the potatoes and eggs are cooking, dice the half onion and the half piece of celery until they are very small squares. After the potatoes and eggs are cooked all the way through, grab a large bowl and mix all of the ingredients together until the mayonnaise and mustard create a solid sauce for the salad. If you like a stronger mustard taste you can add more to taste.
The next recipe is also near and dear to my heart and consistently gets good reviews. It is my cousin’s recipe for a killer layered salad. You will need the following ingredients:
-1 head of iceberg lettuce (you can substitute for another lettuce)
-6 eggs
-1lb. pack of bacon
-1 1/2 cups of frozen peas (not canned; they will thaw out while your eggs and bacon are cooking)
-1 lb package of shredded cheddar cheese
-1/2 cup mayonnaise
-1/4 cup milk
-1 tsp. vinegar
-2 tbsp. sugar
-salt and pepper to taste
For this recipe you want to boil the eggs and cook the bacon until it has a nice crisp. While the eggs and bacon are cooking, cut the lettuce into bite-sized cubes. Mix the mayonnaise, milk, vinegar and sugar in a small bowl. This is the sauce for the salad. Add salt and pepper to the sauce to taste. When your eggs and bacon are cooked, get a large bowl and put a layer of lettuce on the bottom and add half of the peas, 3 eggs, half of the bacon (break it into small pieces) and 1/4 of the bag of cheese. Spread your homemade sauce over the top of the first layer. Then do the same thing again creating a second layer to your salad, but this time add in all of the remaining ingredients. You should have enough cheese to cover the top of your salad completely. Put the sauce you didn’t use for the first layer on the very top of the salad. This is a sweet side dish that will compliment any meal. Every time I make it family members and friends beg me to make it again and again.
This last side dish is a pasta salad that will be sure to please. It is one of my grandmother’s recipes and like all family recipes, she had to deviate from the traditional Italian spaghetti recipe and make it her own. For this recipe you will need:
-Salad Supreme (you can find this at any grocery store in the seasonings aisle)
-1 lb. package spaghetti
-2 cucumbers
-2 dill pickles
-2 tomatoes
-4 green onions
-1/4 cup olives
-1 cup vinegar
-1 cup oil
-1 cup sugar
-garlic to taste
Any vegetable can be omitted depending on your preference
This recipe doesn’t take long to prepare and will fit in perfectly with other holiday recipes. The trickiest part of this recipe is preparing the spaghetti correctly. Undercooked or overcooked spaghetti can ruin the whole dish. Read the box of spaghetti to double check the cook time. Most should only take 10-12 minutes to cook once the water has come to a boil. Don’t put the spaghetti in the pot until the water is boiling. While your spaghetti is cooking, mix the vinegar, oil, sugar and garlic together in a medium sized bowl. This will be your dressing. Dice all of your vegetables and put them in a bowl. Once your spaghetti has finished cooking, drain it and place it in a large bowl. Add in all of the vegetables and the dressing and sprinkle the salad supreme over the top to taste. For most small-sized salad supreme seasonings you will use between 1/2 and 3/4 of its contents for this recipe.
Although side dishes are important, a meal would not be complete without the main course. For my family, no holiday is complete without a ham. My recipe isn’t for the actual ham, but the glaze that you put on it. For this recipe you can use any ham of your preference. I typically use a spiral cut ham. To cook it, follow the instructions on the package. Most hams have cooking instructions printed on the label. To make a glaze that will have everyone raving for more you will need:
-sliced pineapple in the can
-a small jar of maraschino cherries
-a package of toothpicks
-1/2 cup brown sugar
This glaze recipe is quick and easy to prepare and the pineapple slices and cherries make your ham look great. Take the pineapple slices and cherries out of the can. Line the bottom of the pan where the ham will be sitting with a couple of pineapple slices. Use the toothpicks to poke the cherries and pineapple slices onto the ham. This way the juices will soak into it. Use the rest of the juice in the jar from the cherries to create a glaze with the brown sugar. Start with 1/4 cup of brown sugar, mixing it in slowly with the cherry juice and add in more if the glaze is too thick, up to 1/2 a cup. If you like you can add some of the pineapple juice to the glaze too, but it’s not necessary. Pour half of the glaze onto the ham when you put it into the oven and cook it with aluminum foil over the top. When the ham has 30 minutes left to cook, take the aluminum foil off of the ham and gently pour the rest of the glaze. Keeping the ham uncovered for the last 30 minutes will allow the glaze to give the ham a nice golden-brown color.
A party is not a party without some drinks. These alcoholic mixed drinks taste sweet going down, but be careful because their effects can sneak up on you. The first drink is a Kamikaze. For this drink you will need:
-triple sec liqueur
-vodka (I use Smirnoff Vodka)
-fresh limes (for juice)
-mixer
This is an easy shot to make. Use equal parts of lime juice (1 oz), triple sec liqueur (1 oz) and vodka (1 oz). Put them in a mixer and serve as a shot or on the rocks. It’s nice citrusy drink that has a little bite, but great flavor.
The second must have mixed drink is the Washington Apple. This is an All-American spirited drink that tastes as sweet as a fresh Granny Smith apple. For this drink you will need:
-1 oz. Canadian whiskey (Crown Royal)
-1 oz. sour apple pucker
-1 oz. cranberry juice
-ice
-mixer
There are varying versions of this drink, but I find keeping the portions of whiskey, sour apple pucker and cranberry juice equal makes for a smoother drink. Put the ingredients in a mixer and serve in a shotglass or in a larger glass on the rocks. This drink is red and sweet like a ripe apple. If you want you can use a slice of apple as a garnish on the glass. It is perfect for the holidays.
The final drink trumps all drinks if you ask me: the pineapple upside down cake. It has a splash of vanilla and a splash of pineapple, two of my favorite flavors wrapped into one. For this drink you will need:
-1/2 oz. vanilla flavored vodka (I use Smirnoff Vodka)
-1 oz. pineapple juice
-1/2 butterscotch schnapps
-splash of grenadine
-mixer
Put the vodka, pineapple juice and butterscotch schnapps in the mixer and mix them. Pour the ingredients into a small cup or a large shot glass. Take the grenadine and pour a small amount into the bottom of the glass, just enough to give it some it some color. This drink always wins positive attention.
The last recipe I will be sharing is a dessert recipe that has been shared from generation to generation in my family: the rolicky. They’re a little more complicated to make but totally worth the time. They are moon-shaped pieces of heaven. They come from my great-grandfather’s birth country, the Czech Republic. I got the recipe from my grandmother in Michigan and every year my family begs me to make them here in Tampa. For this recipe you will need:
-one large bowl
-two small bowls
-2 1/4 cups flour
-1/2 lb. butter (do not melt, use at room temperature)
-1 package instant rise yeast
-1 tsp. sugar
-1 lb. walnuts
-1 cup sour cream
-5 eggs
-1/4 cup brown sugar
-maple or vanilla flavoring to taste (about 2 to 3 tsp.)
-blender
Put your flour and butter together in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the bowl. You want it solid, not melted. It won’t turn out right if it is melted. In one of your small bowls put the instant rise yeast, and sugar with one ounce of warm water, mix them gently together and watch to make sure the yeast rises. In the second small bowl put one cup of sour cream and five egg yolks (no whites!) that are beaten and mix them. Put the walnuts in the blender with the brown sugar and maple or vanilla flavoring. Grind the walnuts until they are very fine. You will use this as a filling later. Put the walnuts in a baggy in the refrigerator. Add to the large bowl the contents of each small bowl. Mix very, very, well together. Take about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of dough and roll into a ball and place them on cookie sheets. Do this until all the dough is rolled into little balls on the cookie sheets. Cover with saran wrap and let them set overnight in the refrigerator. The next day roll out each ball. They will be like small pie crusts. Make sure you roll them out thin. You can use powder sugared to roll them in and can add a some flour to roll out the little balls (1/4 cup of flour & 1 cup of powdered sugar). After the balls are rolled out, place the nut mix in them, about 1 teaspoon of nut filling. Make sure to roll the dough ends tightly after filling them with nut filling. Place the rolickies on a heavy cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes. Keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t over-brown. The baking time depends on the size of the rolicky and none are exactly the same. When they are done place them on wax paper and let them cool. Sprinkle them with powdered sugar just before you serve them.
Now you have a complete meal that will have everyone satisfied and coming back for more. Once you try these recipes you will wonder how you ever lived without them. Enjoy!