Holiday Almanac December 29: Lemon Currant Surprise

Seriously, this time of year there is absolutely no reason to be baking a cake.

But in the absence of a lemon cake mix, a pudding cake mix, or any idea what that latter even means, I had to wing this one a bit.

Regardless, it came out tasty and nice, if a bit unnecessary.

As a footnote, I forgot to take any pictures of this, and now I am in Vienna, so you'll have to bear with me. Sorry!

Instead of cake, here's a picture of the prettiest cheese plate I've ever made! 

The verdict:

3 spoons out of five. It was fine, but the last thing I wanted to do after all the Christmas cooking I’ve done this month already was make a lemon currant cake. Plus, currants seem like a weird addition, and overall it was just a little anticlimactic.

The recipe:

Lemon Currant Surprise

the directions:

Make a lemon cake.
Add a handful of currants just before baking.
Bake as normal, then serve warm.

the ingredients:

1 lemon cake, your favourite recipe (I used this one)
1 handful dried currants

Holiday Almanac December 28: Festive Corn Ring with Creamed Turkey

For more information on the Holiday Almanac, go here. Or to see what I've been up to on past Holiday Almanac days, check out this page.

You guys, I’m really embarrassed about this one.

It’s not cool to say you like to eat something with Festive in the title, and it’s definitely not cool to say you like anything ‘creamed,’ but here we are, and this meal is delicious. We didn’t have leftover turkey, and the supermarkets here stop selling turkey when the holiday gets too close and they run out, so we made this with chicken.

And it was so good that not only did we eat the leftovers, but I’m already considering making it again.

It’s comfort food, plain and simple, and if it doesn’t photograph well, it more than makes up for its ugliness with a whole array of flavours and textures and a simple heartiness that works so well this time of year.

The verdict:

4 spoons out of five. This is seriously delicious and I totally recommend making it—especially this time of year—but I’m knocking off a spoon since it’s not exactly beautiful enough to serve to company.

the recipe:

Festive Corn Ring with Creamed Turkey

the directions:

Make cornbread as directed, but add salt, sage, dry mustard, green pepper, and pimento after all other ingredients.
Pour cornbread batter into a bundt pan and bake per instructions.
Meanwhile, make creamed turkey according to directions.
Serve creamed turkey in a small bowl in the centre of cornbread ring, and don't be embarrassed by how delicious it is.

the ingredients:

1 recipe cornbread (I used this one)
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp sage
¼ tsp dry mustard
¼ c green pepper, chopped
¼ c pimento, chopped
1 recipe creamed turkey (I used this one)

Holiday Almanac December 27: A Day of Rest

For more information on the Holiday Almanac, go here. Or to see what I've been up to on past Holiday Almanac days, check out this page.

Today's task advises a day of rest and suggests that the day is 'a good day to gather up your Christmas cards and get your own card list ready for next year.'

But since I don't have enough cards to require gathering, and I don't need a card list for next year, this one's a bit of a freebie.

So today, sit back, drink your coffee extra slow, and enjoy the last glimmers that Christmas has to offer.

The verdict:

5 spoons out of five. It's a pretty good day to take it easy, whether you're in Scotland, Vienna, or the US.