A 2020 Pandemic Holiday

So…take a few seconds to breathe because I know 2020 has been a "heartless b*tch". Unfortunately, I don't think that we are that close to returning to normal yet and though the year is almost over there is still a lot in store for us, so we need to make the most of what we have in our lives and use it to our advantage. 

This year it seems that we need some holiday cheer fiercely! We need to get our trees up, do our shopping, add our lights and sparkly garlands, start baking goodies and try to find something to make us smile amid all the sh*t the year has brought us. A lot of us have lost loved ones, spent holidays, and birthdays at home without those we wish we could be with. We've lost jobs, lost friends, and watched the country fall apart during a record-breaking election! It has been hard but not all is lost. 

My family has been lucky. We budget very well, are up to date on our bills, did not suffer any job loss in our home, and have been able to breeze through distance learning like we were meant to do it. Honestly, I owe most of our luck to the fact that my significant other already worked from home, I was already a stay at home mom, and I had supplies on hand for schooling at home because my kids love to learn and love to craft. For us the sadness this year came from missing birthday parties, not being able to visit family or friends, not being able to be outdoors in public places, the annual activities around the holidays that happen in our area, and for the kids, actually being in their classrooms with their teachers and friends. 

That's why this holiday season we are doing our best to make it as most like our traditional along with some new traditions thrown in. We have already started trickling the decorations out so we can see what we need, what might not have made it to this season, and what we have new to put out. Over the next couple of weeks we will be decorating, doing fun Christmas crafts and activities, getting visits from our elf Marshmallow, and baking all the fun goodies that bring us those feelings of nostalgia that we long for so much this year especially. 

My favorite memories of growing up with my Ma for Christmas meant making all kinds of cookies and cakes and treats and making gift boxes for friends and family members. We would decorate her tailoring shop, our house, and even our rooms sometimes. The best day was always Christmas Eve because that meant all the family was stopping by and we were opening all kinds of gifts we all had to pass out. We would cook up some kind of pasta dish we didn't have much like lasagna with sausage and meatballs or stuffed shells. There would be treats and punch and so much laughter and love and gift-giving! In my opinion, it was even better than Christmas morning (until I had kids). I miss it some days but now that I am a mom I am able to do some of those traditions by using my Ma's recipes, decorating, and making it all special and love-filled. 

As this month goes on I will try to update here with some fun family holiday ideas, recipes, and gift ideas. 

Hope you all have a safe and happy holiday. Please wear your masks when outside the home, do not travel if you don't have to, wash your hands and stay socially distant so maybe next year we can all be together again! 

Simple Butter Drop Biscuits

****I don't know about you, but I myself absolutely love buttery crumbly biscuits with my sausage pepper gravy and this recipe is the best for it.***

You will need: 

• 1/2 cup butter (I like to use cold and shred it in with cheese grater) 
• 2 cups AP Flour
• 1 tbs baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4cup + 2 tbs milk (can use any kind, I've even used Almond milk) 
• 1 egg (beaten)

Steps to yumminess:

• Preheat oven to 450*F
• Grease cast iron, small baking sheet with parchment or round cake pan. (if using for biscuits with sausage gravy I recommend bacon grease it is awesome!) 
• Combine dry ingredients, shred or cut in butter until looks like a coarse meal, if you work fast you can do it with a fork first and then fully incorporate with your fingers (please wash and dry first rinse in cold to cool hands) 
• SLOWLY add milk while stirring. 
• Form into a round (lumps lol) and put close together in the pan, I like to make a kind of flower shape for it. ((See picture above))

Brush tops with beaten egg and bake for 12 minutes or until browned and baked through. 

**Tip* You may want to keep milk handy to moisten dough a little more if it seems dry, this will help them crumble a little less if you want to use them to have sandwiches or if you enjoy them like I do with a little honey or fresh fruit jam* 

This is also a great recipe to let kids make, just measure out the ingredients if they are under 7 and let them mix as the recipe states. If older than 7 supervise them measuring themselves to give them the practice. 

English Muffin Bread

To make this AWESOME toasting bread you will need:

• 1 tbs Honey 
• 1/4 tsp. Baking powder
• 5 1/2 cups AP flour
• 2 tsp kosher salt (if using table salt use 1 1/4 tsp) 
• 2 tbs yeast
• 2 1/4 cups milk
• 1/4 cup water (warmed) 

{Butter and cornmeal to grease and coat loaf pans)


Steps:

• Mix yeast, honey, and water and set aside. (don't let sit too long) 
• 
  
• Stir salt, baking powder, and flour together.
• 
  
• Add milk and 1 cup of the flour mixture to yeast mix, blend well and continue to add flour mixture until you have a soft sticky dough. 
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• Spoon into two loaf pans and set someplace warm and moist until doubled in size, (30-45 minutes) 
• Preheat oven to 425*F, sprinkle tops of loaves with cornmeal and bake 15-20 minutes. The loaves will be browned and sound hollow when tapped. 

Let cool COMPLETELY before slicing and toasting! Enjoy !!!!

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This bread is a family favorite and we tend to go through it quite quickly, my suggestion is to double the recipe or make an afternoon of this with the kids because it freezes really well if you wrap it twice in plastic then in aluminum foil.