A Clean Slate 1/3/13

Today’s date is a bit unusual and reminds us that here we have a clean slate to start a brand new year.  Hope we can erase some bloopers and the damage from them and create a fantastic year better than the last one. Maybe you were luckier than I happened to be and didn’t make any bad decisions.  There always seems to be room for improvement in some category. Hope we all accomplish it for a bigger and better 2013.

Christmas is nearly in the past, although I keep my Christmas things on display until after January 6^th , the day we celebrate the wise men finding the birth place of Christ and bringing Him gifts, originating the practice of giving Christmas gifts to those we love. Hope your Christmas brought you much family time and heartwarming joy. 

We had our usual celebration at Mike and Becky’s home where we can all be seated in the same room for a Christmas Brunch.  This year was special because a grandson from Texas who comes only every other year was here with his family and a granddaughter who lives in Maryland was able to be here  She brought with her one of three Chinese exchange students she and her husband are hosting.  It was a special day marred only by a few who could not make it because of surgery and working schedules. It was a great day. Hope your celebration was perfect.

I am certain that after the many celebrations that always demand food, nothing seems to excite us.  I purchased some bulk sausage, intending to make a special entrée, but could not find the recipe.  So I resorted to my scrap books of my columns and fond one that had nothing to do with sausage, but it sounded so simple and easy to make it aroused my interest to fill my dietary needs on an especially lazy day, and I happened to have all of the ingredients in my pantry.  I was more than pleased with it and made it again today with a minor addition.  It makes enough for two and I enjoyed the warm up the next day more than the original sampling.  Hope you are tempted to try it.  It was in the year of 2003 that I gave it to you.  I did not remember it at all and am not certain that I had made it, but it is going to be a regular on my menus now.

                        

FRIDAY TUNA SPECIAL

1 cup crushed cracker crumbs

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can of tuna, (I prefer Albacore)

3 eggs, slightly beaten

Combine all ingredients.  Place in a generously buttered, small casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. In my efforts today, I added about a cup of left over peas. I rated the trial a success.

I looked in an old recipe book and was interested in the pictures of several new combinations until I noticed that they called for either blue cheese or horseradish.   So I looked further and came across something that I do approve of.

                        

CHICKEN SALAD CROISSANT SANDWICHES

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

¾ cup chopped apple

¾ cup dried cranberries

¾ cup mayonnaise

½ cup chopped walnuts

½ cup chopped celery

I tablespoon chopped onion

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon curry powder

6 lettuce leaves

6 croissants, split

Combine chicken, apple, cranberries, mayonnaise, walnuts, lemon juice, onion and curry powder. Place the lettuce on the croissants. Top with chicken salad and other half of croissant.

May the new year of 2013 bring you and yours only good things.