Citrus Pomegranate Christmas Salad

Citrus Pomegranate Christmas Salad

This was a delicious salad we served over the Christmas holiday.

It is bright and flavorful and a good change of pace from all of the heavy, sugary

holiday meals and desserts.

It was modified from Bobby Flay's Watercress Citrus Salad.

The pomegranate dressing:

⦁ 1/4 cup pomegranate juice 

⦁ 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

⦁ 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 

⦁ 1 teaspoon clover honey 

⦁ 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lime zest 

⦁ 1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest 

⦁ Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

⦁ 1/2 cup canola oil
The salad 

⦁ 2 navel oranges, segmented, juices caught over a bowl 

⦁ 1 red grapefruit, segmented, juices caught over a bowl 

⦁ 1 pound jicama, peeled and cut into matchsticks 

⦁ 1 bag arugula and 1/2 bag baby spinach

⦁ 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds

Directions

⦁ Blend together the pomegranate juice, vinegar, mustard, honey, lime and  orange zest and season with salt and pepper. Slowly blend in the oil until emulsified.

⦁ Put the citrus into a bowl; add the jicama and arugula and spinach. Add the pomegranate seeds on top.
Add a few tablespoons of the reserved citrus juices and the  pomegranate dressing, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.

 Put the oranges, grapefruit, jicama, arugula, and baby spinach into a bowl.

Add some of the citrus juices and pomegranate seeds.

Blend together the pomegranate juice, vinegar, mustard, honey, lime and  orange zest  in and 

season with salt and pepper. Slowly blend in the oil until emulsified. 

Pour over the salad right before serving.

Toss together to coat and serve.

What great Christmas colors.

  It will become a holiday favorite.

Delicious!

Christmas Tea Party-Lavender Shortbread Cookies

When I was looking for Christmas cookie cutters to make my traditional gingerbread and

sugar cookies,

 I found my Eiffel Tower cookie cutter.

I was inspired.

I had seen a recipe for lavender cookies and thought that would be

the perfect cookie for not only the Eiffel Tower cut out cookie,

but also for a tea party.

Just Look!

When you are 2 and 1 years old,

you wear your finest new Christmas party dresses.

Tea for two.

That is too much cuteness for one blog!

I modified a recipe from All Recipes,
 By Maryeileen Corcoran

My Recipe Revision

Ingredients

⦁ 1 cup butter and 1/2 cup margarine, softened 

⦁ 2/3 cup white sugar 

⦁ 1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar 

⦁ 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh lavender, (1 for garnish)

⦁ 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest 

⦁ 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 

⦁ 1/2 cup cornstarch 

⦁ 1/4 teaspoon salt 

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter/margarine, white sugar and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the lavender and lemon zest. Combine the flour, cornstarch and salt; mix into the batter until well blended. 

Divide dough into two balls, wrap in plastic wrap and flatten to about 1-inch thick. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Place on cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, just until cookies begin to brown at the edges. (These cookies were large so I added a few minutes to the baking time.)  Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Glaze:

Powdered sugar
Lemon juice 
Lemon zest

Use enough lemon juice to make a consistency that I can spoon onto the cookies, and that will harden as it cools.

The glaze should be the consistency of corn syrup. Test the consistency by taking a spoonful from the bowl and drizzle back into the glaze; the drizzled glaze should leave a trail. 

Experiment.

Be sure the cookies have cooled completely before applying the glaze with a thin consistency.

Cream together butter, white sugar, and confectioner's sugar

until light and fluffy.

 Culinary grade lavender.

 Lemon zest.

 Finely grind the lavender.

 Mix in lavender and lemon zest.

 Combine the flour, cornstarch and salt.

 Mix into the batter until well blended. 

Divide dough into two balls, wrap in plastic wrap 

and flatten to about 1-inch thick. 

Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

  On a lightly floured surface, 

roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. 

Cut into shapes with cookie cutters.

Place on cookie sheets.

 Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated 325 degree oven, 

just until cookies begin to brown at the edges.

  Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets.

 Place cooled cookies on a sheet of waxed paper.

 Mix the powdered sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice

to the desired consistency.

 Spoon the glaze over the cookies.

 Sprinkle some ground lavender on top of the glaze before it dries.

 Bon Apetito!

Ready to take to a tea party!

Pictures from my 

Tea Party with Ceci.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas 2016-Just a few Photos- Kiwi-Pomegranate Christmas Tree

Christmas is a 

"Most Wonderful Time of the Year!"

Doug and I spent a few weeks preparing for Christmas,

and we loved every minute of it.

We baked cookies and rum cake and Chex mix 

and the list goes on.

It is a time for celebrating the birth of Jesus,

and because of that, sharing gifts and time together as family.

I didn't take a lot of photos.

I mostly photographed making this 

Pomegranate-Kiwi Christmas Tree 

with Ceci and Dane.

 You start with some kiwis.

Peel and slice them.

 Layer them in a Christmas dish.

We used a Christmas tree plate.

Dane is making the tree topper

by peeling a mandarin orange and sectioning it.

Doug is "seeding" the pomegranate.

 Arrange the Mandarin oranges for the topper.

Then add the pomegranate seeds to the tree.

 This is healthy and delicious!

Interesting Facts About Kiwifruit

⦁ Kiwi fruit was named after the New Zealand Kiwi bird—an unusual flightless bird—because they are both small, brown and furry.

⦁ Not all kiwi fruit is fuzzy! The most popular species of kiwifruit is appropriately called fuzzy kiwifruit, but there is also golden kiwi with a smooth bronze skin. The golden kiwi is actually sweeter and more aromatic in flavor.

⦁ Although kiwis have been native to China for centuries, practically no one in North America knew what they were 60 years ago. They were first introduced to the U.S. in 1962. They caught on fast!

⦁ Although kiwifruit can grow in any temperate climate, most of the world’s kiwi are grown in Italy, New Zealand and Chile.

⦁ YES, you can eat the fuzz if you want.

⦁ You can eat the fuzz if you want.

More on health benefits of Kiwi

Pomegranates:

The name pomegranate comes from Medieval Latin meaning "seeded apple."

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/042282_pomegranates_history_superfood.html#ixzz4V1UIP17r

Grandpa & Ceci

This was taken Christmas morning just before we opened our presents.

Aiden, Spencer, Ceci, Dane, Camden, Madi, and Graham.

Merry Christmas!

Someone Is Five! Batman Cake!

Batman Cake

Where does the time go?

From a few months old to 5 years old in a flash.

Here he is "all grown up".

Well, he is five.

I was there on his special day,

and wanted to make a birthday cake with him.

I thought I had packed a chocolate cake mix before I headed out the door,

but I was mistaken.

Batman is his favorite and always has been.

So, we made a Batman Cake.

Cam and I  started to gather the ingredients for the cake,

 and I thought the add-ins were not the usual.

That was because the box I grabbed was a brownie mix.

It's a good thing we like brownies.

 Cam has baked quite a bit with Grandma.

 We followed the directions on the box.

 Ready for the oven!

 Grandpa found a free printable template on line.

(This is Cam's Batman face).

Bat wings.

 We cut out the template and placed it on black rolled out fondant.

Then we cut around the bat form.

 We frosted the brownie.

 And added the Batman symbol.

 Cam's little helper.

NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA BATMAN 

 A remote control Batmobile!

Happy Birthday!

What a fun day!