[gingerpale]

Most of you probably already have Christmas dinner (and Eve, breakfast, brunch, etc.) all figured out. (Me too--..Georgia, I'm making the Languedoc style spareribs you posted for me. Did you ever get around to the "Free Range Fruitcake" from Alton Brown?)

But if you're still cooking, these keep airtight 2 weeks.
The best spiced nuts I've found so far, not boring like some!

tp://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001033.html

And this is a recipe for an ice cream cake--but you can skip the cake presentation--the instructions include good peppermint ice cream, which is pretty and tasty all by itself..

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/108968?mbid=rss_epinr

To all of you--
(my greeting to avoid the new December-January what-to-say problem) --
Peace On Earth!

[georgia]

Thanks, GP. My one grandson loves anything peppermint, so if I don't get around to peppermint ice cream for Christmas, I'll try to do it soon.

Didn't get to the fruitcake since I still have a hefty chunk of last year's Christmas Cake (from Britain's Delia Smith) in the freezer, and it still tastes fine. That will be the fruitcake entry on this year's dessert buffet. I always make a buche de Noel but this year have decided to do my old standby cheesecake, which everyone loves and I can make entirely ahead. At this point, I've got 4 kinds of cookies made (butter, gingerbread, biscotti, and bourbon balls), with more to come, plus candied orange peel. Still may do the buche, however, since I can't imagine the table without it. Maybe I'll just place my C&Z buche photo on the table and be done with it!

And, after all my hand-wringing over capon or no capon, I'm going with a crown roast of pork.

For the first time in my entire life (no kidding), I finished up everything (shopping, wrapping, decorating) with time to spare and time to relax and devote to baking without stress. What a great feeling. I wonder if I'll ever be able to do it again.

Happy Late Hannukah/Merry Christmas/Good Solstice/Happy New Year/Peace on Earth