Weight Loss Goddess

What You Need:

1 3/4 C flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1 t ground ginger

1/2 t ground nutmeg

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 C butter, softened

1 C sugar

2 eggs

2 egg whites

1 (6 oz) pkg. milk chocolate, melted

1 1/4 C milk

2 C kumquats, seeded and halved

1 C brown sugar, packed firm

1 C cranberry juice

1 Cinnamon stick

1 Bay leaf

2 C cranberries

1/2 C dried cherries

1/2 C pecans, toasted

Whipped Topping

How to Make It:

Spray a 2 1/2 qt. bowl with a non stick cooking spray and dust with flour.

Place the flour into a large mixing bowl.

Add the baking powder, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon and stir to combine.

Place the butter in a separate bowl.

Use an electric mixer and beat the butter on medium speed for 30 seconds.

Pour the sugar into the bowl and continue beating until completely combined.

Add the eggs and the egg whites one at a time beating on low speed after each addition.

Use a rubber spatula and fold the melted chocolate into the mixture.

Alternating back and forth add a little of the flour mixture beat on low to incorporate then add a little milk and beat on low to incorporate. 

Keep alternating and beating the mixture until all the milk and flour have been added and the mixture is mixed together well.

Spread the mixture evenly into the bowl.

Grease a piece of aluminum foil and cover the bowl with the aluminum foil pressed against the inside edge of the bowl.

Place a rack into a Dutch oven.

Set the bowl on the rack and fill the Dutch oven and fill with water to 1 inch up the side of the bowl.

Cover and bring the water to a brisk boil.

Reduce the heat so the water is just simmering and steam the pudding for 1 1/2 hours.

Check the water level every 30 minutes and add boiling water as necessary.

When a toothpick inserted in the center of the pudding comes out clean the pudding is done.

Remove the bowl from the pan and take off the aluminum foil.

Allow the pudding to cool for 10 minutes.

Invert on serving platter and cool 30 minutes before serving.

Place the kumquats in a medium sauce pan.

Add the brown sugar, cranberry juice, cinnamon stick and bay leaf.

Place the pan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a brisk boil.

Reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 3 minutes or until the kumquats just begin to soften.

Adjust the heat to medium and add the cranberries and dried cherries.

When the mixture begins to boil reduce the heat to low and simmer 8 minutes or until the sauce thickens. 

Remove the cinnamon stick and bay leaf and discard.

Fold the pecans into the sauce and remove from the stove.

Pour the sauce over the top of the pudding while still warm.

Serve the pudding immediately.

Serving Size:  12

By placing the bowl of pudding into the Dutch oven you prevent the bottom of the pudding from burning while it steams.  The water in the Dutch oven should always remain at 1 inch up the side of the bowl to insure the pudding cook evenly. Using a 2 1/2 qt bowl allows 2 inches between the bowl and pan and makes removing the bowl when the pudding is done much easier and much safer.

Seafood works well as an alternate Christmas dinner dish. A pot of clam or seafood chowder (New England style) will warm the cockles during the holiday meal. After a hearty bowl of that, no one will want a big heaping helping of turkey and potatoes. Serve the soup with those cute little oyster crackers.

If you have children, ask them to participate in the menu planning. Kids have their favorite foods as well. Christmas dinner revolves around good people and good food. So, have something that you like to eat on the dinner table. You may find a bowl of spaghetti and meatballs in the midst of everything else.

Try out the other white meat. A pork loin is lean and juicy. It still goes well with mashed potatoes and a gravy or wild rice and green beans. Pork loin roasts for twenty minutes per pound so the oven won’t be tied up all day. If mashed potatoes are too heavy, try a medley of fresh roasted vegetables like onions, baby carrots, and red skinned potatoes.

Choose a theme for your Christmas dinner. If it’s seafood, or Italian food, or Mexican food, everyone can bring something to contribute to the meal. The food will be different than usual but the sentiment is still the same.

Alternative Christmas dinner ideas are fun to try out. If it doesn’t take with the folks, you can go back to a more traditional Christmas meal next year.

We all have a picture of Christmas dinner in our minds. It involves turkey, stuffing, gravy, and a host of other dishes. If you want to break with tradition, here are some alternative Christmas dinner ideas to try out on your family this year.

Just because it is Christmas dinner, doesn’t mean that we have to eat the same things each year. Branch out and try a few other dishes or some of your favorite comfort foods that aren’t necessarily a part of a traditional Christmas dinner menu. Dinner guests will like the variety.

If your guests are on board with this Christmas dinner idea, ask them to participate. They can bring a favorite dish of theirs to the gathering for everyone else to try. Instead of turkey as the centerpiece use the other poultry that is popular the rest of the year. Have a plate of fried chicken on the dinner table.

How about fish? We often think of poultry or ham for holiday occasions but fish is just as good and healthier for you. Serve up a platter of salmon or tilapia. For a down home feel, batter and fry some whiting fillets.

The main course of turkey or ham or what have you can be cooked at the host home. It proves easier to have the turkey already on site as opposed to transporting him all around town. Another family member can purchase the turkey and come over to cook it at the host home for the Christmas dinner.

You’ll need a place to set up the Christmas dinner choices. Most potluck meals are served buffet style so everyone gets exactly what they want to eat. Depending on the number of Christmas dinner guests, you may need a table or two set up for the menu items.

Place cards next to each dish explaining what it is. Most will be self explanatory but the place cards do help for kids and non-traditional meals. Label the desserts as well.

The dining room table can be set as usual for a potluck Christmas dinner. After the blessing, everyone can form a line to get their food.  Ask the dish maker to bring their own utensils for serving so you don’t have to use all of yours. Afterwards, everyone takes their own dish home to wash.

A potluck Christmas dinner saves time and money. Each dinner guest is responsible for a portion of the meal so no one has to do all of the preparation.

Christmas dinner is a tradition in many countries. Families and friends get together to share a meal and have some fun. This year, if you are hosting the Christmas dinner, try a new approach to the meal. Turn it into a potluck Christmas dinner.

Potluck is an old term dating back a few centuries. It is a meal brought to a gathering to be shared with others. This is exactly what you will be doing with a Christmas potluck dinner. In centuries past, potluck meals used whatever was available but here, we want a bit fancier fare for our dinner menu.

First, the guests can come together to decide what type of menu you are looking to serve. Don’t worry if schedules are too tight for a family meeting. Use email, text messaging, and good old Ma Bell to straighten out the Christmas dinner menu.

Setting a menu in advance avoids everyone bringing a dessert and no side dishes for the Christmas dinner meal. A true potluck would involve everyone bringing something of their choice, but for variety’s sake, make a list first. As each household chimes in on what they will bring, add it to a list and send it out. We want to avoid duplicates if we can.

What You Need:

8 (12 oz) pkgs. fresh cranberries

6 large navel oranges, unpeeled and cut into wedges

4 C sugar

How to Make It:

Place 1/3 of the cranberries and 1/3 of the orange wedges into the blender.

Blend on medium speed until chopped fine.

Remove and place in a large container.

Continue with the cranberries and oranges in this manner until all are completely chopped.

Pour the sugar into the container and mix together with a rubber spatula.

Cover the container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Serving Size:  4 quarts

This relish is so simple to make and is always a hit at any holiday gathering.  It can be made well in advance and will remain fresh in the refrigerator up to 1 month.

What You Need:

3 C warm water

2 C sugar

3 bananas, sliced

1 (46 oz) can unsweetened pineapple juice

1 1/2 C orange juice

1/4 C lemon juice

2 (2 liter) bottles ginger ale

How to Make It:

Pour the warm water (110 degrees) into the blender.

Add the sugar and bananas and blend until smooth.

Pour into a  punch bowl or large serving bowl.

Carefully stir in the pineapple juice, orange juice and lemon juice until well combined.

Place in the freezer, stirring often, until slushy.

Remove, add the ginger ale and stir to combine.

Serving Size:  24

This makes a great punch for your Christmas day.  Adults as well as children will enjoy a cup while opening presents or after a great dinner.

Try a new twist on the traditional turkey dinner. Barbeque or fry the turkey for Christmas dinner. Fryers don’t cost much but it does take a fair amount of peanut oil to fill up the fryer. Be sure the turkey is good and dry on the outside before plunking him down into the hot oil.

A whole turkey is split in half and seasoned before placing it on the barbeque grill. The time for grilling will depend on the size of the turkey. A smaller turkey can be grilled while a larger one can be fried or roasted. If you plan on roasting a turkey inject with a marinade to add extra flavor to the meat. There are commercial marinades on the market or you can create your own with a variety of spices like cayenne, cumin, turmeric, diced onion, garlic, and oil.

Any greens cooked for Christmas dinner are seasoned with some sort of smoked meat. It can be bacon, ham hocks, or smoked turkey. The meat is simmered in the water first to release the flavor and then the fresh collard greens, cabbage, or green beans are added. It takes about an hour to cook fresh greens and they will reduce as time goes on.

Sweet potatoes aren’t the same if they aren’t in a casserole. Choose to top with marshmallows or not, as long as there are candied pecans somewhere in the recipe. This is a side dish but it tastes more like a dessert.

A soulful Christmas dinner brings back memories of childhood meals. Everyone can sit around the dinner table and reminisce about past meals shared together. Introduce your friends to a bit of soul this Christmas with some soulful additions to the Christmas dinner table.