Eleanor's Chocolate Fudge Cake

I was "attempting: (attempting being the operative word) to decorate the dining room table. This year, I decided to keep it to a minimum and let the Christmas china be the focus of a festive looking formal dinner. There are four little vintage figurines that belonged to Grandmother Estelle and I wanted to center these around the lighted centerpiece.

A trio of angels

A sweet christmas bell

Jolly Ole' St. Nick

Is that a kitty paw I spy?

Lighting the way

"Don't you think I make the perfect Christmas Kitty?"

Is she really talking about me?

I think I just understood her to say something about not eating the arrangement....

Eleanor's Chocolate Fudge Cake

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 16 ounce package of brown sugar

3 eggs

3 1 ounce sqaures of unsweetened chocolate, melted

2 1/4 cup softed cake flour

1/2 t. salt

2 t. baking soda

1 cup sour cream

1 cup hot water

1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

Fudge Frosting

3 1-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup butter

1 16-ounce package of powdered sugar, sifted

1/3 cup milk

2 t. vanilla extract

Cake Preparation: Cream the butter and gradually add the brown sugar, beating well until fluffy and well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the chocolate, mixing well.
Comine the flour, salt and baking soda. Gradually add the flour to the chocolate mixture alternately with sour cream, beating well after each addition. Add water, mixing well. Stir in the vanilla. This mixture will be thin. Pour the batter evenly into two greased and floured 9 inch cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes. Let pans cool about 10 minutes before removing the cake from the pans.

Frosting Preparation: Combine the chocolate and butter over low heat until melted, stirring constantly. Combine the sugar, milk and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Set the bowl in a pan of ice water and stir in the chocolate mixture. Beat for 2 minutes at a high speed on electric mixer until the icing is the proper spreading consistency.

Poppy Seed Chicken....Home for Christmas

"This is meeting time again. Home is the magnet. The winter land roars and hums with the eager speed of return journeys. The dark is noisy and bright with late-night arrivals..the doors thrown open, running shadows on snow, open arms, kisses, voices and laughter, laughter at everything and nothing. Inarticulate, giddying and confused are those original minutes of being back again. The very familiarity of everything acts like shock. Contentment has to be drawn in slowly, steadyingly, in deep breaths. There is so much of it. We rely on home not to change, and it does not, wherefore we give thanks. Again Christmas: abiding point of return. Set apart by its mystery, mood and magic, the season seems in a way to stand outside time. All that is dear, that is lasting, renews its hold on us: we are home again..." ~ Elizabeth Bowen, excerpt from Home for Christmas

 COUNTRY CLUB POPPY SEED CHICKEN

8 chicken thighs, skinless and boneless. baked and cut into strips

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 c. sour cream

8 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1/4 c. water

3 T poppy seeds

2 rolls Ritz crackers, crushed

1 1/2 sticks butter, melted

Arrange strips of chicken in the bottom of a casserole dish. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir together soup and water in a saucepan over medium heat and add sour cream. Stir in cheese and 1 1/2 tablespoons of poppy seeds. Pour over chicken strips. Mix together remaining poppy seeds, melted butter and cracker crumbs. Sprinkle over chicken and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve over fluffy, white rice! ~The Jackson Junior League

Oreo Pie for Christmas Eve

"At Christmas, my aunts and uncles all came. Two of them lived away in Atlanta and Jackson and on Christmas Eve, they had to spend the night, making this eight extra people who slept there."

"The pallets the grown-ups made of quilts and put on the floor for us children, weren't too bad; we were so excited we hardly slept anyway. We kept waking up wondering if Santa Claus had come. I always slept with my older cousin Pete and that was not a bad arrangement. Pete and I were going to fight wherever we were anyhow, awake or asleep, and the pallets were as good a place as any!"~except, "Christmas Gift"

This is by popular request for the grandbabies!

Helen's Oreo Pie

1 16- ounce package of Oreo Cookies, Crushed

1 stick of butter, melted

1 8- ounce package of cream cheese, softened

1 12-ounce Whipped Topping, softened

1 large package of instant chocolate pudding

2 1/2 cups milk

Mix cookie crumbs with melted butter. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cookie mixture for topping. Press remaining cookie mixture into the bottom of a 13" x 9" baking dish. Cream together 6 ounces of whipped topping and cream cheese, spread over the cookies. Mix the milk with pudding and spread over the creamed mixture. Take the remaining whipped topping and spread over pudding. Sprinkle with reserved cookie mixture on top.

Blueberry Buttermilk Biscuits for a Southern Country Breakfast

Now you know we Southerners cannot live without our buttermilk biscuits. Why not dress them up a little for Christmas morning? I used to serve these to the children when they were younger and anxiously anticipating their visit from Santa Claus. You can use fresh or frozen blueberries and they are simply melt-in-your-mouth good!

Now for a true Southern Country Style breakfast,

Estelle's serves up country ham and red-eye gravy,

 black peppercorn bacon,

cheese grits and skillet fried potatoes.

Blueberry Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted cold butter

1 cup blueberries

1 cup cold buttermilk

4 teaspoons sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray the baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a fork in a medium bowl. Coarsely grate the cold butter into the dry ingredients and mix to blend evenly. Stir in blueberries, then buttermilk, and mix to combine.

Drop dough into rounds, place on baking sheet; sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden brown about 12 minutes. Serve warm!

Toast the Beauty of the Holiday Season with Decadent Christmas Eggnog

Mother's sideboard buffet with sugared fruit rings and glittered reindeer!

Oh how lovely they sparkle in candlelight!

I had to smile when I unwrapped Luke's very first Christmas ornament!

One of my Victorian Santas. His robe is pink so of course,

I had to have him. Once again, he is about twenty-five years old.

I love reindeer. This is a white glittered reindeer

which has a place of honor on Mother's buffet sideboard.

 

She is entitled "Angels Kindness"

This is an ornament from a collection series that I collected over thirty years ago from Bradford. These little china angels are exquisite and ever so sweet. This is called "Gentle Hugs!"

This is Mother's "Friendly Village Green" Johnson Brothers china platter. I normally only use this at Christmas and Thanksgiving to serve appetizers. I absolutley adore this piece.

My collection of sugared houses...soft pastels of blue, pink and green...

aren't they magical?

This is an antique bisque china choir set which belonged to my mother. Each year, she would place these little choir boys and girls in the formal living room and I would play with them for hours. They are cracked and chipped, some even held together with glue. but oh how I love them. These are so treasured to me. That's Mae Mobley's "bird" out the window.

 Decadent Christmas Eggnog

2 quarts of whole milk (divided)

1 quart of half and half

4 eggs, well beaten

1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 to 1/2 pint of bourbon

1/2 tsp salt

3 tsp vanilla

Fresh Nutmeg

 Vanilla Bean ice cream, 1/2 gallon

Blend eggs and 1 qt milk in blender. Scald this mixture in a saucepan, (let it reach 180 on a candy thermometer while stirring constantly) Cool and then put in fridge overnight to chill.

Several hours before serving, put punch bowl in freezer. Combine in large container the chilled milk and eggs mixture, 1 additional qt of milk, 1 qt half and half, vanilla, salt, sweetened condensed milk and bourbon, then sprinkle with freshly grated nutmeg. Chill in refrigerator.

When ready to serve, take chilled punch bowl out of freezer and scoop vanilla bean ice cream in rounded scoops in bottom of bowl. Pour eggnog over ice cream. Generously sprinkle on more freshly grated nutmeg and serve.

Spiced Christmas Cocoa.....Lighting the Tree

Need something sweet and delicous to fill up those darling Christmas mugs? Look no further than this delightful hot cocoa!

Topped with a dollop of Marshmallow Cream.....oh my!!

Spiced Christmas Cocoa

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa

1/3 cup water

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

4 cups milk

3/4 cup marshmallow cream

In medium-sized saucepan, heat sugar, cocoa, water, cinnamon and nutmeg over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer 4 minutes, stirring constantly.

Stir in milk. Heat over low heat. Pour cocoa into 6 mugs. Top each with 2 tablespoons marshmallow cream.

Pumpkin Cake Roll....A Collection of Snowmen

I confess! I am in love with other men....Snowmen!! Through the years, I usually seem to add a few to my collection. I find these delightful holiday snowmen to be old souls.....their faces reflect soft smiles, twinkling eyes and Christmas secrets held within their hearts. They also don't seem to be mind being somewhat portly! Isn't it everything a girl wants?

My son Greg requests this every Christmas. I was so relunctant to try my hand at making this, but once I did, it was so much fun. I felt I had accomplished a baking masterpiece. It is simply wonderful!

Southern Sideboards Pumpkin Cake Roll

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup pumpkin

1 teaspoons lemon juice

¾ cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger

3/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup finely chopped nuts pecans

Beat eggs on high speed for about five minutes.Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar.Stir in 2/3 cup pumpkin and the lemon juice.Mix dry ingredients together in separate bowl. Fold into the pumpkin mix. Line a 15" x  10" x 1" baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray the parchment with nonstick cooking spray. Spread the batter onto a baking sheet and smooth out.Top with chopped pecans and bake at 375 degrees F. for 15 minutes.
Turn out onto lightweight towel and while the cake is hot and dust generously with powdered sugar. Roll towel and cake together. Cool completely.

Cream Cheese Filling

4 tablespoons butter

½ tsp vanilla

8 oz cream cheese

1 cup powdered sugar

Beat all ingredients together  until smooth. Unroll the cake. Spread filling evenly, roll back up without the towel, and place on serving platter, cover and chill. When ready to serve, dust generously with powdered sugar to give it a festive and snowy look.