Growing up in the 1950's and 60's I had a most wonderful childhood.  Christmas was an especially wonderful time of year for me, filled with abundance . . .  faith, love, family . . . it truly was a season of light.

We didn't get a lot of treats the rest of the year, with perhaps the exception of Easter, along with the occasional pie or birthday cake . . .  but at Christmas my mom would pull out the stops and our family kitchen was filled with lovely smells and tastes.  

 

Some of those special bakes came from a Robin Hood Baking Leaflet.  All of the flour companies used to put out special baking leaflets at Christmas time.  You could pick them up free at the grocery stores, or in magazines, etc.

This little booklet is filled with the Christmas flavours of my childhood.   

I wanted to give you all something special for Christmas, something I thought you would use and so I scanned the whole booklet and it is my gift to you.  

 

It is filled with lovelies such as Holiday Gems, Lemon Glaces, Christmas Shortbreads, Melting Moments, etc., a whole variety of Christmas cookies, yeast breads, quick breads, cakes, pastries, doughnuts and pies to help to make your Christmas holidays the best ever.

  

Just click on the link below and it will take you to a PDF file which contains the whole booket, which you can download and keep for yourself. Just click the three words below and it will take you to the right spot to get it for free.

Vintage Robin Hood 

 

  

 

A little gift from me to you which comes along with a hearty Merry Christmas and thanks for visiting me all the year through!  Happy Holidays! 

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again! 

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I've told you about my friend Leona many times before.  She has figured large in my life and is one of those lifelong friends that we all love and cherish.  

 

She is the same age as Todd, which makes her about 80, so a fair bit older than myself, but as in love, age is only a number.  We hit it off from the start and still do. 

 

I have had many women in my life who have influenced me culinarily speaking and Leona was one of them.  She may not know it, but she taught me a lot through the years and shared a lot of really delicious recipes with me that were old family favourites in her family.  

 

(She is from New Brunswick, and I am from Nova Scotia.)  We are both maritimers, which is probably a huge part of the reason we gravitated towards each other in the first place. 

 

There is always a special kinship which is shared amongst Maritimers.  The Maritime provinces have traditionally been some of the poorest provinces in Canada, as well as (in my opinion) being some of the prettiest places. 

 

Most people go West when they visit Canada. I think they are missing the best part of Canada however, which is the Martime Provinces.  Beautiful and filled with lovely salt of the earth people.

 

The people are humble and friendly and kind.  They are some of the nicest people on the planet, and upon meeting a Maritimer, I would be most surprised if you did not get an invite to supper before your conversation was done! 

 

When you go to a Maritimer's home, no matter their situation, you will always be invited into the kitchen and offered a hot drink and a bit of cake or a cookie.  That's just the way we roll! 

 

My friend Leona shared this lovely Peanut Butter Ball recipe with me many, many years ago and it is something which has been a huge part of my Christmas fixings ever since! 

It just would not be Christmas in my home without some of these being offered. They're delicious and very easy to make.

 

Like fudge or taffy, they figure big in the area of sweets and candies that we Maritimers love, especially at this time of year.  They are almost a cross between a cookie and a candy.  

 

(I have always counted  them as being  more candy than cookie at any rate)  They are simple to make, quick to make and oh-so-delicious! 

 

Especially if you are a fan of peanut butter!!!  I adore peanut butter.  Smooth peanut butter  is simply creamed together with some icing (Confectioner's) sugar until well combined and smooth.

 

You then stir in crisp rice cereal and a quantity of toasted nuts.  I like walnuts myself.  And I always toast my nuts when I use them for things like this or in my baking.  It just really helps to enhance the natural flavours of nuts.  

 

This takes about 8 to 10 minutes in a moderate oven.  Just spread them on a baking tray in a single layer.  (Do let them cool before using them.)

 

Once that's all mixed together, you roll the mixture into 1-inch sized balls, pop them onto a baking tray, and then pop the tray into the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to chill. 

  

While they are chilling, melt some semi sweet chocolate and butter together.  You then dip/roll the chilled peanut butter balls into the melted chocolate and place back on the baking tray, popping them back into the refrigerator to set them up. 

 

(I actually like to store them in the fridge in a covered container once set.)  These are crisp, nutty, creamy and delicious!

 

For the holidays I sprinkle them with a few candy cake sprinkles to dress them up a bit.  Not necessary, but very pretty.  If you can eat just one of these, you are a much better person than I am!  They are incredibly moreish.  They also make great gifts!  Happy Holy-Days! 

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again! 

 Follow my blog with Bloglovin 

 

This creamy chicken gratin recipe is perfect for those nights when you are starving and you want to feed your family something warm and comforting.

There is nothing like a creamy chicken gratin to tick all the boxes when it comes to creating a delicious and yet simple supper dish.

I had to take some stuff out of the freezer the other day to make room for some Christmas stuff.  I did not want to be doing any shopping at all in these few days before the holidays.  The shops are a madhouse and the traffic is crazy, crazy. 

 

I took out a small chicken breast crown roast, and forgot all about it when I was moving things around.  

I didn't notice it for a few hours, so I ended having to cook it.  No problem really. I can always find something to do with chicken. 

Especially cooked chicken.

 

This recipe comes from a book of mine, which I have mentioned before called, "Twice is Nice" by Edna K Damerell.  

It holds a wealth of recipes for using leftovers of all kinds of things. Not just chicken.  It covers just about everything under the sun. 

 

Its a recipe which is very similar to my Chicken Savoyarde recipe actually, except that it is a lot simpler by half! 

 

You only have to make a delicious sauce which is a very simple and quick make. 

 Melted butter, flour, chicken stock, cream and some seasonings (cayenne, salt and dried tarragon).  

Oh, and a bit of Dijon mustard and some Swiss type of cheese.

 

I happened to have some Comte cheese  in the fridge so that is what I used.  

The flavour of Comte is amazing.  The older it is the better it tastes. 

 

Every once in a while I treat myself to a bit of really good, old Comte cheese.  

Oh, it is a bit of heaven.  This one wasn't really old or expensive, so I didn't mind using some in this sauce.

 

You can use any Swiss style cheese you like.  Any would work well.  

 

The chicken gets layered in the baking dish with the sauce and then topped with buttered crumbs prior to baking  . . .

 

A quick bake until bubbling and golden brown and Bob's your Uncle! 

 

This was really, really good  . . . 

  

I served it simply with some boiled potatoes, peas and carrots!  It went down a real treat! 

 

I expect that this would also be lovely with leftover roast turkey, so if you are doing a bird for Christmas, bear this in mind for afterwards to help use up some of the leftovers!  Bon appetit! 

 

 

Well, I guess the count-down is on now, only four more days until Christmas Eve.  Are things feeling pretty crazy yet?  I can remember how busy those last few days would be when I was raising my children. It was always a panic to get all the things done that I would need to have done!   

 

Cooking supper was just another chore in a long list of things to do, so I relied on quick and easy favourites, that I knew the family would enjoy, but that wouldn't take a lot of work.  Simple dishes like this Easy Chili Mac & Cheese. 

 

It might seem like a bit of a cheat, and yes it is.  But "needs must" as they say. There are times for recipes like this, and these hectic busy last few days before Christmas certainly qualify as one of them! 

 

It uses store cupboard ingredients.  In the main boxed Macaroni and Cheese dinner.  Over here you can find it in the shops and its called Cheesy Mac, in North America you can use Kraft Mac and Cheese, or the equivalent. One box will do. 

 

You will prepare it exactly as it says on the box.  Easy peasy.  With the milk and the butter and the packet of cheese powder.  Simple. 

 

Then it is just a matter of stirring in some tomato salsa. I use the mild, but you can use as hot or as mild as your family enjoys. 

 I also stir in a can of beef chili con carne.  I use Stag brand because that is what we get over here and I use the one with beans.

  

You can use whatever kind of chili con carne you have. ( Its the 425g/14 oz tin size.) Just stir it into the mix of mac and cheese and salsa. 

 

I also like to add some chili powder, but by that I don't mean the full strength chili powder that is sold over here in the UK, 

I mean the milder North American kind of chili powder which is mixed with other things so that it is not quite as hot. (I give you the equivalent in the recipe if you are living over here in the UK.)

 

The chili powder you buy over here is just ground dried chilies and it would blow your head off.  It is not as mild as the North American stuff, which I learnt very early on after arriving here when I made my chili fries for my husband.  

YOU COULD NOT EAT THEM!  They were that spicy.  Don't make the same mistake! Trust me.

 

That is basically it.  You have your casserole mix now.  You can use chili without beans if you like, or vegetarian chili . . .  its your choice. 

 

This gets layered in a buttered baking dish with some four blend cheese. You can use the Mexican blend if you want hot, or you can use a milder blend if you want to play it safe. 

 

I like to play it safe.  I like a bit of spice, but I don't like a lotta heat in things. My older tummy can't take it!  Funny how things like that change as you get older!

  

In any case this is delicious.  Simple.  Quick and easy to make.  A real family pleaser.  All you need is a salad on the side and maybe some crusty bread!

 

Any leftovers can be reheated in a skillet the next day (If there are only two of you like there is in our house, there will probably be leftovers.)  I have always thought the leftovers taste even better than the casserole does on the first day.  Also if you are feeding a crowd, the recipe is very easily doubled! Olé!!!

 

 

When I was a much younger woman than what I am now, I had a good friend named Leona.  She is still a good friend, some thirty odd years later!  I love lifetime friends.  They are an extra special blessing.

 

Leona used to call me a "Good Cooker," but I will have to say that  Leona was no slouch when it came to cooking herself.  She was a beautiful cook, and I still use many of the recipes she shared with me, including the inspiration for the one I am sharing with you today! 

 

We actually met by accident.  I had just moved to London, Ontario, and was heavily pregnant with my middle son ( who just turned 37) and I decided to go to Bingo at the Mess one Sunday evening, just to get away from the kids for a while I suppose.  I liked Bingo.  I sat at a table and Leona sat next to me, and a lady who also became a good friend sat across from me, named Debbie. It turned out Debbie lived just a few doors down from me, and she said that night (half jokingly I suspect) that if I needed anyone to watch my other children when I went into labour we could call on her.  Little did we know that less than 24 hours later we would be knocking on her door!

 

Anyways, the three of us became quite good friends, and used to get together to share meals and craft and all sorts.  As luck would have it, we all ended up in New Brunswick as well many years later, so these friendships have been lifelong friendships, which is a real rarity in Military life!

 

I remember being at Leona's one time and she was cooking what looked like the most beautiful Pork Roast.  It smelled heavenly.  Her secret was a long slow cook in a low oven.  The meat literally fell apart and was so succulent and delicious!

 

I had never cooked a pork shoulder before, always cooking the loin.  She turned me on to a beautiful cut of meat that is often much less expensive than the loin and a whole lot tastier!

 

It does take a lot longer to cook however, but that's not really a problem.  Just bang it into the oven and get on with your day.

 

I like to take my meat out of the refrigerator about half an hour before I am going to cook it.  I also rub it with a mix of seasonings and herbs, which really give the meat an extra special flavour.

 

It cooks in chicken stock, or should I say oven braised, which gives you plenty of juices to make a delicious gravy to serve with your meal.  Leona also used to add potatoes, carrots and turnips to the roasting pan, which you could certainly do as well.  But you will need a larger roasting tin.  If you do add vegetables, again only fill the roasting tin with stock to come about halfway up the sides of the vegetables and the roast.  You don't really want to submerge them.

   

Leona never did this, and that is to remove the roast from the juices and return it to the oven to brown up nicely while you make the gravy.  You certainly don't need to do it either. I just happen to like the colour it gives to the meat!

 

If you are  fan of tender, succulent, deliciously flavourful meat, do give this a go!  I serve it with mash and applesauce, and whatever vegetables happen to be going!  Bon Appetit!