Today I’m joining in with my sweet friend, Katharine Barrett, as we continue to celebrate Christmas in July on her blog http://www.katharinesthoughts.net
When I start thinking about preparing for Christmas Celebration with my family, food is one place where I pull out all the stops. In short, we feast.
More important though are the feasts for our souls. Participating in Christmas musicals, going caroling, watching our children’s programs, and attending services that celebrate the birth of Christ like “The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols” feed our souls with warmth, hope, love, joy and gratitude.
Especially so when we attend the Candlelight Service on Christmas Eve. When we arrive we each receive an unlit candle and make our way to our seats. The children are fidgety in their Christmas outfits. They want to light the candles. There’s no nursery for the babies, they come to the service with the families. Most of them are enthralled with the decorations and the singing.
The pastor sits in a chair at the front and the children who can be trusted to not wander off are escorted to sit at his feet. He begins the familiar reading “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree…”
We settle in, absorbed in the story, thinking what it must have been like. Watching the children’s faces caught up in the telling.
The joyful carols ring out and fill the room. The strains of “Immanuel”, “Joy to the World”, “Away in a Manger” and more remind us how He has Graced us with His Holy Presence.
Then-
Silence.
Darkness.
A faint glimmer appears at the front and the sound of Silent Night, Holy Night begins with a single voice. Slowly drifting toward the back, gaining volume as each candle is lit from another and another voice is added. By the end of the song, the room is filled with light and the echo of the last notes hangs in the air. The pastor breathes the benediction and we leave silently, the hush still holds us.
This. Is. Christmas.
The celebration of the birth of the Redeemer, the Lamb of God, the Holy One, the Savior of the world. Messiah. Immanuel. God with us.
We go silently to the car and are quiet on the drive home.
At home, the kitchen is the center of my world for the next few hours. Final preparations for Christmas Celebration at our home. I’ve made the cookies with the kids, and determined the menu. Now, with music flowing, the baking begins!
There are rolls to be made, muffins to be prepped, a chocolate torte and a Meyer Lemon pound cake waiting in the wings. I may even have time for a few truffles and who knows what else I’ll come up with!
I’ve added these old standbys and my kids’ favorites below Questions? Clarification needed? Please add to the comments and I’ll clarify for all!
(just click on this: link to my recipe page and scroll down to find these)
Nathalie Dupree’s Quick and Easy Rolls
I remember watching her make these on her show on PBS when my youngest was little- the cooking shows were his favorite to watch at lunch time.
Pumpkin Muffins
Although these may seem more suited to Thanksgiving tables, there was almost a revolt in the family one year when they discovered I was not planning to make these for Christmas. I gave in and made them even though they didn’t go with the menu!
Blueberry Muffins
I’ve made these for years for breakfast Christmas Morning and on weekends. I usually buy a large amount of fresh blueberries and make a batch or two; then I freeze the remainder by spreading them out in one layer on a cookie sheet (with sides) and freeze then transfer to a freezer bag and use them in this recipe. If I have guests then I make it as a bread using a bundt pan {think “My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding” where Harry(Harriet) brings a bundt cake to the family party} The neat thing about this one is that it can be modified into other kinds of muffins.
Monster Cookies:
so called because they are so big. I use red and green M&Ms for these at Christmas time. I started making these because there were a kazillion teachers I worked with and only one of me and I wanted to give them all a Christmas Present. Every year they would start asking me as soon as we got back from Thanksgiving: “When are you bringing Monster Cookies?” I would make a batch and place them in the break room with my hot cider concoction and they would be gone by 1 o’clock!