This page is a small collection of some favorite family Christmas recipes.   They weren’t necessarily our families recipes, but ones my mom and others in the family always prepared for the holidays.  Some of them I have actually only recently tried (rhubarb cake.)     You would have had to have known my mother to appreciate this.  She filled you up so much at the dinner table; try this, aren’t you going to have some of that, you have to eat that, we can’t have any leftovers, that by the time it came to dessert I was TOO full to eat it.

 

Rhubarb Cake   -  Very good, Very simple!

 

2 cups marshmallows                               1 white cake mix

 

5 cups rhubarb cut in 1\2 in. pieces           1 small pkg. strawberry jello

 

2 cups sugar

 

pour marshmallows on the bottom of a 9+12 in. greased pan

 

Mix rhubarb sugar and jello together and pour over marshmallow.

 

Mix cake mix as directed and pour over the rhubarb mix

 

Bake at 350 for 45 to 60 minutes    

 

Xmas Spritz Cookies    -  As far as I am concerned.... THESE are THE Christmas cookie!  When I was little I called these Xmas Tree cookies as one of the shapes was an Xmas tree.  For years mom carefully packed and sent these cookies to me when we were living in Alaska and wouldn’t be back for Xmas.

 

1-½ cups butter                      1 cup granulated sugar

 

1 egg                                      2 tablespoons milk

 

1 teaspoon vanilla                   ½ teaspoon almond extract

 

3-½ cups all-purpose flour       1 teaspoon baking powder

 

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Thoroughly mix butter and sugar.  Add egg, milk, vanilla and almond extract; beat well.  Stir together flour and baking powder: gradually add to creamed mixture, mixing to make a smooth dough.  Do not chill. Place dough into Cookie Press and press cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with colored sugar to decorate.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned around edges.  Remove cookies from sheet, cool on rack.  Makes 7-8 dozen cookies.  

 

Salmon Ball         -  Ate this for years in Alaska and at Mom and Dads!

 

1 can salmon (sockeye best, pink ok)        1 package cream cheese

 

2-3 Tablespoons   finely chopped onion       2 teaspoon Worcestershire  sauce

 

1  Tablespoon horseradish                           ½ teaspoon lemon juice

 

¼  teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

 

Mix all ingredients together and form into a ball.  If you don’t want to use your hands, use a piece of saran wrap around ball to help form.   Chill and then serve on your favorite cracker (mine are Ritz Wheat).  I don’t even measure these ingredients after having made so many and you can vary, add, or delete ingredients to personal taste.

 

Church Window Cookies -      These are easy to make, colorful and resemble stained glass windows.   For my part you can skip the coconut!

 

• 1/2 cup butter                                     1 (16 ounce) package milk chocolate chips
   
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract                      1 cup chopped walnuts
   
• 1 (16 ounce) package colored miniature marshmallows    2 cups flaked coconut

     

Melt the butter and chocolate chips in a heavy saucepan over medium heat; mix until smooth and creamy; remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Fold in the marshmallows and walnuts.

 

Scatter about half of the coconut onto a large baking sheet. Form the chocolate mixture into two oblong logs and ay them onto the coconut. Use the remaining coconut to coat the logs. Refrigerate until the logs are firm, about 1 hour. Cut logs into 3/4-inch slices.