Holiday Dinner

Enrichment this week went really well! We had a great dinner, thanks to several sisters in the ward: Audrey Hutchinson, Sherri Ivie, Carol Jones, Morgan Pambo, Fern Heap and Lisa Saunders. Thanks for your help! The decorations were great to help us get into the Christmas spirit. Thanks to all who let us use their Christmas dishes. The room was very beautiful with all the nativities that sisters brought to share with others. And a big thanks to the Young Women who had a beautiful singing program. Thanks to all the hard work from the Young Women, their leaders, and all who helped make the night work!


Here are the recipes from the dinner:

Holiday Dinner Recipes

Chocolate Cake

1 milk chocolate cake mix
Bake in cookie sheet 18 minutes. Cool.
Mix together: large chocolate instant pudding according to directions and 16 oz. softened cream cheese
Spread over cake. Put in fridge until set up. Spread large cool whip. Shave chocolate on top.

Great Chicken

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 pkg Lipton onion soup mix
1 small bottle Russian dressing
1 (16 oz.) can whole cranberry sauce

Flour and brown chicken, put in crockpot. Mix Russian dressing, Lipton soup mix, and cranberry sauce. Pour over chicken and cook on low setting for 4 to 5 hours.
Serve over rice

Pear Cinnamon Salad

1 6-oz. Cherry Jello
2 Cups water
¼ C cinnamon candies

bring to a boil and stir until all the red hot candy is dissolved.
Add 1 ½ C pear juice to the jello mixture
Pour Jello mixture over 1 Quart of cut-up pears (well-drained).
Garnish with whipped cream and sliced almonds.

Pickled Carrots

5 C carrots, sliced
1 purple onion, in round slices
1 green pepper, in round slices
1 can (10 ¼ oz.) tomato soup
¾ C vinegar
¾ C sugar
½ C vegetable oil
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Cook carrots in boiling salted water for 10 minutes (until crispy tender). Drain. Cool. Combine with onion and green pepper. Set aside. Combine remaining ingredients. Pour over vegetables. Cover. Refrigerate 12 hours or up to 2 weeks. Drain and serve. Yield: 8 servings.

________________________________

An unknown author wrote:


I am the Christmas Spirit.
I enter the home of poverty, causing pale-faced children to open their eyes wide in pleased wonder.
I cause the miser’s clutched hand to relax and thus paint a bright spot on his soul.
I cause the aged to renew their youth and to laugh in the glad old way.
I keep romance alive in the heart of childhood and brighten sleep with dreams woven of magic.
I cause eager feet to climb dark stairways with filled baskets, leaving behind them hearts amazed at the goodness of the world.
I cause the prodigal to pause a moment on his wild, wasteful way, and send to anxious love some little token that releases glad tears—tears which wash away the hard lines of sorrow.
I enter dark prison cells, reminding scarred manhood of what might have been, and pointing forward to good days yet to come.
I come softly into the still, white home of pain; and lips that are too weak to speak just tremble in silent, eloquent gratitude.
In a thousand ways I cause the weary world to look up into the face of God, and for a little moment forget the things that are small and wretched.
I am the Christmas Spirit.


I look forward to this Christmas season and I hope we can all keep our eyes open for those who are in need this season. We are so blessed to live in this beautiful valley, surrounded by friends. I hope that during this season we can look to others that need our help, and in so doing, we can bring the Christmas Spirit into our homes and neighborhood. This is such a special season, a time to reflect on Christ, what we have, and what is possible because of him. Remember the Christmas spirit this time of year!

-Megan Tanner

Sisters Share

A delicious quick easy treat for the holidays!

Quick Caramel Popcorn

Melt in saucepan over medium heat:

1/4 c. butter/margarine

1/4 c. brown sugar

7 large marshmallows

Pour over 2 quarts popped popcorn.

-Lila Cooley

Sisters Share

I love this time of year! The crisp fall mornings and the smell of cinnamon pine cones put a smile on my face! I love the excitment of little children and how the world seems to get a little bit kinder as the holidays are approaching. I love hot cocoa, warm blankets and twinkling christmas lights. Family gatherings, left over turkey sandwiches and Christmas carols. I'm a simple person, and simple things please me. I hope you will enjoy this recipe of another simple favorite of mine, Pumpkin Cookies. ENJOY!
-Angie Fonnesbeck

1 Duncan Hines Spice cake mix
1 small can pumpkin (not the pie filling)
Chocolate chips if desired (and who wouldn't)
Seriously, that's it.
Combine ingredients. Bake at 350 12-15 minutes

Click here to visit Angie's blog

Sisters Share

We are going to start a new thing on the blog-We are going to ask Sisters to share their own ideas-tips, recipe's, books they've read, thoughts, things that are going on in their lives, etc. etc. to put on the blog. Look forward to a call to share your thoughts, or if you have some you'd like to share already, let Sister Tanner know, and we'll get it up on the blog. Thanks in advance for all your help!

Sisters Share: Julie Ballard

Thanks Julie!

Hearty Lasagna Soup

1 lb ground beef

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp dried parsley flakes

3 1/2 cups Swanson Beef Broth

1 can (about 14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes

1/4 tsp dried Italian seasoning, crushed

1 1/2 cups uncooked corkscrew-shaped pasta

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:Cook the beef, onion, garlic, and parsley in a 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat for 10 minutes or until the beef is well browned, stirring often, pour off any fat.

Stir the broth, tomatoes and Italian seasoning in the saucepan and heat to boil.

Stir in pasta in the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium, Cook for 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender. Stir in the cheese. Serve with additional cheese, if desired.

From: Cambell's Kitchen

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 25 minutes

Lessons

Sister Heap gave a very nice lesson on being grateful and having a positive attitude. It was a great lesson for this time of year as we have so much to be thankful for. Next weeks lesson is chapter 19 from the Joseph Smith manual.

Dutch Oven

Thanks to everyone who helped with the October enrichment. A special thanks to the Brewers for all their help and their instruction. It was nice to learn more about cooking with dutch ovens, and the importance they have in our emergency preparedness kits. Thanks to Lisa Saunders for putting all the recipes together for everyone, and thanks to all who helped with the food, set-up, and clean-up. It turned out great!