So, what are you eating this holiday season?

(No, no…don’t start feeling guilty. This is not your conscience speaking.)

Really, though, are you cooking for Christmas? Or is someone else cooking for you?

Do you have a traditional meal you eat? Or a tradition someone makes for you but you hate? A friend recently told me about a “ham loaf” that her mother-in-law makes ev.er.y. year but most of the family hates. Just the name “ham loaf” makes me squeamish. bleaaahhh. Maybe it’s one of those things you have to try? (I think I’m okay without ham loaf in my life.)

We are staying home for Christmas this year and having some friends over for a Christmas Eve dinner. Well, actually it will be lunch. But it will be a big meal so…technically…dinner. We’re going to a church service on Christmas Eve night and then one on Christmas Day too. We aren’t the kind of family that likes to rush home, cook up a big meal, and wait for an hour until the food is ready to eat. Basically, we are ready to eat as soon as church is over. So that’s why I usually do crock-pot meals on Sundays.

Anyway, enough explanation about why we aren’t having a “Christmas meal” on Christmas day. Here are some options I’m thinking of making for our Christmas meal:

(Oh, one more thing – there are 4 kids eating this meal. Just keep that in mind towards the end of the list of foods and everything will make more sense.)

Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

As soon as I saw this dip on pinterest, I knew I wanted to make it. For something. I was going to make it for Thanksgiving, but that was the same weekend I went overboard making rolls, so I decided to skip it and go to bed instead. Good choice. However, I have waited long enough. This dip must be made so I can try it and see if it’s as tasty as I imagine.

 

Orange Baked Ham – this is Ina Garten’s recipe. I made it last year and we all loved it. It has orange marmalade in it but there’s also quite a bit of garlic so it’s not overly sweet. Perfect for us.

 

Crockpot Macaroni & Cheese

I’ve made this stuff before and combine a little bit of Crockpot365’s recipe + Paula Deen + my own tastebuds and what I have available in my kitchen. The result is a crockpot full of cheesy goodness. (and calories, but that goes without saying) It also results in a recipe that can never be duplicated because I never write it down. Phooey on me. Hopefully I can duplicate it pretty well this time…especially since we’re having friends over for dinner. er…lunch. whatever.

 

I’m also planning to make carrots and corn. As in, 2 separate dishes, not a carrots+corn casserole or something. Because I like good vegetables that aren’t drenched in sauce. Just a bit of butter and special seasoning. Perfect.

 

Rolls – I don’t know if I’ll make these rolls I made at Thanksgiving

or another recipe (Sweet Potato Crescent Rolls). Or maybe I’ll cave and get some from Harris Teeter. I can always throw them in the oven and warm them up. Maybe even burn them a little so people think I made them from scratch.

 

One other thing I’m considering is this Lime Slush

If you’re thinking Lime Slush doesn’t belong in a Christmas Dinner line-up…well, you might be right. But that doesn’t deter me from making it. (well, maybe it does a little bit, but not enough to stop me at this point). My hubby loves special drinks like this. And he really likes limes in his water. Which makes me think he would like this. So that’s enough reason for me to try it out.

 

Dessert – who knows. I have this fabulous cheesecake recipe but I don’t think the kids would go crazy for cheesecake and I really don’t want to be left with half a cheesecake. Or else I’ll eat it all. Cookies seem a little too boring. Pie is a little too stiff. Cake … hmmm, now there’s an idea. I do have a recipe for Coca-cola cake that is out.of.this.world. good. We’ll see.

 

And I don’t know what I’m going to do for potatoes. I’ve pretty much decided that mashed potatoes are best when used as a vehicle for gravy. And since I don’t plan on making gravy with my ham, I’m skipping the mashed potatoes. Never been a fan of scalloped potatoes. Baked potatoes don’t seem to fit with a ham dinner. So…any other ideas on a potato dish to do? I might skip them (gahhh!!! lime slush & skipping potatoes?!?!? what kind of a Christmas meal is this?) 😉 since I’m already planning to do mac&cheese. Any other ideas for a potato dish?

So, what are you doing for your Christmas meal? If any of you have a dish you abhor but someone always fixes it anyway, I’d love to hear about it. I get some strange pleasure out of thinking about things like that. Please share. 🙂