My mother and father went above and beyond to make every Christmas memorable for me and my two brothers, not just to make it about gifts, but just celebrating the season itself, decorations, get-togethers, music, and of course food.
My mother hosted Christmas dinner every single year for more than 20 years, and still insists on hosting them when she can get us all together in one place.
Here is one of our favourite treats that we could count on every year, and let us know Christmas was around the corner.
from Aaron Speers, director ofTownship of Langley Firefighters Charitable Society
Christmas Morning Saver
Ingredients:
Mix together:
• 6 eggs
• 3 cups of milk
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• ½ - 1 tsp dry mustard
• ¼ cup minced onion
• 1 to 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Build base layer:
• 16 slices white bread ( crusts removed ).
• Enough bacon and/or ham to cover 8 of those pieces of bread.
• Enough shredded sharp cheddar cheese to cover the same area.
• ¼ lb of butter
• Crushed Corn Flakes
Layer ingredients in oven safe pan/dish as:
• 8 slices bread
• meat
• cheese
• 8 slices bread
Directions:
• Pour egg mixture over everything and let stand overnight in fridge.
• In morning melt butter and pour on top of all that, cover with crushed Corn Flakes.
• Bake in a 350F degree oven for 1 hour.
This is a recipe you need to customize, where needed. It is a hearty Christmas morning breakfast you make the night before as the kitchen on Christmas Day is very busy.
Sausage Rolls
“These are still one of my favourite parts of Christmas.”
– Aaron Speers
Ingredients:
Pastry
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/3 cups shortening
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup of water
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• Mix and roll out into square
Filling
• 2 rolls of sausage meat
• 3-4 finely chopped garlic cloves
• 1 egg
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1 tsp pepper
Directions:
• Mix together...
• Cut pastry into 3-inch wide strips
• Place 2 tbsp of sausage filling on pastry, place seam down on cookie rack on cookie sheet ( fat drips into pan )
• Bake in oven until pastry is golden brown, 45 to 55 minutes at 400 F degrees.
Shortbread Cookies
“Christmas isn’t the same without them.”
– Aaron Speers
Ingredients:
• 4 cups of flour
• 1 lb butter ( not margarine )
• 1 cup berry sugar ( must be berry sugar )
Directions:
• Beat butter until fluffy.
• Slowly add flour and sugar until soft dough formed.
• Roll out into ¼-inch to ½-inch thickness.
• Cut with cookie cutter and bake at 325 for 20 minutes.
• Little green and red things in the middle are optional. Everyone picks them off anyways.
Peanut Butter Nanaimo Bars
“I thought I would throw in one combing my two favourite things – Peanut Butter and Nanaimo Bars.”
– Aaron Speers
Ingredients:
Base:
• 3 semi-sweet chocolate squares
• ½ cup butter
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 cups Graham Wafer crumbs
• 1 cup coconut
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
• Melt chocolate and butter for 2 minutes in microwave.
• Mix in sugar, vanilla and egg.
• Add crumbs, coconut and nuts.
• Press into 9 x 13 pan. Chill. Then add filling.
Filling:
• 2 tbsp custard powder
• ¼ cup milk
• 2 tbsp butter
• ½ cup peanut butter
•2 cups icing sugar
Directions:
• Cream these ingredients together and spread over base.
Icing:
• Melt five (5) squares semi-sweet chocolate with 1 tbsp butter in microwave ( or medium heat stovetop/double boiler) for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Spread over filling.
ENJOY!