Food for Football

Wait, that’s supposed to be Food for Friday ~ who am I kidding, I can think only of the Super Bowl and enjoying a victory!  You can guess that I’ll be wearing the blue and white on Sunday, but I wouldn’t be totally crushed to see the other team win at this point in their NFL existence.  (You’re right again, I’m not yet sure who my hosts for the game will be cheering, no point getting myself thrown out before the commercials even begin to roll ..) 

I plan to make my semi-famous chili ~ recently a friend asked me to try it with pinto beans instead of kidneys, and I think I will always use only pintos in this recipe from now on and forever.  They have a softer but still very pleasant texture, and blend wonderfully with the other ingredients – it’s my new favorite way to make this chili.   And the pintos are close in color to a Saints  gold.  (Oh, come on, just give me that one already!)

Last year I saw Paula Deen prepare a key lime pie, and that’s on my menu for Sunday, too.  She has a couple of pie recipes out there; my favorite is the one that calls for three egg yolks and baking the filling, not the unbaked version.  I expect I can achieve a pleasing Colts-blue coloration for that filling .. sadly, I am indeed likely to attempt that.  I know.  I know.  (Please don’t tell, but I’ll probably be using a pre-made crust, too.  Better and better.)

Okay, for those amoung you who want a real dining experience, I’ll point you to a wonderful story on NPR’s Morning Edition yesterday in which they offered recommendations from two real chefs.  Read or listen to the story here, and the recipes are posted as well.  Shrimp gumbo is really such a lovely dish .. but the roux has to be stirred for an hour, and then there’s more adding of ingredients and skimming for an hour, followed by simmering for an hour.  And plenty of prep and cooking even before that.  I’m afraid that, since I did not start the cooking process on Wednesday, I simply could not be finished by game time on Sunday (not even pre-game time – doesn’t that start at about midnight on Saturday??).  I just might be able to achieve the pork loin sandwich, but I don’t know much about frying things.

Here’s another option, I came across this post with recipes for seven healthy (and surely scrumptious) snack ideas for the game.  I was just a bit intimidated, though, when the first “healthy” snack called for a cup of mayonnaise and 4 ounces of cream cheese.  REally?  Well, they call themselves a clinic ..

Whether you watch the game or not, lay out a big spread or just enjoy some homemade salsa and chips, I hope you make the most of your weekend possibilities!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Celebrate Valentine’s at The Inn at Christmas Place

Do you sense love in the air?  Valentine’s Day is just a week away!

The Inn at Christmas Place

The Inn at Christmas Place is offering three special deals for Valentine’s weekend ~ and the specials start tonight.  Are you ready to get out of the house now?  Check out the offers and make your reservations here.

In addition to a stay in one of our elegant and relaxing rooms or suites, the pleasure of our unsurpassed hospitality, and a fresh, hot breakfast in the morning, we’ll deliver a dozen red roses & a box of chocolates for your sweetheart and arrange dinner for you at either Bullfish Grill or Carino’s Italian Restaurant, both located right next door to the hotel.

Rooms are available with gas fireplaces and two-person hot tubs, and we also have an indoor swimming pool and family-sized hot tub for winter enjoyment.  Book online (look for the Specials tab on the Reservations page) or call 1-888-465-9644 to speak to a reservations specialist while space is still available!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Two for Tuesday

Okay, I’ll just tell you how it is .. we have bits of snow still hanging around on the ground even after a day of sunshine followed by a day of rain .. and the truth is we are all wishing for more snow!  Not to keep us inside against our wills, but because it’s so pretty and it’s been so long since we had a good, snowy winter.  We were rooting for that groundhog to see his shadow, and our wish came true, but we’re holding out for the serious white stuff now.  When it comes, here’s what we plan to do:

Cherish the Moment

We can find a couple of evergreens and a hammock around here, not to worry!

Need I remind you that Valentine’s Day is just around the corner?  Here’s a very cute little guy who’d be happy to deliver a heartfelt message to your sweetie for you!

We’ll wish you sunny skies if you’ll wish us another round of white flakes ..

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Winter Heritage Festival in the Smokies

I don’t want anyone to miss the opportunity to take in the Winter Heritage Festival in the Smokies, hosted in Townsend February 4-7, 2010.

Celebrating the beauty, history, and traditions of Townsend, Cades Cove, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the festival kicks off with a social evening including music, light hors d’oeuvres, and a program at the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont (reservations required).  The rest of the weekend is filled with programs, most free, covering all facets of life in the valley and offered at the Townsend Visitors Center and several other area venues, including in the Park.

The Southeast Tourism Society has designated this festival one of the Top 20 Events in the Southeast.  Follow the link at the top for the schedule, reservations, photos, and sponsorship information – and I think their page load graphics are awfully cool, too!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Food for Friday

Yay!  We’re sitting here waiting for The Big One of 2010 – snow!  I really hope everyone stays safe on the roads today.

I’m thinking about what’s good to eat when you’re snowed in – maybe a big pot of stew?  We don’t actually have a cookbook titled “Snowed-in Favorites,” so instead I’m checking out Family Favorite Recipes from Gooseberry Patch.  This volume includes a paragraph on “How Did Gooseberry Patch Get Started?”, an oft-asked question, I’m sure.

Here’s what I recommend for the home bound, submitted by Michelle Heurung, Mokena, IL:

Cream of Chicken-Rice Soup

Ingredients

4 quarts water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 carrots, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/4 C fresh parsley, minced
1/4 C butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 C rice, uncooked
2 t salt
2 C milk
1/2 C cornstarch

Bring water to a boil in a Dutch oven.  Add chicken and cook until done.  Remove chicken from broth to cool, reserving broth in Dutch oven.

Meanwhile, sauté carrots, celery, onion and parsley in a large skillet until tender.  Add garlic and cook one minute.  Cut chicken into bite-size pieces.  Add sautéed vegetables and chicken to reserved broth.  Stir in rice and salt and simmer 15 minutes.  Mix together milk and cornstarch; add to soup.  Stir until thickened.  Serves 16 to 20.

C = Cup; T = Tablespoon; t = teaspoon

That should keep the troops going ~ especially the ones you send out to shovel and scrape!

Again, everyone have a safe weekend out there ~ Christmas Place staff is headed over to the hotel tonight so we’ll be here in the morning.  When you do get out and about tomorrow, come in and say hello.  We’ll look forward to your company!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Two for Tuesday

My coworker Laura saw me wandering around with the camera today, looking for my (belated) Two, and she suggested The. Greatest. Idea.  Take a look at this wonderful cookie platter (it should be on the site shortly):

The back of this plate is white, with lots of smooth surface.  Laura’s Greatest. Idea. is that you would purchase the plate and write your name and the date on the back in indelible ink, serve guests with it at your fabo Christmas party, then pass it along to a friend or family member.  They would add their name and the date to the back after using it at a party, and continue passing it on.  When all the space on the back has been used, return the plate to the person who started the chain.  What a great collection of memories will come back to you with this gift!  You see why I say it’s The. Greatest. Idea.

Now, another quick Two for ..

Super Bowl’s coming up .. anyone up for some Colts victory??  I searched our NFL collection, and found a Colts nutcracker, Christmas tree skirt, scoreboard clock, wreath, nightlight helmet, and snowman ornament, along with this animated Colts player looking awfully fierce up in here!

For the New Orleans Saints?  Well, I found this cute little ornament.

Eh.  Not so much.  Who knew we were such fans of the AFC here?!  As I’ve said before, I say again, Go Blue!

And have a great day out there!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Vera Bradley Spring 2010

I noticed on our reader board that the new Vera Bradley colors are in .. and surely they need to be shown off!  There are a few new bag profiles, too, including the “Alice” which has a metal clasp at the top; the “Emma” which features an outside, vertically-zippered pocket on each end; and the “Angle Tote,” a great shape and generous size, with shoulder-length handles.

Here is a selection of the spring colors and bags.

Sittin’ in a Tree:

Poppy Fields

Emma is pictured above, on the lower shelf.  Here’s the Alice:

Totally Turq

The new angle tote is on the right in the Totally Turq selection above.

Loves Me, a classic in hot pink and navy blue with white and orange accents:

I know a teen or two who would just love this one:

Loves Me Large Backpack

Don’t forget the laminated travel collection from Vera:

Give us a call at 800-445-3396, extension 122 (The Boutique) to order your favorites for spring!  Our local number is 865-453-0415.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Winter Wonderland

We had a bit of a cold, wet spell here recently, along with most of the rest of the country, so last Monday I took a trip up to the top of Old Smoky for some photos.  The deepest snow was on the mountain ranges that you can’t see from Newfound Gap, but then we wouldn’t have been able to drive up, now would we?  There were still a few icy patches that required cautious negotiation, but many travelers were on the road with us.  Passing trailheads along the way, it was clear that there were also plenty of hikers enjoying a snowy climb.

Here are a few images I captured.  The stream was mostly snow- and ice-covered, with  barely visible patches of flowing water occasionally reflecting the sky.. well, not that much sky gets through the thick surrounding brush.  About halfway up the mountain to the pass, a pair of very skinny wild turkeys crossed the road behind us – we wished we had some corn to help them make it through the week.

Next is my favorite picture, because it looks like it’s snowing .. but really I took the picture with the sun in the wrong place .. I just wanted to be up there while the snow was coming down!

The next pictures show that there was not much wind during the snowfall – just enough to stick snow to trunks and branches, but then leave it there.

Newfound Gap

Looking south into North Carolina:

Looking north into Tennessee:

Looking west up the valley towards Gatlinburg:

I love that snowy landscape!  For a few days, we were even telling each other the snow was “laying for more snow,” but I sure don’t see it in the near forecast.

Til the weekend, all our cars were white with salt and spray, but now everyone has had a chance to take cars through the car wash, and I’m blinded every time I look out the window here .. which is a good problem, because it means we have guests ~ people are still feeling the spirit of Christmas, even three weeks into the new year.  I think there are only about 341 days til next Christmas ..

Wishing you blue skies and clear highways wherever you may be today!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Food for Friday

I’m serving white chicken chili for supper tonight.  It would have been more appropriately-colored but I bought the wrong cheese, so it’s kind of orange-y ~ but still incredibly delicious, I assure you, and I’ll just say the color is in honor of the tragedy that befell Volunteer football this week.  Oh, yeah, they’ll buy it.  But I need a good cornbread to serve on the side, so I strolled down to the Gallery for a Gooseberry Patch cookbook – you know they’ll have a suggestion.

Where else but Church Suppers!  Who’s been to a pot-luck gathering without finding the tastiest foods on the table ~ and thank goodness your favorite dish always shows up, time and again.  This volume covers everything from Pancake Breakfasts to Ice Cream Socials & Bake Sales, with Summertime Socials and Election Day Dinners among the chapters in between, and is filled with taste-proven favorites and easy serving and decorating suggestions for every occasion.

The corn bread recipe I found is for cornbread muffins, perfected by the patriarch of Rosemary Trezza’s family, and prepared by him for the family until shortly before his death at the age of 96.  He used to carry the recipe in his wallet to share with others!

Our Family’s Corn Muffins

Ingredients
1-3/4 C yellow cornmeal
2-1/4 C all-purpose flour
1 C sugar
8 t baking powder
1-1/4 t salt
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 C oil
2 C milk

In a large bowl, combine ingredients in order listed; beat until well blended.  Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full.  Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick tests done.  Makes 1-1/2 dozen.

Simple and delicious!  My own father likes his cornbread ready to dunk into a glass of milk.  I like to add a bit of kernel corn to my bread for extra texture and crunch.

Hope you’re experiencing a bit of a thaw where you are today .. but the snow still lingers in the deep shadows of the mountains here.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

.. and a shout-out to all my Colts fans/friends ~ first playoff game this weekend .. Go Blue!

Department 56 Village Display

Our thanks today to Mary C. of Desoto, Texas, for sharing photographs of her extensive Dept. 56 Village collection and display!  It must be a real joy and a labor of love for her to assemble such a detailed presentation for the holidays.  (I didn’t have a chance to speak with her myself, but I’m guessing this is a Christmas display, not out year round.)  We hope you enjoy these images.

I’m a particular fan of this last scene, and the blue stream flowing through the center of town!

We’d love to see your Village displays, too.  We have a place on the forum for your photos, www.christmasplace.com/forums, or you may share them with us on Facebook, or send them to me and I’ll post them here on the blog.  It’s fun to get ideas and compare collections with other collectors!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place