I am a Ham Lover. We’ve had just about every type of ham you can get, and they always turn out well if they are cooked enough with a good glaze. When I was growing up, we always got a 5 lb canned ham. But over the years, even the price of canned ham has risen, which has led us to try spiral cut hams, pre-cooked & sliced hams without the bone, ham steaks, and we’ve even done a roast for Christmas! Ham is the tradition, and I personally never miss out on a holiday where I can have a nice ham.
I do like spiral cut hams, but it’s very important to cook them “low and slow” because you want the internal temp to come high enough to melt the internal fat. It is also important to remove it from the glaze once it’s finished cooking, because the fat will re-solidify and ruin your remaining ham if you don’t remove it from the fat and bone after you finish eating. Some people don’t like canned hams because they seem fake or overly processed, and though that is a good concern and it doesn’t look like real ham anymore, it also has less fat and tends to be an easier eat if you have bad teeth or want a meal that requires less chewing. Processed ham steaks are definitely less food than the other types. They also tend to be a mix in textures being mostly ham-like with it having pieces that seem less processed than canned hams. Each type of ham has a draw back to different people, however most of the problems arise in how the meat is prepped and cooked.
Though it seems old fashioned, I always go with the honey and brown sugar glaze even for my non-holiday hams. I find the sweetness to go so well with the savory aspect of the ham. But, for Christmas, we also top our ham with pineapple and cherries, so when we make up the glaze we also add a bit of acidity by adding some pineapple juice to the honey brown sugar. The acidity does really well to compliment the saltiness of ham. When we make our glaze, we usually do 1:2 Honey to brown sugar. When we make our Christmas ham, we usually go for 60% brown sugar, 30% honey, 2% cherry juice and 8% pineapple juice. You are looking for a consistency where the glaze is mostly solid and won’t run completely off the ham. If it is too liquidy, add more brown sugar and honey, and stir well.
Tuna noodle casserole is a staple of depression era cooking. It’s a simple dish that requires very little to feed many people for the night. Though I’m sure there are fancier ways to make tuna noodle, this is the way I grew up with and the way my mom grew up with too. This recipe makes enough to serve 3 adults, but the recipe can easily be stretched by adding more noodles, or doubling/tripling the existing recipe. You can also then stick it in a casserole dish once mixed and add a crisp topping and bake, however I’ve always had it without, and I tend to prefer it quick and easy. Since I don’t do the casserole step, I tend to just call it tuna noodle, since I don’t make it into a casserole.
Bring a pot of water to a boil
Add 1/2 a bag (8oz) of egg noodles and cook to al dente, and strain.
In a dutch oven add one strained can of tuna, one can of cream of mushroom soup, and one can of Milk. Bring to a boil and stir till smooth.
Once smooth, add the noodles and cook for 3-5 minutes, and serve. Sauce thickens upon standing. Best serves with buttered bread and sweet peas.
This time of the year has become pretty crazy these last few years. I don’t have experience with that many Christmases since, as a child, I wasn’t terribly aware of the stress and culture that existed around Christmas.
Consumerism
This year like the previous two, Walmart started their Black Friday sales at six o’clock on Thanksgiving night. This action perfectly represents what is happening to our culture related to Christmas: Consumerism. This of course causes stress to different types of people. Some people like to shop, causing stress to their close relationships, because of the inability to stop or consider the consequences of shopping. Others buy gifts to one up other family members and for “bragging rights”. While others overspend hoping to impress, buy the affection of their spouse, or fix the distance in their relationship with their child. Some are in constant stress wondering what bills can be pushed off another month in order to have money to buy gifts, because they live paycheck to paycheck. Parents struggle to afford to buy gifts that will help their child fit in, and others struggle to have food on the table, lights on, and even heat. To some, Christmas has become a hassle and never worth the meaning behind it. Their years of hardship make Christmas a burden, and keep it a burden. Years of striving to out perform last Christmas and rushing for the biggest piles under the tree, ruin any joy that others may experience related to Christmas. The stress is all consuming and is a terrible storm that disorients your heart as well as your mind. I am reminded though of the gift-giving love language from Gary Chapman’s Five Love Languages. If we were all able to see and experience giving in that way, I feel the season would be easier. That way, referring to the way those with the love language will give gifts as a sign of love, and in the same way, they are joyful to receive any gift because they see love as a gift, even if it is just a flower, note, or gift of time. But, I suppose the human heart is greedy and not teaching gratitude at such a young age can grow a greedy and even entitled heart.
Remembrance
Besides consumerism, we also see remembrance. Christmas is also a time when we remember those we’ve lost and reflect on the year that passed. Many times Christmas is shrouded is sadness and despair. Memories of past Christmases prevent us from enjoying what we have now, and who we have. The “Ba Humbug” sentiment can still be felt and quietly echos through the lives of someone you may know. Change is usually unwelcome but sometimes the way you react to the change can cause more damage than the acceptance ever would. Flexibility can help with some changes, such as changes to family structures or life events or changes in location/jobs, but others just require acceptance of reality and the finality of life. Remembrance is normal and should be encouraged since there is much to gain from the past and better times, but constantly looping better times and being consumed by the change is not healthy. Remember those you have with you and take time to do things that are good for you, even if you do not fully want to or feel you deserve them.
Generosity, A Hope
However, we are lucky enough to see generosity. It is true that many have a “me” mentality, others still exist with a generous hand they are always willing to offer. Drives this time of year that are gathered within the community they wish to serve are examples of generosity. Toy drives, clothing drives, and even food drives directly benefiting those locally that need help remind us that this season encourages a helping nature and a desire to serve other. Even a simple action like caroling to nursing homes, or delivering cookies to a neighbor can make a large difference to the bleakness some face. One thing that continues to bring joy, is the fact that we are trying to reach our elders and children at this time of year. Christmas is a holiday for everyone. Though not everyone receives help or friendship this time of year from others, the fact that some do, still brings some joy and reassurance that we have not completely lost the spirit of the season.
I could start rambling now about how Christianity fits into all of this, such as Christmas being a day and time to celebrate Jesus’ birth, however, I do not feel I have to do that, because it is in the name. If you celebrate Christmas, than you are celebrating in his name. Even if you do nothing some would consider “generous”, a simple gift to a family member, a co-worker, or a neighbor is an act of generosity, an act of service. Though Christmas has become a time of consumerism and remembrance, Christmas retains the spirit of generosity despite all else that gives a sense of hope that things will get better or we can muster on because we always have. Hope is a great gift to give to others.
If you’ve made it this far, allow me to thank you for reading my Christmas musings.
This weekend, Josh and I went to a new liquidation store a few towns over. While we were there, we were looking at their light section, and we had talked many times about how bad our lighting was and how our fixtures didn’t match what our styling was. On top of this, this store had a good selection, and we were able to get the ceiling light for $23 and we bought their last one, and the wall sconce was only $8.
After that, we finished our Christmas shopping, and crashed for the night. On Sunday, we had to run out to Home Depot to get the 13 watt bulbs needed for the kitchen, and boy was it worth it! Josh spent to rest of the afternoon putting up the lights. It was kind of weird since the ceiling light needed the ground attached to the bracket before it attaches, so I had to hold the light near the ceiling while Josh attached the bracket. Also, it was nice to find light boxes in the ceiling and wall, since we didn’t have one behind our medicine cabinet. The light box in the ceiling isn’t attached to the ceiling at all, but the wires attached through a smaller hole, so there is no risk of that falling. The original kitchen light also had insulation underneath the plate. Though that was the case, we installed the new light without insulation, with the thought that we can always add some later if we so desire or need.
The wall sconce however was a complete disaster trying to install. Originally, Josh thought that would be the easy one, and the ceiling light would be hard, but it was quite the opposite. First, we had to paint it, because it had an oiled brass finish, and we decided it would look better in nickle. But, the problems began shortly after. There was a light box behind the wall sconce, however it sticks out of the wall by about an eighth of an inch. So, the whole fixture is away from the wall a bit, but everything is weird about the design of the fixture. The bulb screws in toward the bottom left edge of the glass, and to not see the bulb, the bulb has to be twisted toward the right. So, the light is uneven, which can be seen a bit in the lit photo below. Also, nothing aligned with the new sconce. A bolt on the back hit the edge of the box making it stick out more, and the ground screw on the mounting bracket also prevented the light from laying flat. So, Josh had to switch brackets, and grind down the light box, making it so the light was nearly even with the wall.
Overall, things didn’t go as we had expected them to, however, they both turned out well nevertheless. The lights take a second to turn on in the kitchen and though we will probably change the wall sconce again in the future, it turned out well in the end. What do you think of the new fixtures? I’m excited to make a new recipe in the kitchen to show off my new lighting soon!
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Beef stroganoff is one of my favorite dishes. It’s creamy, savory, and makes a meal that will keep you feeling full for hours. I like making stroganoff, but I almost never have sour cream in the house. If we do have sour cream, it’s a small container and is eaten within a few days, usually with baked potatoes. For this recipe, like other recent recipes, I used sliced venison. I should have made my pieces a bit smaller, because they were definitely larger than bite sized. But, you can also use leftover steak to make this meal and it works really well!
Cube your meat (1/2 lb.) into bite sized pieces/strips and start heating a pot of water for your egg noodles.
Add 1 Tbsp of oil to a dutch oven, place over medium heat, then add and cook your beef/venison.
Chop one small onion (approx. 1/2 cup). Slice 3 large mushrooms/open 1 small can of sliced mushrooms and strain. Add onions and mushrooms to meat.
Cook until onions are translucent and mushrooms are cooked. At this point, start to make beef broth and add half a bag of egg noodles (8 oz) to boiling water.
Add 2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce and heat. Add 4 cups of beef broth, then bring to a simmer
Strain your noodles, then add them to your broth.
Add 1 cup of milk to your broth, and begin adding flour until it begins to thicken (5-7 Tbsp).
Slowly heat and bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Add more Worcestershire sauce to taste (3-4 Tbsp).
Remove from heat and serve. Makes 3 adult servings.
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