Barking almonds and other news

Merry Christmas, Darlings

We are having a busy Christmas season.

Something tells me that you are too, but I'll go first.

It's funny because this year's was what you might call a short Christmas season; there were exactly four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Not a single almond -- barking or otherwise -- is present in this product

In accordance with that time frame, I got out ahead of everything. I worked at it like it was my job. Which, in fact, it was. It is.

Ninety percent of my Christmas gifts were purchased, wrapped, and situated under and around the tree before Thanksgiving.

On the day after Thanksgiving, I replaced my autumn wreath with my Christmas wreath. It lights up on a timer so I just let it glow there throughout the season.

I made this easy Crock Pot Candy today

I removed everything orange and brown and yellow from the decoration scene and replaced it with green and red and gold.

My regular coffee mugs were switched out for my Christmas mugs. Fall-scented candles were replaced with Christmasy candles.

And once all of that was done, I turned my attention to what we would be eating for the holidays.

I wore my mink vest to the Presbyterian Christmas party

I made list after list. The grocery orders came in tranches: the first wave was basic groceries but the second wave, I went to the Walmart in person to get.

Next, a Trader Joe's opened up about three miles from my house. The girls and I were there on opening day -- December 12th -- and I bought some more Christmas gifts and groceries there.

More lists were compiled: things I needed to make for gifts, for friends at church and for friends outside of church, and for neighbors.

On Black Friday we did our usual photo shoot ... Stephanie and family

(I had already made cranberry sauce and apple butter -- several times -- and bread to give to folks at Thanksgiving, so it was more or less of a continuation of that, for Christmas.)

Lists of what we'd have for our traditional Christmas Eve buffet, this year being held at Audrey's house.

Lists of what we'll have for Christmas dinner.

Loaves of homemade bread for the neighbors

Lists of all of the many treats I will be making for those two occasions, plus gifts for the aforementioned church/non church friends, and neighbors.

At any rate, the last four weeks have involved a great deal of planning, list making, buying, preparing, wrapping, giving, cooking, and so forth.

(Preparing my Christmas cards took an entire day. My list needed lots of work, and I sent out one hundred fifty-five cards. To do that, and do it right, takes time.)

Uncut and under wraps: Carmelitas

(The day after Thanksgiving, we did the traditional all-families Christmas card shoots. In addition to the Mike and Audrey and Dagny subjects, we had Stephanie and her family.)

(The Chericas could not make it that day so we got a shot of them for their card, on December 7th when we attended a Christmas program at Florence Baptist Temple in Florence, South Carolina.)

(Also, Allissa wanted a second shoot for her senior pictures, and we took those on Black Friday. They turned out even better than the ones from the first shoot).

Allissa wanted a second shot at senior pictures

All of that was a lot of work. But still, other stuff was going on without any sign of slowing or stopping.

On the second of December, we partied with the Presbyterians. Columbia's historic First Presbyterian Church -- established 1795 -- is a delightful place to visit and make friends. The girls and I have been there for several events in recent months.

December second was the day they held their Christmas Cheer party for ladies, in the late morning with a light lunch format. There were sandwiches and endless sweet treats, plus hot chocolate, tea, and coffee.

TG and me and the Chericas and Maudags, last Sunday

TG got me a ranch mink vest for an early Christmas gift (I bought it on from a wonderful seller on eBay; it's vintage and was inexpensive but looks expensive) and I wore it on that day because unlike this week, which is flip-flop weather in South Carolina, it was nippy around the first of the month.

(A few weeks ago, my sister turned seventy. TG and I went to Greenville for the day. I made Southern Living's Poppy Seed Chicken recipe to pop into the oven when we got there, plus a special meal for Henry, who can no longer eat salt, and my sister's birthday and Christmas gifts.)

(Henry, my mother's widower, age 93, was extremely sick and there was a great deal of concern, but he seems to be doing much better. I'll go back and see him again next week.)

Fresh-baked banana breads for the neighbors

(Our Melanie turned twenty-one on Sunday. It was her golden birthday. All of us traveled to North Carolina on Friday and spent the night in hotels, so as to be there for her birthday party and for our Christmas with Stephanie and her family, who as I write are in Pennsylvania for their Christmas with Joel's family.)

(Melanie, who is disabled, has also been extremely sick for several weeks. She is on the mend and is almost back to normal but it has been a harrowing experience for her, for her parents, for her siblings, and for all of us.)

I had seen a reel on Instagram about the aforementioned Poppy Seed Chicken, and all I can say about that is, you should make it. Soon.

Melanie was feeling better for her party

I'd also seen a reel about making Crock Pot Candy, something I've never done before but which looked incredibly easy and good, so I decided to do it.

One of the ingredients listed in the recipe was Almond Bark.

I'd never seen or bought that product before so I was excited to use it. It just sounded so interesting and delicious.

She had a brief hospital stay last week

When I got to the Walmart on that day that I broke my recent habit of having Walmart deliver all of my groceries, and drove over there to get them myself, I noticed that my package of Almond Bark was the last one on the shelf.

I was relieved when I reached up into what appeared to be an empty box module on the shelf and saw in the shadows, at the very back one lonely slab of what was labeled in huge letters ALMOND BARK.

But it was not until I got home and inspected the heavy, chunky package -- which just today, I dropped on my foot, and trust me you don't want to be doing that -- I realized that it was not almond bark at all.

She will graduate in May

It is chocolate candy coating. And that's all it is. There is not a single thing related to almonds in that package.

It's Make Your Own ALMOND BARK Chocolate Candy Coating.

Have you ever heard of anything so outlandish? The package proclaims loudly that it contains Almond Bark. That it IS Almond Bark.

I call them the Maudags -- Mike, Audrey, Dagny

EVERYONE who uses this in recipes online states that one of the ingredients is Almond Bark.

But it's not Almond Bark. It is Chocolate Candy Coating that you could use to Make Your Own ALMOND BARK.

IF you wanted to.

We girls on December 2, 2025

Which I do not, because one, I do not have an almond and two, if I did, I would not be inclined to make it bark.

Barking almonds is one thing that I definitely do not need, and never will. Simply not appealing.

I did use the Make Your Own Almond Bark Chocolate Candy Coating to make Crock Pot Candy -- which involves said so-called almond bark, semi-sweet chocolate chip morsels, creamy peanut butter, and dry roasted peanuts.

The Chericas in Florence, SC, on December 7th

The pirate is not one of those people who wraps gifts in a box that says it's one thing when in fact, on the inside is something else.

So I don't appreciate being led to believe that I am buying almond bark when in fact I am not.

I have so many other funny stories to tell you, but they will have to wait until after Christmas.

At First Presbyterian, they served red velvet cheese ball

Today I made Carmelita Bars, Butterscotch No-Bakes, Andes Mint Ritz Cookies, four loaves of fresh bread, six small loaves of banana nut bread, and the aforesaid Crock Pot Candy.

Tomorrow I plan to make Christmas Crack, Natchez Cookies, Candied Pecans, Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Pretzel Bark.

I'd like to make Chocolate Sprinkle Cookies but I'm not sure I will have time.

Andes Mint Ritz Cookies

Have you noticed that everything you make calls for basically the same ingredients, but comes out to be something unique when you are done?

I have a tower of brown sugar (both light and dark), pecans, almond slices (the non-barking kind), walnuts, oatmeal, semi-sweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, caramel melts, Heath bits 'o brickle, coconut, sprinkles, nonpareils, and sanding/finishing sugars, along with flour, white sugar, vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste, cinnamon, eggs, heavy cream, and flaky salt.

Then there are the crackers: Honey Maid Grahams, saltines, Ritz and knockoff Ritz -- along with pretzels and corn chips (for the queso dip I am making for the Christmas buffet). I haven't even rattled off the myriad canned goods, to include pineapple, yams, green beans, Rotel, et cetera.)

Melly celebrated her golden birthday: 21 on the 21st

These same ingredients will yield countless different treats, each of which will delight and amaze.

On Wednesday, in preparation for Christmas Day, in addition to the Queso Dip for that night's buffet, I am making Sara's Pecan Pie (my friend Sara's recipe -- excellent and so easy; email me if you need it) and a Cranberry Tart in my new tart pan with the removable bottom.

For Christmas Dinner we are having baked ham, Broccoli Casserole, Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole, Slow Cooker Creamed Corn, mashed potatoes, green beans, Ambrosia (the kind with fresh oranges and grapefruit, pineapple tidbits, maraschino cherries, coconut, mini marshmallows, and chopped pecans), Rhodes Rolls, and assorted soft drinks, teas, and coffees.

It was my first time to make butterscotch no-bakes

It's shaping up to be epic. 

I have so much more to tell you but it will have to wait until after Christmas.

And I hope yours is perfectly lovely, or if not reaching that height, at least passably tolerable.

Centerpiece at the First Presbyterian Ladies' Christmas Tea

I have a new favorite saying: ... until the shadows flee away. (Song of Solomon 2:17 KJV).

We will keep striving, keep working, keep believing, keep loving, keep praising, keep helping, keep looking up, until the day breaks, and the shadows flee away.

Until almonds bark.

And that is all for now.

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Happy Tuesday :: Merry Christmas