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3 Dec 2007

A Time To Celebrate

Goodness it is December already. I think Dr Seuss said it better than I can!
How did it get so late so soon?
It's night before it's afternoon.
December is here before it's June.
My goodness how the time has flewn.
How did it get so late so soon?

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Yuletide or the many other events happening this month, it is a time to get together with family and friends.

With these events comes meal planning. I therefore have given a list of some great sites where you can find some wonderful recipes for your gatherings. Included are some New Year recipes as it is also just around the corner.


Vegan Christmas or Yule by Vegan Family
Vegan Hanukkah by Bryanna Clark Grogan
A Hanukkah of Mixed Traditions from Vegsource
Vegan Christmas Recipes from Vegsource
Recipes from Christmas Past from the Vegetarian Society
Ring in a Vegetarian New Year! from VegCooking
Hogmanay Recipes from the Vegan Society


You might also find these links useful:
Holiday E-cards from Vegan Peace.
Celebrating Christmas 2007 Magazine. Free PDF download
DLTK's Crafts for Kids features a variety of fun, printable children's crafts, coloring pages and more including projects for holidays (including Hanukkah and Christmas), educational themes and some of our children's favorite cartoon characters.


Remember This December,
That love weighs more than gold!
~Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon


Celebration Drinks:

Glühwein (hot spiced wine)
From Christmas-Baking

For each 750 ml (3 cups) of wine, add:
1 stick cinnamon
6 whole cloves
Rind/zest of half a lemon
2 to 4 tbsps sugar
1 Cardamon pod (optional)
Rum, brandy, vodka or schnapps (optional)

Use cheap wine. Not that cheap, but still cheap. The amount of sugar is inversely proportional to the cheapness of the wine. Break cinnamon sticks into three or four pieces. Remove rind from lemon in large pieces or one long piece. In saucepot over medium-low heat, combine wine, spices and 2 tbsps sugar. Heat 1/2 to 1 hour, but do not allow to boil. Longer heating brings out a warmer, more cinnamon flavor. Taste and adjust sugar. Serve, adding a shot of rum or schnapps if desired. If you do add schnapps, be careful not to inhale while drinking the Wein; you'll choke on the alchohol fumes. Remove spices and rind; reduce heat to low and cover if not all Wein is served.

Glühwein (non-alcoholic)
Recipe source unknown.

4 cups apple juice
2 cups strong black tea
2 tbsps raw sugar
1 orange juiced
1 lemon juiced
zest from lemon and orange
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves

In a saucepan heat but do not boil the apple juice and tea. Add sugar, cinnamon, cloves,lemon and orange zest and juice. Stir until sugar disolved. Heat but do not boil. Strain into mugs and serve.

Vegan Eggnog (alcoholic or non-alcoholic)
From Erik's Diner

This recipe is excerpted from The Almost No-Fat Holiday Cookbook. This "eggnog" will please even those who say they don't like soymilk. It's not too thick and cloying -- a very refreshing drink any time of the year. Make the eggnog mix ahead of time, then blend with the ice cubes just before serving.

2 pkts 10.5oz/300gms reduced-fat, extra-firm, SILKEN tofu.
2 cup reduced-fat soymilk, or other plain, non-dairy "milk"
2/3 cup turbinado sugar, light brown sugar, or sweetner
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup cold water
1 cup rum or brandy (or use apple juice with rum or brandy flavoring to taste)
4 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
20 ice cubes
freshly grated nutmeg

Place the crumbled tofu and the soymilk in a blender with the sugar and salt. Blend until very smooth. Scrape this into a large bowl or pitcher, and whisk in the water, rum or brandy, and vanilla. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate until serving time. To serve, blend half of the mixture in the blender with 10 of the ice cubes until frothy. Repeat with the other half. Serve in glasses with nutmeg sprinkled on top. Serves 10

Holiday Strawberry Punch (alcoholic or non-alcoholic)
Adapted from Strawberry-Recipes.com

1 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup spring water
2 cups Strawberry wine or low-alcohol semi sweet wine or strawberry juice
2 cups fresh orange juice
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries, crushed
1 quart/litre of soda water or seltzer

Mix sugar with water and boil to make syrup. Let cool down. Combine syrup with wine/juices, and crushed strawberries. Chill. Just before serving, pour into punch bowl and slowly add soda water. 12 servings


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21 comments:

Marion said...

These drinks are great, Jackie...I especially like the non-alcoholic gluhwein. It's just a great warmer upper!

Thank you for the great links, as usual you've found some great sites!

Naomi said...

This year has flown by so fast Jackie. I can't believe it's almost Christmas again. Great drink recipes, especially the Gluhwein. I had some Gluhwein in Germany a few years ago. It's delicious, both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions. Just the thing to keep out the cold!

Great links Jackie. I'll have a look at those. Thanks for sharing them.

aTxVegn said...

Thanks, Jackie! It's so stressful already and your recipe links are a huge help!

urban vegan said...

Thanks for all the links--so helpful.

To be honest, this year, Xmas has me stressed--not festive. Hope I get over it soon.

Wally Banners said...

Folks must beat down your door to get to your fine good eats. You got my Battle of the Blogs vote :)

Kumudha said...

Thanks for the wonderful array of website links and recipes!

Wheeler's Frozen Dessert said...

I had a cup of that vegan eggnog last year, and it was delicious! I might try making it this year myself. the e-cards are so cute, thanks for the links :)

agreenearth said...

Good to have you back.

Sheila said...

The drinks sound wonderful for a cold day. Thanks for the recipes and for sharing the poem, which is one of my favorites too.

Daisy Deadhead said...

I love your blog and your ideas, so I am linking you on my blogroll, and thanks!

Yes, thanks for all the resources! I certainly needed them, and I could just KISS YOU!!! :)

bazu said...

Ohhh, yummy, I could go for some hot spiced wine right now. You are so right- this time of year always feels like time getting away from me!

dreamy said...

Glühwein looks interesting! Thank you.

Anonymous said...

How did it get so late so soon -- that's definitely how I feel! It's almost mid-December and I haven't even started my holiday baking.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the link www.christmas-baking.com. However, could you please remove the copy and pasted Glüwein recipe? I find it very upsetting to see my content on other people's web sites. Thank you.

Christmas Baking with SusieJ

Marshamlow said...

I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by, it seems like just last week, it was last Christmas. Still so much to do... Thank you for the lovely recipes, I can't wait to try them.

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

Haha I love Dr. Seuss ;o)

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

such wonderful recipes for the holiday season!! and great poem from Dr. Seuss!!

Sharon Lynne said...

Merry Christmas to you!

CyberCelt said...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Speaking of cheap wine, mulled wine with fruit juices and herbs heated gently is my idea of a good time. LOL

Anonymous said...

Nice and easy...or fast and easy... this makes me hungry...

Anonymous said...

Here's another great vegan resource for the holiday season, in this case a raw menu planner Frederic Patenaude is offering through his website. You'll be ready for Holidays 2008!
Your Raw Food Celebration Menu Plan for New Year’s Eve
http://www.fredericpatenaude.com/blog/?p=129