Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas

 Dd decided to make a gingerbread house this Advent. The recipe will become a family favorite as it has all the qualities that gingerbread should have, moist, flavorful with spices including black pepper, and strong enough to take shape and stand well.

too much sugar perhaps?

paper-chain expert

a calligraphy gift just completed

these are for someone who likes owls from youngest brother

Advent lights

 Every year we visit a particular suburban street that is "well-lit" for the Advent season.








 Along with other cars we drive slowly past each display.

We note what is new this year.





We speculate as to the "flavour" for this year.










We each choose our favourie display.
We laugh together,

we share jokes and tell funny stories about the lights.

In short we enjoy ourselves.

There is usually one display though that leaves us just a little perplexed. Could someone please explain the significance of Santa and the elephant!!?!

Picture Book Advent :The Fir Tree by Margaret Wise Brown

The Little Fir Tree

 Copybook Phrase:I’m not too little and not too big. Not too stiff ,nor yet too limber. A beautiful little green fir tree. Just the tree for Christmas to grow with.

No new activity but phrase could be attached to our Christmas tree.

A sweet story by one of our favourite picture book authors: Margaret Wise Brown.(aka “Goodnight Moon “ fame)

Keeping Joy

Joy to the world! the Lord will come
And earth receive her King:
Let ev’ry heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and angels sing,
And Heaven and angels sing,
And Heaven and Heaven and angels sing.

Original Video - More videos at TinyPic

Saint Lucy

It starts off with a slow procession from room to room...all is in darkness
           as we enter a space we pray and ask God's blessing on it and on the people who use it.

              as we walk we sing those well-remembered hymns of waiting

                      amidst all this is one who returns secretly to the living room
                                so that when we enter it finally

                                       all is alight       with

candle light

a treat specially cooked for this feast day also awaits us

may the simple light of St Lucy's faith light our Advent to the Christ child in whom is all light

Gaudete (Joyous) Sunday and the Pope wears Pink!

This 3rd Sunday of Advent is  known as "Gaudete Sunday" (Gaudete meaning Latin  for "rejoice!"). It's the day on which we light the pink(rose) colored candle on the Advent wreath, and the day on which the priest wears pink/rose vestments for Mass.  This signals a moment of excitement in our Advent preparations; we have crossed over the halfway point of the Advent season and the nearness of Christ's presence brings with it the joy of expectation.

Original Video- More videos at TinyPic
                                                     this video is from our final violin concert of the year and labeled "reel of Joy" hence its place in this post

"As we light the third candle on our advent wreath we can:
Pray for the joy Christ's coming promises...
Pray for the joy that survives life's trials...
Pray for the joy the lonely thirst for...
Pray for the joy only peace can bring...
Pray for the joy that smiles even in grief...
Pray for the joy that is deep, not passing...
Pray for the joy that helps us see beyond the moment...
Pray for the joy only God can give us...
Pray for the joy others invite us to share...
Pray for the joy others wait for me to share...
Pray for the joy others wait to share with me..." (reference)

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe: The Patroness of the Unborn

"The very vivid vision described in Revelations chapter 12 has particular meaning for everyone in the Americas since the appearance of Our Lady to Saint Juan Diego took the same form as what is described in that reading.

“...a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child...” (Rev 12:1-2)

This is the image Our Lady left on St Juan Diego’s tilma. The Virgin is clothed with the sun, standing on the moon, and has a crown of twelve stars. She is pregnant and therefore Our Lady of Guadalupe is revered as Patroness of the Unborn."
                                           Adapted from a homily by Father Tommy Lane from this site 

Our meal for this feast day was Mexican. The boys always find the rolling of the tortillas exhausting great fun! But the meal has always been eaten with enthusiasm.

Blueberry muffins with rose icing completed the celebration

Saint Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe

                            
 We combined the celebrations for the Our Lady of Guadalupe and  Saint Juan Diego on Thursday. We chose to do this because  the celebration of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe would normally occur on the 12th December and this year the 12th December is the date that the third Sunday of Advent occurs on. Naturally Mary's mission is only ever to lead us to her son and so the celebration of this particular Sunday(Gaudete) takes precedence)


Below is the recipes we use for  our Mexican meal
 
                           Flour Tortillas
• 3 c unbleached flour (or whole wheat, or regular all-purpose, if that’s what you’ve got)
• 2 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• ¼ c (plus a little (1-2 T) extra – no need to measure exactly) vegetable shortening
• 1 to 1 ¼ c warm water
Sift the dry ingredients together into a large bowl. Add the shortening, and mix them together until the shortening is evenly incorporated.

Next, add the warm water a little at a time, tossing together until the mixture forms a soft dough that is not sticky. Go ahead and knead it a few times, adding a sprinkling of flour if needed, to make it smooth.


Now divide the dough into 12 evenly-sized balls, and let rest for 10-15 minutes, while you straighten up and set up your work area for rolling out!


Here’s how we do it: Each “roller” gets a piece of parchment or “press-and-seal” (sticky side down) sprinkled with a little flour. One dough ball is lightly flattened in the center of the paper, then sprinkled with a little more flour. On top of this, a piece of plastic wrap is carefully laid across. Then roll out a circle – starting each roll in the center. It helps if the first few rolls are done somewhat lightly, until a reasonably circular shape is achieved – though, of course, perfection is unnecessary. Roll them fairly thin, or to about 8-10” in diameter.

Then flip the two layers of paper with the tortilla in between upside down, and carefully peel off the parchment for re-use; the unbaked tortilla is then placed, plastic-wrap side down, in a pile with each of the other tortillas as they are rolled. If desired, a moist paper towel can be placed lightly on top of the pile to keep the top tortilla from drying out. (If you find that the tortillas are sticking to either paper, just use a little more flour when rolling out.)


Once the rolling is well-underway, heat a 12-15” dry frying pan over medium to medium-high heat. It should be well-heated and ready by the time the last tortilla is rolled.


Each tortilla is then peeled off the plastic wrap, and placed in the hot, ungreased pan to be cooked on each side. The tortilla may bubble slightly and appear slightly dry as it bakes, and will have brown speckles on the underside when it is ready to flip/remove. It will take less than a minute on each side, so watch them carefully!

Steak fajitas with avocado and tomato salsa

Ingredients (serves 4)

•            700g beef rump steak, trimmed, cut into strips

•            1 tablespoon olive oil

•            2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce

•            12 x 20cm flour fajitas or tortillas

•            1 1/2 cups grated tasty cheese

•            1 baby cos lettuce, shredded

•            Sour cream, to serve

Avocado and tomato salsa

•            250g grape or cherry tomatoes, quartered

•            2 green onions, trimmed, finely sliced

•            1 large avocado, peeled, stone removed, diced

•            2 teaspoons lime juice

Method

1.            Make avocado and tomato salsa Place tomatoes, onions, avocado and lime juice in a glass or ceramic bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine. Cover and set aside.

2.            Place steak, oil and sweet chilli sauce in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine.

3.            Heat a large, non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add steak mixture. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until browned and just cooked through. Remove to a heatproof bowl. Cover to keep warm.

4.            Meanwhile, heat fajitas or tortillas following packet directions.

5.            Place salsa and steak mixture on table. Place cheese, lettuce and sour cream in separate bowls on table. Place fajitas or tortillas on plates.

 

the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

 

 From this blog we read:"In being immaculately conceived in the womb of her Mother, Ann, Mary more or less received an "advance payment" on the grace of Christ and was preserved from the original sin of dis-integrity, or the "disintegration" of her capacity to fully assent to God's call for her life. This is alluded to in today's Gospel from Luke, when, after receiving the Angel's invitation to conceive Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit, Mary responds with the simple, straightforward response of, "I am the handmaid of the Lord, may it be done to me according to your word."

Mary's Immaculate Conception, as an "advance installment" of the grace of Christ, prefigures precisely the grace and call that is extended to us. By virtue of an ongoing commitment to saying "yes" to new life in Christ, we are undergoing a radical "Immaculate Re-Conception" of our lives in order to ultimately say, along with Mary, "we are servants of the Lord, may it be done unto us according to your word." Mary's Immaculate Conception is the beginning of the promise of our "Immaculate Re-Conception" in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit!"

For the Feast of the Immaculate Conception we celebrated with the following meal:

·      White meal – chicken schnitzel, garlic potatoes, cauliflower

 

     WHITE CHOCOLATE CAKE

INGREDIENTS

250 g white cooking chocolate, chopped

250 g butter, chopped

200 ml hot water

1½ cups caster sugar

1¾ cups plain flour

1 cup self-raising flour

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Frosting

100 g white cooking chocolate, chopped

¼ cup cream

250 g softened cream cheese

(can be softened in the microwave for a few seconds)

SERVES 10–12

TO MAKE

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 22-cm round cake tin and line the base. Combine chocolate, butter, water and sugar in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Stir continuously, until sugar has dissolved and chocolate has melted. Set aside to cool. Sift flours into a large bowl, add chocolate mixture, eggs and vanilla and mix well. Place mixture into prepared tin. Bake for 1 to 1¼ hours or until cake is cooked (it should be golden on top). Leave in the tin to cool for about 20 minutes before turning out on to a wire rack. To make frosting, stir chocolate and cream over low heat until chocolate is melted and smooth. Allow to cool a little. Beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy, then add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until soft and smooth. Set aside to cool completely, then spread evenly over the top of the cake.

Saint Ambrose

SAINT AMBROSE COOKIES

           Ingredients
       4 cups flour
       1 tsp cinnamon
       1/2 tsp each cloves,ginger,nutmeg
       1 cup icing sugar
        2 tsp baking powder
        2 extra large eggs
        1 cup honey
        2  tablespoons finely chopped orange rind

Directions:

·      Sift together flour, spices, icing sugar, and baking powder.

·      Add eggs, honey, and orange peel to make a stiff dough.

·      On a floured work surface, roll out dough about 1/2 inch thick.

·      Cut shapes with cookie cutter, place on non-stick baking sheet, and brush with glaze.

·       bake in preheated 350 degrees oven until done, about 15 minutes.

·      Cool on racks.

·       Store in tightly covered tins.

We used the idea from this site to turn our biscuits into bees. 


Whenever I here the words Ambrose and bees my thoughts always go to that wonderful book by Elizabeth Gouge "The Runaways" and Uncle Ambrose and his bees. Apologies here to Saint Ambrose but for our family those marvelous readalouds by said author are engraved on my memory lino-cut hard!
Oh and re Saint Ambrose and bees: this is all I could come up with so feel free to add more if you know more!" The title Honey Tongued Doctor was initially bestowed on Ambrose because of his speaking and preaching ability; this led to the use of a beehive and bees in his iconography, symbols which also indicate wisdom. This led to his association with bees,beekeepers,chandlers, wax refiners".

Our Saint Ambrose meal

HONEY-CURRY CHICKEN

In a 9x13 pan, mix the following:

4 TBSP butter (optional)
1/2 Cup honey
1/2 tsp curry
1/4 cup mustard
1 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic
Soy sauce to taste (about 1-2 TBSP)

Now throw some chicken breasts , into the pan and mix it all around and bake it at 180Cdegrees for about an hour. I covered  it for the first 45 minutes and then  uncovered it for the last 15 minutes. We cut our chicken into smaller pieces when cooked and  served over rice, as the sauce is VERY tasty and is great over rice with some veggies!!  We used brocolli for our vegy.Yum!

NB: if this is your recipe please take this as your acknowledgment as dd looked at lots of sites for this feast day before finally settling on  choosing this recipe. It is sure to become a firm family favourite!

Our Saint Nicholas meal

 Saint Nicholas was Bishop of Myra which is in part of modern day Turkey. But  Myra was at the time of Nicholas, Greek so our meal we decided would have a Greek flavour!

Greek Rissoles

Ingredients

·      800g lamb mince

·      2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves(we used dry as we didn't have any fresh and adjusted the quantity)

·      4 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind(this added a lovely smell to the kitchen before the cooking meatball odor took over)

·      4 tablespoons sliced black olives, chopped

·      200g Greek feta, cut into 24 cubes

·      steamed rice, shredded baby cos lettuce leaves and tzatziki dip, to serve

Method

·      Combine mince, oregano, lemon rind, olives, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Using clean hands, shape mixture into 24 balls. Using the palm of your hand, flatten balls. Wrap around feta cubes and shape into 1.5cm-thick rissoles. Place on a plate.

·      Cook rissoles, in a large frying pan sprayed with oil, over medium-high heat, for 3 to 4 minutes each side or until cooked through.

·      Combine rice and lettuce. Serve rissoles with rice mixture and tzatziki.

Tzatziki

·      260g (1 cup) Greek  yogurt

·      1 Lebanese cucumber, halved, seeded, finely chopped

·      1 tbs fresh lemon juice

We really enjoyed the  Tzatziki with the rissoles. It made the meal more refeshing and was cleansing to the palate. This amount served our family of 6 with enough left over for lunch the next day.

And afterward there was time to add some wonderful pictures to our coins to be put in shoes while all the house slept early in the morning when dd reminded me!

Saint Nicholas cookies

Saint Nicholas Cookies:
We always use the recipe by the von Trapp family. Their tradition has become one of our traditions.Why reinvent a wheel that works perfectly?
Unfortunately the untypical humid hot weather we have been having(tropics in Adelaide?!?) meant that ds had too use an even larger quantity of patience to roll them out and cut the shape.

The two youngest had a great time decorating them!

Speculatius

1 cup butter

1 cup lard

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 tsp. soda             4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cloves

4 1/2 cups sifted flour

1/2 cup chopped nuts

Cream the butter, lard, and sugar. Add sour cream alternately with sifted dry ingredients. Stir in nuts. Knead the dough into rolls. Wrap the rolls in waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator overnight. Roll the dough very thin and cut it into shapes. Bake in moderate oven 10 to 15 minutes.

And the result tasted delicious, especially eaten from one of my Johnson plates with a drink of marshmallow topped hot chocolate. (yes even with our unseasonal weather)