Thursday, December 6, 2012

Joy~

December~...is Joy..
No matter what.. one just seems to find it somewhere deep inside oneself~
Be it the now..the past..with nostalgia..  without..somewhere we can scoop up a serving  of inner joy~
It can be hard..
But if you look deep enough..a small corner has a reserve for you..it can even be in the future if one has hope:)~
I have to  admit some of my most peaceful..lovely moments..are in the kitchen~

OK..and in the living room at night once the tree is lit~
My mom..I still have memories of her..sitting in our living room..in the dark..amidst the lit tree..just relaxing~ Smoking her last of maybe 3 cigarettes in a week:)..(1960's)...
She didn't have the easiest life..and could make most of us  weep at her loss..But her spirit never gave in..
And I loved watching her relax this way.
It was like magic for me..all of 6 was I in 1960~..it lasted quite a few years:)
My little angel mom:)
She loved to bake  Christmas treats..not many..not fancy..but delicious..
Wish I had her recipes~:)
I do have my own now though..and I bet she ..and my dad are smiling..looking at how much I love to be in the kitchen:)
Today I started with the traditional Tourtières..

There are so many variations~  and here~and so many more!
Unbaked..I freeze them this way..

I made 7..

The recipe is very easy..
Your favorite dough..

For 7 ..I used

 13 lbs of mixed..minced low fat pork and beef
10 minced onions
4 cloves of garlic
special tourtière spices I buy here in QC
added Cinnamon..cloves..s and p..
and some flour..very little..just to make the meat mixture creamy:)
Saute onions and garlic until soft and clear
Add meat
Brown until cooked through..while adding the spices..add just a bit of flour..once done:-)
If you can't find this special spice mix..
There are many variations..
Cloves,cinnamon,savory..salt and pepper..Google and find the mix you like..last year I found the perfect..already mixed spices:-)
We still add cinnamon:-)



I put a bottom crust and top..
Freeze..thaw overnight in fridge..

Bake at ap 375 for 1 hr
We like our tourtières golden...

My husband loves to add sugar on top:) His family tradition..:)

His maman made it that way~


They are really good..they are part of our Christmas Eve dinner..  le Réveillon..this year at one of my daughter's homes..

Santa..has already been to our house..and has left a letter..


That vintage typewriter is coming in so handy:)


Teeheehee:):)

I read it to Noah..but he has The Elf On The Shelf living at his house so this was far from exciting..and our other 3?
Well they have a CHRISTMAS ROOM:)..so we will see:)2 of our illuminated animated 1986 Christmas dolls made it there today..:)  Too funny to tell you the truth:)
I also tackled our "Pets De Soeurs"...pinwheels..  aka,, nun's poufs(farts)..I promise that's what they are called!

These too are very easy..

Your leftover dough..or your dough...

Roll it out into a rectangle..dough ap 1/8 thick..spread brown sugar all over..press in..roll up jelly roll fashion..  slice ap 3/8 inch.. dot with butter..place on parchment sheet..
Bake ap 375-400 until golden..

I could have sealed my edges..Just too much going on..You cannot have just one of these..SO GOOD SO SIMPLE...

I've had those skinny veiny hands since I am 30:)  and have worn all those rings day in day out for almost 40 yrs:)  The bump on the index..is in the last 5 yrs..it used to be on the other side  of my finger where I held my pen..it migrated I guess..
My daughters have such beautiful hands:)
It was a glorious sunny day to get my baking started..so grateful to be able to do baking..to buy the items..


I know we are all not in that place.
So for now..
I am grateful~
Happy Holiday Baking to you..
I am enjoying reading all your posts and gleaning:)
Thank you for everything you share..
I have pinned quite a few:)








27 comments:

  1. Pure delight. Thank you for the bright spot. Cherry Kay

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  2. Ma chère Nana, c'est avec délice que je lis tes bons mots... De tes beaux et merveilleux souvenirs...
    Une publication merveilleuse à l'aube des fêtes de noël...
    Tes petits gâteaux me paraissent si délicieux qu'ils me donnent l'eau à la bouche.

    Gros bisous

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  3. Ps : J'ai oublié ! J'adore la lettre écrite pour le père noël !...
    Trop mignon !

    Et tu sais mes mains sont encore bien moins jolies !

    Bisous encore !

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  4. Joyeux, Madame! Such a lovely post - and yes -Christmas is different now that we are Grandmas and Mimis (that's me) and Nanas, but life unfolds as the years go by all too quickly.....

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  5. You have spread MORE joy here to me! The cookies look delicious. I will be cooking all day tomorrow, our daughter and SIL are having a big holiday party on Sat. night and I said I would provide alot of the food:):) That's what Mother's do, right? XO, Pinky

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  6. Chère Nana. Quel billet charmant! La lettre du Père Noël a été le "coup de grâce," mais le reste n'était pas mal non plus... et quelle pâtissière émérite tu fais! Je suis impressionnée, moi qui ne prépare pas de dessert... Veronique (French Girl in Seattle)

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  7. JOY ~ that's my favorite Christmas word! And joy is what fills my heart each time I visit La Table De Nana.
    You are such a beautiful friend.........Sarah

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  8. What JOY you bring to me, & I'm sure to all of your readers, I just love the Santa Claus letter. I'll certainly be trying your tourtiere recipe, another variation to my own English way & the simple biscuit recipe, I'd forgotten about. My kitchen is going to have a wonderful aroma with all this baking going on. Thanks for reminding me. Have a lovely weekend.

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  10. I totally dislike the commercial and supercial side of Xmas, but I love this time of the year as it is magical. Besides, my birthday is on Christmas day... ;-P

    Lovely Tourtières and delightful pinwheels! Like you, I always re-use leftover pastry. You can make so many delicious treats with it...

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  11. Those hands have loved, cuddled,soothed and held many beautiful grandchildren(LMNO)...also, baked and cooked many delicious meals for family and friends~

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  12. What a delightful post Monique. So you in every way. I'm sure your mom and dad look down and smile at all of the lovely things you do. Your tree is so pretty and I love the Joy ornament. You had good strong hands that remind me of my mother's hands.
    Sam

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  13. Rosa..what a special birthday:-)
    It's a special time for certain..thank you for your nice nice comments:-)
    The Santa Claus letterhead can be found many places on the web:-)
    Have a great day.

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  14. Joy....beautiful.....and the name for our next pup......love from me...xxx...

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  15. I went to Catholic school all my life so got a special chuckle out of nun's poufs. We would have been horrified at the thought back then. What a sweet, beautiful post, Monique. Memories of my mother are so precious this Christmas. Your meat pie sounds delicious.

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  16. Hugs Cathy...
    And Ria..that's a great name for a pup:)

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  17. What a wonderful post! I must admit to a tear as I read it...I am so sentimental... The letter from Santa is special. How lucky your grandsons are to have such a loving and creative nana! I am spending a week in Seattle...had to visit my four month old granddaughter! Special times.

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  18. Tey are very special times Kate:)

    Enjoy this Christmas..your first as a nana :)

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  19. All your photos convey Christmas mood perfectly! Your kitchen looks lovely: love the word JOY and the winter scenery behind the windows!

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  20. Joy is reading this post :) I had a smile at your comment on your hands - mine have always been boney and veiny. Not model hands in the least :)

    One day I would love to try tourtiere and what you did with the left over dough has my mouth watering.

    Joy, joy!

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  21. Such a beautiful post. No matter what space we are in, there's nothing like the Joy of Christmas! I love the picture of your hands.
    Mine too are so bony and veiny...
    Your family are so blessed to have you Monique.
    Talented, generous and such an elegant lady!
    Bon weekend!
    Shel

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  22. Tortiere and Nun's Farts all in one beautiful post Monique! Would not be Christmas without either one of those two things. I have yet to make any this year, but they are on my list. Tortiere for Boxing day as was the tradition in my family because my mother was English and we didn't do Reveillion on Christmas Eve. She liked her sleep too much. ;-)

    I love your hands. They are beautiful hands and your apron . . . c'est magnifique!
    Love and hugs, and
    MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Joyeaux Noel!
    xxoo

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  23. What a beautiful tribute to your angel mom.My kids always waited for the Pette de soeur; my mom used to make them too.
    This year it a harder to find the Joy in December at our house, but I know it is still around.
    My son the chef is now my tourtières baker; he uses my recipe.Thank your for bring some sunshine chez nous/
    Rita

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  24. Thinking of all of you..Funny how we get to know each other:) And then day in and day out thoughts of each other are with us..
    I think that is a great thing.

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  25. I usually pre bake my tourtière before freezing them. I should make those pet de soeurs, looks so yum!

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  26. I so enjoyed this post and gaining a peek at your pretty workshop! ;) Your hands...they are beautiful...magical hands that sprinkle happy love into everything they create...akin to those little sprinkly things you have on your blog.
    x0x

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