 | Laurie Swinton Dec 3 | I've decided each year I'm going to try to resist the trappings and wrappings of the commercial side of Christmas and embrace a homemade yuletide celebration. Here are some easy, simple ideas to bring Christmas home: - Make your own egg nog. If you've ever had homemade egg nog, you'll know it's the BOMB! Check out Jaime Oliver's egg nog recipe.
- Try making a gingerbread log cabin or house from scratch instead of buying a store-bought kit.
- A great craft to do with kids is making glass Christmas ornaments. Buy a dozen basic plain glass balls and a selection of paints. Pour the paint in the balls and swirl it around so it covers the whole surface, then turn them upside down to drain in egg cartons. If you choose any colour mixed with white, you get a beautiful hand-blown glass look.
- Go for a hike and cut down some grapevine and cedar to make your own wreaths and garland.
- If you're not a great baker or cook, you can still make some simple yummy homemade treats to give as gifts. Check out this recipe for Spicy coated nuts and my recipe below for homemade caramel corn that Dave and I make every year
- Be environmentally friendly and make your own holiday wrap using up that stack of plain brown paper bags sitting in your back closet. Make them festive by gluing pretty pictures from a magazine or old Christmas cards on them or spruce them up using sprigs of pine, ribbon or candy canes.
I'm not very crafty, but here are some of the treasured things I've made over the years for Christmas that bring me joy. Happy holidays! Homemade Caramel Corn 2 cups popped corn (to make 30 cups of popcorn)
1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda Pop the corn and place in two large roasting pans. In heavy saucepan, combine the rest of the ingredients. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves about 5 minutes. The butter won't look like it's blended in, but don't worry about it. Remove from heat and stir in baking so it foams a bit. Pour over popcorn, stirring constantly, then place in a 250 degree oven for 45-60 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes. | | | |  | You can also reply to this email to leave a comment. | | | | |
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