♬ Countdown to Christmas - Wassail for Saints and Sinners ♬

Photo and Recipe courtesy of Allrecipes.com

The Wassailing Song - Jim Carrol via You Tube

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Back in the day, the excitement in our house on Christmas Eve was so intense that it could be cut with a knife. To keep the children from bouncing off the walls, two other moms and I formed an impromptu children's choir that would go caroling on Christmas Eve. The children had bell clear voices and once they understood they were not trick or treating, we could kill a couple of hours entertaining older neighbors with traditional Christmas carols, that even then, were not often heard. Between us there were 11 children, so supervision of the already excited crew was no easy matter, but it kept the kids occupied and gave us the opportunity to wish the neighbors a timely happy holiday. The outing, of course, ended with hot drinks, usually chocolate, and cookies that were never in short supply. While the children left cookies with the neighbors, an exchange of sorts developed and it seemed they came home with more than they had delivered. Times have changed and certain traditions seem to have fallen by the wayside. Caroling, at least in our area, is one of them. I miss it. Wassailing, or caroling, can be traced back to pre-Christian times when villagers would travel through fields and orchards singing in a raucous fashion believed to drive away evil spirits that might prevent a successful harvest. The custom evolved and in Victorian England, wassailers went from door to door, singing and drinking to the health of their neighbors. The carolers would return home after a night of singing and warm themselves by the fire with a pot of spiced wassail I suspect those whose wassail was fortified with spirits slept quite well. I'm featuring two recipes for wassail in tonight's post. One is fortified, the other is not. If you are looking for a novel punch to serve your guests this holiday, one of these might be just what you are looking for. Here is how they are made.

Wassail for Saints...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
3/4 cup white sugar
4 whole cloves
1-1/2 cups water
1-1/2 cinnamon sticks
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
8 cups apple juice

Directions:
In a saucepan, combine sugar, cloves, water, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, and continue to boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and allow to cool for 1 hour. Stir in orange juice, lemon juice, and apple juice. Return to heat, and boil for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove cloves and cinnamon sticks before serving. Yield: 16 servings.

Photo and Recipe courtesy of Southern Living magazine

Wassail for Sinners...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Southern Living magazine

Ingredients:
2 (12-oz.) bottles brown ale
2 cups apple cider
1 cup port
1 cup lemonade
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 apple, diced
2 whole allspice
2 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
Garnish: lemon wedges, cinnamon sticks (optional)

Directions:
Stir together ale, apple cider, port, lemonade, brown sugar, diced apple, whole allspice, 2 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, cardamom in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW 3 hours or until hot. Remove diced apple, if desired. Ladle into mugs. Garnish, if desired. Yield: 14 (1/2 cup) servings.

                    

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Coffee-Toffee Cookies + Puro Fairtrade Coffee

I was recently sent this unique gift package from Puro Fairtrade Coffee. If you are not aware of Puro or how Fairtrade works, let me quickly say that the Fairtrade mission is to produce better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. The video on the Puro website explains how the organization aims to support producers of goods such as coffee, cacao and vanilla and ensure they are paid fairly for the goods they produce.

This is the Fairtrade vision:

Our vision is of a world in which justice and sustainable development are at the heart of trade structures and practices so that everyone, through their work, can maintain a decent and dignified livelihood and develop their full potential.

To achieve this vision, Fairtrade seeks to transform trading structures and practices in favour of the poor and disadvantaged. By facilitating trading partnerships based on equity and transparency, Fairtrade contributes to sustainable development for marginalized producers, workers and their communities. Through demonstration of alternatives to conventional trade and other forms of advocacy, the Fairtrade movement empowers citizens to campaign for an international trade system based on justice and fairness.

When Puro Fairtrade Coffee asked me to review their product, I was delighted. I had expected to receive a pound of coffee, but, instead, received this lovely gift assortment. If you’d like to learn more about Puro Fairtrade Coffee, their website has an excellent collection of videos about coffee production and distribution, together with a lot more information about the coffee brand and it’s origins. The company makes no direct sales to consumers and this promotion is about increasing brand awareness. Once I'd read that, I, of course, had to make a sweet nibble to accompany the first pot of coffee I brewed.

I made a pot of Puro Noble to begin my taste test. It is described as a rich and lively medium roast brew that has hints of hazelnuts and fruit. It was a perfect afternoon pick-me-up and to keep with the coffee theme, I served it with coffee-toffee cookies that are wonderful in their own right. I have many more days of fine roast coffee to look forward to and while I can't share all of them with you, I can share the coffee-toffee cookies that I made to go with my first cup. Here is the recipe.

Coffee-Toffee Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
1 tablespoon hot water
10 tablespoons melted butter
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup toffee chips

Directions:
1) Adjust two oven racks to upper and lower middle positions. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2) Whisk flour, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl.
3) Place espresso powder and hot water in a large bowl and mix until powder dissolves. Whisk in butter and sugar until incorporated. Whisk in eggs and vanilla until smooth. Gently sir in flour mixture with a rubber spatula until a soft dough forms. Fold in toffee chips.
4) Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, drop cookies 2-inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
5) Bake cookies until edges are set but centers are still soft and puffy, about 16 minutes, switching and rotating baking sheets halfway through baking time. Let cookies cool slightly on baking sheets. Serve warm or at room temperature. Yield: 24 cookies.

I was sent samples of Puro Fairtrade Coffee, but there was no obligation to review the product and all views posted here are my own.

If you have enjoyed your visit here, I hope you'll take a minute to...

      

Mulled Cranberry and Cider Punch

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a simple, but festive, holiday sipper for those occasions when you want to provide a non-alcoholic alternative for children and guests who are teetotalers. It is really simple to make, and while it was first prepared for a large gathering, you can reduce the quantity of ingredients and serve it for a family holiday brunch. This is best prepared several hours before serving. While it can be poured immediately, time gives the ingredients a chance to blend and mellow, and greatly improves the flavor of the finished punch when it is warmed. You can add spices to taste, but be careful to limit the amount of cloves you use. They can add a bitter taste and will spoil the punch if you use them too freely. I think those of you who try this will enjoy it. It would be a perfect drink to serve at a tree trimming party. The recipe appears below. Before I close, I wanted to thank the very special folks who are responsible for the photo blog, Knapkins. They have created a beautiful site and taken away the need for participating blogs to submit photos for publication. They do the hard work and free us to concentrate on our own blogs and recipe creation. It's like having a second pair of hands to help with the work. I really hope you pay them a visit and see how tastefully they do what they do. You can visit their site, here.

Mulled Cranberry and Cider Punch...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
3 cups apple cider
6 cups cranberry juice
3 cups orange juice
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons confectioners' sugar
Optional: red food coloring

Directions:
Several hours before serving, combine all ingredients in a large heavy pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for several minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit at room temperature for several hours. Reheat before serving. Yield: 20 to 24 servings.








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