It’s always good for me to take a moment to reflect on the reason for Christmas. If you’d ever like to have a conversation about Jesus, please reach out to me.
I hope you have a joyous Christmas!
Merry Christmas
Tag: Christmas
Christmas Cooking with Sophie
Sophie Becker owns Sophie’s Bakery on the town square in Lutz, Texas. She’s Emma Justice’s best friend in A Texas Flower Farmer Cozy Mystery series.
Springerles are German cookies that require special molds or rolling pins. My ancestors brought these molds to America many years ago, and they have remained in the family.
Here’s one recipe for Springerles.
Ingredients:
- cooking spray
- 1 ½ tablespoons crushed anise seeds
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
Spray 4 cookie sheets with cooking spray; sprinkle with anise seeds and set aside until needed.
Mix flour and baking powder in a large bowl until well blended. Place sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a separate large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until light and frothy, 5 to 8 minutes. Gradually stir flour mixture into egg mixture to form a thick dough.
Working with handfuls of dough at a time, roll out onto a lightly floured surface until 1/4 inch thick. Lightly sift confectioners’ sugar over the dough. Place springerle molds onto dough; press down hard and evenly until the mold’s design registers in dough. Remove the mold. Use a small knife to cut around each cookie, and place them 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Repeat, until all dough has been used. Cover cookies with a lightweight cotton cloth, and allow to dry for 8 hours, or overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
Bake cookies in preheated oven until tops are pale brown and cookies are set, 25 – 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
I hope you and your family have a warm and cozy Christmas.
Wait, what? What happened to November?
One day it’s Thanksgiving and fall decorations and then it’s time to celebrate Christmas.
I have so much to be thankful for. I have a wonderful family and I am thankful for them every day. I’m also thankful for all of you who read my books.
Speaking of books, Killer Secrets is now available as eBook and paperback.
Here are some of the links where you can find Killer Secrets.
Amazon eBook:
https://amzn.to/48pubbZ: Wait, what? What happened to November?Amazon paperback: https://amzn.to/3M75ycS
Barnes & Noble eBook: https://bit.ly/4pEqWEC
Barnes & Noble paperback: https://bit.ly/4iwp5PV
Kobo: https://binged.it/3K4DuGx
Killer Secrets is the third book in An Organized Crime Cozy Mystery series.
Speed dating sabotage?
Or straight-up murder?
Kate Sloan’s best friend, Bess Walker, decides to try speed dating and convinces Kate to go with her for moral support.
The night of the event is filled with many emotions. Excitement, hope, jealousy, fear, greed, and even anger. Emotions spiral out of control for one person.
Before the second round, the event’s host is murdered.
Kate will use her skills at organizing, list-making, and questioning to try and solve the murder. Can she unravel the mystery before the killer leaves town for the next weekend of singles events?
If you’re interested in some fun Christmas bookish activities, I’ll participate in a few this week.
Tuesday, December 2, I’ll participate in Murder, They Write’s Christmas Party on Facebook. It will be a lot of fun and there will be prizes.
I’ll be blogging at 1:00 ES and live at 6:00 ES. But join us whenever you can.
If you’re in the Pawleys Island area, I’ll participate in Shine Bright, Friday night, at the Presbyterian church. Please stop by and say hi.
Then on Saturday, at 3:30 ES, I’ll be hosting at the Cozy Mystery Party Holiday Party.
I hope you have a great week, and happy reading!
Jackie
Christmas Flowers
When you think of Christmas flowers, what comes to mind?
Or course, poinsettias are popular. If you’re thinking romance, mistletoe probably comes to mind.
My husband proposed to me before Christmas, and he hid the ring in the tree. So, I’m all in favor for romance at Christmas time.
But, this post is about Christmas flowers.
Emma Justice is the amateur sleuth in Weeding Out Lies and Clover Covered Corpse, and she’s a flower farmer. So, she has a couple of suggestions.
Besides Christmas trees, do you decorate with plants during the holidays?
If you’d like to get to know Emma Justice better, she’s the amateur sleuth in A Texas Flower Farmer Cozy Mystery Series.
Weeding Out Lies https://amzn.to/3OkkUbg
The Con https://amzn.to/3AzR6nO
Christmas Organizing Tips
Yesterday, I heard people talking about Christmas. They are not ready and don’t know what to do. This got me to thinking. Does Kate Sloan, amateur sleuth in Clutter Free, have any tips?
Yes, she does. I hope you find these tips helpful.
- Don’t stress over décor. One year my young son asked if we could do a Beanie Baby Christmas tree instead of the normal ornaments. For some reason, I agreed. We put lights on the tree, then we arranged the Beanie Babies, and it turned out to be a fun tree. If you’re feeling stressed this year, maybe you could decorate your tree with favorite books.
- Holiday cards can be sent anytime of the year, and if it simplifies your month, why not? Also, ecards are an option.
- For those of you who prefer giving experiences, you might buy gift cards to a movie theater, the zoo, a museum, or somewhere else fun. Gift cards can save time wrapping, and it extends the celebration after the actual holiday.
- Sticky notes come in handy to keep yourself organized on what gifts are going to whom.
- If it’s a hassle to store wrapping paper, tissue paper, and bows, use gift bags. They are easy to store, and they aren’t as bulky as the rolls of gift paper. (Of course, it is fun to create beautifully wrapped presents.)
- When it’s time to decorate, you may need to move furniture to make room for your holiday décor. Before unpacking your decorations, declutter and clean.
- If you haven’t already done so, label each tote and container. That will make it easier when you put everything away.
- Declutter your kitchen. Toss anything that’s expired or that you don’t use. Then go through your Christmas recipes and make your grocery shopping list, so you’ll have all the ingredients you’ll need, and they’ll be fresh.
- If you don’t have storage bins for your decorations, buy some that are the same size. Stack them with the heaviest on the bottom, and be sure to label them to make next year easier.
- Are you hosting a big meal? Plan your menu and shop for the items. Decorate your table, and plan what bowls and platters will be used. You can use sticky notes on these dishes so you’ll remember your plan on the day of your big event.
- Asking others to pitch in by bringing a dish, should give you some extra time to enjoy the holidays or read a book. Instead of baking a wide variety of cookies, have a cookie exchange. It simplifies life, if you only bake one kind of cookie.
- If you want this to be the most enjoyable time of the year, do things that make you happy. If you don’t enjoy some of your family traditions, make new traditions and memories. Make notes of the foods your family and friends raved about. Make notes on the games and activities your family enjoyed the most. Make notes of your successes and failures, and that will start paving the way for your next organized holidays. Just don’t forget where you put your notes.
I hope these tips help you enjoy your holiday celebrations. They are supposed to make your life simpler, not more challenging.
I hope your holidays are happy. Merry Christmas!
With your spare time check out this short clip. https://youtu.be/MhECGnUx4Rg
And here are some links for Clutter Free:
Christmas Movie Trivia
I thought it might be fun to step away from the holiday stress and play a little trivia game. Let’s see who can get all the answers right.
What is the name of the book that Clarence gives to George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life? “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.”
In Elf, why does Santa’s sleigh crash in Central Park? A shortage of Christmas spirit.
Christmas with the Kranks is based on a 2001 novel by what bestselling author? John Grisham
What Disney character plays Ebenezer Scrooge in Mickey’s Christmas Carol? Scrooge McDuck
In The Santa Clause, what is the name of the head elf? Bernard.
According to the song “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” from How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Grinch has all the tender sweetness of what kind of crocodile? A seasick crocodile.
What movie is this famous line from? Nobody’s walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family Christmas. Christmas Vacation
In the movie White Christmas, what are the sisters’ names? Betty and Judy
What book does angel Clarence have with him when he comes to help George in It’s a Wonderful Life? The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Thanks for playing. How’d you do? I hope you’re having a wonderful month as you prepare for your Christmas festivities.
Christina Romeril’s Back with Favorite Holiday Traditions
This is the time of year when I’m more excited about Christmas than a kid on Christmas Eve. I’m eyeing up the boxes with the decorations in them and making holiday baking lists. I’ll have the house decorated by November first. This is not something I get from my parents. Growing up we didn’t decorate until after the first week of December. In those couple weeks before Christmas my mother did a bit of holiday baking and bought festive chocolates and candies. Every Sunday in December we would light the candles on the advent wreath as well.
My parents are both from Germany and so we had lots of German traditions in our holiday celebrations, one of my favorites was the advent calendar. We always had one hanging in the kitchen with chocolates in it and another that just had pictures behind each window. My brother and I had to alternate which calendar window we got to open each day, so we only got a chocolate every other day. Oh, the hardships.
I have four children so we had more than one advent calendar in the house, though I do recall them having to share a bit too. These days I have multiple advent calendars. There is a giant fabric one from Pottery Barn Kids hanging on the front door. I fill each pocket with something for either my husband or I, or something we can do for or give to others. There is a wooden one in the kitchen with little drawers that I fill with special chocolates. In the hall we have a quilted one I made years ago. On the kitchen counter there is also one where you move the old fashioned truck each day. And finally, in my office I have a paper one just like when I was little with the pictures behind each window. That one brings back so many nostalgic memories.
My love of Christmas is what sparked my decision to set my debut cozy mystery, A Christmas Candy Killing, during the holidays. Identical twin sisters, Alex and Hanna, also sport a German heritage. Quite the coincidence, eh? They also have a love of decorating and there are lots of descriptions in the book to get you into the holiday mood. There’s enough talk about chocolate in the book to keep you drooling to the end. You will want to stock up on your favorite chocolate treats before you sit down to read. I’d love to know what Christmas traditions you celebrate at Christmas. Catch up with me on one of my socials. Until then Merry Murder.
Thanks so much for sharing your Christmas traditions.
You can find Christina on Facebook and Instagram@ChristinaRomerilWriter as well as at www.christinaromeril.com.
Gingerbread Cookies
One of the many things I love about Christmas is being able to find gingerbread cookies. I began looking for cookies the week before Christmas. It turns out the bakeries I tried before Thanksgiving have not started baking gingerbread cookies. I looked in South Carolina, Texas and Oklahoma. No luck.
The first place I thought I had luck was a trick.
Instead of chocolate covered cookies, these are solid chocolate. Delicious? Yes. But they were not gingerbread cookies.
Next attempt was at a botique grocery store.
Again, it’s cute. Unfortunately it was dry and there was no flavor of gingerbread.
So, the hunt continues. I’d love to for you to share you Christmas cookie stories and pictures.
Until next time, happy holidays.
Jackie Layton 