Did you survive the big holiday week? The cooking, the eating, the family?? Oh. And more importantly, did you survive the shopping? Lots of deals to be had everywhere I'm sure. But I don't know first hand. Because I don't do the after-Turkey-Day-shopping. Adam and I tried the Black Friday thing ONCE. Like 10 years ago. We drove 45 minutes at 5:00am to get to Best Buy. And then waited in the check out line for over an hour and a half. Not to buy anything super big or expensive. No, no. We did it for $4 DVDs. And we only bought like 10 DVDs. Which looking back on it seems absolutely ridiculous (but hey, we were only 19). So, it's something we will never do again.
Not to mention, having worked the retail Black Friday scene several years in a row, see people get into fights over a toy? Or a TV? Not worth it. Oh, and watch as hundreds of people line up for hours before the stores even open. There is nothing that I need badly enough to be up at 1:00am standing outside a store in line waiting for the 5:00am sale, only to find out that they're sold out of the one item I might have been in line for. Besides the waiting and the disappointment, BRRRRRR. All the places I've lived, it's cold at that time of night (morning?). And I don't love the cold that much.
Besides, when it comes to Christmas, I usually have already purchased most of my gifts before September. Some will trickle in after if I see something that is a must have. And then there are the homemade gifts. Which I love making and giving. Like goodie baskets with loads of cookies, candies, and bars. Or a hot chocolate gift set with hot cocoa mix, a couple nice mugs, a couple spoons, and a couple candy canes. How 'bout an ice cream sundae set? With a few different kinds of sundae sauces, sprinkles, chopped nuts, mini chocolate chips, a jar of cherries, a can of whipped cream, a couple bananas, an ice cream scoop, bowls, and spoons. Or even a couple loaves of bread (maybe sourdough and wheat?) with a couple different homemade spreads. Like this one. Spiced Pears. Mmmm. And so easy. Makes a couple small jars, with enough left for you to enjoy some. And the recipe is easily double or even tripled if you need to make a ton of baskets. Or if you just wanna have some on hand for your holiday guests to enjoy.
Spiced Pear Preserves
4 cups pears, cored and chopped into 1" cubes (I didn't bother peeling mine, but if you'd like to, go ahead)
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Mash with a potato masher. If you left the peel on, you may want to use an immersion blender (or regular blender) to break down the skins. I didn't, but I also kinda liked it a little bit chunky. Like a surprise in certain bites. Continue to simmer until your desired thickness has been reached. I wanted mine to thick enough that it could be spread. Cool and divide into containers that have lids. Refrigerate.
Note: I still have a bit of the preserves left in my fridge and it has been about a month since I made this. You can take this a step further and actually can the preserves, but if you're gifting a small jar with a fresh loaf of bread, I think it kinda tells your gift receiver to "Use me now".
Source: Adapted from Dough Puncher
Not to mention, having worked the retail Black Friday scene several years in a row, see people get into fights over a toy? Or a TV? Not worth it. Oh, and watch as hundreds of people line up for hours before the stores even open. There is nothing that I need badly enough to be up at 1:00am standing outside a store in line waiting for the 5:00am sale, only to find out that they're sold out of the one item I might have been in line for. Besides the waiting and the disappointment, BRRRRRR. All the places I've lived, it's cold at that time of night (morning?). And I don't love the cold that much.
Besides, when it comes to Christmas, I usually have already purchased most of my gifts before September. Some will trickle in after if I see something that is a must have. And then there are the homemade gifts. Which I love making and giving. Like goodie baskets with loads of cookies, candies, and bars. Or a hot chocolate gift set with hot cocoa mix, a couple nice mugs, a couple spoons, and a couple candy canes. How 'bout an ice cream sundae set? With a few different kinds of sundae sauces, sprinkles, chopped nuts, mini chocolate chips, a jar of cherries, a can of whipped cream, a couple bananas, an ice cream scoop, bowls, and spoons. Or even a couple loaves of bread (maybe sourdough and wheat?) with a couple different homemade spreads. Like this one. Spiced Pears. Mmmm. And so easy. Makes a couple small jars, with enough left for you to enjoy some. And the recipe is easily double or even tripled if you need to make a ton of baskets. Or if you just wanna have some on hand for your holiday guests to enjoy.
Spiced Pear Preserves
4 cups pears, cored and chopped into 1" cubes (I didn't bother peeling mine, but if you'd like to, go ahead)
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Mash with a potato masher. If you left the peel on, you may want to use an immersion blender (or regular blender) to break down the skins. I didn't, but I also kinda liked it a little bit chunky. Like a surprise in certain bites. Continue to simmer until your desired thickness has been reached. I wanted mine to thick enough that it could be spread. Cool and divide into containers that have lids. Refrigerate.
Note: I still have a bit of the preserves left in my fridge and it has been about a month since I made this. You can take this a step further and actually can the preserves, but if you're gifting a small jar with a fresh loaf of bread, I think it kinda tells your gift receiver to "Use me now".
Source: Adapted from Dough Puncher
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