Medic Alert, Christmassy Stuff.

I am sending off for a Medic Alert bracelet today, as suggested by my pharmacist, because I have diabetes. Its pretty good because as I am on a fixed income, they charge me a flat fee and I get the bracelet and continued membership for ever. One reason I haven’t had a bracelet before is because I was under the impression it was pretty expensive. Unfortunately, of course, I don’t get a chance at some of the prettier bracelets that are available, and also not cheap to obtain. I have to get either the pharmacist or the doctor to sign for this service.

When we woke up yesterday morning there was a coating of white all over the ground. Our first real snow, not that it lasted very long, by evening it was more or less gone. I would really like to have a white Christmas, we didn’t get one last year, mind you I don’t want a heavy storm on Christmas Day as we are going out to dinner at Rushes where they do a Christmas buffet which is quite incredible. They have continuous turkeys, hams and roast beefs, not that I bother wit the ham and beef myself. There are hors d’oeuvres up the kazoo and it’s the same with desserts and cheeses. This picture isn’t really much like the available food, but it gives you an idea. Each of the roasts has a carver standing by it. It does mean no turkey leftovers though. Unfortunately this year we will be on our own as our friends couldn’t make it. This is one time of the year when I wish we were in the UK.

We did it, we put up the tree yesterday, and we really didn’t argue that much about it. I am staggered about how many needles the thing sheds, I guess we have had this tree a hell of a long time and I am surprised it is still usable actually, it sheds so much every year. We have to haul out the vacuum and I used my new Dustbuster under the tree where the vacuum is really too big to go, did one hell of a job. It’s a very powerful little machine. Our ornaments have been collected over the years, there are a couple of somewhat pathetic (now) birds which my mother bought over 20 years ago which gives me a kind of sentimental attachment to them. In fact a lot of the ornaments have particular meanings even it its only that some of them came from bowling Christmas parties. One thing I decided to do this year, one part of our living room always looks a bit dull so I took our icicle lights which we don’t use outside any more and draped them all over. Makes a big difference to that end of the room.

This recipe came from Hershey’s this week, I am seriously thinking of making them, they look so good.

Chocolate Snowball Cookies

Ingredients

1 pouch Betty Crocker® Sugar Cookie Mix

1/4 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg

1/4 cup HERSHEY®'S Cocoa

60 HERSHEY®'S KISSES Brand Milk Chocolates, unwrapped

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375°F. In a large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, egg, flour, cocoa, almonds and extract until soft dough forms.
2. Shape dough into 60 3/4-inch balls; wrap each around a milk chocolate candy. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
4. Roll cookies in powdered sugar. Cool completely, about 15 minutes. Re-roll cookies in powdered sugar. Store tightly covered. About 5 dozen cookies.

Featured Tip

For baking, ONLY use butter in the stick form. Whipped butter has air beaten into it and cannot be directly substituted for stick butter.

Have a great day