This year I did little for Chanukkah and nothing for Christmas–even my Christmas cards have not been sent, though finally I wrote the notes in them and stamped and addressed them and they are ready to go. Part of this was because for a while I had COVID-19. Anyway, I found a way to compensate: I have two Cranberry Pumpkin Breads in the oven, admittedly using dried cranberries instead of fresh or frozen ones.
On New Year’s Day, January 1, 2023, I shall have a New Years’ dinner. On that dinner I shall make a roast using (among other things) almond milk for the gravy and rice for the side dish. With that in mind, I shall put the recipes for the Cranberry Pumpkin Bread and the Roast (the instructions for the rice are on the bag) with the admission that the drink is some carbonated apple cider I am saving for the occassion.
Cranberry Pumpkin Bread Recipe
Ingredients
3 and ¾ cups all-purpose flour
3 cups sugar
4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 can solid-pack pumpkin
½ canola oil
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, thawed
1 cup chopped walnuts
Recipe
- Turn oven to 350.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt.
- In another bowl, whisk the eggs, pumpkin and oil; stir in dry ingredients just until moistened.
- Fold in cranberries and walnuts.
- Spoon into two greased 9x inches loaf pans.
- Bake for seventy to eighty minutes.
- Cool for ten minutes.
Here is the recipe for the roast–but I shall not make it until January 1, 2023:
Melt-in-Your-Mouth-Chuck-Roast
Ingredients
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) Italian stewed tomatoes, undrained
1/2 cup no-beef broth
1/2 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 teaspoons prepared mustard
Powdered garlic
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1 medium green pepper, halved and sliced
1 celery rib, chopped
1 boneless beef chuck roast (2 to 3 pounds)
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
Recipe
1. Mix first 10 ingredients. Place onion, green pepper and celery in a 5-qt. slow cooker; place roast over top. Pour tomato mixture over roast.
2. Cook, covered, on low until meat is tender, 5-6 hours.
3. Remove roast.
4. Strain cooking juices, reserving vegetables.
5. Transfer juices to a small saucepan; skim fat.
6. Mix cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into cooking juices.
7. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes. 8. Serve roast and vegetables with gravy.
I am hoping for a good New Year’s Dinner this coming January 1, 2023.