Margie's Cheese Ball

This Christmas I am miles away from family and was invited to my sweetheart's family Christmas gathering.  I couldn't go empty handed, so I asked what I could bring, and a cheese ball was suggested.

I immediately knew which recipe I would use!  My mind immediately traveled back in time to the late 70's when I worked at Citizens Bank in Evansville.  I remembered those waistline expanding  Decembers when we had food from the beginning to the end of month!   So much great food that we had a sign up calendar to help spread out the feast and as you can imagine, there wasn't an empty day!

Margie was a very sweet lady, loved by all.  Her contribution each December was this fabulous cheese ball.   She has since passed away and in her memory, I am honored to share her cheese ball recipe with everyone to use in their holiday celebrations!  It's a little late for Christmas, but certainly something you could make for your New Year's parties!

Janet's Christmas Gingerbread

How many of you are like me and running behind with your holiday preparations this year?  It won't be long and the reindeer will be flying and the jolly old man in the red suit will be visiting our homes and comparing notes on the cookies and milk left on the hearth for him.

This weekend I made gingerbread men, or as I've been saying, gingerbread boys and girls.  

I'm making them for a really special group of first graders as a treat on the last day of their Junior Achievement class.  

I've never made gingerbread men before and they are a lot of work,  I also will confess that I had a few casualties, but they are so cute and tasty they were worth the trouble and  I am sure the kids in the class will love them.

Since I don't have a tried and true recipe for gingerbread, I put out the call to my Facebook friends to see if anyone had one that they would share.  Paula, a friend from the town I grew up in, shared her recipe.   

This isn't just any recipe, it is her mother's recipe and is a treasure.  Growing up her mom and dad lived kitty-corner across the street from us and later they were backdoor neighbors to my mom and dad.  I asked Paula if she minded if I shared the recipe on my blog and she said "go for it".

I hope you will try this recipe.  It has lots of wonderful memories for their family.   Start a new tradition at your house this year. I bet if you make these cookies you will get brownie points from your family and also Santa might just decide the cookies he got at your house are the absolute best!

I wish I could share a plate of these with Janet and her daughters!