Doing Pie and Cookie Dough Today! Christmas Buffet Menu.

5 pie crusts

Today I have made up my recipe for 5 single crust pie crusts (or 2 double and a single)  because I am making two very special people their favorite pies to send with my husband in the morning when he leaves for work.  He can deliver them for me and they will still be nice and warm.  That sounds like a great Christmas surprise to me!  I have the pastry made up and patted out into 5 disks and wrapped in waxed paper then dropped into a plastic bag  and stashed into the refrigerator.    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/07/cherry-pie.html   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/11/canning-apple-pie-filling-my-revision.html     thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2012/05/raisin-pie-and-primary-election-day.html

Home canned apple pie filling

I will use my last can of homemade Apple pie filling for one pie and then I am making an very old fashioned Raisin pie.

Raisins simmering

   

Snicker doodles

Next this morning I am making up a batch of Snicker doodles    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/08/old-fashioned-snickerdoodles.html   then a recipe of sugar cookie dough  thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/12/baking-christmas-cookies.html   and a batch of dough for painted roll out cookies.   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/02/painted-hearts-cut-out-cookies-for.html   I will bake the Snicker doodles today and store the made up cookie dough to bake off tomorrow after my marathon trip to both the butcher and the market.

Since I have been troubled with bad knees I was counting the days to the injection appointment.  But, the injections bother me about a day and a half but then I jump up and feel 30 again for awhile!  Today is my first feel like 30 day.  Thus the reason I have postponed the marketing.

Planned Christmas Buffet:

This Christmas I am planning a buffet to be left out and enjoyed at will.  The ham for Thanksgiving was such a hit I am repeating it.   thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2013/03/baking-whole-ham-for-easter.html    I also ordered several pounds of the butchers delicious homemade potato salad (yes I did!)  But I will throw together some baked beans.  Thinking of a huge, maybe 4 pound platter of fresh strawberries and some chocolate ganache for dipping!  Then our other "likes" include a platter of ice cold shrimp cocktail, a cheese ball with crackers, assorted bread. thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2011/12/old-fashioned-persimmon-pudding-my.html   Assorted beverages on ice and maybe a bit of hot buttered rum!    thehiddenpantry.blogspot.com/2010/11/hot-buttered-rum.html

Spiced Pecans

Some spiced nuts, and of course veggies and dip.  Dessert will be Christmas cookies and a batch of Christmas rice crispy treats with red and green holiday sprinkles!  Then maybe, just maybe, I will do up a persimmon pudding with whipped cream for good measure.  

Raisin and Apple Pies

Monday Morning 7:30 AM:  The pies have finished baking and are packed for Brian's deliveries! 
Since they are still hot I dropped a cooling rack into the bottom of each of two large tote bags.  Next I covered the rack with a clean tea towel and put the aluminum pie plate in a second aluminum pie plate to sturdy up the base.  Then I rolled 2 additional clean tea towels into cylinders and used them as bumpers to keep the pie from sliding.

Tucked away to travel

The last step was to tear, fold, and enclose two ample sheets of fresh aluminum foil for the pis to be covered with when cool.