1. Start the holidays off with pie.
Not just any pie, mind you. Pecan pie. And not just any pecan pie, mind you. A Goode Company Pecan Pie, shipped in its own beautiful, wooden box that can also function as a stylish, Texas-themed centerpiece and conversation starter.
This pie is good for what ails you because it is the best gosh-darn pecan pie in the entire world. And I have had some pretty amazing pecan pie. Example: Last Christmas, Michel and I were craving "home" food, and so we asked my mom if she would consider replacing her normal (store-bought yet delicious) Christmas pecan pie with one from Goode Company. She was reluctant, but finally agreed after my brother added his voice to the request. On Christmas Day, she took one bite of it and said, "I don't know why we've bothered with any other pie." Case closed. And be sure to thank the person who sent it to you profusely so that they will continue sending them. I love you, Mom!
2. Look for the Holiday Train.
The Holiday Train is an El train decorated for Christmas and carrying Santa. Yes, a real, live Santa. One of the cars is always replaced with a flatbed holding Santa, his sleigh, and his fake reindeer. It's pretty spectacular. There are a few ways to see this train. One: search thoroughly for it every time you enter a train platform. Two: Look up the schedule of the holiday train on the CTA website. Or three: Have the bejeezus scared out of you as you are staring at your phone, waiting for a train, when the holiday train comes whistling and blowing into your station, causing you to shriek with fear and joy, fumble for your phone camera in the below freezing air, and jump two feet in the air when you realize the fake Santa mechanically waving and yelling ho-ho-ho is actually a real, living, breathing, and probably cold out of his mind person. I chose the last option.
3. Bake cookies.
This fall, Charlotte decided that she wanted to make Brennan's pralines. And so we have attempted to do this twice. In all honestly, it is a bit like Lucy and Ethel doing anything. We have yet to master the cooking process, and this last time we just dumped the molten sugar onto the pan in the shape of a giant blob rather than try to spoon out appropriately sized cookies. If done properly, the pralines will be completely dry and ready to eat in half an hour. Ours have yet to dry in under a week.
They still taste amazing and perfect, though. The second time we made them was for the Savory Spice Shop's Second Annual Cookie Exchange. We also made excellent ginger cookies and peppermint sugar cookies (or, as Charlotte called them, a potential Pinterest fail--again, tasted great).
The cookie exchange was super fun. So fun that I took no pictures. But trust me, there were some gorgeous and delicious cookies there. My favorites were the brown butter dark chocolate chip cookies with sea salt and the rosemary shortbread. Michel's favorite (of the selection that made it home) was the spicy coconut macaroon. The cookie exchange really did more than anything to get me in a specifically holiday mood. I mean, who can feel Grinchy when there are cookies to eat?
4. Go to Not Specifically Holiday Holiday Parties
Not Specifically Holiday Holiday Parties are sometimes more fun because then it's just about hanging out with good people. However, a white elephant component is always good, especially if you do well. Our first party was an ugly sweater and Rum Ham (from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) party. We were instructed to either wear an ugly sweater or a Hawaiian shirt. I wore neither, but Michel wore his brand new Aloha shirt proudly, and Ryan, our host, made his own ugly sweater. The menu was rum-glazed ham. It was a great evening.
I just had to share it, Ryan. Sorry.
The other Not Specifically Holiday Holiday Party was my office end of year party at 90 Mile Cuban Cafe. I work with the best people in the world. They are some of the most dedicated, caring, hardest-working people I have met, and they are also the craziest and most fun. Plus Cuban food should be a permanent part of the holidays and, really, all days, and the Dreidl Drinking Game is really entertaining.
5. Go to the Christkindlmarkt
This only works if you live somewhere where there is a Christkindlmarkt (a German Christmas market), but there is nothing like an outdoor market imitating a Bavarian village and selling nutcrackers, hot chocolate, mulled wine, and doughnuts filled with cream to put you in the holiday spirit. Michel and I took my advisees one Friday, and it was great.
I have the best advisees ever. I say that one: because they are and two: because the students have found my blogs and may read this. This class is particularly snoopy. But really, my advisees are the best.
The tree was kind of sad, but that's ok.
Fun Fact: Chicago's Christkindlmarkt has been ranked as one of the best Christkindlmarkts in the world, so if you have a chance, definitely visit it next year.
5. Go to Wine and Cheese Tastings at Your Fancy Grocery Store.
Dear friends who live in the land of HEB and Central Market, you do not know how lucky you are. Here in Illinois we have a fancy grocery store by the name of Mariano's which has the consistently worst produce I've ever seen. But what Mariano's does do well is wine and cheese tastings. 90+ Cellars, a really great wine retailer, did an official tasting evening pairing their wines with Sartori cheeses. And when we say pairing, what we really mean is that they gave us a plate of 3 kinds of cheese and then a whole bunch of wine.
Michel: Hello. I'm coming into the post for the wine part because I was in the Christmas spirit and needed no coaxing.
Elizabeth: Yeah, but I ended up doing way more fun Christmas-y things than you.
Michel: I did everything except the cookie exchange. And all that means is that I got to eat cookies and not make pralines, so I think I come out ahead there.
Elizabeth: But the cookie exchange was magical. You wouldn't understand. Ok, back to wine and cheese.
Michel: The fact that 90+ Cellars buys and repackages wines rather than make them made me a little wary as to the quality of the wine we would have. Happily, I was wrong. All of the wines were very good.
Michel: Hello. I'm coming into the post for the wine part because I was in the Christmas spirit and needed no coaxing.
Elizabeth: Yeah, but I ended up doing way more fun Christmas-y things than you.
Michel: I did everything except the cookie exchange. And all that means is that I got to eat cookies and not make pralines, so I think I come out ahead there.
Elizabeth: But the cookie exchange was magical. You wouldn't understand. Ok, back to wine and cheese.
Michel: The fact that 90+ Cellars buys and repackages wines rather than make them made me a little wary as to the quality of the wine we would have. Happily, I was wrong. All of the wines were very good.
Not enough cheese for all that wine.
We were invited by one of our friends, who also happens to be one of Mariano's main wine sampler people, at the tasting, too. I don't know what it says about you when the grocery store wine sampler people recognize you and invite you to wine events.
Elizabeth: It was a very enjoyable evening. I, at least, ended it telling one of 90+'s head wine buyers that they needed to come to Texas and buy up all the extra wine in the Hill Country. Because, you know, Texas.
Michel: Yeah.
Overall, it was a really fun December, and I finally got into the Christmas spirit in time for the actual holiday. So...a way belated happy holidays to you all!
Michel: I was born with the Christmas spirit.
