What a weekend! There was plenty to eat and fun to be had. We stayed in town this year and didn’t do much other than eat and relax. We hope everyone, including friends and family we weren’t able to spend time with, had a great holiday!
The Hungry Apple got an ornament for the tree!
We got to spend Sunday afternoon with cousins.
Like a lot of families, ours loves food around the holidays. Appetizers and snacks are among the favorites.
On Christmas Eve when we are in town, we have a tradition of appetizers for dinner. Everyone chooses an app and we pig out!
Fruit and Cheese
Crab Ragoons
7 layer dip
BBQ Chicken Burger Sliders (recipe below)
Sausage balls
And of course plenty of things to warm your spirits!
We played games and did puzzles (poorly, I might add).
We have a pajama tradition and this year we got these funny t-shirts!
We woke up on Christmas morning at 6 because I am a 5 year old with excitement, packed the car and made the short drive to my parents house.
Christmas day was indulgent again with a big breakfast that was so good I forgot to take pictures.
More funny t-shirt wearing
And Bloody Marys of course.
One of the gifts I was excited to receive was the Vinturi. This gadget quickly aerates wine so it tastes its best in seconds. You just pour the wine through the Vinturi while holding it over your glass. I am not a wine aficionado, but I think it actually works! It was so cool.
All of this wine tasting and testing was followed by relaxing and a steak dinner.
We started off with a salad with warm pan fried goat cheese. (recipe to come)
Then we opened “crackers” and all displayed our Christmas cheer with paper crowns.
The main attraction was steak, twice baked potatoes and roasted veggies.
Dessert pushed us over the edge topped it all off. Bread pudding with ice cream and rum butter sauce.
The gifts and all the food were pretty gluttonous and I just feel very lucky. Hope everyone had the holiday you were hoping for. Merry Everything!
And now-the recipe!
I just think sliders are the cutest sandwich. They turn a regular meal into an appetizer. I love that.
BBQ Chicken Burger-Sliders
Ingredients:
10 slider buns, warmed
1 pound ground chicken
3 tablespoons grated red onion
1/4 cup grated cheese, i used cheddar (i recommend Monterrey jack-which I have used in the past)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
10 twists pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1/2 cup of bbq sauce, warmed (yours or the stores :))
1 cup shredded smoked cheese (slices would work too, i used smoked gouda)
Instructions and directions:
In a saucepan over medium-low heat, add olive oil and yellow onion. Sautee and caramelize for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine ground chicken, 1/4 cup grated cheese, grated red onion, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, parsley and chili powder. Form mixture into 10 small patties.
In a large non stick skillet that has been drizzled with olive oil, cook the patties 3-4 minutes on each side until lightly browned and cooked through. Top with shredded smoked cheese and cover for 1 minutes.
On warmed slider buns, layer burger patty, 2 tablespoons bbq sauce and caramelized onions.
Slider idea was born from How Sweet Eats
The Hungry Apple 