Pomegranate Christmas punch

• 1 qt seltzer water
• 1 pint pomegranate juice
• 2/3 c. Trader Joe's ginger brew
• 3 TBS simple syrup
• 1 TBS gin with strong juniper flavor

Roasted broccoli and cauliflower

Preheat oven to 425.  On a sheet of foil, drizzle broccoli/cauliflower florets with EVOO and toss with sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Wrap into a packet and bake for 20 minutes.  Open packet and cook until finished (maybe 5-20 minutes more).

Tortellini soup

• EVOO
• 3 cloves garlic (or more), minced
• ~1/4 c. white wine
• 2 qt. chicken broth
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• pepper
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• ~10 oz cheese tortellini
• ~1/2 bag baby spinach
• parmesan

Saute garlic in olive oil.  Add white wine.  Add broth, seasonings, and tomato sauce.  Simmer for about 10-20 minutes and add more seasonings to taste as needed.  Add tortellini and cook according to package directions.  In the last minute, add spinach.  Serve topped with grated parmesan if desired.

Miso chicken

Modified from https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017699-miso-chicken

• 2 largish boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 TBS butter, softened
• 1/4 c white miso
• 1 TBS honey
• 1/2 TBS rice vinegar
• pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

Mix sauce ingredients in a large bowl.  Dump chicken breasts into bowl and coat on all sides with miso mixture.  Put chicken in a foil-lined casserole dish.  Spoon remaining miso mixture over chicken.

Bake 10-13 minutes on each side.  When flipping, spoon glaze runoff over the chicken.

Serve with rice.

Overnight steel cut oats

• 1 tsp butter
• 1 c. steel cut oats
• 1 c. milk
• 2 c. water
• pinch of salt
• handful of dried cranberries
• splash of vanilla extract

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Toast oats in butter for a few minutes.  Add water, milk, salt, and cranberries.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes.  Stir in vanilla.  Remove pan from heat, cover, and let sit overnight.

French bread

(Makes 2 loaves)

• 1 packet yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp yeast)
• 1/4 c water
• 1/2 c milk
• 1 c water
• 4 1/2 c flour
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 TBS melted butter
• 1 TBS sugar

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 c warm water (following temperature directions on yeast package).

While the yeast rests, mix milk and 1 c water and heat to appropriate temperature for yeast.

Mix together flour, salt, and 2 tsp sugar.

Add butter, 1 TBS sugar, and yeast mixture to milk-water mixture.  Pour liquid mixture into dry ingredients and stir thoroughly.

Cover bowl of dough with a damp cloth and put in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.  (I like to put it in the oven with the oven light on for a little warmth.)

Grease French bread pan very thoroughly.  Generously flour counter surface.  Pour dough onto floured surface.  It will be very goopy.  Divide dough in half.  Mix enough flour into each half that it can be patted flat without sticking.  Pat or stretch each half into an oblong.  Roll oblong into a roughly cylindrical loaf and place in greased pan.  Make sure the bottom of the loaf has a good amount of flour on it to minimize sticking.

Return dough to warm place to rise until again doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Put a pan of water in the bottom rack of the oven.  Preheat oven to 400.

Put bread pan in hot oven above pan of water and bake for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350 and bake about 30 minutes more until done.

Loosen bread from pan promptly after removing from oven.

Cranberry bread

1 1/2 cup cranberry sauce, divided

1/3 c. oil (canola, vegetable, or olive)

1/2 c. white sugar

1/4 c. brown sugar

1 large egg

2 teas. vanilla

1 1/2 c. flour

1/2 teas. kosher salt

1 teas. baking soda

1 teas. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350; grease 9" loaf pan.

Beat 1 c. cranberry with oil, sugars, egg and vanilla.  Combine dry ingredients and add to cranberry mixture.  Stir until evenly combined. Spread into prepared pan.  Dollop remaining cranberry sauce on top.  Bake 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.