Good King wants his applesauce,

At the feast this evening.

Hm hm hm hm hm hm hm,

Keep it nice and even

Yes, gentle readers 'tis the season to be jolly, and to jingle all the way and to deck them halls and what-not. We got our tree up this week and Bob put the outside decorations out, but he has yet to put the lights on the hedge. You might remember that he is supposed to be on vacation the entire month of December, but that hasn't happened yet, either. Maybe after a trip to California this week, he'll actually have some time off, but we shall see.

If you were reading the blog about a year ago, you'll remember that Bob coveted the safety, no-skid socks that they gave me at the Heart Center when I had my colonoscopy. Well, here you can see that he now has his very own pair, as we decided to make the colorectal screening a yuletide tradition, and he submitted to the exam. One of the nurses even remembered us from last year. They were amazed at how healthy Bob is. They showed his chart to each other. "This is the healthiest patient we've had in here in a long time," they said to one another. This did not impress Lindsey, because, as she pointed out, Bob was the one giving them this information. Also, the medication they gave him didn't put him out, so he was awake through the whole thing. He told them afterward, that he had paid close attention and thought he could perform the procedure on one of them, if they liked. He had an attractive nurse name Cindy who apologized up and down when she had to yank those heart monitor thingees off his chest. "I'm sorry - I'm so sorry," she said.

"Oh, that's okay," Bob consoled her, "If it was anybody but you."

Then he looked over at me, the woman holding his socks and tennis shoes - the woman who was going to drive his sorry carcass home and said,

"Oh, and you, of course, and you."

Um-hm. I took him to the Culver's off Dupont and bought him a double butter burger with cheese. He hadn't eaten in two days.

Our Sunday Night Candlelight Supper guests were Jim and Kathy. We used the Christmas dishes for the first time this season. I inadvertently turned the back burner on the stove on, where the carrot souffle was sitting, and burned a hot pad and the bottom center part of the souffle. We just ate around the outside. We had a great time.

From the Archives: Christmas 1961. This photo really needs no comment, because I'm sure we all went through that Dale Evans cowgirl phase, right?......Didn't we?

Recipe of the Week: We served pie at our Sunday Night Supper - pecan and caramel apple. I just copied down the recipe for the caramel apple pie, when it occured to me that it was already on the blog, so how about one for Almond Joy Cheesecake. Even people who don't think they like coconut seem to be okay with this one:

Almond Joy Bits Cheesecake

Chocolate Crumb Crust:

In a medium bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup Hershey's cocoa, and 1/3 cup melted butter. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare chocolate crust and press into springform pan or 9 X 13 baking dish.

Cheesecake Filling:

3 packages (8 oz) cream cheese

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1 - 8 ounce carton sour cream

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

3 eggs

1 & 2/3 cups (10 ounce package) Almond Joy Coconut & Almond Bits

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until well-blended. Gradually add flour and continue beating. Add sour cream, vanilla, and almond extracts and eggs, one at a time. Stir in bits. Bake for 55-60 minutes. Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Before serving, prepare the chocolate drizzle, pour over the cake and refrigerate a few more minutes until the drizzle is set.

Milk Chocolate Drizzle

2/3 cup milk chocolate chips

1 & 1/2 teaspoon regular Crisco shortening

Microwave on high about one minute, or until melted.

"During the Middle Ages, probably one of the biggest mistakes was not putting on your armor because you were just going down to the corner." Jack Handey