Christmas 2011

Christmas is now over.  We're back to work and awaiting the arrival of Paul's family.  It was a good Christmas, although it was definitely different from any other Christmas we've had.

I saw this at a Christmas display in an Abu Dhabi mall--I couldn't get over how scary the "reindeer" looked

I got to kick-off the Christmas weekend with some co-workers at Yas Links for a round of golf.  The scenery and course were absolutely stunning, or as my Irish co-worker would say "it was brilliant."

View of Abu Dhabi skyline from the course

The color of the water was just so pretty

And to top it all off, we got to watch a beautiful sunset

Thursday night we went over to J & S's home for dinner.  E & I joined us there along with 8 of I's family that were in town from France.  It was an evening of a lot of francais which I appreciated, although I will admit that I was a bit shy to actually speak it myself.  I brought bruschetta (my mom's recipe) and the strawberry-pretzel desert salad that Paul's mom and grandmother make.

Friday we went to church where Paul played in the band again.  This time it was all Christmas songs which I really enjoyed and the pastor gave a very interesting sermon on the Birth of Christ giving some cultural context to the story and explaining differences from what we, as Americans, often visualize and portray the events to look like.  Then we just napped and watched movies most of the rest of the day.  I watched Tin Cup for the first time which was fun because one of my coworkers was quoting it all during our round of golf the day before.

Saturday we slept in a bit, watched more movies, and I worked on some leg warmers / boot socks which were my first crochet project (I'll post some pics after I get a chance to take some photos).  We also got the Scrabble board out for a game.  That night I made beef stew per my family's Christmas Eve tradition.

Sunday was another lazy day.  We started the day off with one of our favorite recipes which is a "Breakfast Quiche" (but we've been known to eat it at any meal)(recipe below).  Eventually we got around to opening presents that we had gotten for each other and then we headed back out to Yas Links for a round on the 9-hole par 3 course.  I beat Paul in the round by 1 stroke! (granted he gave me a 13-stroke handicap and 2 mulligans... but that's beside the point).

Christmas Golf (that's Ferrari World in the background) (totally unplanned, but we're wearing Christmas colors!)

We had leftovers for our “Christmas Dinner” and a homemade Apple-Pear Cream Cheese Pie (recipe from my mom…possibly my favorite pie ever)(recipe below).  Later that evening we skyped with my family and we simultaneously opened presents from each other which was fun.  Skype definitely makes living over here much easier!  Still, we would have much rather been home with all of our friends & family.

Skyping with the family while we open presents

Paul and his "Gummy Bacon"

Paul's Mom sent us some photos of snow on their farm...definitely wished we could have been there!

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CRISPY POTATO QUICHE

24oz frozen shredded hashbrowns, thawed (I've made it with frozen french fries and it worked fine)
1/3c butter, melted
2c shredded cheese (I just use whatever I have on hand, the recipe calls for 1c hot pepper cheese and 1c swiss)
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1c deli meat, diced (I usually use ham, but since that's hard to get here, I've been making it with turkey, I've also made it without meat)
2 eggs (sometimes I add another)
1/2c milk (the recipe calls for half-and-half, but I usually use 2% or whatever I have)
1/4t seasoned salt

1.  Pre-heat the oven to 425F
2.  Press thawed hashbrowns into papertowels to remove any excess moisture.  Place hashbrowns into a greased 10” pie plate, forming a solid crust (I don't have a pie plate so I just use my Corningware).
3.  Brush hashbrowns with melted butter, especially the top edges.
4.  Bake the hashbrowns for 25 minutes.
5.  Meanwhile, whisk together the eggs, milk, and salt.
6.  When the hashbrowns are done, remove them from the oven and reduce the oven temp to 350F.  Sprinkle the bottom of the dish with the cheese, onions, and meat.  Pour the egg mixture over top.
7.  Bake for 30 - 45 mins, or until a knife inserted comes out clean.

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APPLE-PEAR CRUMBLE PIE

3/4c  crushed Nilla Wafers (about 24)
1/4c  brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4c  butter, melted
1       pie crust (you can use pre-made or make your own)
4oz  cream cheese, softened
2lg    baking apples, peeled & sliced
1lg    pear, peeled & sliced
1/3c sugar
1/4c flour
1/2t  cinnamon

1.  Preheat oven to 375F.
2.  Mix wafer crumbs, brown sugar, and butter until well blended.  Set aside.
3.  Place pie crust in 9” pie plate.  Spread cream cheese carefully onto the bottom of the curst; sprinkle with half of the crumb mixture.  Set aside.
4.  Combine fruit in a large bowl.  Add sugar, flour, and cinnamon.  Toss to coat.
5.  Spoon fruit mixture over crumb layer in pie crust.  Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture.
6.  Bake 35min or until fruit is tender and crust is lightly browned, covering loosely with foil after 25 min if you necessary to prevent crust from burning.  Cool on wire rack.