Holiday Recipes

The twinkling of lights, warmth of the fire, gathering with family and smell of the most delicious foods is what makes the holiday season so magical. Everyone has their own traditions this time of year, like when you open gifts, to the foods that are a staple in your holiday meal. We reached out to CapFed® associates recently, and asked them about their favorite holiday dishes, and we've featured a few below so you can try them too.

Dee
Creamy Cranberry Salad

• 3 cups fresh cranberries, chopped
• 1 20oz drained unsweetened crushed pineapple
• 2 cups miniature marshmallows 
• 1 medium apple, chopped
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 carton of Cool Whip or 2 cups of whipped cream

To serve: fold in whipped cream and 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Mia
Cranberry-Pear Crumble Pie Recipe

Ingredients:

• Pie crust (homemade or pre-made works)

Pie Filling:

• 3 large pears or 5 small pears
• 1 cup cranberries
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Crumble Topping:

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter (melted and cooled DO NOT USE HOT BUTTER)

Instructions:

1. Pre-bake the pie crust without the filling according to Pie Crust Instruction.
2. Preheat oven to 350 F

For Pie Filling:

1. In a large mixing bowl combine the granulated sugar, all purpose flour, cinnamon, ginger. Mixing these before adding wet ingredients insures all the seasoning gets incorporated and distributed evenly.
2. Peel the pears and chop into 1/2 inch cubes. Can leave them a little larger if you like them more crisp.
3. Rinse cranberries
4. Combine pears and cranberries and toss with lemon juice in a separate bowl.
5. Pour dry ingredients over top and toss with fruit to evenly coat.

For Crumble:

1. Combine brown sugar, cinnamon, all purpose flour and mix thoroughly.
2. After combined, add butter and use fork to "mash" the ingredients together. Should create a crumbly texture.

Assemble the Pie:

1. Put the pie filling in the pre-baked pie crust. Leave any juices in the fruit bowl behind. If your pie filling looks wet (it should look like a paste not like juice) you can add a teaspoon of cornstarch. This will allow the extra juice to thicken while the pie bakes.
2. After adding your fruit, sprinkle your crumble topping on top of the pie. You want a nice thin even layer on top of the pie, but fruit should still peak through.
3. Your pie is ready to bake. Place it in the oven you preheated to 350 F for 55-65 minutes. (If your crust is browning you can place a pie crust shield around the edge of the pie after the first 20 minutes of bake time.)
4. Time is up! Let the pie rest for 30 minutes. The original recipe says to let it cool completely, however this pie is pure heaven when it is still warm and fresh from the oven in my opinion (it will also make your house smell like autumn).

To serve: If you have the opportunity serve warm with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream and enjoy!

Melissa
Candied Jalapeño Dip

Ingredients:

• 2 jars diced jalapeños
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 8oz packages cream cheese
• bag of tortilla chips

Instructions:

1. A few days before your party, drain the juice from 2 jars of diced pickled jalapeños. Keep the jalapeños in the jars they came in.
2. Add about a cup of sugar into each jar.
3. over the next few days, shake the jars to help dissolve the sugar.
4. Bring the cream cheese to room temperature. Place in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Start whipping the cream cheese until it becomes airy.
5. Drain the juice on the jalapeño jars, keeping the juice.
6. Add in the jalapeños to the cream cheese and keep whipping until incorporated.
7. Add juice in as needed to make the dip as thin as you would like.

To serve: Serve with chips or whatever you like to dip. (At my house, a spoon has been know to be used!)

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Categories: Just For Fun