our christmas days are  a long, drawn out, amazingly fun process.  it has evolved into a whole day of eating and opening presents.  i guess that's no different from any other family, but one difference for us, is we don't open everything in one fell swoop.  now that the children are a bit older--and that's relatively speaking....every present is wrapped and nothing is placed under the tree until christmas eve....so some of the surprise is all the presents appearing out of no where :)  we have stockings to open and presents to unwrap.  we wait until everyone is {somewhat} awake and we have cups of coffee, cider and hot chocolate ready for the stocking opening.  once everyone has their warm drink of choice, we all gather in the den and stockings are handed out.  we go around, one by one and reach in--without looking is the ideal--and pull out one thing at a time.  this can take up to an hour or two for the whole family to empty their stockings. once that is done, we stop and have breakfast.  i have found that breakfast needs to be on the lighter side or no one wants to eat Christmas dinner (actually lunch, since its around 2).  i am also learning how to keep it very simple, since i would have already been cooking the few days prior and will be the rest of the day.  we have had cinnamon rolls (recipe here), breakfast casseroles, scrambled eggs and muffins, etc.    our favorite so far has become fruit soup and biscuits.  i know my sweet husband needs some protein with breakfast, so this year, i will make some mini quiches to go along with our soup. after breakfast, we go back to the tree and open presents.  we are usually there until time for lunch.

this soup is wonderful!  it is so refreshing and light.  and. so. simple. what i love about it, is that i throw it all together the day before--whenever there is time--and its just ready for us when its time to eat.  the other thing i do (which i did tonight) is make enough biscuits for that meal and freeze the dough on a cookie sheet--several days or weeks ahead.  once they are frozen, i put them in a ziplock and when we are about ready to break for breakfast, i throw them on a cookies sheet and pop them in the oven.

i will make the mini quiches the day or two before christmas also.  my goal is to make this as easy as possible for that day.  i want to be in the den, enjoying my family and not in the kitchen...until they have all crashed on the sofas :)

i found this soup recipe years and years ago in a cookbook series on healthy eating.  i wouldn't say its exactly healthy, but it is a favorite and with a few wise choices, it can be healthier than most foods :) we have this for dinner many times during the summer, too.

Fruit Soup

recipe as written makes 11 cups without bananas (which we never add)

• 12 oz package frozen raspberries
• 16 oz package frozen strawberries
• 12 oz package frozen blueberries
• 20 oz can pineapple chunks, unsweetened, undrained
• 16 oz can peach slices, unsweetened, undrained and cut in bite size pieces
• 16 oz can pear halves, unsweetened, undrained and cut in bit size pieces

Combine all portions of fruit in a BIG bowl.  let stand about 2 hours at room temperature or overnight in refrigerator to let frozen fruit thaw and juices to mingle.  refrigerate until ready to serve.  Add bananas (if desired) to each portion served.

*this will keep several days in the refrigerator.  Add bananas only to the portion to be used immediately, since they will turn.

we serve with whipped cream on top and biscuits.  we almost always have left overs and use this as a base for smoothie or a topping on ice-cream, oatmeal..whatever.  you name it, it works here :)

NOW--i usually make these biscuits to go with this. but lately, the kids have been asking for buttermilk biscuits with this, since the usual ones are a bit sweet.

i learned to make these biscuits from my mother-in-law.  she, like me, doesn't use recipes for most of her meals, and this is no exception.  i am sure she was taught just like she taught me to make them...and, while they are NOT good for you, they are pretty darn good.  there are no measurements...you just have to 'eyeball' it and go on experience--as you get used to making them

buttermilk biscuits

• self rising flour
• crisco
• buttermilk

What she taught me:  put a couple of cups of flour in a bowl.  take a couple of heaping spoons of crisco and cut (and by cut she meant mush it with your hands until it was all blended) in until the constancy of cornmeal.  (what I do is blend it all in and if I can form a ball with the flour/crisco mix with my hands, without feeling the greasiness of the crisco, you got the right mix :)).  add buttermilk, a little at a time until you have a moist heap (hehe, i told you it wasn't precise)....and it will be gooey, but those make for flaky biscuits.  put dough out on a floured board and put just enough flour on top to be able to flatten with your fingers and it not stick to you.  flatten out to about 1/2" and cut with a biscuit cutter--I use a regular sized mouth mason jar.   lay out on an ungreased cookie sheet--sides barely touching.  bake at 450 for about 5 minutes.  they will be light brown on top and maybe very light on the bottom.