A Gingerbread Kind of Day

My husband's pancakes are legendary within our family.  Everyone loves them, and, when the kids are home one of the first things they ask for is Dad's pancakes.  When I walked by this bottle of maple syrup at Williams-Sonoma, it just fell into my basket!  Can you believe it?  Mr. Gingerbread Man must have heard about my husband's pancakes, too!

I had planned a cute breakfast for Christmas morning, and, although my son, John, was not able to come, I decided to proceed with it all.  I'm telling myself that this is a dry run, and I'll do it all over again next year.

Well, if we are going to bring Mr. Gingerbread to the table, he's going to need some gingerbread company, so these little Mug Toppers were "needed" to make Mr. Gingerbread feel welcome!  To tell you the truth, they proved a challenge.  They refused to stay straight in the mug!  So I called on my house engineer/tech/geek expert, my husband, Lee, who promptly straightened it with little wads of Scotch tape.  Ah!  The technical mind boggles!  Some friends have suggested chocolate next time.  I'll have to try that next year.  See?  Dry run.

With a few added gingerbread people, the breakfast table was set.  I used last night's red tablecloth.  Isn't it a fabulous red?

This was my husband's Gingerbread Man.  The guy that never notices details asked me why his man had four eyes.  I explained that two dots were for the eyes, and the other two for dimples.  He remains unconvinced.

Miss Peppermint had ruffles on her arms and legs.

The Gingerbread Salt and Pepper shakers insisted on being invited.  The lady held the pepper.  She's also a little "caliente," like me.

The Wedgwood Nantucket Basket Coffee Pot is no longer being produced.  I had been looking for one for a while, and put in a request at Replacements.com to notify me if one was ever found — and it was, and it's now mine!  Bwahaha!  Happiness!

I placed these absolutely delicious gingersnaps on the table to nibble on, as I got the rest of the breakfast ready.  The Villeroy & Boch Winter Bakery Delight Bowl depicts . . . you guessed it, gingerbread!  This Christmas porcelain collection is truly a delight, and I plan to add a few more pieces for next year.  Sigh!  A dish collector is never done!

I really felt very efficient this year, reusing the tablecloth, the rattan chargers and the salad plates from last night.  It was such fun to play with all these favorite pieces!  Breakfast table is set, now let's talk about the food.

I prepared a breakfast strata.  Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 pkg. frozen hash brown potatoes, defrosted

8 eggs, beaten

1 pound bulk sausage, crumbled and cooked

¼ onion, chopped

½ red bell pepper, chopped

½ green bell pepper, chopped

2 cups of any cheddar, or combination of cheddar cheeses, divided

1 can evaporated milk

Salt and pepper to taste

• Butter the casserole dish.  Set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix all ingredients, but only 1 cup of the cheese.
• Pour into the casserole dish.  Scatter the remaining cheese on top.
• Bake at 350º F for 55 minutes or until edges are slightly brown.

It was delicious!  We cut the leftovers in individual servings, and saved them for upcoming breakfasts.

That was accompanied by a stack of hubby's pancakes, and some fresh berries — and real maple syrup drizzled on top.  The taste of real maple syrup is incomparable.  Aunt Jemima doesn't stand a chance in our house.

We had a sunny day, which had me moving things around on the table so I could get good pictures.  Actually, it was a nice problem to have at this time of year.

When the table was cleared we witnessed a gingerbread spat!  These lovers quarreled and it was a duel at twenty paces between Mr. Salt and Ms. Pepper.  Nothing would dissuade them!  Each of them brought their seconds as witnesses.  Doctors stood by in case of casualties, and a bunch of gossips waited nearby to hear the outcome.  Limbs were lost, death ensued, and crumbs were scattered everywhere.  The lovers survived, as did the doctors.  The rest have all gone to their reward.

When breakfast was over, we lit a fire in the fireplace, and didn't budge from our chairs for the rest of the day.  I'm already planning for next year's breakfast.