holiday recipes part 1

Every year for as long as I can remember growing up my mom would have a Christmas Eve party.  My mom lives in a very small 1100sf cape, with not a lot of space for entertaining.  We would go to the Christmas Eve service, and then rush back, and people would start pouring in.  A lot of people.  Everyone would stay late, the kids would all either pile into my brothers tiny room to hang out and play nintendo (the original one) or go upstairs and sit in my room chatting away.  It is one of my fondest memories of the Christmas season…and I have been trying unsuccessfully to recreate that ever since we bought a gigantic house.  Most of these recipes come from her…probably should ask her about sharing them first 🙂

This first recipe, however, I know other people do.  It is super easy.

Sweet and Sour Kielbasa

2 14oz packages of polska kielbasa

1 16oz jar of grape jelly

1 12oz jar of chili sauce

That is it.  You cut the kielbasa into little circles about 1/4″ thick, and then put the jelly and chili sauce on top.  Mix it up a little, turn it on and let it cook.  Once it is done, just turn it to low or warm and it is great for a party.  I know that people also use meatballs with this sauce, but I prefer the kielbasa, and meatballs with marinara sauce 🙂

Totally not healthy at all…or organic.  I am sure that you could improve on the grocery store ingredients immensely though.  You could use homemade grape jelly and chili sauce, and some farmers markets will sell kielbasa.  Our farmers market, I believe, sells goat kielbasa.  I’m not a huge goat fan though.  If you buy a meat share, there is sometimes the option to have some of the meat turned into kielbasa, but it depends on who your butcher is.  

Do you have a go to family favorite that you would like to share?