Vassey Dental Partners’ Favorite Holiday Recipes

Enjoying special recipes with loved ones is an important part of the holiday season. Our Vassey Dental Partners family wanted to share some of the favorite recipes from our homes to help bring joy to your home as well. We wish your family a wonderful holiday season filled with warm memories and delicious food. Enjoy!

Linda Thornburg—Bacon and Gruyere Drop Biscuits

Ingredients:

Yields 6 biscuits

½ pound of thick cut bacon

1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp of ground white pepper

8 tbs (1 stick) of butter, cut in cubes

¾ cup of milk

8 ounces (2 cups) grated Gruyere cheese

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400.

Arrange bacon slices on a baking sheet. Bake until crispy, about 20 minutes. Line a second baking sheet with paper towels and transfer the bacon to the paper towels to drain. Set aside.

Line another baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder, garlic powder, garlic salt, salt, and white pepper. Pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the butter on top of the flour and pulse until the dough resembles coarse pebbles.

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and add the milk and Gruyere. Crumble the bacon into the bowl and mix with your hands just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix.

Use a 4 ounce ice cream scoop to drop uniform biscuit mounds on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until the edges are crispy, 20-25 minutes. Let cool slightly in the pan on a rack.

Biscuits are best the day that they are made, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Warm in a preheated oven at 300 degrees.

 

Stacey Potteiger—Christmas Salad

1st Layer—Combine and set.

1 box of green Jell-O, dissolved in 1 ¾ cups of water

1 small can of crushed pineapple (drain, but save the juice)

2nd Layer—

Boil drained pineapple juice.

Pour over 1 tbsp of plain gelatin, which has been dissolved in 1/3 cup of cold water.

Mix gelatin and juice together while hot.

Let cool.

Add 3 ounce package of cream cheese.

Whip ½ pint of cream.

Sweeten and add to the cheese mixture.

Pour over the green Jell-O layer (which has set) and let this layer set.

3rd Layer—

Mix one box of red Jell-O with 1 1/3 cups of water.

Mix in 1 can of cranberry sauce.

Pour over white mixture and let it get firm.

(For best results, let the red Jell-O set a little before pouring over the white mixture.)

 

Kristi Masdon—Candy Bark

Ingredients

1 box saltine crackers (Premium brand works best)

2 sticks unsalted butter

1 bag semi-sweet chocolate morsels (Nestle’s works best)

1 bag white chocolate morsels (Ghirardelli’s works best)

1 cup packed light brown sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil (pan must have a ½ to 1 inch depth)

Cover lined baking sheet with saltine crackers placed side by side and covering the entire area. Some crackers may have to be broken into smaller sizes to fit.

Set aside the baking sheet.

In a saucepan, mix 1 cup packed brown sugar and 2 sticks of butter

Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.

Stir until mixture caramelizes together.

Pour mixture onto baking sheet spreading evenly across all crackers.

Place the baking sheet in the oven for 3-5 minutes or until the caramelized mixture is bubbling.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle both sets of chocolate chips evenly over the mixture.

Give a few minutes for chips to melt then spread evenly until completely melted.

Top with your favorite topping. Some suggestions are crushed peppermint, nuts, or sprinkles

Refrigerate the entire sheet overnight.

Next day, remove aluminum foil and break into bite size pieces and enjoy.

 

Janet Medeiros—No-Bake Chocolate Eclair Dessert

Filling Ingredients:

2 (3.5 oz) boxes vanilla instant pudding mix

3 cups Milk

1 (8oz) container Cool Whip non-dairy whipped topping (or 3 cups homemade whipped cream)

1 (14.4 oz) box graham crackers

Topping Ingredients:

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup Milk

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

Mix together vanilla pudding mix and milk.

Fold in whipped topping.

Line 9 x 13 pan with one layer of graham crackers.

Put half of the pudding mixture over the graham crackers.

Place a second layer of graham crackers over the pudding mixture.

Put the remaining pudding mixture over the graham crackers.

Place a third layer of graham crackers over the pudding mixture.

For the topping:

In a medium sized saucepan, bring cocoa, milk, and sugar to a full boil; boil for about 1 minute, stirring very frequently. Remove from heat and cool for one minute. Add butter and vanilla; stir until butter is melted. Pour chocolate topping over the top layer of graham crackers. Spread evenly to completely cover graham crackers. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve the next day.

 

Chelsea Towery—Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

6 slices of white bread ( torn into pieces )

1 pound of sausage ( cooked and drained )

1 ½ cups of cheddar cheese ( shredded )

6 eggs

2 cups of milk

A few shakes of salt and pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a baking pan and place bread in the bottom and sprinkle with sausage and cheese.

Beat eggs, milk, salt, and pepper with a whisk; pour over the bread mixture.

Top with a little more cheese.

Bake for 40-45 minutes.

NOTE: you can also have this prepped the night before and cover with tin foil and place in the fridge. In the morning, you can just pop it in the oven and bake.

 

Ashley West—Peach Crisp

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

1 cup Bisquick

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 cans of Peaches (or the equivalent amount of fresh peaches)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400

In a bowl, mix – Bisquick, sugar, and egg (it works best to combine this mixture with your hand- it is a thicker mixture)

Melt sticks of butter.

In an 8X8 pan, place peaches on the bottom.

Crumble Bisquick mixture over peaches.

Pour butter over top.

Bake for 35-40 min or until top is browning

*** you can replace peaches with any filling you like 🙂 Blackberry crisp is also one of our favorites.

 

Trisha Westbrook—Goat Cheese Torta

Ingredients:

1–8oz. pkg. softened cream cheese

1–8oz. pkg. softened goat cheese

Basil pesto (do not use dry, only use oil based pesto)

1 jar chopped sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained then rinsed with hot water

1 pkg. sliced almonds

Directions:

Let cream cheese and goat cheese soften.

Mix together.

Line a loaf or a terrine pan with plastic wrap. The smaller and more rectangular shaped, the better. Make sure you have excess plastic wrap hanging over the sides.

Layer the following in this order: cheese, pesto, cheese, tomatoes, cheese, pesto, cheese, tomatoes, etc., Each layer of cheese should be approx. ½ inch thick.

Finally top the last layer of cheese with remaining tomatoes and sliced almonds.

Put in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours to firm.

When ready to serve, pull the torta out of the pan with excess plastic wrap.

Pick up the torta from the bottom gently and place on a plate or platter and serve with crackers or toasted baguette bread.

Helpful hint: While forming cheese in the pan, keep hands and fingers very wet. Keep wetting the cheese to mold it and to keep it from sticking to your hands.

 

Paige Bearden–Red Velvet Cake

Cake Ingredients:

1/2 cup Crisco

1 1/2 cup Sugar

2 Eggs

2 bottles red food color

2 Tbsp Cocoa

1 tsp pure Vanilla Extract

1 cup Buttermilk

2 1/4 cup All Purpose Flour (sifted)

1 tsp White Vinegar

1 tsp Baking Soda

3/4 tsp Salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream Crisco and Sugar.

Add Eggs one at a time.

Make a paste of Cocoa and Red Food Color, add to Sugar mixture.

Add Flour and Salt to the mixture alternating with Buttermilk.

Add Vanilla.

Stop Mixer…Mix Baking Soda and Vinegar in a small bowl and Stir in with a mixing spoon.

Grease and flour 2 round pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 lb. Cream Cheese, softened

2 sticks butter, softened

1 tsp Vanilla extract

4 Cups Confectioners Sugar, sifted

1 cup chopped Pecans

Combine ingredients (other than pecans) with a mixer. Ice cooled cake with frosting and top with chopped pecans.

 

Kate Robinson—Christmas Steam Pudding

Ingredients:

1 cup grated carrot

1 cup grated apple (peeled)

1 cup brown sugar, packed

¼ cup butter

1 tsp baking soda

1 ¼ cup flour (sift then measure)

1c pecans or walnuts

1-4oz jar or package of candied cherries (cut)

2-4 oz jar or package of candied mixed fruits

1 cup dates (cut)

½ cup raisins

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp cloves

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Cream butter, sugar, add eggs, beat well then add apples and carrots, fold in dry ingredients, add fruit and nuts- butter the baking pan well and steam for 3 hrs.

(I use my inset pan that I got in a “deep well” long time ago and it has a cover, so I put the rack in my roaster and add water so it comes about half way up and steam 3hr- cover roaster- when the water starts to boil, turn the heat down, but be sure the water keeps on boiling- if you have a pan, you can always cover it with foil, tie it on so no moisture gets into the pudding-when done, take the cover off and cool. When I am certain it is completely cool, I cover it again and store in the refrigerator and it keeps weeks that way. We slice it in serving pieces, put in a flat cake pan and cover with foil and heat it in a slow oven- much easier to do this way than re-steaming, but either way is okay.)

Sauce:

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup butter

2 egg yolks

2 tbsp flour

Cook in a double boiler until thick, it takes quite a long time, then partially cook and fold in beaten egg whites. Before serving, add 1 cup of cream whipped and 2 tbsp brandy.

 

Dave Lane–Pork Butt on Ceramic/Kamado Grill

Rub: ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup paprika, 2 tbsp black pepper, 1 tablespoon sea salt, 1 tbsp chili powder, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tsp ground cumin, 2 tsp cayenne pepper. Mix in a bowl until mixed thoroughly. Can be reused several times and can be stored in a Ziploc bag.

Other things to get: 5-10lbs pork butt, wood chunks of your preference (I like pecan for pork), drip pan (not needed at all, but you can fill it with peppers, onion, garlic, 5 cups apple cider, 5 cups apple cider vinegar), lump charcoal, spray bottle of ½ apple cider vinegar and ½ apple juice concentrate (frozen food section stuff).

Directions:

Trim fat until it’s not opaque white (1/8 inch).

Rinse pork shoulder and dry with paper towels.

Coat in rub.

Let it sit in the refrigerator overnight (or during the day if you start it at night).

Take out of the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking.

Get the grill to a consistent 225 degrees.

Place wood chunks in among the charcoal (doesn’t matter if wood is soaked or not, both have turned out great for me).

Set the drip pan on the heat deflector, under the grates.

Place pork directly on grates, fat side down.

Spray with apple juice/cider vinegar concentrate after ~2 hours, do this every 2 hours if possible (not the end of the world if you go to sleep and miss a few, just pick it up when you wake up).

Easiest way is with a meat probe set that you leave in, but when center temp gets to about 160 degrees (the stall), spray again, let it soak in for about 15 minutes, then pull it to double wrap it in foil. Put it back in the grill. Reinsert the probe if you have the kind that you leave in.

Pull when internal temp is 195-202 (I go for 200). Place in a rag towel (the towel will stink afterwards!) and into an empty cooler to “rest”. It can rest anywhere between 45min-2hr.

Pull/shred/chop it as you prefer. Serve with your favorite BBQ sauce and say it’s a Christmas sauce, so that this can be considered a Christmas recipe!

 

Brandis Hicks–Bacon Crackers

Makes about 30 crackers

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time : 25 minutes

Ingredients:

1 package butter or saltine crackers

8-10 slices of bacon

1 cup brown sugar

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 pinch ground black pepper

Directions:

Heat the oven to 350°

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Align crackers on a wire rack set into the lined baking sheet. ( leave a little space in between the crackers for the bacon, as it will hang over the edges of the crackers.)

Slice bacon into fourths. Place a piece of bacon lengthwise on each cracker.

Sprinkle a generous amount of brown sugar on top of the bacon topped crackers. (About 1 heaping teaspoon per cracker.) Then lightly sprinkle it with cayenne and black pepper.

Bake 15-20 minutes (longer if using thick sliced bacon) or until brown sugar begins to melt and bacon becomes crisp. Allow crackers to cool on a wire rack before eating.

 

Angie Stevens–Chocolate Stuff

Ingredients:

1 stick butter, melted. 1 cup powdered sugar

1 pkg. Oreo cookies 1 large box Jell-O-O instant chocolate pudding

1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, 2 cups whole milk (can substitute 2%)

softened

2 (8 oz) containers of Cool Whip

Directions:

Crush package of Oreo cookies, reserving 4 to crumble on top of finished dessert (easily done in a 1 gallon plastic zip top bag with rolling pin.)

Spread cookies evenly on the bottom of a 13 x 9 dish. Pour melted butter evenly over cookies. Place in the fridge while preparing the rest of dessert.

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and one container of Cool Whip until well blended. Spread in a single layer over the Oreo crust.

Beat milk and pudding mix for two minutes. Allow to stand two minutes to set. Spread pudding over cream cheese layer.

Top with the remaining container of Cool Whip and crumble the last four cookies over top.

Chill in the refrigerator overnight or serve immediately. Flavors blend well if chilled overnight.