MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE! I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling the Christmas cheer like crazy this year. I’m spending ten blissful days in Calgary, Canada with my parents and big brother where it’s actually a white Christmas, unlike the Midwest and East Coast this year. I can’t remember the last time I’ve spent so long at home with my family, so I’m making sure to soak up every minute lounging in front of the fireplace, enjoying my favorite homemade Bengali dishes, drinking wine in the evenings, and catching up on every Bollywood movie that I’ve missed this year. It’s been a crazy December (hence the massive delay in updating my blog), so this period of unwinding is pure BLISS! All that’s missing is the mister, who will be joining us right before NYE festivities 🙂

Anyways – on to the purpose of this post: food! Every year since my parents migrated to Canada, my brother and I curate and prepare a Christmas feast to give my mom a much-deserved break. We both love cooking, so it’s something we really look forward to every year, and spend the weeks leading up to Christmas perusing the interwebs for the most interesting recipes. We like to mix up the classics (mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, etc.) with some unique new additions. I’m excited to share this year’s menu, with links to the recipes for you guys to try on your own! The bread pudding was by far everyone’s favorite – highly recommend for an easy fall or winter dish. Absolutely delicious!

1. Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranate and Hazelnuts from the Food Network: We replaced the hazelnuts with leftover toasted pecans from the chocolate pecan pie. Still delicious!
2. Roast Chicken with Cumin, Honey and Orange from NY Times Cooking: I still think Thomas Keller’s Roast Chicken is the best roast chicken of ALL time, but I’m so glad we experimented and tried something fusion this year! The combination of cumin, honey and orange was fingerlickin’ delicious and we couldn’t stop trying the gravy! Basted this baby every ten minutes for a total of four times. So juicy.
3. Garlic Mashed Potatoes from Martha Stewart: We added extra butter, grated emmental, and topped with parsley. A+.
4. Orange-Scented Cranberry Sauce from Martha Stewart: Can’t go wrong with a classic cranberry sauce!
5. Caramelized Butternut Squash, Kale & Gruyere Bread Pudding: This was hands down the family favorite from the entire Christmas meal! My coworker brought this in for Workgiving, and I just had to try it for our Christmas feast. We replaced the gruyere with emmental cheese, but stuck to the recipe otherwise. Definitely repeating this for Thanksgiving next year.
6. Chocolate Pecan Pie from NY Times Cooking: We cheated with the crust and brought it from the store, but so what? Still a fantastic end to a fantastic meal!

The chefs! If you have any questions about any of these recipes, don’t hesitate to give me a shout. In the meantime, follow me on Instagram @mrsgcg or Facebook for more foodventures. xo!