Hope yours was merry and bright, too.  My palate and interest have already moved on from mistletoe, but to aid memory next year- here are some notes from the Christmas (just) past.  We started with amazing gingerbread pancakes and cherries on the deck.  The pancakes?  From a mix; and I could eat a stack as high as a chimney. My sister asked that one batch be embedded with bacon pieces.

In a potluck pinch, I often throw together an edamame salad– a very quick boil to frozen shelled edamame, which are then dried and cooled thoroughly before a splash in lemon, EVOO, salt and black pepper.  Goat cheese crumbles and dried cranberries round out the colors and flavors.  For the holiday, I traded pomegranate arils for the cranberries and for Pantry Detox I threw in some avocado that was aging in the fridge.

Frank smoked a turkey for Christmas dinner.  The juiciest, best bird yet.  Somehow its flesh grew even more moist during refrigeration and has provided excellent leftovers.

A summery potato salad that won “Editor’s Pick” in the NYT/Food52 potluck extravaganza.  Shallots and dijon mustard, and capers.  I served it on a bed of rosemary branches to punch up its holiday character.  The steamed fingerlings really are amazing.