不會作專業耶誕大餐的朋友別灰心，還是有新手能作的耶誕大餐的！

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新手也能做耶誕大餐

⊙麵包：效法一般餐廳的做法—用麵包店現成的麵包，裝盤需時約2分鐘。
⊙濃湯：麥當勞也用的現成湯廚Campbell湯罐頭，比自己煮的還好吃，裝盤微波需時約5分鐘。 http://blog.xuite.net/iq943/recipe原創
⊙沙拉：請參閱<鮪魚沙拉>，需時約5分鐘。
⊙主餐：請參閱<番茄義大利麵>＋<焗烤雞腿> ，共需時約25分鐘。
⊙甜點：效法一般餐廳的做法—用市售現成的奶酪或果凍，裝盤需時約2分鐘。
⊙飲料：參閱<俄羅斯奶茶> 需時約2分鐘。

先將雞腿放入烤箱烤25分鐘，烤雞腿這段期間烤箱微波爐左右開弓，足夠做完其它的菜囉！2005/12/24

祝大家耶誕快樂！

以下轉貼一篇很有意思的文章「回收的耶誕節」

中文大意：每年聖誕人們都像例行公事般的瘋狂採購，只是為了這一天的到來而買禮物卻忘記受贈者真正需要的是什麼，同時非必要的贈禮與浮濫的賀卡也浪費太多地球資源。於是作者與家人決定過個不一樣的耶誕節，他們決定不以「花錢了事」的方式來送禮，而是手工自製禮物、選出自己最喜歡的一樣珍藏送給對方、或挑出有紀念性的照片作成特別的專輯送給親人，最後他們在壁爐前互相分享彼此在構思禮物時的心路歷程，這個特別的耶誕讓他們感覺又像一家人了...

Recycled Christmas

BRIAN SMITH / ENS 14dec02

One Family's Revolution Against the Shopping Mall

Sitting around the dinner table out at the farm last Thanksgiving, the subject of what to do about Christmas came up. How would we organize a family gathering now that we kids are grown and scattered across the state? Whose house would we use? How would we deal with the whole gift-giving thing?

Everyone seemed completely unenthusiastic about engaging in another orgy of shopping and crowds and waste. There was the sense of duty of course: to tradition, to the nation. The TV newscaster claimed that the very health of the US economy depended upon our generous holiday spending. Christmas consumerism is patriotic. Don't think about it too much, just shut up and shop.

After confessing distaste for the entire affair, one rebel relative proposed we just bag the whole holiday. The lobbying for this option was fierce and convincing. And for an agnostic family from Northern California, ignoring Christmas altogether seemed like a perfectly viable option.

Though we really enjoyed coming together for a mid-winter celebration, the very thought of shopping ruined Christmas. Wasn't there another option? Didn't we have the right to reclaim the holiday and create our own family tradition?

After an hour of discussion, and a few more glasses of wine, we arrived at a solution: Recycled Christmas.

And it turned out to be the best Christmas since I was a child.

Here is how it works.

Everyone is invited to give presents to anyone else, but these rules must be followed: you can only give a gift that has been previously owned, nothing new; you can make a present, a painting, a song, a poem, or whatever; you can give away something you already own; you can purchase your gift at a second-hand store or garage sale; and all gifts should be wrapped in newspaper. Sunday comics if you want to get fancy.

That's it. Simple.

Well, not exactly.

As it turns out, giving the perfect Recycled Christmas present is a much more personal experience than just going to the mall with a credit card. When you give a present from a garage sale, or from your attic, you must understand and care about the person on the receiving end. Another tie for dad or bath soap set for auntie just won't do. You really have to think about your loved ones and who they are as people.

My mother found some used photo albums for each of us kids and filled them with pictures from our childhoods. She had written personal memories next to each picture. I was in tears seeing photos that had lingered in shoeboxes and drawers for 20 years.

I gave my intellectual cousin one of my favorite novels that she instantly curled up with and read by the fire until she fell asleep.

My father received a big plastic lawn goose, with a light bulb inside. It was the perfect gift for a man who had discovered his love for raising birds on the farm in his 50s. He giggled with delight as he turned it on and placed it proudly on the mantel.

My aunt gave my girlfriend her favorite cookbook, with the best recipes clearly marked by gravy stains - a subtle hint to make sure I was eating right.

My brother and I baked loaves of beer bread and handed them out to family members still warm and wrapped in tinfoil.

The gift giving went late into the night because each person told a story about what they were thinking when they chose the gift. We laughed and felt like a family again. We participated in the holiday on our own terms. The advantages of Recycled Christmas became apparent quickly.

We all saved a ton of money. We had a lot more fun. We never even stepped foot in a mall or felt the crush of the holiday traffic. We contributed nothing to the local landfill. And best of all, we knew the presents we gave and received had all come from the heart.

延伸閱讀：
第176期女性電子報「過一個無消費耶誕節」