Food for thought: Traditions, traditions!

This is the time of year when we get caught up in traditions, including the Dickensian homage to sugar plums, figgy pudding, geese, tom turkeys, and sleigh bells. However, most of the people I know do few things that really resonate with that time and place.

So, I was thinking of new or different traditions to start with friends and family, especially foodwise, that would make the spirit bright.

A progressive dinner--great for neighbors, apartment dwellers and families living nearby. Have cocktails and appetizers at one house, dinner at another place and dessert somewhere else. Everyone can pitch in with dishes to leave all the hosts happy.

Go out for dessert and tea or coffee instead of a whole meal. Save money and savor every last bite.

Eat fondue as a family or use a few pots for a party. That was actually a fun eighties fad that could use reviving. You can boil bouillon and olive oil for meats and veggies, cheese for bread and veggies, and chocolate for cake and fruit.

Use the fireplace. Forget about chestnuts roasting! I'm so tempted to roast small kebabs (over untreated wood), marshmallows or even pop popcorn. Hot dogs would be fun, too.

Use the slow cooker for a holiday brunch. The night before, put fruit in a slow cooker. Serve atop waffles or bread pudding. You could also put potatoes, onions and sausage in a slow cooker right before bed and eat hash browns for breakfast.Cider was made for the slow cooker, and you could put it in the same room as your festivities.

Agree to go shopping with friends after the post-season sales kick in and give gifts then.

Collect pine cones, evergreen, and other natural treasures on a walk to decorate your home instead of storing things you'll only use once a year.

Adopt a tradition of a new country or region each year. One year you can wake your friends up in the middle of the night with a traveling band and make them feed you (Puerto Rico); another year you can have or attend a procession of St. Lucia and drink mulled wine (Sweden). Click on the blog title for a link. Unfortunately the site was written in stream-of-consciousness style and without spelling or grammar revisions.

Make new drinks, but keep the old. Egg nog, rum and Bailey's Irish cream was a Christmas Eve hit a few years back. What about a Jack Frost?: Peppermint schnapps and coffee topped with ice cream (just made that up!) Use crushed candy canes to make an alcohol-free drink. Here are two ideas for New Year's Eve: sparkling wine with cachaca, mottled sugar, mint & lime or Chambord (raspberry liqueur) with hard or sparking cider.

However you celebrate this time of year, happy holidays!