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By Megan Myers Rausch
For the past six years, my husband and I have traveled to the Buffalo New York area to celebrate the holidays with his family. He has a big family, and they have key traditions that take place every year—like a Christmas Eve party usually at Cousin Bob’s house, and Christmas Dinner at Aunt Jeannine’s. Another sacred tradition is that, though a group of us are in our 30s and beyond (some even have their own kids), our generation is all still seated at the kid’s table. We even get a paper crown and a holiday popper with a surprise silly gift inside. You really feel the holiday spirit when visiting, and since joining the family, I have looked forward to new holiday traditions with them every year.
One thing I learned when it comes to Buffalo weather is that in the winter it’s important to be flexible. And in Christmas 2022 we had to be flexible when a horrible snowstorm came through the Western New York area. I never thought I’d see the day that my mother-in-law was begging us not to come home for the holidays. I recall there was so much snow that they were comparing the snowfall height to Buffalo Bills football players.
On top of the extreme weather, our dog was sick, so we were in a touch-and-go situation while we waited to get into a specialist for her to be checked (don’t worry, she is all good!). Between the chaos of our dog and the wild storm, there was no way we were going to make it home for Christmas. And when we realized my parents couldn’t host us either because they were already headed out of town, we were officially alone for the holidays.
I’m not going to sugarcoat it—we were bummed and stressed. This was not the way we wanted our holiday to go, but this was how the (Christmas) cookie crumbled. But I was determined to make the holiday feel special in some way. So, we did what we know best—food! I am the content manager for Savory magazine, and I’ve been working with our recipes and stories for the past six years. I see so many things that look delicious, and I make them all the time. (Honestly, I give Savory all the credit for teaching me how to cook, but that will have to be a different story!) It just so happened that in 2022, our amazing food team created the Christmas Eve Pasta with Grape Tomatoes and Mozzarella. The whole idea for the recipe was to give people an easy and comforting pasta dish, but make it feel special for the holidays. Not to mention it only takes 15 minutes and a few ingredients to pull together.
We set the mood with some holiday music, turned the lights on the tree, and started making our meal. The pasta was packed full of garlic, pesto, and basil. The tomatoes were the perfect pairing with the little mozzarella balls, which makes this pasta dish feel different than an everyday meal. It wasn’t the holiday party we were hoping to be at, and it wouldn’t replace sitting at the “kid’s table” with family, but it was the comforting meal we needed when all our plans got turned upside down.
I am grateful that the team serendipitously created this recipe just in time for me to use it that very holiday season. I think about it often, and I know that I have that recipe in my back pocket anytime I need to do something a little special with minimal effort for Christmas.
I hope that if you find yourself with your holiday plans going sideways, you can turn to it, and it will bring you the comfort it brought me. If you have your own recipe that saved your holiday plans, we would love to hear about it! And, I would be remiss to not take this time to share a few Savory recipes that have been a staple at my holiday gatherings. I promise you; they are fast, fresh, and EASY.
Green Beans with Gruyère Bechamel
My mom is a trained chef and is very particular about what I can bring to a holiday meal. I begged her to let me make these beans one Thanksgiving and ever since I’ve made them every year! If you are not a traditional green bean casserole fan, then these are your beans.
Get the recipe: Green Beans with Gruyère Bechamel
Holiday Grazing Board
When you are looking to impress your guests, this holiday grazing board will not disappoint. I made this for a holiday party and followed the styling on the picture as best as I could. It was really easy to make, and people loved the variety of flavors.
Get the recipe: Holiday Grazing Board
Ham, Egg, and Cheese English Muffin Strata
If you need a Christmas morning recipe, this is it! I love making this the night before I have guests over, and I throw it in the oven in the morning. The broccoli and green onion give each slice a bright crunch but the diced English muffins that are baked into the casserole make this different from other breakfast bakes.
Get the recipe: Ham, Egg, and Cheese English Muffin Strata
No-Bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Haystacks
This recipe was inspired by the cookie table at my in-laws holiday parties. They always have these chow mien noodle cookies. They are the perfect bite of salty and sweet!
Get the recipe: No-Bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Haystacks
Cake Mix Cookies
If you don’t enjoy baking, you must try cake mix cookies! They are super quick to whip together. These were actually one of the first recipes I made from Savory, and they are a go-to every holiday season (or when I want cookies!).
Get the recipe: Cake Mix Cookies
Megan Myers Rausch is the content strategy manager for Savory magazine and SavoryOnline. Her favorite part about her job is hearing how Savory has helped other people in their meal-planning journey. Looking at beautiful food is fun too! She lives with her husband and two dogs, Arlo and Roux.
