Christmas was fantastic. Now comes the recouperation. (see video’s here)

Well, Christmas was wonderful as usual. Lot’s of visits with friends, relatives and some folks we hadn’t even met before. We bar-b-qued the turkeys with a combination of apple juiced soaked cherry wood chips and some tender loving care. We will put some videos up so you can see how we did it. My wife and I were so busy that I haven’t had the opportunity to blog for quite some time. (I am going through with drawls) Almost every year, I take some time to mentally ‘prepare’ for Christmas. That means that I love to find a quite spot and review the true Christmas story. Then, I become involved with all of the other traditional things associated with the Christmas season.

My side of the family is Norwegian so we all gather at one of our houses to have a feast, and then we exchange one present only. This happens on Christmas eve. On Christmas day, we have the family over for a traditional dinner. Turkey, stuffing, brussel sprouts and much, much more.

It was my job to go out into the cold on Christmas day to prepare the furniture for the coming visits. We live in British Columbia where it can get just a little nippy outside. Lets see if we can get this ice off before the turkeys come out of the Bar-B-Que.

We are following a new recipe this year from a Canadian Chef Micheal Smith. Our secret? Soak both turkeys in a combination of brown sugar and salt for 12 hours. One cup of each for every gallon of water. This seems to tenderize the turkeys so that the flavor is exquisite. We also soaked cherry wood chips in apple juice, then put them in the Bar-B-Que. It helped to give the meat an aromatic smoky taste. If you want more details of how we prepared the birds, just send us an e-mail at healthytechtalk@gmail.com

Here are what the birds look like in just 1 1/2 hours on the grill. It looks like the brining process is really paying off.

Here are the fully cooked turkeys ready to be taken inside and allowed to rest for awhile before carving. I think this is going to be our favorite way of cooking turkey. I smell a tradition coming on……..

Folks just love to hang out on our upper deck. We invested in a natural gas fireplace a few years ago, and it is probably the most used outdoor appliance other than our Bar-B-Que that we own. Everyone can gather around, no matter what the weather and roast hot dogs, marshmallows, smores and more. It gives heat like crazy, is extremely cozy and is very social because people just love to pull up a chair, grab their favorite beverage and visit. Most people that come over say that the firepit is almost like an aquarium. They can just sit there for hours and stare into the flames relaxing and allowing the days stress to simply melt away.

Isn’t Christmas time just perfect for putting together a gingerbread house? This one just didn’t make it to the selling stage. Watch the roof come off, and it goes downhill from there.

This is where I go to get away from it all. I grab a book, curl up in one of the wing chairs and settle in for a good read. Dedicating a small room in our house for a library was a great idea. We wanted to make it look like a Victorian library from years gone by. Visitors enjoy a glass of brandy in this room while we visit.