Hi, guys!
Sending best wishes for a merry Christmas to those who celebrate and a festive week to all. I’ll be back after the new year with a complete edition of The Weekly Dirt, but for now, a special abridged holiday edition.
The people have spoken!
The results are in from our Christmas tree poll, and if I’m being honest, they took me by surprise.
Artificial trees outpaced real trees by 4 percentage points among readers of The Weekly Dirt.
Maybe I shouldn’t have been so surprised, as I added to the ranks myself by buying a fake tree this year. After much hemming and hawing, since I’m on my own for the first time, I decided I didn’t want to deal with the mess, watering and hauling of a real tree into and out of the house.
ICYMI, you can read the pros and cons of real and artificial trees in The Great Christmas Tree Debate here. Be sure to add your thoughts to the comments.
In the meantime, if you’re looking for last-minute gifts or just want to treat yourself, here’s my 2023 gift guide.
Limoncello for all
I posted photos of my limoncello-making process on Instagram and Facebook last week and received many requests for the recipe. I decided to share it here instead. After all, it’s a secret family recipe — and you’re family.
Limoncello is a strong liquor, typically enjoyed as an after-dinner drink, sipped from a shot-sized glass or on the rocks. It can also be used as an ingredient in cocktails or dessert recipes.
This recipe makes about 190 ounces, but you can halve or double it with great results. The quantities below will fill 11 17-ounce bottles; they make great gifts.
Peel or grate the yellow zest of 15 lemons, taking care to avoid the bitter, white pithy underlayer as much as possible. Some will inevitably remain attached, and that’s okay as long as it’s kept to a minimum.
Place the zest into a large, covered container and pour an entire 1.75-liter bottle of grain alcohol over it. I use Diesel or Everclear, but before it was legalized in New York, I used vodka, which served the purpose.
Cover and allow to steep at room temperature for 10 days.
(For clear limoncello, use water for this step; for creamy, use shelf-stable, boxed whole or reduced-fat milk, such as Parmalat. I don’t know why we use Parmalat; we just do). Boil 4 quarts of water or milk with 3 tablespoons of vanilla extract and 6 cups of sugar. Cool to room temperature.
Using a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth, strain the lemon-infused alcohol into a larger container and add the cooled milk or water.
Stir well and use a funnel to pour it into swing-top glass bottles, leaving room at the top to allow for expansion without explosion. Store in the freezer and use within 6 months.
📰This week in my Associated Press gardening column
I write a weekly gardening column for the AP, so you might have seen my byline in your local paper (or news website) — wherever in the world you happen to be. In case you miss it, I’ll post the most recent here every week.
THIS WEEK: The bathroom is an ideal place for many houseplants. Some are even happy in the shower.
LAST WEEK: Camellias, the queens of the winter flowers, don’t deserve their reputation as garden divas. They‘re easy to grow, and not just in the south.
BEFORE THAT: By kit, or from scratch, you can grow your own mushrooms at home
ONE WEEK PRIOR: Are your evergreens turning brown? That might or might not indicate a problem. Here’s what you need to know.
You can read all my AP gardening columns here.
📚📺🎵 Random things I enjoyed this week(ish)
🍝 I recently took a pasta-making class at Eataly in NYC and will be using my newfound skills to make cavatelli with my girls and their boyfriends on Christmas Day. This year, I am going easy on myself after cooking The Feast of the Seven Fishes and making pizzelles, struffoli (honey balls) and my mother’s Linzer torte for Christmas Eve.
🍝 My daughter Justine recommended a Netflix show called “School Spirits” about deceased students and a teacher stuck spending their afterlife in the halls of their high school. I really liked it.
🧹 I finally got the house back in order after having plaster walls repaired and sanded, which released white powder over every square inch of every room, including those on a separate floor that wasn’t even worked on. To give you an idea of my misery, I cleaned for 4-6 hours every day for 8 days and went through a large box of Q-tips and 4 cans of spray air. I tucked my broken body into bed at 7 PM each night, which really confused my dog, Miguel. On the plus side, my house has never been cleaner.
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📧 How’m I doing?
I welcome your comments and suggestions, so please send them along — as well as any topics you’d like to see covered and questions you’d like answered in the Ask Jessica section.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Like your tree looks very authentic. Looking forward to the new years newsletters! 🤗
I love your tree! Merry Christmas to you & your family!