December 18, 2023

You’re a Mean, Green One, Mr. Grinch…
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

My DVD copy of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

Merry Christmas!

I love this time of year!  The combination of colorful holiday decorations,
delicious yuletide treats, catchy Christmas music performed at school concerts and in church plays, all add to the feeling of holiday cheer in the air, making this season truly special. Another one of my favorite things about this time of year, is the array of delightful Christmas movies and TV programs available to watch, many of which, have become a major part of my annual yuletide-watching tradition.

I enjoy (along with my younger sister on the left) a Merry Christmas morning in 1965. Note that I am proudly wearing my star gift of the day,
a real Cinderella watch.

My earliest Christmas viewing memories include Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer (1964), the stop-motion animated special, and A Charlie Brown’s Christmas (1965), where Linus recites John 2: 8-14. I enjoyed both of these. And, yes I admit it, I saw each of these the very first time that they each aired. (Yep, I really did!) AND I even watched each of them, that first time, on my family’s black and white television set!

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

In 1966, a brand new Christmas special would make it’s appearance. It was How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, based on Dr. Seuss’s 1957 book of the same name. My third grade self was anxious to see this one, and even more exciting, I had been invited by a neighbor to watch it on their color television set! Upon seeing it for the first time, and in color, I was overwhelmed. Unlike the book’s plainly colored illustrations, this TV portrayal was in amazingly vivid colors, that were totally mesmerizing, as the story came to life before my eight year-old eyes. AND the Grinch was a bright neon green! To add to the fun were the voices emanating from the TV. At that time, I did not know that the narrator was Boris Karloff, the actor from those classic 1930’s Frankenstein movies, and the one singing, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch”, was the voice of Tony the Tiger himself, Thurl Ravenscroft. With Chuck Jones as the director, having previously directed numerous Warner Brother’s, Bugs Bunny cartoons. (Dr. Seuss/Ted Geisel had previously worked together during WWII on a training cartoon.)
Watching this program was an eye-opening experience, and the Grinch would never be the same!
(Just over a year later, my own family would purchase our first color television set, allowing me, for the years that followed, to watch this classic Christmas special in all of its glory.)

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! was published in 1957.

Grinch-Green Food 

With that first Christmas special airing, the Grinch would forever be associated with his green-colored fur. So to celebrate the Grinch’s greenness, I’d like to share with you a couple of recipes in his honor.  
But first, I have to show you this.  I saw this green bagel at my local bagel place yesterday, and I just had to get it; this Grinch-green bagel! :o)
I haven’t tried it yet, but the bagel shop assured me that it tastes the same as a regular plain bagel.
So here’s to the Grinch, and his change of heart, in the true spirit of Christmas…

A true-blue, green bagel. :o)
Purchased in honor of the Grinch.

Recipes

I share with you a couple of no-bake recipes below, that I recently made with my granddaughters, and that give a green nod to the Grinch.

 The first is a vintage recipe, Cornflake Wreaths. (A nod to the part in the Christmas special where the Grinch throws stolen wreaths upon Max, the dog, like he’s playing horseshoes.) Although, I never had these cookies until this past week, I remember seeing photos of them in magazine advertisements when I was a kid.  (If anyone has any information on these goodies, I’d love to hear your nuggets of knowledge in the comments. While attempting to discern the year that these green goodies appeared, I could find nothing, not even from Kellogg’s information line!)  These taste similar to Rice Krispie bars.  I substituted mini-m&m’s for the red hots.  Beware of the green food coloring, as it stains easily.

Cornflakes Wreaths
The original recipe from the Kellogg’s website is, here.

Ingredients

5 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows

6 cups Kellogg’s Corn Flakes cereal

1 teaspoon green (liquid) food coloring

Red mini-m&m candies
(The original recipe calls for red cinnamon candies)

Prepared vanilla frosting

PAM cooking spray, or butter

Wax paper

Small baggies

Enjoy!

This second recipe was less messy than the one above. We used green m&m’s, rather than almonds, to honor the Grinch, in making this Almond Toffee Brickle.  You can also find this recipe in an earlier blog post, here.

Almond Toffee Brickle

Ingredients:

40 Saltine crackers

1 cup packed, light brown sugar

1 cup butter

12 oz. bag chocolate chips
(I use the Ghirardelli bittersweet variety)

1/4-1/2 cup sliced almonds, or 1/4 cup m&m’s
(You may leave off the top, if desired.)

Heat oven to 400°F.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

 Cover bottom and sides of a cookie sheet parchment.
Place saltines on the sheet, side by side, without overlapping.
Set aside.

Melt butter in a saucepan; add brown sugar and stir to dissolve.
Bring to full rolling boil for exactly 3 minutes, stirring often.
Remove from heat and pour gently over saltines.
Distribute evenly.

Bake 5 minutes at 400°F.
Remove from oven and sprinkle package of bits over the toffee and crackers.
Turn off oven.

After a few minutes, spread the chocolate chips evenly over the entire pan.
Place into (the still hot) oven until chocolate appears soft and melty.
Smooth chocolate using knife, or a back of the spoon.
Cool slightly for several minutes.
Sprinkle on nuts, or m&ms, if desired.

Refrigerate at least 1 hours, or until chocolate is set.
Remove from refrigerator.
Remove parchment from back of toffee and break with hands into desired pieces (do not cut).
Store in a container, refrigerated.

Enjoy!

Thank you for reading I’m Annette!
May your days be blessed, and your taste buds happy!
Merry Christmas,

I’m Annette Stuff

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Wishing you a Merry Christmas from the Grinch and myself. :o)