liday HoY
g n i t s o HY
B e l l ’ e r e T h Parties for
Foodies share go-to holiday dishes and desserts that are sure to impress every guest P HOTO G RA P H Y B Y JAME S STE FIU K
40
|
durhammag.com
|
d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3 / ja n ua ry 2 0 24
Berry Festive
onnie Littell and Brian Littell moved from a small farm
in southwest Virginia to North Durham in early 2023. “Over the years we’ve raised a combination of sheep, dairy goats, turkeys, chickens and bees and had a large garden,” Connie says. “We downsized and moved [here] to live near our daughter, Claire, and son-inlaw, Travis.” They also have another daughter, Tracy, who lives in central Florida with her husband, Brad, and kids Dominic, 10, Maxine, 6, and Wrenley, 1. The family has enjoyed these Red Roosters cocktails during the holidays for going on 15 years now. While it’s typically a pre-Thanksgiving dinner drink, “We usually have it on hand for Christmas, too,” Connie says. “It lasts a very long time in the freezer. … If you have any left come New Year’s Eve, put a scoop in a pretty glass and top it with a splash of Champagne.” Connie says she saw the recipe on a Food Network holiday show “forever ago, and it sounded great.” She even entered her version of the drink into a cocktail contest for the TV show “True Blood” using the program’s branded blood orange soda in 2010 – and it won! “My prizes included a T-shirt, a poster, a pack of the ‘True Blood’ soda and VIP tickets to the ‘True Blood’ convention in Orlando to meet several of the cast members,” Connie says.