Almond Pinecone

11/4 cups almonds
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ cup mayonnaise
5 slices crisply cooked bacon, crumbled
1T. chopped onion
½ tsp dillweed
1/8 tsp pepper

Bake almonds at 300 degrees for 15 minutes on baking sheet.
Stir often while toasting.
Combine softened cream cheese and mayonnaise.
Mix well. Add bacon, onion, dill and pepper. Cover and chill.
Form cheese mixture into pinecone shape.
Beginning at the narrow end, press almonds at a slight angle into cheese mixture in rows.
Overlap rows. Garnish with pine sprigs.

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Cranberry Wine Cocktail
2 750ml bottles Chardonnay wine
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar (I used regular sugar)
2 cups cranberries
3 T. finely shredded orange peel (2-3 oranges)
1 T. thinly sliced peeled fresh ginger (not candied)
Pour wine into a 2 quart pitcher.
Stir in sugar until dissolved.
Add cranberries, orange peel and ginger.
Cover and chill at least 1 week or up to 1 month.
Strain - reserve a few cranberries for garnish (ok - we didn't strain it - we just poured the whole thing into the punch bowl and added a few orange slices for garnish).