What About That Kiss?

The history of mistletoe, which can be traced back to the ancient Greeks, is long, strange, and full of contradictions. Certain varieties are poisonous, for starters, and ingesting their toxic white berries has been known to cause a host of stomach problems (some poison control centers send out "holiday safety" fliers every year). Yet Hippocrates used other types of mistletoe to treat menstrual pains, and through the centuries it's been enlisted to fight leprosy, infertility, epilepsy, and even cancer. Then there's the plant's semi-parasitic nature. Mistletoe, a relative of sandalwood, attaches itself onto other trees to steal its host's water and nutrients. Unlike sandalwood, however, mistletoe seeds are dispersed by berry-eating birds, which allows the plant to grow on branches high above the shade, freeloading on other trees' sunlight. Mistletoe has been called a symbol of virility. According to Smithsonian Magazine, its seeds are coated in a semen-like substance that allows them to stick to tree branches once dispersed by birds — allowing a new mistletoe plant to dig into the host tree and begin to take shape.

Why, then, do we kiss each other under bunches of the devious, toxic plant every Christmas?

The common explanation says that early Christians integrated mistletoe into their celebrations as the religion spread across third-century Europe. The rationale predates the early Christians and goes back to the Norse god Baldur — second son of Odin, god of truth and light — who was so beloved by the other gods that they sought to protect him from all the dangers of the world. His mother, the goddess Frigg, "took an oath from fire and water, iron and all metals, stones and earth, from trees, sicknesses and poisons, and from all four-footed beasts, birds and creeping things, that they would not hurt Baldur." And thus the beautiful god was deemed invincible. What does this have to do with mistletoe? Bear with us...

At a large gathering soon after, stones, arrows, and flame were all flung at Baldur to test his might. Nothing worked, and he walked away unscathed. Jealous of Baldur's new powers, the mischievous Loki set out to find the one thing on Earth that might be able to hurt him. He found that the goddess Frigg forgot to ask mistletoe — tiny and forgotten — not to harm her beloved son. In the end, a dart fashioned from the little plant was used to murder Baldur in front of all the other gods who loved him so dearly.

Frigg, of course, was devastated. Steve Whysall at the Vancouver Sun explains that the tears of Baldur's mother became the berries of the plant, and it was decreed that "mistletoe would never again be used as a weapon and that she would place a kiss on anyone who passed under it."

And thus we hang mistletoe underneath our doorways come the holidays — so that we never overlook it again.  In my youth, we could buy mistletoe plants on the street corner during holiday season.  Also, friends who lived near woods would shoot down mistletoe from the trees--it was a way to practice their aim.

More fun facts about mistletoe:

Birds can eat mistletoe berries, but they're highly toxic to humans.

• Approximately 20 species of mistletoe can be found on the endangered species list.
• Celtic Druids believed that mistletoe contained the spirit of the tree in which it grew; this was the only part of the tree that stayed green all winter.

Candy Canes?

According to folklore, in 1670, in Cologne, Germany, the choirmaster at Cologne Cathedral, wishing to remedy the noise caused by children in his church during the Living Crèche tradition of Christmas Eve, asked a local candy maker for some sweet sticks for them.^[3][4][5][6] In order to justify the practice of giving candy to children during worship services, he asked the candy maker to add a crook to the top of each stick, which would help children remember the shepherds who visited the infant Jesus.^[3][4][5] In addition, he used the white colour of the converted sticks to teach children about the Christian belief in the sinless life of Jesus.^[3][4][5]From Germany, candy canes spread to other parts of Europe, where they were handed out during plays reenacting the Nativity.^[4][6] As such, according to this legend, the candy cane became associated with Christmastide.^[1]

A recipe for straight peppermint candy sticks, white with coloured stripes, was published in 1844.^[7] The candy cane has been mentioned in literature since 1866.^[8]It was first mentioned in association with Christmas in 1874,^[9] and only as recently as 1882 was hung on Christmas trees.^[10]

Things you didn't know about candy canes

Wreaths On Your Door?

  

The Christmas wreath is another tradition that has been around for a long time and was initially created from fresh evergreens. Since evergreens are green year-round, they were the obvious choice during the winter months. The word 'wreath' is derived from an English word meaning to twist, such as in a circle. 

In ancient Rome, people used decorative wreaths as a sign of victory and celebration. the custom of hanging a wreath on the front door of your home probably came from this practice. At Christmas, the wreath is symbolic of Christian immortality. ... Red symbolizes the blood that Jesus shed at his crucifixion.

In Christianity, the Christmas wreath was used to symbolize Christ. The circular shape, with no beginning or end, represents eternity or life never ending. The wreaths were typically decorated with four candles, three on the exterior and one in the middle. The middle candle was lit on Christmas Eve to symbolize the arrival of the Light of the World - Jesus Christ. A tradition began in the early 19th century to lay evergreens shaped into wreaths or crosses on graves to honor the dead. Family members would bring them home to use as part of their Christmas decorations during the holiday season.

At Christmastime, it only makes sense to combine two of the most symbolic icons together, giving wreaths as gifts. 

Why Hang Stockings?

Hanging stockings over the chimney is an integral part of Christmas, and these oversized stockings are reserved for smaller gifts like candy and action figures. But why do we hang stockings anyway, and how did the tradition start?

One of the stories, it turns out, involves Nicholas passing by the homes of maidens too poor to afford a dowry -- money that a bride gives to her groom for their wedding. The bishop would throw gold coins down the chimneys of these maidens, where they would fall into stockings, which were hung over the fire to dry.

Stockings have been an essential part of the Christmas tradition for centuries (except, briefly, in the mid-1800s, when the New York Times wrote that Christmas trees almost completely supplanted them as the tradition of choice).

In my day, we didn't have a special stocking to hang--we used one of my father's old socks!

and in the morning, we would find fruit, nuts and sometimes a quarter in the toe.  

What will you find in your stocking this year?  

How Did This Tradition Begin?

Here we have St. Nicholas, a Bishop who lived in the fourth century in a place called Myra in Asia Minor (now called Turkey). He was a very rich man because his parents died when he was young and left him a lot of money. He was also a very kind man and had a reputation for helping the poor and giving secret gifts to people who needed it.  Because of his kindness Nicholas was made a Saint. Nicholas was exiled from Myra and later put in prison during the persecution by the Emperor Diocletian. No one is really knows when he died, but it was on 6th December in either 345 or 352. In 1087, his bones were stolen from Turkey by some Italian merchant sailors. The bones are now kept in the Church named after him in the Italian port of Bari. On St. Nicholas feast day (6th December), the sailors of Bari still carry his statue from the Cathedral out to sea, so that he can bless the waters and give them safe voyages throughout the year.

So, How did St. Nicholas become Santa Claus??

In the 16th Century in northern Europe, after the reformation, the stories and traditions about St. Nicholas became unpopular.

But someone had to deliver presents to children at Christmas, so in the UK, particularly in England, he became 'Father Christmas' or 'Old Man Christmas', an old character from plays during the middle ages in the UK and parts of northern Europe. In France, he was then known as 'Père Nöel' in Germany, the 'Christ Kind'. In the early USA his name was 'Kris Kringle'. Later, Dutch settlers in the USA took the old stories of St. Nicholas with them and Kris Kringle became 'Sinterklaas' or as we now say 'Santa Claus'!

Many countries, especially ones in Europe, celebrate St. Nicholas' Day on 6th December. In Holland and some other European Countries, children leave clogs or shoes out on the 5th December (St. Nicholas Eve) to be filled with presents. They also believe that if they leave some hay and carrots in their shoes for Sinterklaas's horse, they will be left some sweets.

St. Nicholas became popular again in the Victorian era when writers, poets and artists rediscovered the old stories.

Third Times A Charm....

  As the baking has been put aside, I'm working on my advent scarves.

Yes, so the saying goes "Third Times a Charm!".

I'm hoping for a cure to this problem!  The Advent Calendar was available on November 27 

from Tricia Weatherston.  It is a Mosaic pattern--when was the last time I EVER did 

Mosaic ?  Or have I EVER knit Mosaic?  

Anyway, I'm trying my hand at this and you can see what I got right out of the gate!

 A Mess!

I cast on--did dark color first--well, that's not going to work if the chart uses

black and white squares to distinguish yarns as the first square is white--

I will be so confused.

Rip it out and begin again--thought I counted right!  How can someone not

count enough stitches--after all, it was only 47 stitches to begin with--

oh and the edge stitches--begin again.

And now, third time..............right number of stitches, light thread first and then

black.

I'm humming along ---I think!

Each day there are a few rows to knit--it only takes me about 30 minutes--getting into the rhythm 

of knitting and being reverent as I prepare for the Christmas season.

Shhhh---Here's The Famous Eggnog Recipe

Finally!  I'm getting to the eggnog!

Please keep it a secret--don't tell him you got it from me!

 Here's hubby's famous eggnog recipe.  He makes it by the gallon and in our house, it doesn't last long!  I guarantee if you like eggnog, this is the recipe for you!  He got the recipe from an old edition of Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, dated hell's bells, I don't know as the front cover is completed shot!  Anyway, he took this recipe and tweaked it some.  Of course, he doesn't tell me what that extra tweak is--but, I think it's LOVE!

So, here goes--hubby's famous eggnog recipe:

1/2 cup sugar

2 egg yolks

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 Cups milk (whole milk please--none of that non fat stuff--after all you're making eggnog!)

2 egg whites

3 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla, but he adds more

Beat 1/3 cup sugar into egg yolks.  Add salt, stir in milk.  Cook over medium heat, stir constantly till mixture coats the spoon!  Oh, yes, give that spoon a good coat!

Cool this mixture.

Beat egg whites till foamy; gradually add 3 Tablespoons sugar, beating to soft peaks.

Add vanilla.  Fold the egg whites into the custard mixture.

Chill.

When ready to serve, sprinkle with ground nutmeg--we like to use a grater and fresh

nutmeg--enjoy with your plate of cookies.

For him, it takes several hours to make--to me, it's a messy kitchen to clean up!

But, who cares--everyone loves his eggnog! and that's what it's all about!

Spritz Cookies--Oh Yeah!

With this recipe you need one of those cookie press thingies--I've handed mine off to 

blonded daughter and she makes these cookies now.

Assembly the following:

1 Cup butter--yummy butter!

2/3 cup sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoons of vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 cups flour

1. Heat oven to 400°F.
2. Combine all ingredients except flour in bowl. Beat at medium speed until creamy. Add flour; beat at low speed until well mixed. Prepare dough as directed by variations below, if desired. (If dough is too soft, cover and refrigerate, 30-45 minutes.)
3. Place dough into cookie press fitted with template. Form desired shapes, 1 inch apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets.
4. Bake 6-8 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

No Bake Cookies?!

When I asked hubby which was his favorite cookie, he thought for a while and then said,

"those drop chocolate cookies you made".  I said 'those sugary cookies?' and he nodded!

I asked the son the same question and his answer--"those chocolate no bake cookies!"

I can't believe!  All these years, I've been working away on fancy cookies and they

like these no bake ones--gee whiz!  Well, he does have a point though--

no bake chocolate oatmeal cookies are delicious and easy to make.

Sometimes, I'll add some peanut butter.  The kids could hardly wait for the cookies to firm up and sometimes were wiping the cookies off the paper with a spoon!  And everyone wants to lick the pan!

Here goes--the recipe

No Bake Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies

Cook time:  5 mins

Total time:  5 mins

Makes: 2 Dozen

Ingredients

• 2 cups granulate sugar
• 8 tbsp. (or 1 stick) butter or soft trans-fat free margarine
• ½ cup milk
• ⅓ cup baking cocoa
• 3 cups oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)

Supplies Needed:

• Measuring Cups
• Large Saucepan
• Rubber Spatula
• Tablespoon
• Stainless Steel Bowl (to mix hot chocolate mixture with oats)

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, combine sugar, margarine, milk, and cocoa.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
3. (Total of about 5 minutes stove time)
4. Remove bowl / pan from heat. Stir in the oats.
5. Use a tablespoon to drop batter onto waxed paper or foil.
6. Let stand until firm. Allow about 30 minutes to form and cool.
7. Store tightly covered.

Bite Size Pecan Pies--

Can't eat a whole pecan pie--well, I could, but that's a different story!

These little pecan pies are perfect for parties or special occasions.  I would 

make them to freeze--when needed--there they were.

Of course, you need those little tiny muffin tins--you know, those little 

tins are so worth the price to create bite size tidbits of anything!

2--3 Oz cream cheese

2 sticks butter

2 cups flour

Let butter/cheese stand at room temperature.  Mix good--then add

flour--best to let sit in refrigerator for 1.5 hours covered.  Okay,

we ready to place in tins:  make small balls and place into muffin tin,

press around to cover the sides and bottoms.  Now, you're ready

for the filling!

1.5 Cups brown sugar

2 eggs

2 Tablespoons softened butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

1.5 cups pecans (slightly chopped)

1/8 teaspoon salt _funny how this little bit of salt gives pecans taste

Stir together thoroughly to fill your

shells about 3/4 full.

bake 25 minutes in 375* oven

Enjoy, my friends and think of me as you savour!

Fig Cakes--From a Friend!

Many years ago when we lived in Louisiana, we enjoyed the fellowship of  great folks, who shared so many of their life styles, especially food!  And with the sharing of food came the recipes for the dishes that we ate.  Louisiana is known for good Cajun food--but, here is one recipe that I thoroughly enjoyed making and eating--and it doesn't have anything to do with seafood or spices or the holy trinity (celery, onion, bell pepper).

If you have ever eaten a Fig Newton cookie--this is ten times better!  Of course, it takes some preparation but oh so worth it!  Thanks to my dear Lousiana friend Helen, as she shared with me, I share with you!

Here we go with the dough recipe:
                      1 Cup shortening (it's that shortening thing again)
                      1 Cup sugar
                      3 eggs
                      1 teaspoon vanilla
                      7 Cups flour (could be more, could be less)
                      7 teaspoons of baking powder
                      1 Cup milk
                      1 teaspoon salt
 Cream shortening, sugar, add eggs, vanilla till fluffy.  Sift flour with baking powder and salt into shortening/sugar mixture; gradually add milk till stiff dough is moist--not too dry--not too wet!
Form into ball--at this point, you can let dough rest in refrigerator while you mix up the filling.

Filling:           2 packages of dried figs
                       1/2 cup raisins
                       1/2 cup pecans
                       1/2 pint fig preserves
                       dash of black pepper
                       juice of orange and grated rind.
Soak the dried figs about an hour or until soft.  Grind figs, pecans and orange rind.  Add this to the fig preserves and raisins.  Mix.

Now, take the dough and roll out till about 1/4" thick; cut into 2" strips across the dough.  In each section add a Tablespoon full of the fig mixture.  Fold over the dough, place on baking sheet and bake at 400* for 20 minutes or till brown.
While the fig cakes are cooling, sift one box of powdered sugar with little milk to pour over the cakes.  Traditionally, you can add sprinkles--but, in our house, these little delights were gobbled up quicker than I could add the sprinkles--

Just yummy goodness coming to your mouth!  I think I'm off to the grocery to pick up some shortening and dried figs!

Sugar Cookies Or Take Out the Christmas Cookie Cutters!

Here is the Bestest Christmas cookie recipe--in my book anyway!

I would make up this dough and let it sit in refrigerator till there was

plenty of time for the kids to gather around the table so we could all 

play with the cookie cutters.

2 Cups shortening (does anyone use shortening anymore?!)

3 Cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (don't leave this out!  makes all the difference in the world)

1 teaspoon vanilla

6-7 Cups of all purpose flour

Cream shortening and sugar till fluffy; add eggs one at a time, beat till

incorporated (I love saying that!)

Add flavoring, nutmeg and flour (enough to form still dough--use your good 

judgement on this)

Gather up into ball and chill at least one hour.

When ready, roll out at least 1/4" thick, use powdered sugar on your cutting board--

trust me--this is super delicious and no floury taste to the cookie!

Cut into desired shape.  Bake 400* at least 8-10 minutes--but check to make

sure nothing is burning--No one likes burnt sugar cookies!

Usually, I didn't take the time to frost, but you can if you have the energy and time.

Of course, in today's market, you can find all kinds of prepared frostings.

A glass of cold milk with your cookie is perfect!!

Gingerbread Boys And Girls--

This is a must for the holidays--only because of a funny story!

I have a set of big and little ginger people cutters and I like to make the smaller ones

as it's just a pop in the mouth for a bite of deliciousness!

One year when I was baking the little ginger people, brown headed daughter had a (boy)

friend over to the house to visit.  They were sitting in the front room talking--

I took out a pan of the ginger people from the oven and holy moly, one of the little boys had

jumped right on top of the little girls!  It was so funny I just had to share with

BHD and her friend!  Guess what, she didn't think it was funny!!  And I don't think he ever came back to the house!

So here is the recipe for those gals and guys:

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 cup butter

3 Tablespoons of molasses

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Combine sugar, butter, egg, molasses and vanilla in bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add all remaining cookie ingredients; beat at low speed until well mixed.
2. Divide dough in half; wrap in plastic food wrap. Refrigerate 1-2 hours or until firm.
3. Heat oven to 375°F.
4. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface, one-half at a time (keeping remaining dough refrigerated), to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with 4-inch cookie cutter. Place cookies, 1 inch apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 6-9 minutes or until set. Let stand 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to cooling rack. Cool completely.
5. Combine powdered sugar, 1/3 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla in bowl. Beat at low speed, adding enough milk for desired spreading consistency. Decorate cooled cookies with frosting as desired.

Texas Whiskey Balls--You Bet!

December 1--This is the Day!  To make those whiskey balls--you want them to sit and mellow in all that good whiskey--so with each bite you get a burst of flavor.  Don't open the tin until

Christmas Eve--well, maybe you can sneak one or two before then.  After all, someone needs to be

the tester.

In Texas we use good whiskey, especially this one from Garrison Brothers Distillery in Hye, Texas.

We met Dan Garrison right at the creation of his distillery back in November, 2009--

If you are near Hye (west of Johnson City, TX) sometime be sure to stop in to see the

distillery and have a sample of some mighty fine whiskey.

Anyway, back to making those whiskey balls--they have got to age and I mean if you can mix them up earlier than December 1--do it!

1 Box of Vanilla wafers

1 Cup powdered sugar

1 cup pecans

1/2 teaspoon cocoa

2 Tablespoons of syrup

1/4 Cup whiskey

grate pecans and wafers--mix all ingredients

roll into balls--you can roll the balls into powdered sugar or cocoa

Mellow out those suckers!

Holiday Cookies--

What would the holidays been without cookies--the edible kind?  Over the next few days I will post some of my favorite recipes that have been passed down from friends and family.  Many years ago, when we had young kids, several of us would host cookie parties--invite 12 people who bring 12 plates of dozen cookies!  It was a fun event and you could bake your favorite recipe for 12 dozen and have different 12 dozen cookies to share with family.  Each evening, I would make up a plate of cookies and the family members would come together to share their day's adventures.  Hubby always made a 'mean' eggnog, which the kids enjoyed along with their cookies.  It was a great family time--

now, the kids are grown and have kids of their own--but, when December 21 rolls around and the family comes back together, we share this same tradition.

May your holiday be filled with delicious love of baking to share!

Today's recipe:  Russian Teacakes--Melt in your mouth good!!  You may know these cookies by other names:  Mexican Wedding Cakes or Snowball Cookies.

  Where did they originate? – This is where things get tricky. In the 18th century Russian Tea Cakes began appearing in Russia where they were used as a delicious confection during tea-sharing ceremonies. Tea was introduced during the 1600’s and the Russians used to traditionally consume sweet cakes and cookies with samovar tea. Who actually invented them or their exact place of origin is still unknown and actually causes quite a few headaches and heated debates among food and drink aficionados all over the world. Many believe Eastern Europe to be the main location of origin as many shortbread and cookie recipes were a part of Eastern European cuisine often being made by Eastern European nuns.

• How have they evolved overtime? – So, the exact place of origin and the exact roots of its creators are still a mystery to this day, but how on earth does a recipe believed to have originated in the cold and snowy lands of Russia, find its way over the warm and dusty climes of Mexico in the form of Mexican Wedding Cakes? As you may expect, these confectioneries are often consumed during Mexican wedding ceremonies, but how did they make their way over in the first place? Well, they’re believed to have migrated over to Mexico with European nuns. There were a lot of convents in Mexico and a lot of European nuns made their way over there between the 18th and 20th century. There was often a great deal of baking that went on in Mexican convents so it’s a very strong possibility that they may have been a convent sweet treat brought over by European nuns, that began to make its way out into the public. By the 20th century, these cookies were a traditional part of Christmas time in the US and wedding traditions in Mexico, and began appearing in US cookbooks around the 1950’s. In Mexico, a very similar dish entitled Bizcochitos uses exactly the same ingredients and methods of cooking, except they use the addition of mild anise.
• 
  

• 1 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
  
  
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a medium bowl, cream butter and vanilla until smooth. Combine the 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar and flour; stir into the butter mixture until just blended. Mix in the chopped walnuts. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place them 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. When cool, roll in remaining confectioners' sugar. I also like to roll mine in the sugar a second time.

Christmas Trees Sew Along

Okay--why didn't I begin some Christmas sewing months ago instead of waiting to 

the last month..................oh well, didn't (!) but here is an opportunity to

sew along with Lori Holt of Bee in my bonnet as she makes this 

delightful wall hanging of Christmas trees!

I can see all my favorite holiday fabrics here!

She also has the Cozy Christmas Sew Along that

you can find along the side panel of this blog.

or better--just hop over to her blog to pick up this free tutorial.

I'm heading to my fabric stash to see what trees I can create!

Check This Out!!

Definitely check this out!  Last spring Natalia designed a series of free-tutorials, she designed them all with bright fabrics and she is so excited for Christmas Natalia thought that it would be fun to go back through those and see what they'd look like in Christmas fabrics. So, from now until Christmas she'll be sharing some of my favorite free-tutorials, Christmas style! It's her little Christmas gift to you!

Of course, there is no way, absolutely no way, there will be much sewing during this time period

from my studio, but it's worth saving these lovely patterns for future reference.

Let's Crochet A Hyperbolic Plane!

You're saying "A What?"  This involves math--of that I'm not very good at; it also involves geometry--also not good at!  But, if you put these two things together with fiber--I'm good at that!   So let's try our hand at crocheting these handy dandy math involved scrubbies!  If you want to do further study of hyperbolic planes and spheres check out this website. 

Here is the pattern for the hyperbolic plane scrubbie!  I'm so glad there are math enthusiasts out there that can translate geometry to fiber and needles!

Spinning 101

Do you have a question about double drive , scotch tension,  and irish tension on your spinning wheel?
Here is an article from Schacht Spindle and company on understanding your wheel better to achieve the yarn you want to spin.

Scotch Tension

Double Drive