Kitchen

[KatieB]

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@1Snickers wrote:

 We always made Christmas cookies, cut out sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies. 

  My mother made a vanilla wafer cake. I haven't made it in years. It's similar to a pound cake but with crushed vanilla wafers rather than flour. It's very moist. 
  There is a date/orange cake we made with orange juice poured through holes in it. Yummy! 
   My excuse not to bake is that my double ovens are over 46 years old and I don't want to replace them!

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My mother always made a cake called an Orange Slice Cake.  It was so good, I'm wondering if it's the same as the Orange cake you mentioned.

[Annabellethecat66]

@Jtdmum  Thanks for sharing your memories.  You know, GOD did a good job with us humans.  

After awhile, the sad memories are replaced more with the good memories.  That's not to say all of them go away.

Something I read once was something like "if all of our bad memories go away, we won't be able to appreciate the good one's when they come".

That can be said of a lot of other things.  Even people, if you think about it.  The stinker people (thank goodness there aren't a lot...but we all know them) are still in our memories, but thoughts of them help us to recognize the good people we've met and are still in our lives.

I don't know anyone who's made pretzels.  It seems like it might be time consuming?  Is it?  I'm going to google a pretzel iron.  

Once again, I've learned something new.  Thanks...I'll think of you (the lady who made them with her mom) when someone ever says, "We make pretzels".  

[QVCkitty1]

My mom and I poured over the Holiday magazines and well worn cookbooks every year. We had such fun planning. She made a wonderful rum cake, it was the Bacardi recipe. I always made molasses ginger cookies ( my favorite ) and oatmeal chocolate chip, but we always tried something new, mom was a whiz with pastry . My speciality actually wasn't a sweet, but Quiche Lorraine, I had to make it every Christmas Eve or there was a revolt, ( not kidding) .  Wonderful memories, thanks for the post ! 💕

[Carmie]

When I grew up, our home was filed with goodies at Christmas time.  We had company almost every night for two weeks and we were prepared.

My oldest sister and mother baked cookies.  We had at least 30 different types, plus  home made fruitcake..started in October.  Many of the cookies were Italian and were fried and dipped in honey or made with cookie irons.  They were decorated beautifully and stored in large metal cans and in an unheated out-kitchen that would as used during the summer months for canning.

We had walnut and poppy seed rolls and homemade cakes.  

I remember the whole smoked and fresh hams. We also had fish, especially smelts that were deep fried and lupini beans that had been soaked in water for days.

My father would buy soda, something we usually only had at Christmas time. He was particularly fond of fruit flavors, especially Franks Soda.  I remember sneaking out to the out-kitchen and grabbing a bottle which was pure joy to drink and not have to share. Oh goodness,  Black Cherry Wishniak..I loved it.

My father would make wine and it was served at Christmas time.  Yes, I drank it and remember how good it was...very sweet.

We would have trays of pickles and olives, different types of imported cheese and meats, figs, dates and nuts.

I remember how much food we had in the house..it was wonderful.

Our house was about the food and family and people visiting all of the time and the parties we went to every weekend wearing velvet dresses and patent leather shoes.

We received limited gifts, maybe one or two...it was all about the food and friends and family.

[ECBG]

Most of my childhood was spent on a farm surrounded by the Blue Ridge Parkway.  One set of grandparents lived across the driveway.

My grandmother was an amazing baker and used a tiny! Sunbeam mixer.  Her housekeeper helped her.  (I found out as an adult, a Kitchen Aid mixer cuts your work in half!).

She made beautiful butter pound cakes which I wasn't fond of because I loved icing.

My favorite was a fresh coconut cake with seven minute icing.  

Once or twice, I remember having marshmello fudge.  It seems there were more butter mints.  

Being outside on a horse all the time, I rarely saw these things being made. Her house smelled wonderful.

I bake cookies and homemade candies for a week before Christmas and send out large gift trays.

[Azcowgirl]

The most important part of our baking tradition were the crispy buttery sugar cookies, still treasured by our family every Christmas. They were cut out in all the traditional shapes and intricately decorated with colored icings and sprinkles. DD and GD make the same ones every year. They made the cookie trays look so festive and beautiful.
So good, you could never eat just one, nor two even. 🥰

[AuntG]

@Annabellethecat66 your aunt putting on different slipcovers was interesting. I don't recall the furniture changing at Christmas. We had a wood cook stove where bread got baked (from scratch). The regular electric oven was used for sugar cookies, molasses cookies and gingerbread men. Not much candy was made except for an occasional batch of fudge. I have a vague recollection of some kind of potato candy. Egg nog was also something we had around Christmas. Very little was store bought.

[Lilysmom]

@Annabellethecat66 , my mom was a very good cook and baker.  At Christmas it was light and dark fruitcake, mincemeat pies, raisin pies, scotch cookies.  My father had a sweet tooth.  I come from a large family.  I didn't inherit the sweet tooth but DH sure has one so I bake for him

Growing up, it was normal for my mother to make two large pies a day.  My brothers would come home after playing hockey and eat a whole pie in one sitting.  Can you imagine?  I had five brothers and four sisters.  

When you think about it, my mother cooked the equivalent of Christmas dinner every day.  I miss her so much, especially at this time of year.  So many wi derful memories.  LM

[Lilysmom]

@Annabellethecat66 , my mom was a very good cook and baker.  At Christmas it was light and dark fruitcake, mincemeat pies, raisin pies, scotch cookies.  My father had a sweet tooth.  I come from a large family.  I didn't inherit the sweet tooth but DH sure has one so I bake for him

Growing up, it was normal for my mother to make two large pies a day.  My brothers would come home after playing hockey and eat a whole pie in one sitting.  Can you imagine?  I had five brothers and four sisters.  

When you think about it, my mother cooked the equivalent of Christmas dinner every day.  I miss her so much, especially at this time of year.  So many wonderful memories.  LM

[kjayr]

My adult kids and I make almond "moon" cookies that my MIL used to make. My son took over her German lebkuchen recipe which is quite challenging. My mom uses to make apple and pumpkin pies but I don't remember baking with her.