♫ Chestnuts roasting on the open fire, mincemeat cooking on the stove ♫

Cafe Society
21

Great, thanks! The mincemeat looks easier than I thought.

Question, though: Is the egg white necessary in the hard sauce? I don’t recall Grandmother using an egg in hers, though the other ingredients accord with my memory.

Here’s a tip that the Piper Cub might get a kick out of: make a snowman out of the hard sauce. You shape him using a spatula or a wide-bladed knife, and pop him in the fridge as soon as possible, so he sets in shape. Don’t forget the traditional trappings: he can wear half-a-walnut for a hat, and his eyes, buttons, etc. are cherry chunks, or currants, or similar edibles.

Again, thanks!

22

I think the egg white is for fluffiness. However, some people don’t like the eating raw egg, so you might try skipping it and see how it turns out.

Thanks for the snowman idea!

And so to bed, with excellent start on Christmas baking. Still thinking of the pudding, though.

23

Oh, forgot to mention - when I’m baking the tartelets, I usually put a sheet of aluminum foil on the cookie tray, then the tartelets. They tend to bubble over and it’s very sticky to get off the tray once it’s cooked on.

24

and, i’ve just delivered a home-made tourtière to some friends - with another in the freezer for Chez Piper tomorrow night, Christmas Eve.

25

If anyone wants a good mock mincemeat recipe I have two, actually. One is from my mom’s family, is cooked in larger batches and canned. The other is made up to be used at once. I’ve made it for special orders at work and it’s had good reviews there. Got to love the scent of cloves!