The last few years, I have baked the aforementioned gluten free Christmas cake, for the parents (my mother thinks she has a gluten problem). Despite what some people think, it’s actually nice. Last year’s was actually too nice- I normally got a lot of leftovers to bring back for the house to share, but last year the family scoffed the lot. I only got one slice.
This year I made two, to be sure of getting some, so I reckon no-one will eat any. I’m feeding one with rum and one with brandy, to see which works best.
I also do mince pies as and when the urge hits; I’ll do another batch some time this week. They tend to vanish quite fast.
The boss has just announced that we’re having a work party on Saturday. He appears to be all excited about it. There are 5 of us, if everyone shows. I suspect this is going to be a little awkward.
I really don’t bake much anymore (diabetic who lives alone), but when I was raising kids in a dippy hippy fashion, I baked all of our bread, cakes that I then decorated and all kinds of cookies. We also made candy around the holidays.
My mom was a prolific baker. Something came out of her oven every day. I never knew her to not have homemade cookies in the cookie jars until after her second stroke. Sugar, molasses and monster cookies were the ones most commonly made. Baking powder biscuits were made a couple of times a week, cornbread and pies about once a week.
I’ll likely make a skillet of cornbread and a pie of some sort when I go up to Dad’s for Christmas.
We don’t have any holiday traditions, except that whenever we visit the downstate kids, for Turkey day or Xmas, we are required to bring impossible coconut cream pie.
Oh, one other food tradition; every year about this time I pine for a decent fruit cake and talk about making one. Spousal Unit always says ‘No!’
Back from the Math Final. He’ll get an A in math, no surprise there.
FCM I have a ball that dispenses treats around here somewhere, maybe these treats will get him playing with it. Although I expect that by tomorrow he won’t like these treats anymore.
We stopped at McD’s for lunch again today. Dinner will be leftover tacos.
Howdy Y’all! I am pleased to report da cave is all spiffed. ‘Tis N.O.S. and kinda warmish (74 Amurrkin) out so I have opened windows (the house kind) to let in some fresh air. Nice! The rain will be here tomorrow it looks like. It’s startin’ to happen now in Ye Olde Home Towne which is northwest of here. Poke roast, steamed cabbage, baked sweet N.O.T. and rolls for dindin. 'Twill be good!
Drae I was gigglin’ about Christmas Mouth as well, even though I knew sunny meant buche.
You don’t put ALL the treats in at once - ration 'em out. sheesh…
I goofed and hit the wrong button and now I’m stuck waiting for the program to do something totally unnecessary. Dammit. It’s that or restart the whole stupid thing and lose what I’ve done so far. Wait it is…
Hey, now! I LOVE fruitcake! I’ve never understood all the hate, but it seems to be pretty universal. I actually made some fruitcakes years and years ago, only to find out that none of my friends or family wanted any part of it. More for me! But still, I never made it again.
I do not know enough French to grok the bouche/buche, so I’m still heartily amused by it. There’s a house ‘round these parts that has one of those fancy light displays synced to music that you can tune your radio to, and on the garage is this gods-awful Christmas tree outline that sometimes sings along with it’s big ol’ red mouth. But there’s a weird line that sometimes looks like a mustache or is sometimes part of the mouth … it’s so confusing and off-putting. I just sat there for an hour the other night with some friends watching it sing “Let It Go,” and I got more upset every minute.
We should start a fruitcake lovers’ club. My whole family might join though; they all really like it, so I thought the whole ‘everyone hates fruitcake’ thing was a sarcastic joke for years… I’m still not wholly convinced.
I also really like [del]fartballs[/del] Brussels sprouts, and did even as a kid, as did my brother. We used to find it really weird that the comics we got went on about how dreadful they were. Both of us would request them, but we were poor, and they were expensive (we grew most of our vegetables back then, but they take up so much space for such a small crop, we never grew them), so we hardly ever had them
The trouble with most fruitcakes is, to my mind anyway, the crappy booze they use to soak it.
There is a Trappist Monastery nearby, Our Lady of Guadalupe, that makes a good fruitcake for about $15.00 a pound. I will usually seek out one of those, but they sell out quickly, and are often difficult to find.
Harry & David also makes a pretty good fruitcake, I’m told. They used to make something they called a ‘fruit and nut confection’ that was outstanding, and didn’t have any booze in it, but I don’t see it on their web sight anymore, unless it’s what’s now called the ‘grand fruitcake confection’. There’s a Harry & David store in the outlet mall half an hour away. I may have to drive over there this week.
Nope, I love it too. Not the $3 grocery store dreck though. I can plow through a Harry & David’s in about 2 days.
I’m not much on baking but this am making fudge and rum cheesecake bars for dessert for Xmas Eve and Xmas Day. My mother was an excellent cook and a good baker, but didn’t like to bake. I take after her.
Bumba, I meant to ask you, where did you get the Tortilla soup recipe ? It was so good I am passing it along to some folks… hope you don’t mind.
Re: the OP, we don’t do Christmas, and even if we did, I am lousy at baking (though I’m trying to get better at it, I made a batch of chocolate chip cookies the other day, and some bread pudding over the weekend.)
Not much doing here today, just general house irk… also I need inspiration for dinner…any suggestions?
Today is hubby’s Birthday. We are having steaks that cost $42.50 each. Seriously. We got a Kansas City Steaks box from one of hubby’s refrigeration customers with 4 eight ounce filets. I went online and the 4 steaks were $169.99. They are Kobe beef and better be good at that price. Speaking of Fruitcake hubs loves it. I buy one every year and this year got it from Wolferman’s a subsidiary of Harry and David’s. My mother used to bake a lot and made fruitcake. I myself do not like it. She made a chocolate cake with about 8 thin layers that was to die for. I miss my Mama.
Takes one to [del]know[/del] eat one. This is the only fruitcake that I like.
No, that’ll happen right after you buy/open a mega-sized box of them because he’s going thru 'em so fast.
No special holiday baking here. But I’ll PM you my address if you wanna send me some.
