Classic Southern Holiday Desserts

[wcmckinney]

Is there such a thing as a quintessential holiday desert that is not a pie? I understand the importance of pecan pies, sweet potato pies, apple pies, and their cobbler varietels, but is there a dish that you or your family valued as being traditional to the South?

I read a Saveur magazine cover story recently about having a southern Christmas dinner but the dessert section of this southerners in Upstate New York dinner story didn't really dwell on the sweets as much as it did on the savories...

[jgm]

This isn't much of an answer, but I definitely associate pecan pralines with the South. But they're a candy, and not a dessert. I'm sure there are all kinds of desserts that can be made with crumbled pralines, notably ice cream.

[Jaymes]

I think of the wonderful candies that I associate with the south....don't know if they're really 'southern,' but so many of the ladies offered them with coffee for dessert when you visited over the holiday season. In addition to pralines, there was divinity and date loaf candy and fudge and penuche and peanut brittle and bourbon balls.

Oh, and fruitcake of course. Soaked in bourbon or rum.

Edited December 14, 2004 by Jaymes (log)

[Gifted Gourmet]

Is there such a thing as a quintessential holiday desert that is not a pie? 

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From Marion Brown's "The Southern Cook Book" (1951), some recipes for the following cakes, which purport to be Southern:

Lane Cake

Robert E. Lee Cake

Lady Baltimore Cake

Sally White Cake

Jennie Benedict's Rum Cake

Williamsburg Orange Wine Cake

Tennessee Jam Cake

Georgia Pecan Whiskey Cake

Kentucky Pecan Bourbon Cake

Tarboro Tipsy Cake

Southern Hot Milk Cake

Red Velvet Cake, of course ...

and my favorite: Hummingbird Cake ...

Not a pie among, them, Bill, nary a one ...

[rcarter]

coconut cake

[M. Lucia]

There are usually so many goodies laying around for the holidays including: boubon balls, pralines, vanilla buttercreams, fudge, cookies, sugarplums, etc.

We usually have pecan pie and if there is something else it would be caramel cake.

You know, lots of little thin layers so that you can have as much caramel in there as possible.

I am thinking of trying this recipe this year.

Melissa- what is a Lane Cake?

[dlc]

Pound Cake !!

[RebeccaT]

In my family, it was mostly pies during the holidays, but coconut cake did make an appearance at my Mississippi grandmother's house every couple of years. Most of the other desserts I've seen listed here, while definitely Southern, were generally enjoyed at other times of the year.

Although we do have ambrosia at every holiday meal... does that count as dessert?

[ludja]

There are usually so many goodies laying around for the holidays including: boubon balls, pralines, vanilla buttercreams, fudge, cookies, sugarplums, etc.

We usually have pecan pie and if there is something else it would be caramel cake.

You know, lots of little thin layers so that you can have as much caramel in there as possible.

I am thinking of trying this recipe this year.

Melissa- what is a Lane Cake?

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Mmmm.. I love caramel cake; sounds like a nice one for the holidays...

Lane Cake is a 3 layer white cake. The filling for the layers is a custardy type mix (egg yolks, sugar and butter) further enriched w/chopped pecans, raisins, coconut, bourbon. The cake is iced with an Italian meringue.

[Lan4Dawg]

we always had caramel cake at our holiday functions (thanksgiving, xmas, &c). My great-grandmother made it and then the task was taken over by my great-aunt and now the Fuss makes it when ever the family gets together. The mention of caramel cakes brings back some very fond memories.

My great-gr'mother and great-aunt always made a loaf cake. When the Fuss first made it she decided a layer cake would be great and could not get the layers to stay stacked so she had tooth picks, nut picks, dowels, chop sticks & just about any thing else she could find stuck in to keep the layers from sliding. When she asked Aunt Dell about the cake Aunt Dell's response was simple: "why do you think I make a loaf cake honey?" There was some times a problem getting the frosting to set if the humidity was just not right and Aunt Dell would always put a note at the end of the receipt that if it did not set to "add more sugar and just beat the devil out of it!"

It became a challenge to figure out how to steal the ends of the cake--with all of that wonderful, gooey, luscious caramel frosting--w/o being caught and all of the children & grand children would fight to get those end pieces. One holiday I was delayed and some one beat me to the ends so I just took a knife and--much to every one's chagrin--sliced off the side of the cake. I believe it was the next year that we got out of hand and at the end of the dinner there was a brick of perfectly wonderful almond pound cake w/ absolutely no caramel frosting any where to be found. Later I pulled an "end around" on the rest of the family and just told Aunt Dell I would come by her house & take her to family functions. The first thing I did when I got to her house was slice the ends off the cake and hide them in the car for later. When ever any one complained I would just tell them it was payment for taxi-ing Aunt Dell around.

The great thing about Fuss making the cake is that she makes extra frosting and we just take the cake along w/ a big bowl of extra frosting on the side. Of course that does not include the cake & frosting that never make it to the dinner. ":^)

So far I have not seen mention of the ubiquitous fruit cake! Fruit cake always gets such a bad rap but if made well it is wonderful. My great grand mother made a fruit cake but she used her own dried fruit--not that nasty stuff that comes pre-packaged w/ the little bits of multi-colored what ever--and pecans fr/ the back yard. After she made it--usually some time around the first of December--she would take the thing and soak it in home made brandy until we all gathered at her house on Christmas Eve. The brandy was made by my great grandfather who had passed back in the late 1950's & this was many years later so you can imagine that both the brandy and the cake packed quite a wallop. (The Rev used to accuse my mother of wringing the cake out on her plate, drinking the liquid and throwing the remaining cake away.) There were also assorted home made cookies & candies, ambrosia, & such in addition to the cakes and pies.

in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

[Jaymes]

we always had caramel cake at our holiday functions (thanksgiving, xmas, &c). ..

I absolutely loved that post. Thanks.

[Lan4Dawg]

we always had caramel cake at our holiday functions (thanksgiving, xmas, &c). ..

I absolutely loved that post. Thanks.

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you are welcome. I enjoyed the memories.

in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

[kpurvis]

I'd make a case for coconut cake, red velvet cake, Williamsburg orange cake and that poundcake that involves dumping together a whole bunch of different flavor extracts. But I also think there's a point to be made that cake is merely something on the dessert plate to soak up the juice from your ambrosia.

Now, what you put in ambrosia -- that's a heated discussion waiting to happen. In my family: oranges, freshly grated coconut, chopped pecans, halved maraschino cherries, sugar and a little alcohol, usually a splash of sweet wine like sherry.

As Joan Crawford would say, No marshmallows, ever!

[ruthcooks]

Jam Cake is big in Kentucky and Tennessee...a spice cake in layers made with blackberry jam (usually) and caramel icing.

Coconut custard pie is wonderful, but only if made with freshly grated coconut. I imagine it would be the same for coconut cake.

Also popular is that runny poured custard that is used as a sauce for the cakes. You can buy it like eggnog in the groceries in Tennessee.

[M. Lucia]

Well, I made an 8 Layer Caramel cake for Christmas, see this thread to see pictures.

Coconut cake is another family favorite.

Boiled custard is popular too, topped with some berries, though I am not a fan of it myself.

[djbeers]

As an upstate NY boy, I have never fully grasped the big deal about holiday desserts in the south. I have lived in Alabama since 1984. My northern life included the usual pies for holidays (poet, no?)........mincemeat, apple, and pumpkin. My mother was quite reknowned for her apple pie, which she always made with macintosh apples and a crust that was soooooo tender. Lord, I miss those pies.

For the past 19 years of wedded bliss in north Alabama, my mother-in-law has always had a 3-layer caramel cake at every Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. I like this cake very much. I never heard of it until I moved south. This is among about 7 or 8 different pies and cakes. My wife is always called upon to bring one of her famous red velvet cakes. I personally don't care for the red velvet - too sweet - but everyone else raves about it. There is always a pecan pie or two, a couple of cream pies, and of course a big container of "nanner puddin".

Dave

[petite tête de chou]

Do Southern folks do something special with ice-cream?

Considering that you live in such a sultry climate (I'm talkin' about weather, people ) I imagine that chilled desserts would be popular. Or is this Oregon gal sadly mistaken?

[djbeers]

Do Southern folks do something special with ice-cream?

Considering that you live in such a sultry climate (I'm talkin' about weather, people  ) I imagine that chilled desserts would be popular. Or is this Oregon gal sadly mistaken?

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It is sultry in the summer, but definitely not in the winter.....at least in north Alabama. 58 degrees when I woke up this morning. A cold front is moving through and it is now 43. Sunday we will be lucky to get above freezing. Summers are typically in the 80's to 90's, with high humidity. Enough for the weather report!

There are no special ice cream desserts around here, summer or otherwise. Most people just eat it straight. However, I am willing to bet that southerners are more apt to make homemade ice cream as opposed to people in other parts of the U.S. I think everyone I know has an ice cream bucket (both hand-cranked and electric).

[M. Lucia]

Every summer I was somehow enticed into making ice cream in the old hand-crank wooden bucket. My mother would act like it was the most important job to turn the crank, and we would vie for our turn, at which point, after about fifteen minutes of churning I would realize how laborious the job was and give up. However, after about half an hour of running around the backyard, we would have forgotten our sore little arms and were again struck by the novelty of the whole operation and lured into another session. This way, my mother kept a constant rotating supply of family labor, and there wasn't a fourth of July without soft creamy vanilla ice cream.

Now we have a machine.

[mikey]

I don't know if this is actually a southern desert, but it qualifies as a southern-style(tooth-hurting sweet), and I had never run across it until I visited my wife's family in Arkansas. It consists of "boiling a can" - cooking a can of Eagle Brand sweetened concensed milk under boiling water for about an hour- until it caramelizes. Remove from the can and slice. It then turns a little white-trash-cookbook- top with a slice of canned pineapple with a cherry in the center. Personally, I always liked mine covered with whipped cream. I guess I've always been fascinated by the part about boiling the can.

[Toliver]

I don't know if this is actually a southern desert, but it qualifies as a southern-style(tooth-hurting sweet), and I had never run across it until I visited my wife's family in Arkansas. It consists of "boiling a can" - cooking a can of Eagle Brand sweetened concensed milk under boiling water for about an hour- until it caramelizes. Remove from the can and slice. It then turns a little white-trash-cookbook- top with a slice of canned pineapple with a cherry in the center. Personally, I always liked mine covered with whipped cream. I guess I've always been fascinated by the part about boiling the can.

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Ah, yes, the boiled canned sweetened condensed milk is also called the "poor man's dulce de leche". It's quite popular in Mexico. Though, I thought it took longer than 1 hour to make.

Read more about it here:

"Making toffee (dulce de leche, caramel,...), From condensed milk"

and this discussion:

"Hot Milk with Dulce de Leche, Holy."

[Jaymes]

There are no special ice cream desserts around here, summer or otherwise.

Have you forgotten all of those 'ice box pies' that southern cooks 'carry' to various 'covered dish suppers'? Many of them are made with store-bought ice cream that one melts slightly just until softened, and then stirs something into it (like creme de cacao or creme de menthe or sliced bananas or chopped fruit or nuts or crushed pralines or instant coffee or chocolate or all of the above), and then pours it into one of our time-honored crusts....oreo or graham cracker or vanilla wafers or something...and then tops it with marachino cherries or cool whip or something equally disgusting (and you get extra points for garish colors or, best of all, a rainbow effect) then refreezes it? Huh? Have you forgotten all those?

Or maybe you live in a different 'south' than the "ice box pie" ladies.

Edited January 26, 2005 by Jaymes (log)

[mikey]

Well, I went home and asked my wife, and the "boiled can" of Eagle Brand does indeed take longer than an hour-three hours, in fact.

[M. Lucia]

It takes an hour to make runny dulce de leche sauce, I do it that way to pour over ice cream. I've never done the solid version myslef but sounds good

That is definately a southern as in south-of-the border thing. I wouldn't say it was a typical southern thing, but it is good

Ice box pie, of course! grasshopper pie anyone?

[kpurvis]

There are no special ice cream desserts around here, summer or otherwise.

Have you forgotten all of those 'ice box pies' that southern cooks 'carry' to various 'covered dish suppers'? Many of them are made with store-bought ice cream that one melts slightly just until softened, and then stirs something into it (like creme de cacao or creme de menthe or sliced bananas or chopped fruit or nuts or crushed pralines or instant coffee or chocolate or all of the above), and then pours it into one of our time-honored crusts....oreo or graham cracker or vanilla wafers or something...and then tops it with marachino cherries or cool whip or something equally disgusting (and you get extra points for garish colors or, best of all, a rainbow effect) then refreezes it? Huh? Have you forgotten all those?

Or maybe you live in a different 'south' than the "ice box pie" ladies.

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Ice Box Pie in our house wasn't an ice cream concoction. It was a specific pie: The lemon pie made with sweetened condensed milk in a graham cracker crust topped with Cool Whip.

On ice cream, we certainly made a lot of it. Our ice cream maker had a bum latch when I was a kid. As the youngest, my job was always to sit on the ice cream maker to hold it down while my older siblings turned it. Just thinking about it makes my butt sore.

However, the universal homemade ice cream was always peach. My husband won't let me make peach ice cream in the summer, because that's the only kind his parents would ever make.