Only Around for the Holidays

[racheld]

I've never got the hang of measuring out rubbed sage, nor of getting the little wisps stirred into dressing properly.

Besides, it's like a canful of sweaty dustbunnies.

[annecros]

I wonder if annecros would share her gingerbread recipe that she mentioned upthread?

How about it Annie, please? 

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Of course! It is an old one from a handwritten card I got from my aunt who passed away. I need to pull it out later today, I'm way behind on my Christmas baking! Will post it later tonight.

[Kris]

Black cake (West Indian fruitcake)

Pasteles (Puerto Rican version of a tamale)

Coquito (Puerto Rican egg nog)

Christmas Day brunch at my parents' house

Edited December 9, 2005 by Kris (log)

[Marlene]

Definately eggnog. I usually try to make my own killer eggnog, but I've been known to buy it from the store too!

Chocolate covered cherries are only to be seen here for some reason during this season,

Yule logs I still can't make these!

Gingerbread houses

mincemeat tarts

Mulled wine. Yes I know, but we only seem to make it during the holiday season

Second Cup coffee chain also has eggnog coffee at this time of year, which I love!

[Jenny McClure]

Here in Puerto Rico you know Christmas is coming when many of the restaurants give a little glass of coquito after dinner. Coquito is their version of eggnog, made with rum and cream of coconut. Some versions even have a pint of vanilla Haagen Daz in them Morcilla (blood sausage) is served a lot of parties also pasteles.

[Ktepi]

Coquito sounds excellent -- do you just substitute the coconut milk for the dairy (and eggs?), or use them half and half?

When our apartment manager dropped off a "Christmas treat bag" the other day, I smelled the Wint-O-Green LifeSavers in it and they reminded me of York's Wintergreen Patties. Does anyone know if those were only made for the holidays? It's what I associate them with, but we didn't have candy very often when I was a kid, so I mostly associate it with holidays anyway.

[lesfen]

Cheese balls, baby... spread with those totally queer spreaders with snowmen/Christmas trees/Christmas tree bulbs as handles. Love it! I also look forward to the giant bowl of mixed (shell on) nuts that my mom always has hanging around.

My husband said that he most looks forward to eggnog milkshakes from McDonalds and Steak and Shake.

[jgm]

What I like is having a general excuse to overeat, period. Especially since it allows me to delude myself into thinking it's only temporary.

Specifically, I love:

eggnog

fudge

iced sugar cookies, unless they're just really bad (but 1 or 2 will do for the entire season)

peanut brittle

divinity, if it's ever available, and I haven't seen it in years; I might just make my own this year

pralines, but I usually am not content until I've eaten the entire batch

gingerbread, either in cookie or cake form

Godiva hot chocolate

peppermint ice cream

pie, pie and more pie

[rose_ayn]

Oh, the things I love about this time of year.

Eggnog - straight, thinned with milk, or in my coffee it just doesn't matter.

Peppermint ice cream.

Gingerbread ice cream sandwiches.

Fruit cake, Claxton I believe. I know I get the 3 log box and enjoy it into the New Year - must remember to add it to my shopping list.

Ribbon candy - not that I eat much of it anymore but it's such a flashback from my childhood. It always felt like Christmas as soon as Dad brought that box home.

Swedish meatballs - the staple at Christmas Eve dinner.

Any novelty candy- this year it's the Cherry Hershey Kisses that I think I'll probably overdose on by the end of the season.

Oh, great now I'm really hungry.

[andiesenji]

I like mince pies but only if they are hot from the oven with a dollop of cold freshly whipped cream.

  Every Christams my Dad orders an entire Stilton.  It has always been a tradition after dinner to pass the decantor (sp) of port followed by the stilton.  I look forward to that part of the meal most.  My husband (recently married) had a bit of trouble the first Christmas when he was hit with the aroma of the cheese, but now he loves it as much as the rest of the family.

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I used to have an entire Stilton for a early holiday party every year but stopped a couple of years ago when it got to be too much for me.

The best part was that I saved the Stilton rind (using care to keep it intact) in its wooden box and then would make potato soup and serve it in the Stilton rind - the flavor is incredible.

[andiesenji]

When I first moved to California the Helms Bakery Home delivery was still in operation and the holidays always meant that the Helms Man would have Christmas cupcakes (white or chocolate) in the truck with chocolate mint icing and silver dragees and a cherry on top. The only doughnuts I ever liked were the cinnamon crumb delivered by the Helms Man!

[Kris]

Forgot to add that I must have some eggnog during the Christmas season. Preferably homemade.

I just made a 1/2 gallon of spiked eggnog this afternoon. Yummy.

[Kris]

Coquito sounds excellent -- do you just substitute the coconut milk for the dairy (and eggs?), or use them half and half?...

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Everyone has their own version of Coquito, but some of the ingredients are pretty basic for most recipes:

Condensed milk

Evaporated milk

Cream of coconut (e.g. Coco Goya or Coco Lopez that you use to make Pina Coladas)

Nutmeg or cinnamon

Vanilla

Sometimes an egg or two

RUM!!!!!

To the best of my knowledge, no regular milk or half & half is used.

I know that old-timers will actually crack open fresh coconuts and use the milk from that. But not too many people who make coquito do that anymore.

[Radio7]

"Gingerbread ice cream sandwiches."

Oh wow! I have to try this!

[mochihead]

Oatmeal cookies, orange-hazelnut biscotti, Chinese pretzels (also called rosetti), Neapolitan cookies, dark fruitcake (minus the horrible neon fruit things), homemade eggnog (YUM!!!!!)

Honey tangerines are also holidays for us, because that's when our tree is in full fruit mode!

But just keep the candy canes and minty type things away from me, please. Ugh.

[Tepee]

Had Eggnog Latte at Bernardo Winery in Southern California last week. YUM! Almost went for a second cup.

Edited December 15, 2005 by Tepee (log)

[hazardnc]

Prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, buche de noel, homemade fudge, toffee, meringue kisses and marshmallows.

A bowl of nuts in the shell.

[jackal10]

Havng just bought some at the local farm shop I am reminded of two seasonal treats. Both taste sweeter, nuttier and more intense than the normal kind:

Brussel Sprouts on the stem

"Dirty" celery. Fen-grown celery still with the mud attached.

[anzu]

Goodness, where to start the list for what's only available at Advent and Christmas in Germany? Incidentally, sale of special foods starts a lot earlier than in the US: about four months before Christmas.

Gluhwein, of course, and it's variants including the non-alcoholic version for children

Stollen, whether the original, or with poppy seed, marzipan, etc.

honey cakes (usually quite dry, and spiced)

dry spicy cookies such as Printen, Springerle, and Speculatius

dry aniseed cookies whose name I forget (shaped and glazed like Pfeffernusse, but white)

less dry cookies such as cinnamon stars (Zimtsterne), Pfeffernusse and filled spice cookies (e.g Magenbrot)

a gazillion variants of marzipan

another gazillion variants of Lebkuchen (Dominosteine being one example)

roast chestnuts

'Christmas chocolate' flavored with coriander and cinnamon (reduced to half price immediately after Christmas is over, whereupon I buy as much as possible)

whole nuts in their shells, walnuts being a particular favorite

goose (though this first makes it's appearance for St. Martins Day)

Then there are the regional specialties as well. In the city I lived in earlier they made cinnamon waffles (the thin kind of waffles, like Dutch stroopwaffeln). They smelt wonderful as you walked past the stalls making them, but had so much cinnamon in them that even I - who loves cinnamon - couldn't eat them plain. Crushed into ice cream they were good though, or as part of the filling for baked apples.

[MelissaH]

Just curious: based on the name, I've wondered if Ho-Hos (chocolate cake, spread with something similar or identical to the white cremey filling that's used in Twinkies, rolled up, and coated in a chocolatey glaze) were a seasonal treat at one time. Can anyone shed some light?

MelissaH