Monday, December 3, 2007

Holiday Foods filled with tradition

December 3 - Holiday Foods

Did your family have any traditional dishes for the holidays? Was there one dish that you thought was unusual?

I do not remember any unusual dishes at our home. Some years we did not have the big turkey dinner meal on Christmas Day. Instead we had it on Boxing Day (26th). Meals were kept simpler on Christmas Day. The Christmas season was a very busy one as my parents had first a corner store and then a supermarket. In my teen years, the supermarket was open to 10 p.m. and Christmas Eve was a hectic work day so we kept Christmas Day as simple as possible.
When my nephews were young, we had a birthday cake for Jesus to remind us all of the reason we were celebrating Christmas.
My mother made a Christmas carrot pudding and the most delicious butterscotch sauce. Okay, I must admit that it was really the sauce I liked. My first try at making the Christmas sauce had to be thrown out as it was not edible. I have never made Christmas pudding myself.
I have my mother's recipe book that has hand-written recipes. Although it is in a newish binder, some of the original recipes are in the handwriting of her eldest sister. This one includes her comments.
Carrot Pudding
1 large cup brown sugar
1 cup grated potatoes
1 cup grated carrots
1/2 cup shredded apple
1 cup suet
1 cup raisins
1 cup currants
1 cup mixed peel
1 cup blanched almonds
1 cup figs or dates
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 small nutmeg
Mix altogether. Steam 3 hours. I usually put in oven to dry off with oven door open. Keeps better open to air.
I sometimes omit egg, nuts
I don't know if my mother added her own variations to the recipe.
Sauce for Carrot Pudding
1 cup brown sugar
1 heaping tablespoon flour
1 heaping tablespoon butter
rub all together well. pour over same 1 1/2 cups boiling water. Boil up once, stirring all the time to thicken evenly. may add any desired flavouring (e.g. vanilla)
Do you have a family recipe book?

2 comments:

  1. My grandmother also made a wonderful Christmas carrot pudding every year, with a brown sugar sauce. Gwen.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I miss having Christmas pudding but I would never attempt to make it for myself. Sounds like your grandmother's sauce might be like ours.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are moderated before being posted. Please no links in your comments. The blog author reserves the right to not post a comment if deemed inappropriate.