I'm continuing with my Journal ponderings on the things I love about Christmas, and today I want to talk about food. My family has so many traditional foods, and at times our gatherings seem to revolve around the food. Okay, I know that's a sad statement in a lot of ways, because of course the meaning of Christmas has nothing to do with food. We know that. But we still like food.
I'm a chocolate lover, so one of the tastes of Christmas is fudge! I can't make myself eat fudge throughout the year (okay - maybe a tiny bite when I'm on vacation and I visit a fudge factory!), but at Christmas I must have fudge with walnuts or pecans. It's a rule. I don't make very good fudge, but I always try. And in my house, any fudge is better than no fudge at all. (But I love when neighbors give me plates of fudge as gifts!!!!) My daughter makes good fudge. She must have inherited the talent from her father's side.
Other traditional foods that can be found at my family's Christmas gatherings include my mother's pimento cheese, salt cured country ham, mom's shortbread, and my sister Susie's white chili on Christmas Eve. (My other sister, Beth, doesn't cook. She brings the drinks. It wouldn't be Christmas without Beth's collection of 2-liters! LOL!) Oh, and miniature cheesecakes with either blueberry or cherry topping. Plus, we can't forget the cookies. My husband is a cookie monster, so we must have lots of cookies!
But my favorite Christmas food is my grandmother's lemon cake. Mono made the best lemon cake in the world, and we've carried on the tradition since she passed away. I could seriously eat the entire cake all by myself. I've decided to share the recipe with you.
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Mono's Lemon Cake
3/4 cup oil
1 cup canned apricot nectar
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 Lemon cake mix
Combine ingredients with mixer. Pour into greased, floured Bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 for another 25 minutes. Turn hot cake onto cake stand and poke with toothpick. Pour on a mixture of:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Cover with the cake stand lid and wrap tightly with several layers of plastic wrap. Let stand for 2-3 days before serving.
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What about you? Does your family have any traditional foods for the holidays? I'd love to hear about them -- and share the recipes!
P.S. In case you missed my Christmas greeting video, I'm including it again here. It's short - only 20 seconds. Take a look!
>
I'm a chocolate lover, so one of the tastes of Christmas is fudge! I can't make myself eat fudge throughout the year (okay - maybe a tiny bite when I'm on vacation and I visit a fudge factory!), but at Christmas I must have fudge with walnuts or pecans. It's a rule. I don't make very good fudge, but I always try. And in my house, any fudge is better than no fudge at all. (But I love when neighbors give me plates of fudge as gifts!!!!) My daughter makes good fudge. She must have inherited the talent from her father's side.
Other traditional foods that can be found at my family's Christmas gatherings include my mother's pimento cheese, salt cured country ham, mom's shortbread, and my sister Susie's white chili on Christmas Eve. (My other sister, Beth, doesn't cook. She brings the drinks. It wouldn't be Christmas without Beth's collection of 2-liters! LOL!) Oh, and miniature cheesecakes with either blueberry or cherry topping. Plus, we can't forget the cookies. My husband is a cookie monster, so we must have lots of cookies!
But my favorite Christmas food is my grandmother's lemon cake. Mono made the best lemon cake in the world, and we've carried on the tradition since she passed away. I could seriously eat the entire cake all by myself. I've decided to share the recipe with you.
-----
Mono's Lemon Cake3/4 cup oil
1 cup canned apricot nectar
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 Lemon cake mix
Combine ingredients with mixer. Pour into greased, floured Bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 for another 25 minutes. Turn hot cake onto cake stand and poke with toothpick. Pour on a mixture of:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Cover with the cake stand lid and wrap tightly with several layers of plastic wrap. Let stand for 2-3 days before serving.
-----
What about you? Does your family have any traditional foods for the holidays? I'd love to hear about them -- and share the recipes!
P.S. In case you missed my Christmas greeting video, I'm including it again here. It's short - only 20 seconds. Take a look!
>
