The Christmas Vest

It's long been on my list to write a post about my dad's Christmas vest, so I'm trying to put one together.  It had to have been the early 1950s (they were married in 1949) when my mother sewed him a special vest to wear at Christmas.  I'm guessing it might have even been the first Christmas they were married that she stitched this up.  The fabric was a red corduroy with a black window pane check.  I'm thinking that maybe the photo above was taken on the first Christmas that he owned the vest.

I am pretty sure some of that fabric still exists -- some small scraps.  I've done a brief search but haven't found it. 

He wore that vest at Christmas time ever since I can remember.  We usually went to my grandmother's for Christmas dinner and gifts.  During most of my growing-up years, my mother's siblings and their spouses and kids would be there as well.  It was a festive time and my dad and uncles were all exceptionally jolly.  In the Christmas memory book I put together for my kids, I wrote:

One special memory of Christmas for me is the red corduroy vest that my Dad would always wear when we went to Gram's for Christmas dinner and the tree. He and my uncles would all be particularly jovial on that special day, joking with all of the kids and with one another. I had forgotten this, but it seems there was always a lot of joking about how much food my dad was able to eat. One year someone took a picture of him with the turkey directly in front of him, as if the whole thing was for him to eat!

My kids remember him wearing the vest at Christmas during their growing up years.  At that point my parents were the grandparents, and Christmas was at their house rather than at the farm.    It was always a joke how my dad would sit and read while gifts were being opened.  Sometimes it was the newspaper, sometimes a book or magazine.  In the photo below, it looks as if he may be reading a book he has just received as a gift.

In an earlier photo, I had made my parents a tea cozy for Christmas and he had opened it.  As a joke, he promptly placed it on his head.  It gave him sort of a Roman soldier look.

And thanks to the innovation of Skype, some of his great-grandchildren have also seen him wearing the Christmas vest.

You see, one of the last Christmases he celebrated with us at our home, my hubby went to pick him up for dinner and a few hours together, during which we planned to Skype with the Nevada grands.  My dad had many memory issues at that point in his life,  and his short-term memory was particularly bad.  He had forgotten many things, including our phone number, and he often forgot to eat.  But it was Christmas ...

... and he had remembered to wear his Christmas vest.

Best Loved Foods of Christmas

Today's post is hopelessly nostalgic.  During my childhood, this little cookbook made an appearance every year when my mother began her Christmas baking.  When I saw this cookbook on the counter, or stacked atop her Christmas notebook, I knew that the baking was about to commence.  So I was understandably thrilled, a number of years ago, to find a copy of it at a thrift store!

Isn't the front cover mouth-watering?  Starting at top left, the goodies pictured are Norwegian Holiday Bread, Rich Dark Fruitcake, Christmas Pudding, and Eight-Trick Butter Cookies.

Yes, in addition to cookie recipes, this versatile little book also contains recipes for frostings, cakes, yeast breads, quick breads, holiday pies, and festive desserts.

The Land O'Lakes butter ad is on the back cover of my copy of this cookbook.  I have seen another copy of this booklet, apparently from a different year, which has different copy on the back cover, featuring a Holiday Buffet.

This sweet cookbook was put out by Pillsbury.   I can't find a copyright date on it anywhere but it is either from the late 1950s or the early 1960s.  You can click on the photos to enlarge them.  At left above is a very newsy, friendly note from Ann Pillsbury welcoming readers to this booklet.  At right is a color photo of some of the goodies that recipes are provided for.  I love the fun little graphic below the diagram!

  There is a whole page of helpful instructions on freezing cookies.  This advice is still sound today.

The Merry Mincemeaters above are a bar cookie that my mother often made.   I was happy to find this recipe again!  I'm not a huge fan of mincemeat, but these bars are festive and truly delicious.

Hope you've enjoyed this look into a truly vintage cookbook that is still well worth bringing out and baking from every Christmas season!  I wouldn't be a bit surprised if you could find one of these on Etsy or eBay.

Vintage style Christmas card holder

As most readers know, I have a collection of vintage Christmas cards -- and I also have many, many more that I am gradually listing and selling in my Etsy shop.  All that to say, I so appreciate vintage holiday cards.  There is something so heartwarming about them.  Tiny cards like the one above are especially sweet.

I usually display my vintage collection on a ribbon board in the front hallway

 and nearly every card on it is smallish, but sometimes they get lost in the large display area.  A card holder that would work well for only my small cards would be a nice idea.

Enter this Vintage Style Christmas Card Holder</a> by Ashlee at My So Called Crafty Life.  Wow, what an adorable idea this is.

Photo by Ashlee at My So Called Crafty Life

It looks quick and easy (painting the clothespins might be the only time-consuming part) and uses easy to find components like a plastic charger and plate.  I've seen nice looking chargers at the Dollar Tree, and Walmart has some super cute melamine plates this year.  The image below is of a container for Christmas treats, but Walmart also has this design in plates -- as well as other cute ones like buffalo checks.

So there is a really fun idea!  The old standby paper plate Christmas holder brought right up to date!  I want to try making one of these -- how about you?

Wonderful Christmas poem ~ "This Would I Keep"

Here's a wonderful poem to get us all in the true Christmas spirit!  It's by Grace Noll Crowell, and I found it in a 1955 Ideals Greetings at Christmas.

This Would I Keep

This would I keep forever in my heart
Among the things the ruthless years may leave:
The glad excitement, wonder, and delight
Of Christmas Eve;

This would I hold untarnished through the years,
Although the roads I take may lead me far;
The radiant molten glory of the light
From one white star.

And oh, to keep the breathlessness, the thrill,
The heart's swift running out to meet surprise;
Never to lose entirely the light
Of childhood from my eyes;

Never to lose the Christmas morning joy,
And never the quick bright eagerness to give --
God, some way let my spirit keep the shine
Of Christmas while I live.

-- Grace Noll Crowell

Isn't this beautiful?  It almost brings me to tears.

Come on into the Christmas kitchen!

It's December 1, and so I'm hoping to post every day here  in my Christmas kitchen, as I've done for quite a number of years now.  I hope you'll stop in and see what's new each day.

For today, once I decided to add this adorable gingerbread baker to the post, I also decided that it would be incomplete without a recipe for gingerbread boys.

So really -- it's December 1, after all!  I imagine most people have every one of the necessary ingredients in the pantry right this very minute.  Why not mix up a batch?  If you don't have time to bake them today, chill the dough and bake them tomorrow.  We have a winter storm predicted here for Monday, and what better way to chase away the chill than the wonderful aroma and the cheerful look of a pan full of gingerbread men?

The following recipe is slightly adapted from Cook & Tell, and is my favorite recipe for ginger guys. Note that it is easily made in a saucepan!

GINGERBREAD MEN

1/2 cup shortening (or use real butter)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 1/2 tsp. vinegar
1 egg, beaten
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. salt

In a large, heavy saucepan, place shortening, sugar, molasses, and vinegar. Bring to a boil, stirring. Remove from heat and cool mixture to room temperature.

Add beaten egg to cooled mixture in saucepan. Sift together remaining ingredients and stir into molasses mixture using a wooden spoon. Mix well. Form mixture into a ball; wrap in plastic wrap and chill for several hours.

Working with a small amount of dough at a time, and leaving the remainder of dough in the fridge, roll out dough 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch thick and cut with desired cookie cutters.

Bake on ungreased baking sheets at 375º for 8-12 minutes. Mine took about 8 minutes or even a little less. Makes a bunch of gingerbread men.

Happy December 1 -- and happy baking!

Getting ready!

Yes, tomorrow is December 1!  I'll be swinging open the door here in the Christmas Kitchen and will be eagerly anticipating your visit!

As I usually do in December, I'm hoping and planning to be here in the kitchen every single day.  I'll share poems, recipes, maybe devotional thoughts and carols, vintage Christmas things and memories,  craft and decorating ideas, gift suggestions, or maybe just my progress through the delightful, busy month of December.

Do plan to stop in, won't you?  And be sure and double click on the image at the top of the post.  The details are beautiful!

Last but not least ... this year's tentative Kitchen Gifts list

I just love making kitchen gifts at Christmas time!  You really don't have to read too much here to realize that.  There's even a "kitchen gifts" label in the label cloud, and I hope that you will click the label and read further.  So many good recipes and wonderful ideas!

This year's kitchen gift list is quite short, but I imagine it may be added to as the weeks go by, since it is still a "tentative" list.

Let's see if I can find links for these recipes.

Okay, here goes: the Cinnamon Pretzels are super easy and go nicely in pretty dollar store tins.

 (I don't think I need to add this, but I will anyway.  Any tin you buy to use for gifting or storing your kitchen gifts, whether you buy it at a thrift store, yard sale, or regular store, needs to be washed and thoroughly dried before packaging anything in it.  Wash it like any dish, but to dry it place both tin and cover in the oven and set the oven temp at 290º or so.  Less than 300º, anyway.  When the oven reaches temperature, turn it off.  Leave the tin, or tins, there until the oven cools down.  It is now ready to use.)

Christmas Granola is next in line, and it's so simple.  I use my regular formula for Homemade Granola.  After it's baked, while still warm, I stir in dried cranberries and shelled pistachios (red and green, get it?) to taste.  Voila!  Christmas Granola!

Hot Chocolate Mix is next, and this is my own recipe.  It always seems to go over well, and sometimes people bring the jars back for a refill.

Bran Muffins sounds like a rather mundane Christmas gift, but I'll explain.  Years ago I started giving my mother-in-law containers of Bran Muffin Batter at Christmas.  (The first year, I gave her silicone muffin pans as well.)  In more recent years, it's become more difficult for my mother-in-law to bake, so I just bake the muffins myself, using the same batter recipe, and give her a half dozen or so.  I've also experimented a bit with cutting the sugar in the recipe by about 1/3.

And lastly on the list is Christmas Jam from Kitty's Kozy Kitchen.  I made this last year and so loved giving it as part of a gift basket or using as a hostess gift.

Probably more kitchen gifts are going to make it onto the list.  Just as I've been adding photos to this post, I've seen so many fun ideas that I've used in the past.  Good thing the list is tentative!

Christmas freezing instructions 101

When I posted about my tentative Christmas cookie baking list, one reader had a question about baking and freezing Christmas cookies.  Vicki suggested that I could email her with any help, putting "Freezing for Dummies instructions" in the subject line.  I did that, though I gave it a more tactful title for publishing here on the blog.

Here's what I wrote to Vicki:

Freezing Christmas cookies is very, very easy.  I most often package the cookies in large round tins, but you can use Tupperware containers of any shape or even large plastic containers (with covers) from Walmart or even the dollar store.

I have used all of the above containers at various times (I tend to run out of containers as Christmas draws near and get sort of desperate), and I can honestly say I have never had cookies get freezer burned or lose quality in any other way.

In addition to your containers, you will also want to have a package of waxed paper on hand.  Either Cut-Rite or a store brand works fine.  Masking tape and a permanent marker are helpful for labeling.

Bake your cookies as usual and cool completely on racks. 

(If the cookie has a filling and/or frosting or glaze, be sure that layer is well hardened and firmed up before you package the cookies.)

Line your container with waxed paper.  Arrange a layer of cookies in the bottom of the container, then place a piece of waxed paper over that layer and continue layering cookies and waxed paper until the container is full.  Place the cover securely on the container.

I then place a piece of masking tape on the cover and write the name of the cookie in Sharpie.  I use the tape because I use the same containers over and over and it would be confusing to write the name of the cookies directly on the container lids.

Then place the container of cookies in your freezer.  That’s it!

You don’t have to thaw the cookies before placing them on a tray or plate to serve or give.  Cookies are small and thaw out very quickly.

Below you see a tin full of whipped shortbread all ready for the freezer once the lid is added.

It is also possible, if you live in a cold climate like we do, to store the filled cookie tins on a covered front or back porch.  I often do this if I run out of room in the freezer.  (Vicki lives in Arizona, so this won't work for her cookie storage!)

Now as you see in the illustration at the top of the post, the advice I gave Vicki could be supplemented with a few other thoughts.

* This is a no-brainer, seems to me, but only store one type of cookie per tin.  You don't want the flavors to get all mixed up.

* Store soft cookies and crisp cookies separately.

* For bar cookies, I cut them in the desired size when completely cool and transfer them to containers with waxed paper as described above.

Vicki also asked me if there were any types of cookies that should not be frozen.

There are no cookies that I know of that should not be frozen.  I think if that were the case the recipe might specify.

She also asked about freezing fudge.

Yes, you can freeze fudge.  What I most often do is cut the fudge first and then I freeze it in foil packages.  If I have a square pan of fudge, I’ll cut it and put about 1/4 of the fudge in each little package.  If I have more than one layer of fudge in the package, I put a little piece of foil or waxed paper in between the layers.  If you like, you could put a number of foil packages inside a ziplock freezer bag.  It’s easier to keep track of them that way.

Sometimes I package fudge in small tins, also lined with waxed paper or foil.  Every kind of fudge that I have frozen has kept its consistency just fine.


Other candies, like peanut butter balls or the chocolate dipped orange slices, I freeze just as I do cookies in containers with waxed paper. 

I've made almond and peanut brittle before but I don't remember if I have ever frozen them.  I would be concerned that brittles might become sticky in the freezer.  Pretty sure I would store those at room temperature in a covered tin.


Another kitchen gift that I bake and freeze ahead is little loaves of quick breads or fruitcakes.  After removing these from the loaf pans, I cool them completely on wire racks before wrapping them individually in foil.  I will then freeze the little foil-wrapped loaves in either a tin or plastic container or even a large zip-top bag. 

When I am ready to gift these little loaves, I wrap them in either colorful foil or food-safe tissue paper and add a little embellishment like ribbon, trim, or baker's twine as pictured below.
 
There you have some thoughts on freezing Christmas goodies for later.  Hope this information is helpful to someone!

And here is 2019's tentative Christmas candy list!

As I mentioned, on the reverse side of my Christmas cookie baking list I always make two more lists.  One of them is the tentative list of Christmas candies I want to make.

I come from a long line of Christmas candy makers.  My grandmother loved making the traditional Five-Minute Fudge, and made batches of it at the holidays -- both Christmas and Thanksgiving.  My mother, as I've said here many times, was locally famous for her delectable (but difficult) Maple Fudge.  (I'm sure you could easily find Five Minute Fudge with an internet search, and Maple Fudge can be found by doing a search here on the blog.)

I tend to make only a few kinds of candy at Christmas time, so my list is quite short.

Here's the list in case you can't read the one at top.  I'll include links too, along with a couple of photos.

Arlene’s Easy Fudge

Chocolate Dipped Orange Slices

Heavenly Delight

 

 Special Holiday Fudge 

 
Date-Nut Casserole Cookies 

These date balls I linked to above aren't really a cookie; they are more of a confection.  So that's why they're on the candy list rather than the cookie list!

And there you have it!   Of course,  you never know.  I've posted other fudge and candy recipes over the years that I just might be motivated to make for 2019.  That's why my lists are tentative!  They are subject to change as the season rolls along.

Happy candy making!

2019's tentative Christmas baking list!

So this morning I was able to take a few minutes and make some plans for Christmas baking.  I typically bake and freeze many of our Christmas cookies ahead.  We give cookie trays as gifts, plus it seems as if a cookie and fudge tray always works well for any holiday potluck or party we are invited to.

Often, if it works out for me timewise, I will begin my Christmas cookie baking on the day of our first significant snowfall, which is often before Thanksgiving.  Astute New Englanders will quickly grasp the problem with this otherwise charming idea:  There are times -- not often, it's true -- but there are those occasional years when we don't get snow until very close to Christmas indeed.  So if I held to my "first snowfall" tradition, we might not have any Christmas cookies baked and stored away for gifting!  So I usually start sometime in November, definitely before Thanksgiving.

Mr. T is retiring from his logging job mid-December, so he will get to help me this year.  He loves baking Christmas cookies!

You may not be able to read that scribbled list, so I will type it out here, adding links to recipes as I can.

🌟Lemon Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies

🌟Chocolate Spritz

🌟  Sacher Torte Cookies

🌟 Eggnog Log Cookies

🌟  Whipped Shortbread Cookies

🌟  Chocolate Mint Crisps

🌟Almond Shortbread Thumbprints

🌟Christmas No-Bakes

🌟 Secret Spice Cookies

🌟Gingerbread Men?

🌟Christmas Tree Spritz?

I've also purchased (on clearance after last Christmas) a few plates to use in gifting cookies:

Now: on the reverse side of my tentative baking list, I make 2 more, shorter, tentative lists: one for kitchen gifts and one for candies and confections.  I'll share those lists soon!

October's Rudolph Day

Wow!  Can you believe it?  After today, there is just one more Rudolph Day before Christmas!

This is the message inside the card pictured at top of post.  This card was in my Etsy shop and sold quickly.

I really have not done a lot of Christmasy things today, but I did complete a personalized Shutterfly project that will be a Christmas gift for one of my grandchildren.  I dare not be more specific in case the recipient reads my blogs, but I am quite pleased to have gotten this project completed -- and for free, too!

Recently in chatting with my Nevada daughter she mentioned that her kids have often fondly reminisced about the Quiet-Time Puzzle Kits I've occasionally made for them in the past, and talked about what a fun gift that was.  So I am thinking I'll make those again this year.  They're simple and quick to put together.  Inexpensive too.

She also gave me a couple of other good ideas for easy gifts I might make for her kids.  So I have no shortage of ideas ... just time. 😃

It's possible that tomorrow I may be able to accomplish something else toward Christmas -- like making up my tentative Christmas baking list. We will see!