26 days to go...

Christmas fact/trivia:
What is the origin of the Christmas pudding?
...it began life centuries ago as a curious mush called frumenty. This took its name from the Latin word for corn (frumentum) and consisted of hulled wheat boiled in milk, with the addition of some spices and sugar. Unlike many Christmas traditions, the origin of this dish was not Roman, Scandinavian, or German, but Celtic.

The Celts had a harvest god called the Dagda whose eternal task was to stir a huge cauldron. Inside the cauldron was a porridge made up of all the good things of the earth.  As long as he kept stirring, the harvest would be successful. The corn would grow and the cattle would give milk. To honour him and to encourage him in his labours, the ancient Celts used to imitate him  They stirred a great bowl of porridge and ate the mixture at their feasts to ensure plenty in the year ahead. As time went on, this porridge was improved by the addition of various fruits, such as prunes, and meats, all minced together.  This was called Plum Porridge. Then in the 1670s the porridge was made much thicker until it became Plum Pudding. Finally, in its fourth stage, the meat was omitted and it became the famous Christmas pudding we know today.

Christmas Recipe time!!
Well, Christmas pudding is wonderful, but then again, ice cream Christmas pud is also wonderful and in Australia on a hot Christmas day, it goes down a treat!  Our family recipe, handed down and used since the Sixties (I think, I'll check with mum) makes the most fabulous dessert, once tried never forgotten.  Here it is:

Frozen Christmas Pudding*   (the Smith, Barclay, Congues, Laing recipe)

*  (note this is double the original recipe)

120 g chopped glace cherries 

120 g chopped raisins

1 cup sultanas

     1 teaspoon each finely grated orange & lemon rind

1½ tablespoon mixed spice

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons nutmeg

2 tablespoons brandy or rum
Combine these 8 ingredients in a bowl and leave to steep overnight, covered with cling film

-----------

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

2 tablespoon hot water

8 egg whites

300g icing sugar

2 x 600ml bottles whipping cream

120g toasted* whole peeled almonds (chopped) or toasted slivered almonds (easier)

*Put all the almonds in a heavy based pan & move them around the pan over low heat until brown – don’t let them burn.

METHOD: 

Next day, you will need 2 large bowls –

1.     Beat egg whites until stiff, then gradually beat in half the icing sugar. 

2.     Add remaining sugar to the cream, beat together until thick. 

3.     Stir fruit mixture and the toasted nuts into the cream mixture.

4.     Dissolve cocoa in the hot water and add to cream mixture also.

5.     Fold in the egg whites gently but thoroughly. 

6.     Pack into a large ice cream container or foil-lined 2 litre pudding basin and freeze overnight until firm.

What has Santa Teddy been up to lately?
Well it looks like S-T has been practising his Christmas carols with his rather unique method of playing the piano!   Practise makes perfect Teddy.

 

30 days to go...

Tis getting closer and closer and I'm thinking 'where am I going to buy my Christmas tree from this year? After all, it's nearly the 1st of December. 

I found a funny quote from a funny man, Dave Barry, who I've never heard of but is touted as being the "funniest man in America" (maybe by his own press agent ?) 

Once again we find ourselves enmeshed in the Holiday Season, that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones in sharing centuries-old traditions such as trying to find a parking space at the mall. We traditionally do this in my family by driving around the parking lot until we see a shopper emerge from the mall, then we follow her, in very much the same spirit as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago followed a star, week after week, until it led them to a parking space.

 

Easy coffee filter Angel

I kid you not!  Yes you can make an angel out of 3 coffee filters and some pipe cleaners, suitable for children aged 6 & up, or adults searching for an original topper for the tree.  For the instructions, please visit my Craft tab above.  I must thank Amanda Formaro http://crafts.kaboose.com/easy-coffee-filter-angel.html for her easy idea.

What's Santa Teddy up to today?

Good on you S-T, he's listening to some Christmas music and keeping me company

33 days to go - An Australian Christmas

This is for our overseas guests to my blog --  What we do Down Under at Christmas


Koalas watching Santa pass by

For the majority of Australians, Christmas Down Under has all the glitter, tinsel and razzmatazz of a Christmas in New York, London Paris or Vancouver. The major difference is one of WEATHER....Christmas Down Under is never White. Snow has rarely fallen, if ever, on the 25th December. During past Christmasses we have however, experienced all the seasonal variations of a Summer Down Under.....electrical storms, floods, hailstorms, cyclones and bushfires. But 80% of the time we are blessed with blue skies and depending on what State we live in, temperatures ranging from 25-42 degrees centigrade on the mainland. (Tamania is always slightly cooler.)     Currently it is November, the end of Spring. Summer months are December-January-February.

Christmas is special to the majority of Australians for it is our Summer Holiday season and students especially are winding up their school year. That means sitting for end of Semester tests or exams and waiting for their results, as well as getting ready for the Summer Holidays. For the majority of Australian students this means ...SUN....SURF....SHOPPING. Our neighbours, the "Kiwis" or New Zealanders are actually the first ones to really celebrate the joyous day of Christmas. New Zealand is the first country immediately west of the international date line. So we're sorry most of American friends have to wait an extra day for Christmas.
 
So how do we REALLY celebrate Christmas? You must remember that Australia, though huge in size, has a population of just over 18 million people. Our country is a harmonious mix of many ethnic groups. Our backgrounds are very varied....our people have connections with England, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Europe, Italy, Greece, Spain, France, Middle East, Vietnam, China, Japan, Thailand as well as North and South America. So you can imagine that each of these national groups brings the colour ,customs and festive rituals of the Christmas celebrated in their respective homelands. As Australians we are able to appreciate culturally diverse Christmas celebrations.
 
However, up until 30 years ago, our Christmas celebrations were heavily influenced by our original Anglo-Celtic influences. The English style of Christmas served as our model for celebrating Christmas.......right down to the traditional roast turkey and steamed pudding in over 35 degree heat. Today with the huge influx of overseas migrants our Christmas celebrations are heavily influenced by the ethnicity of families involved. Common sense is prevailing today in terms of weather. Traditional dinners have been replaced with family gatherings in back yards, picnics in parks, gardens and on the beach. For many, it is the occasion to be with friends and relatives, to share love and friendship and not to forget, the exchange of gifts in the traditional manner. For many, it is of course a time to enjoy and consume massive quantities of food. A typical Christmas menu could include seafood, glazed ham, cold chicken, duck or turkey, cold deli meats, pasta, salads galore, desserts of all types, fruit salad, pavlovas, ice-cream plus Christmas edibles of all varieties such as mince pies, fruit cake, shortbread, chocolates etc.
 
For history buffs, the first official Christmas Down Under was celebrated on the 25th December,1788 at Sydney Cove by Reverend Johnson. After the service, Governor Arthur Phillips and his officers dined heartily, toasting the King of England and his family. But for the majority of the first white inhabitants...the convicts....there was no change to their regular menu... bread rations only.
 
Currently everyone is beginning to get ready for the "silly season". Everyone is busily planning Christmas break-up parties. Children are writing letters to Santa Claus. When December arrives, the Christmas rituals are being followed.  Decorations are being set up and the Christmas tree will either be bought fresh or the plastic version hunted for in the dark reaches of a cupboard. Shopping centres and malls are playing Christmas carols REALLY LOUDLY.  Children will help to decorate the family Christmas tree.
Children are learning Christmas Carols so that they may be sung at festive occasions such as public "Carols by Candlelight" and school concerts. Christmas stockings won't be hung until Christmas eve. Cards galore are being written and posted.
 
It must also be mentioned that with all the glitter, tinsel and razzmatazz.......most Australians consider Christmas a time for remembering the true meaning of Christmas.........a time for remembering the birth of Jesus and the spiritual meaning of Christmas. 
 
What is Santa Teddy up to today?
 



A Still Life:  I called it "S-T, a Jug, an Onion and a Duck"



38 days to go..

Hi again, had some great feedback.  Everybody likes Santa Teddy.  So what's not to like already!   Scroll to the end to see what S-T has been up to.


I'm a great fan of the Peanuts cartoons, takes me back to simpler days, so I wanted to share this classic video where Linus explains the meaning of Christmas to Charlie Brown.  Enjoy

http://youtu.be/DKk9rv2hUfA

Chocolate rum truffles  (old family recipe, not shared publicly to date) 

I have it on good authority (my 3 children) that if these truffles don't appear on our Christmas menu every year, then there will be a riot and it will not be pretty!


I don't know anyone who doesn't like a truffle or two.  Being a truffle-buff, I must admit I have been incredibly disappointed over the years when choosing what I hoped was a chocolate truffle but was instead presented with some concoction made with condensed milk, biscuit crumbs, rum flavouring (not the good stuff) and the chocolate ingredient had walked through on stilts!  Sorry if I sound a truffle snobbish (get it, a trifle snobbish!).
This recipe is not like that. The truffles are easy to make and I guarantee you will not be disappointed.  Go to Recipes tab at the top of this blog.


Christmas fact/trivia:

Why do we put a fairy on top of the Christmas tree?The fairy started out life several hundred years ago as a sacred effigy of the infant Jesus. It then went through a series of gradual transformations until it developed its modern image. Its story begins in 17th century Germany where baroque architectural moulds of cherubs were used to make little wax figures of the infant Jesus. these were hung over Christmas trees as a reminder of the nativity. Eventually, one larger effigy called the Tin-gold Angel based on the early cherubs was placed on top of the tree. It still represented the Christ-child, but he had now become an angel and had sprouted wings. His body was covered with gilded tin, so that he glistened in the Christmas lights.  In the 19th century, doll-makers made him from wax or porcelain, now he was a guardian angel. He was brought to Britain in early Victorian times and because he looked like a doll, children begged to have him as a toy. His clothing was then changed and he was dressed up as a fashionable doll once Christmas had passed. In the process he also changed sex. The next step involved pantomime. Victorians loved their pantos and one of the favourite characters was the Good Fairy who waved her wand and saved the hero and heroine from evil villains. By the 20th century, the Infant christ had morphed into the fairy on the Christmas tree.

 (adapted from "Christmas Watching" by Desmond Morris, 1992, Mackays of Chatham PLC, Kent, London)

Author:  I wonder what the fairy will morph into after our century has passed! 

What's Santa Teddy been up to today?

 

He's been a bit naughty and is doing a bit of planking, although he assures me that it he has taken all safety precautions and is only a few feet off the ground.  ST's joke today:  Q.  Why do reindeer wear fur coats?   A. Because they'd look silly in polyester.

Author:  I think the blood has rushed to your head, Teddy !

Au revoir Christmasophiles

The first Christmas blog..

It is officially 40 days to Christmas Day (aaarrrggghhh some of you might say) and it is the first day of this blog.  I hope you like it. 

My blog will look something like this -
Introduction
Craft - something I have made with a shared pattern or two
Christmas Food - I will share all recipes & some secret family ones also
Christmas Watching - some little-known facts or trivia
Santa Teddy - what has he been up to?


I spent the weekend making Christmas bunting, the first I've ever made and it turned out so well I'm selling it at Gathering (Newstead, VIC) all done up into nice little bags and an example hung in the shop, here they are -

    


This would be a great time to make some Christmas Chutney, so called because it looks a bit dark and festive (due to the beetroot) and it is simply wonderful with cold meats on a salad or it can turn a simple sandwich into something special.  It is sooooo easy.  You will find the recipe under my "Recipes" Tab above.
Behold!  my chutney-making attempts - so far I've had it with ham and turkey - yum

Christmas fact/trivia:
Why do we abbreviate Christmas to Xmas?
The abbreviation 'Xmas' is frowned upon by English teachers, who see it as a modern form of writing laziness, but their disapproval is misplaced.  The word 'Xmas' has been in use for at least six hundred years and has a special, religious meaning.  The X does not, as many think, represent the Christian Cross, but the Greek letter 'chi' which is the first letter of 'Christos', meaning Christ. So Xmas is not modern slang, after all, but has an ancient and worthy heritage. ("Christmas Watching" by Desmond Morris, 1992, Mackays of Chatham PLC, Kent, London)

Author:  Wow!  I did not know that one, how about you?

Let's see what Santa Teddy has been up to
We have been putting our heads together for our first blog - here he is hard at work at the keyboard

ST's joke today: Q: What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
A: Frostbite.

Au revoir Christmasophiles