The best family food traditions are all about family and tradition and little about food, a lesson hard-learned from my ever-wise sister.
When her now-strapping teenboys were little tikes, she introduced the family to the Christmas Eve tradition of celebrating Jesus’ birthday complete with cake and candles and party hats and a round of the Happy Birthday song.
One year, I went to considerable effort to bake a fancy cake with good chocolate and toasted nuts and artful icing. It was good and all but really, nothing memorable. The next year, my sister picked up some gaudy, gooey, sugary, frosting-thick cake from the supermarket bakery late on Christmas Eve.
(Yes. You can tell, right? It’s true. I admit it! I didn’t approve.)
That night, we gathered round the table, carols quiet in the background. The boys lit the candles atop the cake one by one. We joined hands to sing ‘Happy biiiirtttttthday, dear Jeeeeesus’ in loud, clear voices.
After a brief squabble over who’d blow out the candles, we sliced the cake and added big scoops of ice cream.
I took a bite, sure it would be awful.
Then I looked up, seeing with wet eyes the smiles on everyone’s faces, the tree lights reflecting in the windows, and understood with new wisdom the real meaning of family traditions.
It was the best cake ever. I ate every bite.
APPLE YOGURT SALAD
Time-to-table: 15 minutes
Makes 4 cups
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
- 2 tablespoons orange juice (or 1 tablespoon juice concentrate)
- ½ teaspoon cardamom (or cinnamon)
- 2 apples, chopped bite-size
- 2 Clementine tangerines, peeled, sections cut in thirds (or grapes)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint (don’t skip this)
Mix the yogurt, orange juice and cardamom in a medium-size bowl. (Prep this far in advance.) Stir in the apple, then the more delicate tangerines and mint. Serve immediately.
FESTIVE HOLIDAY SALAD
Time-to-table: 10 minutes
- Mixed salad greens
- Dried cranberries
- Toasted walnuts
- Chunks of a “stinky” cheese such as Saga blue or Gorgonzola
- Low-fat Caesar dressing thinned with skim milk
Toss the greens, cranberries and walnuts. (Prep this far in advance.) Add the cheese and lightly dress with thinned dressing.
• (2007) If you are on the look-out for ways to celebrate Christian holidays with children, you may like the idea of planting Lenten grass.
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© Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade
Your Comments:
So having roped everyone in with a tale featuring cake and equally sweet sentiment, you then make us do penance by eating salad. You're a hard woman.{g}
12/21/2006
Have a wonderful Christmas!
12/22/2006
12/28/2006