In my house it is a tradition to make holiday treats and holiday candy!  I even got married a week before Christmas, and for the reception I made trays and trays of holiday candies.  What are some you make?

Around here the favorites are
Fudge (my favorite - not my husbands)
Caramels
Toffee
Divinity - although sometime it comes out well, sometimes not
Almond bark covered pretzels
Chocolate covered marshmallows (girls favorite)


At my mothers my favorite goodies are
Russian tea cakes
Date pinwheel cookies
Neither have I got the courage up to try myself...

So what are your favorites?




Warning you may be asked to share recipes  ;)

The family recipe for xmas cookies.  I think they're a kind of butter-sugar cookie.  Not sure.  I remember we used decorate them ourselves.  Lots of fun.  Baked right they were thin and crisp with kind of a buttery taste and melted in your mouth.  I should get the recipe from my mom because I think she's now the only one left who knows how to make them.  My sister knows how to make them, but not very well.  You have to get the ingredients 100% perfect or you can't roll the dough thin enough.  My nana made the best ones, but she had seventy years of practice by the time she got too old and sick to bake anymore! 

I always associate these strawberry candies with xmas as well. 

http://kyleplattner.com/blog/kplattnerp.com/kp/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/candy-300x300.png

I remember when I was seven, I ate about 30 of them over the course of Boxing Day night.  I don't mean to gross anybody out but they were almost as good coming up as they were going down. 
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/13/laughing7.gif

Candy Canes are always good. 

http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/step-by-step/files/2009/12/candy-canes.jpg

Today (12/05) is the Feast of St. Nicholas.  The legend is St. Nick (aka. Santa Claus) threw gold coins into the homes of poor families.  Thus we often got these in our xmas stockings.

http://www.treasureislandsweets.co.uk/acatalog/gold_coins.jpg

Father handed the chocolate gold coins at Mass today.  He said he wished he could give out REAL gold coins, but Belgian chocolate was the best he could do!  Maybe I'll save mine and put them in the collection plate next Sunday.  What's good for the goose is good for the gander.  Heh heh!
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/12/icon_biggrin.gif

Speaking of goose, my brother made one for xmas a couple of years ago.  Goose is more of a British tradition.  It's good, but it's really heavy, greasy, and rich compared to our usual turkey!

My friend David made a whole mess of these for his Hanukkah Party tonight:

SUFGIANOT (KOSHER JELLY DOUGHNUTS)

http://kosherscene.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/jelly-doughnut.jpg?w=500&h=333

Which followed a plateful of these:

LATKES  (POTATO PANCAKES)

http://www.metroparent.com/images/cache/417c1d424314995b9bed1e4631f619c0.jpeg

He also made a huge crock of kosher chili and served mass quantities of sangria!

When I got home, I gobbled two of these:

http://www.pharmer.org/files/images/TumsSD.jpg

I did not need a rabbi's blessing, I'm not Jewish!
:)

My friend David made a whole mess of these for his Hanukkah Party tonight:

SUFGIANOT (KOSHER JELLY DOUGHNUTS)

http://kosherscene.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/jelly-doughnut.jpg?w=500&h=333

Which followed a plateful of these:

LATKES  (POTATO PANCAKES)

http://www.metroparent.com/images/cache/417c1d424314995b9bed1e4631f619c0.jpeg

He also made a huge crock of kosher chili and served mass quantities of sangria!

When I got home, I gobbled two of these:

http://www.pharmer.org/files/images/TumsSD.jpg

I did not need a rabbi's blessing, I'm not Jewish!
:)



My favorite jewish food,donuts and potato pancakes.

The family recipe for xmas cookies.  I think they're a kind of butter-sugar cookie.  Not sure.  I remember we used decorate them ourselves.  Lots of fun.  Baked right they were thin and crisp with kind of a buttery taste and melted in your mouth.  I should get the recipe from my mom because I think she's now the only one left who knows how to make them.  My sister knows how to make them, but not very well.  You have to get the ingredients 100% perfect or you can't roll the dough thin enough.  My nana made the best ones, but she had seventy years of practice by the time she got too old and sick to bake anymore! 

Those cookies sound delicious, I have never mastered the art of sugar cookies.  They always seem to turn out "tough".  I over work the dough, I suppose, or too much flour (although I am always careful to measure it out exact).  I just do not know what a good dough, feels like!

My friend David made a whole mess of these for his Hanukkah Party tonight:

SUFGIANOT (KOSHER JELLY DOUGHNUTS)

http://kosherscene.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/jelly-doughnut.jpg?w=500&h=333

Which followed a plateful of these:

LATKES  (POTATO PANCAKES)

http://www.metroparent.com/images/cache/417c1d424314995b9bed1e4631f619c0.jpeg

He also made a huge crock of kosher chili and served mass quantities of sangria!

When I got home, I gobbled two of these:

http://www.pharmer.org/files/images/TumsSD.jpg

I did not need a rabbi's blessing, I'm not Jewish!
:)

The doughnuts look divine, and I have always wanted to ask are the Potato Latkes like hashbrowns?  I just cannot picture/taste them??? I just have never had a chance to experience them. 

The doughnuts look divine, and I have always wanted to ask are the Potato Latkes like hashbrowns?  I just cannot picture/taste them??? I just have never had a chance to experience them. 


Potato latkes are sort of like hash browns in a way and they're good with applesauce dipping.

Potato latkes are sort of like hash browns in a way and they're good with applesauce dipping.


Yes, they were tasty with the applesauce.  I confess that was the first time I had proper latkes.  I was the only Christian at that party!  I used to think latke was a character on "Taxi"!
:D

A link for 2kidsami in re: Latkes versus has browns:

http://www.jewishrecipes.org/jewish-foods/latkes.html

The Jewish jelly doughnuts are called "sufganiyot" (plural) or "sufganiyah" (singular).  I ate "sufganiyot" for sure!  David told me the names, but I just called them jelly doughnuts. 

Yes, they were tasty with the applesauce.  I confess that was the first time I had proper latkes.  I was the only Christian at that party!  I used to think latke was a character on "Taxi"!
:D

A link for 2kidsami in re: Latkes versus has browns:

http://www.jewishrecipes.org/jewish-foods/latkes.html

The Jewish jelly doughnuts are called "sufganiyot" (plural) or "sufganiyah" (singular).  I ate "sufganiyot" for sure!  David told me the names, but I just called them jelly doughnuts. 


Well you have to be a good jew to enjoy Latkes.

Well, mom used to make these two types of cookies only for Christmas that I loved, I've never tried to make them myself.

I think the proper name is called "Mexican wedding cookies" but for some reason we always called them walnut crescents.

http://img.foodnetwork.com/FOOD/2005/12/02/mexican_lg.jpg

And Pecan Tassies.  Yum! yum!
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Cookie/PecanTassie2.jpg

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She'd also make thumbprint cookies (with jelly in the "thumbprint" part, don't know what the real name is though.

-----
Once, back in the 70s, my grandma asked each of us grandkids what kind of pie we wanted for Christmas (the family party) and there were alot of grandkids back then...

I chose lemon merange... (I know that isn't spelt right) and that was a pie to remember.  Truly, the memory has lasted of that one pie for, what?  almost 40 years? 

------
My dad's aunt used to make something called a jelly roll, it tasted like yellow cake with strawberry or raspberry jam in the layers.  Wow that was terrific as well.  Seemed to complicated, so I never made it.  It made visiting her tolerable.  lol  (Oh I'm a terrible person.)

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I'm sure there are other stuff I'm forgetting.  I'm trying to forget so that I don't become tempted and bake lots of stuff that neither my husband or myself should really have in the first place.  I know I could bake with Splenda, but it just isn't the same.  Hubby doesn't like it anyway.  :\'(

^ Ah, lemon meringue pie!  I haven't had one of those for a long, long time.  We used to have it for dessert sometimes, but not necessarily for the holidays.
:)

"Grandma's Lemon Meringue Pie" recipe

Caution: pop-up window.  Firefox will block it.



Well you have to be a good jew to enjoy Latkes.


Well then, Mazel tov to you too, Howard!
;D

Well, mom used to make these two types of cookies only for Christmas that I loved, I've never tried to make them myself.

I think the proper name is called "Mexican wedding cookies" but for some reason we always called them walnut crescents.

http://img.foodnetwork.com/FOOD/2005/12/02/mexican_lg.jpg

And Pecan Tassies.  Yum! yum!
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Cookie/PecanTassie2.jpg

-------
She'd also make thumbprint cookies (with jelly in the "thumbprint" part, don't know what the real name is though.

-----
Once, back in the 70s, my grandma asked each of us grandkids what kind of pie we wanted for Christmas (the family party) and there were alot of grandkids back then...

I chose lemon merange... (I know that isn't spelt right) and that was a pie to remember.  Truly, the memory has lasted of that one pie for, what?  almost 40 years? 

------
My dad's aunt used to make something called a jelly roll, it tasted like yellow cake with strawberry or raspberry jam in the layers.  Wow that was terrific as well.  Seemed to complicated, so I never made it.  It made visiting her tolerable.  lol  (Oh I'm a terrible person.)

--------
I'm sure there are other stuff I'm forgetting.  I'm trying to forget so that I don't become tempted and bake lots of stuff that neither my husband or myself should really have in the first place.  I know I could bake with Splenda, but it just isn't the same.  Hubby doesn't like it anyway.   :\'(




Those look so delicious.