Potlikkery

saved by cinnabon, sort of

For once, my appetite for pastry saved the day.

The Atlanta airport has several concourses. Thursday afternoon my flight landed at concourse D and I noted a Cinnabon. I passed it by, naturally thinking that there was one in every concourse. Au bon pain distracted me long enough to make my flight and I traveled on to Philadelphia where I spent several days eating at restaurants of my choice and not of my choice. The novelty of Au bon pain is that there is not one servicing my pastry needs. Surely if it was an everyday thing, I'd not be so enamored of it.

When I stopped at Atlanta again and my flight landed at concourse B I went in search of Cinnabon. The main directory listed Cinnabon at concourse A. My traveling companion and I parted ways. We had about an hour to board our connecting flight to Tri-Cities, and she didn't want to be late to the gate following up my whim.

On to concourse A, where there was no Cinnabon. The directory at A listed D as the home of Cinnabon and our flight was leaving from concourse C, so no problem, they're adjacent. In the interest of saving time, I asked two airport workers which direction Cinnabon was, and they pointed me to the right. I walked and walked. Thought I saw a line, but that was at Burger King.

The Cinnabon counter was strangely free of cinnamon rolls. They were shut down? All out of cinnamon rolls?

[At this point in my story Ian told me that there aren't as many red-eye flights as there once were and as such, many airport eateries have limited their operating hours accordingly.]

I considered writing a nasty letter to the airport and to Cinnabon as well. Didn't even have time to compose it in my mind. Just went on my way, in dismay, in abject disappointment. It was pure luck that as I passed by a gate at concourse D I looked up and saw a flight to Tri-Cities departing at the same time as mine. I checked my flight number against the one at the gate.

They matched. Yup, they not only changed gate numbers, but complete concourses, too. About that time, I got a text message from my traveling partner telling me to go directly to the gate I stood in front of. I approached the gatekeeper and asked her if the flight was boarding. She said yes. I walked down the ramp and onto the plane. My traveling partner arrived about ten minutes later and boarded the plane after rushing to the gate.

The moral of this story is that the tummy knows! My desire for cinnamon rolls endowed me with a form of ESP, thus allowing me to be in the exact right place at the exact right time. How's that for tummy luck?

Jesus' birthday cake

I've never baked and frosted a birthday cake for Jesus, or known anyone to do so, either. That is, until this year. Sure, it makes sense to bake a birthday cake for Jesus, if you're a practicing Christian, or just want any excuse to make a cake, since Christmas celebrates Christ's birth, even though, he was likely not born on December 25th.

Aleda, my sister-in-law, made one this year. Her first. But she's determined to start a precedent and bake one every year. Hers was chocolate with white frosting and one candle on top. We all sang Happy Birthday to Jesus, then Mick and Rem did the honors of blowing out the candle.

Then we ate. Yum. Nothing better than chocolate cake with cream cheese icing. She also had a pecan pie and something else... Can't quite recall all the dessert offerings on Christmas Day, though I sampled each.

But where did the tradition of Jesus;s birthday cake begin? And what kind of symbolism resides in this cake's layers and decoration and very shape? Is it native to certain regions of the country, or world, or celebrated by specific denominations? It's a favorite tradition in Columbia, SC, but elsewhere, too?

Aleda got the idea from her cousin on her Dad's side. They're from the midwest. I think she was born in Nebraska or Kansas. Her cousin is really religious and started her family's tradition when her children were two or three years old, a few years ago. Before you start thinking this is some kind of southern evangelical Baptist practice, let me ease your mind that my sister-in-law is Catholic and as I mentioned earlier, not a native of this region. But, Amy Sullivan writes in the Washington Monthly (5.9 (Sept 2003): p52(3).) about growing up in a Midwestern Baptist church where they "baked a birthday cake and sand a rollicking tune called 'Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus.'" Just suppose it's a Midwestern thang.

I asked my step-mother whether her fourth-generation (at least!) highly-devout (Baptist) Southwest Virginia family celebrated Christmas with a Jesus birthday cake.  They've bought a sheet cake at the bakery and had "Happy Birthday Jesus" written on it. She promised to ask around her family and church whether anyone has a specific recipe for it.

And what about you? What's your experience with Jesus' Birthday cake? Have you baked one? Eaten one? Or know someone else who does?

Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas (2003) is a Google book that popped up as a result of my search for Jesus' birthday cake. Ace Collins writes that there are no written records indicating the exact origin of this tradition, but he suspects it began only a few hundred years ago possibly in England, but more likely in Germany because Christ's birthday was celebrated overtly in that country. The baking of the cake was significant because resource for cakes, like sugar, and butter, were scarce. Cakes were a treat.  Those Jesus bc of the past were baked with special treats inside for children like marbles, small metal animals, or coins. And then the actual rising of the cake batter takes on religious significance when we think of Christ's rising from the dead on the third day. Easter, I guess, but my catechism is weak anymore. See, I'm more likely to bake a banana bundt for Buddha's birthday.

Those cakes of yore, according to Collins, were white inside, symbolizing Christ's purity, and iced with red to symbolize his shed blood. And a single candle adorning the cake signified the light Christ brought to the world. It wasn't until the 1800s that the tradition was commonplace in England and America. Collins attributes the modern resurgence of Jesus bc to churches and Christian schools who are horrified by the consumer/consumptive identity the holiday shoulders and wish to re-emphasize the religious significance of Christmas.

Some folks find the entire idea of a birthday cake for Jesus funny, or peculiar.  Or foreign. Or perhaps a slap at the way someone is raising their children.

At cooks.com they direct bakers in this way:

Make a round chocolate cake (to symbolize our sins). Cover with white frosting (his purity covers our sins). Top with a yellow star and angel (bearer of the first glad tidings). Place 12 (Christ, our light through the 12 months of the year) red candles (red for his blood shed for us) on top. Encircle the cake with evergreen icing leaves (symbol of everlasting life).

Another cake at the same site uses angel food cake, strawberries, and whipped cream. The number of red candles placed on the cake should mirror the number of people attending the birthday party.

Old Fashioned Holidays makes a three layer cake. The first is brown for our sins, the second is red for the blood Jesus shed for our sins, and the third layer is green to signify life. Then it's covered with white icing which symbolizes Jesus' purity and righteousness. They decorate the cake sides with hearts which represents Christian witness for Jesus. A gold star marks the middle of the cake. This is the star of Bethlehem. A yellow border around the star signifies God's love. And a big red candle in the middle of the yellow star represents Jesus himself. Others like a bit of scripture to accompany each layer.

Leslie Ratliff's explanation is essentially the same as the others, but she specifies a round cake because it shows that God's love is never ending. She adds an angel to her cake so that we remember the angel's role in spreading good tidings of His birth. She explains the twelve candles each represent a month so that Jesus' light may shine each month and not just once in December. She places evergreens around the cake, possibly at the base, to remind us of Jesus' everlasting love for us.

Instructions at Beliefnet recommend reading the Christmas story from the Bible before lighting and blowing out the candle.

Alanna Kellogg's sister introduced the tradition to their family and they've celebrated it ever since. And Tara makes a jello poke cake which serves as Jesus cake in her family.

Many families include the celebration of Jesus' birthday with their Christmas Day traditions as a way to reduce the secular and consumer emphasis placed on the holiday by our popular culture, media, advertisers, and retailers. It's especially popular among families with small children so that the "reason for the season" is reinforced in their young minds.  But some Christians think it's a a way to have fun, be silly, and celebrate  a happy occasion.

Not all of them go to great lengths to ensure that their cake is imbued with proper symbolism. Some make a lemon bundt cake and others pick up a cake from their grocery store and decorate it with the words "Happy Birthday Jesus."

Willie Crawford seconds those reasons for celebrating "the true meaning of Christmas." His recipe calls for three boxes of cake mix: White, Strawberry, and Chocolate. Willie makes an extra cake to take to church for his pastor to give to a needy family. He tints portions of his icing yellow, green, red, and reserves a bit of white, as well. He decorates his cakes with a bright yellow star, leaves, holly berries, and a plastic baby Jesus. He pipes hay colored icing around the figure. His instructions are precise, and I appreciate  his symbolism best of all, especially the first one:

1. The colors of the inside of the cake represents all God's children, the people of all nations.
2. The star represents the Star of Bethlehem that led the Wise Men to Our Savior.
3. The holly vine represents the everlasting life we recieved when we accepted Jesus into our lives.
4. The red candle represents the blood that Jesus Christ shed for all of us.
5. The flame of the lit candle represents the light of Jesus that shines from within of all who believe in Him.

And some bake Jesus birthday cakes to defy the ban on religion in public schools. Julie West brought a Jesus bc to her son's holiday party because a school note requested that students bring in food that their family traditionally ate during the holiday season.  And, in the comments on that story I learned another reason why we might use twelve candles on the cake: To symbolize the twelve points on Our Lady's crown, whomever Our Lady may be. The Virgin Mary, perhaps?

Redneck Diva writes about a Come to Jesus cake, but that's a whole 'nother kettle of fish, but certainly a great new tradition in celebratory cake baking.

holiday meals

There were so many dishes I wanted to try for Christmas Eve dinner. But I marked one of two of my list because I didn't want to offer too many starches, though in the end, I did. Didn't want sweet potato souffle AND mustard-roasted red potatoes. Also wanted to offer a plethora of colors instead of going with a dominant white/yellow/brown palette.

Ian deep fried a ham. It was a pre-cooked spiral sliced ham that he immersed in peanut oil for 5-7 minutes. This was well-away from the house, out back in our driveway. Every time we tell people that we deep fried a turkey at Thanksgiving and a ham at Christmas they mention statistics about how many people burn down their homes by using deep fryers. But Ian is careful, just not mindful enough with the ham. He kept it in the oil a minute or so too long. Parts of it were black, but once you got past that, the innards were tasty. He wasn't so thrilled with it. We're always our own worst critic, no?

There was no recipe about it, although I found scant information online somewhere that told how long to cook it.

My macaroni and cheese recipe came from the James Villas cookbook, The Glory of Southern Cooking (2007) I've scoured for months. It was great. My stepmother asked for the recipe and doled out huge helpings, seconds, and thirds, on the mac n cheese.

Peas with goat cheese and bacon came from Cook's Country, the December issue, I think. It's my new favorite cooking magazine, then again, I've paid closer attention to Gourmet and Bon Appetit of late than I have in the past. . Haven't subscribed to it, yet. My postal carrier creases every magazine arriving at my mailbox down the middle and CC is oversized. But back to peas: Easy, quick, and delicious. Made with a bag of frozen peas, bacon grease drippings, and either half and half or heavy whipping cream. A few scallions, and the goat cheese. Maybe salt and pepper to taste. Yum. As someone who never liked peas, I must say that it was lovely and a dish I'll repeat again and again.

Sweet potato souffle is the standard I make for every holiday and I got its recipe from  Consuming Passions:  A Food-Obsessed Life  (1999) by Michael Lee West. I've made the topping incorrectly for several years and when I tried to make it the "correct" way once, it just wouldn't do. I cook the sweet potatoes in the microwave add the butter, evaporated milk, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and then add the topping and pop it into my oven.

Also tried Alabama Biscuit Muffins from the Villas cookbook. It's just a wealth of recipes, many that I'm aching to try. These biscuits came out well. Crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. When Ian's Dad stopped by later, he snacked on a cold one and raved.

Tried the Vidalia onion and goat cheese pie from Villas' cookbook. It was fine and I got several requests for its recipe. I whipped it up Christmas morning so we could bring it to Ian's brother's home for our Stokes family gathering. They weren't vidalia onions, but they were still, slightly sweet, and tasty.

Finally made the Sandra Lee bark. It was okay. I never ate a bite of it though. Strange, but true. I hold a grudge.

We had Christmas Day lunch at my sister-in-law's house. She sets a pretty table. The menu was atypical, but much appreciated: Prime Rib, green beans with mushrooms, mashed potatoes, my onion pie, and bread.

Then that evening we went to my mom's house for slightly lighter fare. She cooked her ham in a mixture of pineapple juice and something else. Can't quite recall what exactly she did, now. But I think her table, her whole dining room, in fact, personifies the idea of a Southern dining room table; food and decor.

And then another recipe I tried of Villas' was for bleu cheese straws. A few nights prior to Christmas I doubled the recipe and combined the ingredients in my mixer. I moaned about not having a food processor. Later, after opening gifts Christmas morning, Ian admitted that he almost caved, almost gave me my food processor early so I wouldn't struggle with that cheese straw dough. The recipe was simple. I rolled out the dough and used a fondant embosser to cut my dough into appropriate-sized pieces. We took them along to Aleda's for Christmas lunch and everyone loved them. And hated me because they were so addictive. Then later, Josie stopped by on her way back home to Atlanta. She said they looked professionally done and couldn't believe I made them. I bagged up a batch for her to take to her mother. Seems like each time Josie comes to town I end up sending something home with her to her mother to apologize for the scant thirty minutes or an hour that Josie visits with me. At least Peggy gets cake, or bleu cheese straws, as the case was, this time.

holiday desserts disappoint

Where to begin?

Constructing a Christmas Eve dinner menu took a few days.  I pulled together all the books and magazines I'd looked at recently and decided what to make. Wrote it all out on my list, and then decided what to mark off.

On the twenty-third we baked. Well, we shopped at the grocery store, and then baked. We made a gingerbread cheesecake; the same that we had at Thanksgiving. I must make a note to cook it longer than what the recipe calls for. It was undercooked and too runny in the middle after a good 12-to-24 hours' chilling in the fridge.

I made a brown sugar pound cake. Took the recipe from Southern Cakes (2007) . It's a Chronicle publication that I solicited a copy of for review in Tennessee Libraries. After browsing it and sending it off to my reviewer, I bought a copy myself. It's just that lovely of a book. The worst part of it was having to bend open its spine to make the Caramel Icing to top the pound cake with. The cake was good, and different. Ian said that my mom and I love our regular old pound cake too much. That means that we bake it far too often. Apparently he craves variety and this brown sugar pound cake sated him. The icing was way too sweet and thick. Four cups of confectioner's sugar poured on top of it. Must blame him for that. I would never have poured the whole batch on the cake, but Ian went for it. I broke off the icing and tossed it in the trash each time I cut a piece of cake for myself.

Banana pudding was a staple at my mamaw's house. I had a mamaw, two in fact. And I used to refer to them as grandmothers because mamaw is so pejorative, such a damning class indicator. Extended members of a family I married into joke about mamaws and papaws from Kentucky or West Virginia, as if being called mamaw or papaw is a bad thing. Nope, it just shows where you're at, or where you came from class-wise.

Anyway, my mamaw showed me how to make banana pudding. I wanted to learn because it's my father's favorite dessert. A few years ago at Christmas I went to elaborate lengths to make a banana pudding pie that ended up falling out of the fridge and spattering all over the floor. Broke my glass pie plate, too. This year, I found a recipe from Jean Anderson's A Love Affair with Southern Cooking: Recipes and Collections (2007). It bombed. The pudding never set up.  My banana pudding was more like banana pudding soup. Yuck.

Making something completely from scratch and then having it bomb is the worst feeling. Next time, I'm using Jello vanilla pudding from a box because I know it works. And, I even tossed my bananas in lemon juice so they wouldn't turn brown. That wasn't anything that Jean Anderson mentioned doing, either. Of the three desserts we made, I so wanted this one to be good. It's the one I wanted to try most.

Almost forgot the Brownie Thins we made. They were right good and topped with chopped pistachios. Got the recipe in the December 2007 issue of Bon Appetit, but it's here online, too. We took them along to Ian's family's gathering on Christmas day and seeing several folks walking around chewing them was gratifying. I just wanted to offer something chocolate to those in need.