Snowflakes are falling, there's a nip in the air, and as you walk down the street, your friends and even strangers are wishing you, "Happy Holidays". Store windows are filled with charming wintry displays. In town, the holiday decorations are up and Christmas trees are brightly lit for all to see. It's that time of year again and the world is ready to celebrate - not only with decorations, but with delicious food.
"The worst gift is a fruitcake. There is only one fruitcake in the entire world, and people keep sending it to each other." -Johnny Carson
The Case for Fruitcake and Other New Ideas
Holiday deserts are the stuff of a traditional Christmas but for many, the thought of holiday baking is a daunting task. So, even though you've heard all the jokes about fruitcakes, and you may be using Aunt Janet's last year's fruitcake as a doorstop, this is the time to reconsider and put fruitcake back at the top of your preferred desserts list.
It's not that we're trying to revive your interest in fruitcake. It's just that the good news is - you don't have to bake it yourself anymore (unless you really want to). The idea is to take the work out of it and you can do it by ordering the best and the most scrumptious fruitcakes on line.
And yes - let's revive the fruitcake tradition! There are good reasons fruitcake has remained a favorite through the centuries. It's not only still welcomed as the star dessert after Christmas dinner, but it's nibbled right through to January, February and beyond. Fruitcake is also healthy! It's full of fruit and fiber and loaded with anti-oxidants. It's a confection that started way back in Roman times, was popularized in England (where it was called a Christmas cake), and is now literally an American family tradition.
The Festive German Stollen
On-line specialty desserts are hot this year when folks are looking for the best of the best and know they can find quality gifts and gourmet foods at competitive prices on the internet. If you're looking for a specialty cake as an edible gift, or something a little different to top off Christmas dinner, try a German Stollen, a loaf shaped fruitcake with a rich but subtle taste. A German Christmas is not considered complete without the traditional stollen. The Dutch have a similar version called Kertstol.
Stollens have great ingredients such as sultana raisins, wheat flour, butter, almonds, rum, sherry, and brandy, giving them a distinctively rich taste all their own. The Christmas Stollen was baked in the 15th century in Dresden and remains as an extremely popular confection throughout the world. Don't try to bake it yourself of course (unless you really want to). You can order one on the internet.
Starting New Family Food Traditions - The Holiday Dessert Table
What about offering something completely new - a Holiday Dessert Table - to start your own Christmas tradition? A special table set aside and filled with all the delicious things you can find (both on-line and off), decorated with some confections wrapped as gifts for your guests, can start a brand new trend. Invite friends to bring their contributions too and start an annual neighborhood tradition. Adding new desserts will make the party unusual, interesting and exciting.
Ideas for your Holiday Dessert Table include traditional fruit cakes and stollen of course, plus cranberry-lemon cake (featuring fresh cranberries baked under a tangy lemon batter). Virginia dark peppermint bark (a rich, dark chocolate candy enhanced by the zip of peppermint), and rum cakes with vanilla, chocolate, coconut and cinnamon enhancing sauces are also fine internet treasures. Coconut macaroons coated with dark chocolate or chocolate covered peanut brittle are examples of other options for the Holiday Dessert Table. The list of delectable delights available on line is long and luscious.
People don't usually count calories at Christmas. It's the time to relax and enjoy the spirit of giving and sharing and it may be the only time of year when folks love to indulge. So don't hold back.
Experimenting with new holiday desserts is not only a creative endeavor, but fun, and a way to launch new family traditions without "sweating over a hot stove" to get there. Leftovers? Freeze them for surprise desserts later. Think Valentine's Day.
You don't have to spend grueling hours in the kitchen anymore, preparing elaborate desserts in advance of the big holiday feast. There's a wonderful resource available now - the internet - and we can look to cyberspace to provide us with the best of tried and true traditional desserts with the finest ingredients and sumptuous new delicacies to please the most discriminating palate. All that luxury arrives right on our doorsteps in record time, with minimum effort.
There is something to be said for the internet and cutting edge technology. And when it comes to saving time and labor in the kitchen, it can be said in one word - freedom - freedom to truly enjoy the holiday season, almost as a guest in our own kitchen.
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