This is a repost from my December 2007 Advent Calendar posts at The Oracle Of OMcHodoy. Yesterday I messaged several of my cousins, including those on the Hodick/Kovaleski lines, asking if anyone knew of any foods or recipes from the grand and great-grandparents. My first cousin Sue remember Kanaidels (I'm usually a good speller, but not with German words!), but no recipe yet.
Oh how I wish I could remember what food Grandma (HODICK) McHUGH used to put out! I remember very little, however, other than the cookies. So I asked dad to help me out a little.
Christmas Eve was when we got together at Grandma and Grandpa McHUGH's house. My parents, two brothers and I would go, as well as my dad's sister, Aunt Norie and her husband, Joe and their two children Paul and Susan. And of course, Aunt Maryann was there, too.
To dad's recollection, Grandma always served Ham, Potatos, Sauerkraut and carrots as the main meal. The only part of this I remember is the Sauerkraut.
Christmas Eve was when we got together at Grandma and Grandpa McHUGH's house. My parents, two brothers and I would go, as well as my dad's sister, Aunt Norie and her husband, Joe and their two children Paul and Susan. And of course, Aunt Maryann was there, too.
To dad's recollection, Grandma always served Ham, Potatos, Sauerkraut and carrots as the main meal. The only part of this I remember is the Sauerkraut.
I also have a recollection of -- God help me on the spelling here -- Pfeffernuesse Cookies (thank you, Google): those soft-ish ginger type round cookies covered in powdered sugar(pictured above, courtesy of www.marions-kochbuch.de/rezept/1462.jpg). She also had peanut butter cookies and something dad thought was called something like Kalochi. The only other food thing I remember about Christmas at Grandma McHugh's were the hard ribbon candies. She had those every year, in every corner of the house! Candy canes, too. Last year I saw a tin of those ribbon candies and just had to buy some for old times' sake.
Christmas dinner at the O'ROURKE's house, if I remember correctly, was traditional turkey dinner. Turkey, stuffing, potatos/gravy, the whole thing.
A few years ago some friends and I decided to have a Christmas Cookie exchange. I learned quickly that I do not know how to bake. I wound up tossing the sugar cookie I attempted to make and going to Target to get some Christmas Tins with cookies in them. For the recipe I had to bring with my cookies, I typed up the instructions for driving to Target to get the tins!
I have since learned how to make the Mexican Wedding Cake type cookies and those other cookies that have the Hershey Kiss in the middle. And this year I learned how to make pumpkin rolls!
3 comments:
I was laughing out loud at your "recipe" for the cookies!! Being a non-cook myself, it's something I can so appreciate...and might use ;-)
I think I know what your dad was referring to - kolaches - food of the gods, just divine. There are several varieties in Eastern Europe, sort of breaking along east-west lines; farther west they make a fluffier kind filled in on top, and farther east they make a dough that is folded over or wrapped tightly around the filling.
Yes, Greta, that is exactly to what he was referring. I was going to attempt making some but they look really hard and I have a hard time with a simple sugar cookie!
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