Okay, so this was going to be a dessert diary (which I will still do at some point, probably February), but one of the recipes got me to thinking about food as tradition, especially in the context of holidays. This thematic decision is in line with my previous diary on persimmons. It was also reinforced by TX Scotia’s diary last week, which referenced the WFD community, as well as (to a lesser extent) zenbassoon’s diary on a vaguely remembered dish from childhood.
Some holidays traditions are religion-based, such as the seder or the Feast of the Seven Fishes. Others are societal, such as turkey for Thanksgiving or (as is popular with the local Sicilian population where I live) crab for Christmas. And yet, what these and most other holiday traditions have in common is family. It may be the family you were born with, or the family you’ve chosen, or a blend of the two. Many of us have seen or will be seeing family for the first time in two years (including that one asshole cousin or in-law who you can’t stand). And in the spirit of food as tradition, we will enjoy dishes that have become traditional in our family—Aunt Nancy’s sweet potato pie, our brother’s smoked salmon, our own spinach-crab dip, and hopefully someone will make Grandma’s stuffing recipe. In other words, the dishes we look forward to sharing every year.
When I was growing up, we had two New Year’s Eve traditions: 1) we would un-decorate the Christmas tree after dinner, and 2) Mom would make crème brulée during the day, which we would eat that night. I believe the first one was something Mom grew up with herself; I have no idea where the second came from, but even as a young’un, I wasn’t stupid enough to argue with homemade crème brulée!
CRÈME BRULEE
8 egg yolks
1 c sugar
1 T vanilla
1 quart whipping cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat egg yolks and sugar. Add vanilla. Heat cream in saucepan on low heat until tiny bubbles form around the edge. Gradually add cream to egg-sugar mixture while beating. Pour into four 4-ounce ramekins. Fill a 9 by 13 pan half full of water; place ramekins in pan. Bake for 40 minutes. Sprinkle sugar on top and bake 10 more minutes. Chill and serve.
The last 10 minutes of baking is so that the sugar on top caramelizes. You can also stick the pan in the broiler for 3-5 minutes, but watch it carefully! Broilers tend to be more temperature-variant than ovens. Or, if you’re like me, and you have a kitchen-type blowtorch, you can bake the crème brulée for 45-50 minutes, sprinkle the sugar, then caramelize with the blowtorch.
Now because I’m more of a chocolate lover than a crème brulée guy, I started my own tradition many years ago, by making these every New Year’s Eve. They’re not as gooey on the inside as lava cakes, but they’re still delicious!
SOFT-CENTERED CHOCOLATE PUDDINGS
7 ounces dark/bittersweet chocolate
7 ounces unsalted butter
3 eggs
1/2 c sugar
2 T flour
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter and chocolate in double boiler. In mixing bowl, blend flour, sugar. Add eggs; mix well. Fold in chocolate/butter mixture. Pour into four 4-ounce ramekins. Bake 12 minutes.
For both of these recipes, you can use glass ramekins, which you can get pretty cheap at Target or similar stores (just make sure they’re somewhat sturdy), and which is what I typically use. If you have ceramic (as in the pics), those work, too.
What are the traditional holiday (or celebration or special occasion) foods at your house? Or that you grew up with? Doesn’t have to be winter holidays—Easter, 4th of July, whatever. Doesn’t have to be dessert, either….