4 hours Ago
Thanksgiving, yes. But not Christmas. Then it dawned on me why.
My father was a minister. By the time Christmas day came, my parents were utterly exhausted from all the extra church activities of the season. Once, when Christmas was on a Sunday, I was sick and not allowed to go to church.
My mother stayed home with me. Looking back on it now, she was probably grateful for the break. That said, one very special part of celebratory meals in my childhood was my mother’s homemade rolls.
She had been a home economics teacher before she had to resign her teaching position when she got pregnant with my older brother. That is just what women did in the 1950s. Those skills, though — baking and sewing — remained my mother’s hobbies.
As she was raised in the Great Depression, I imagine somewhere in her mind spending money on frivolous hobbies was wasteful — a luxury in which she shouldn’t indulge. But baking and sewing were practical, useful activities, and she took much pleasure in them. Once when she came to visit us we made a pilgrimage to the King Arthur Flour store in Vermont, which was an utter delight for her.
My mother developed her own six-ingredient, low-sugar recipe for white bread. Her bread won a blue ribbon at the Ventura County Fair in California. My mother made her bread and rolls using an old-fashioned dough bucket.
This device is an aluminum bucket with a Y-shaped metal piece that fastens on top. A handle that turns sits on top of that, and a dough hook hangs below into the bucket. With several turns of the handle the dough is easily mixed and kneaded.
Using a bread machine would be cheating. She used the same bread recipe for her rolls and we enjoyed them fresh out of the oven, smothered with butter. I have carried on this tradition and I use a dough bucket, too.
I can’t remember Christmas dinners but what I do remember are great breakfasts. My mom made an egg casserole called Chile Egg Puff and we enjoyed a leisurely Christmas morning, just my parents and me. Nowadays I like to make a big meal on Christmas Eve, then relax on Christmas Day.
Inspired by a woman I interviewed for a Gazette article, for several years I made overnight cinnamon rolls. I prepared them the night before and they baked when we were opening our gifts. Afterward we enjoyed the sweet confections with hot cocoa.
Our Christmas Eve dinner menu is changing this year because my younger daughter, Morgan, is a foodie. I’m not sure just how she got that way, but she’s always trying new recipes and just about everything seems to be served with some special sauce she whips up on the fly, tasting and adding ingredients until it’s just right. “You know your Christmas dinner is just basically a repeat of Thanksgiving,” she said a few weeks ago.
It’s true. Maybe it’s a bit of laziness on my part, combined with my preference for turkey over ham —and the days of leftovers and then soup we get from that big bird. (Think turkey sandwiches with mayonnaise on homemade rolls).
In addition, I had stumbled onto a Taste of Home recipe for “champagne-basted turkey,” a recipe easily found via a Google search. While cooking, the turkey sits in a mix of champagne, beef consommé, parsley and onions. This recipe has the added bonus of allowing me to sip the unused champagne while I cook other dishes.
I knew what was coming after Morgan’s comment. “Why don’t we try some new recipes this year?” she suggested. I agreed because I knew resistance was futile.
Foodies have a penchant for the new and exotic. They’re eager to experiment and seek out new food experiences. I put her in charge of the menu, which has yet to be revealed to me.
Perhaps our new family tradition is to switch it up every year and explore the latest and greatest. With an adventurous foodie offspring, whatever we have is sure to be delicious — accompanied by my mom’s soft, delectable rolls, of course! Mom’s White Bread Recipe by Beverly Curtiss Makes 4 loaves Ingredients 4 cups water (100-110 degrees) 2 tablespoons yeast 4 tablespoons sugar 8-11 cups bread flour 5 tablespoons oil 2 teaspoons salt Steps There are a few options if you do not have a dough bucket. You could use a mixer that has a dough hook, the dough setting on a bread machine, or simply combine the ingredients and mix them by hand.
Combine water, yeast and sugar in the dough bucket or whatever you are using to make the dough and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Add oil, flour and salt and combine to make dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size Punch dough down and shape into four equal balls.
Let rest 10 minutes. Shape into four loaves and put in bread pans. Let rise again for about an hour.
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. Makes four loaves. For rolls: Shape dough into small balls (60-80 grams depending on how large you want them) after first rise.
Let rise and bake 20 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees. If you are just making rolls, you could cut this recipe in half. Chili Egg Puff Recipe from Beverly Curtiss Ingredients 10 large eggs 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 4 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (use Pepper Jack for added heat) 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies Steps Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat eggs together with a mixer for about three minutes until light and fluffy. Add flour, baking powder and salt. Mix in shredded cheese and chilies.
Bake in a greased 9-by-13-inch pan for 35-40 minutes. The casserole is done when a knife inserted in it comes out clean. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a dough bucket, similar to the one her mother, Beverly Curtiss used to make a family recipe for dinner rolls inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a dough bucket, similar to the one her mother, Beverly Curtiss used to make a family recipe for dinner rolls inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec.
4, 2024. The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a freshly bakex batch of dinner rolls made with a dough bucket, similar to the one her mother, Beverly Curtiss used to make a family recipe for dinner rolls inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024.
The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a freshly bakex batch of dinner rolls made with a dough bucket, similar to the one her mother, Beverly Curtiss used to make a family recipe for dinner rolls inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. Morgan McFadden, daughter of The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a freshly baked pastry wrapped cranberry baked brie inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec.
4, 2024. Morgan McFadden, daughter of The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden holds a freshly baked pastry wrapped cranberry baked brie inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024.
Morgan McFadden, left, daughter of The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden, right, holds up a piece of freshly baked pastry wrapped cranberry baked brie inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. Morgan McFadden, left, daughter of The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden, right, take a biteof a freshly baked pastry wrapped cranberry baked brie inside her home in Charlton, Wednesday, Dec.
4, 2024. A family photo from The Daily Gazette freelance writer Joanne McFadden's scrapbook, Beverly Curtiss, center, baking doughnuts with granddaughter's Morgan McFadden, left, and Sara McFadden..
