Traditions are wonderful. I always loved decorating cookies at Christmas with my bothers and sisters. I can remember that my Mother would work very hard creaming the butter by hand, and slowly adding the sifted powdered sugar, until it would make a sweet creamy batter, after adding the egg, flour, vanilla, she would then chill it down in the refrigerator, which made a dough that was perfect for rolling out with a rolling pin to be cut into all sorts of fun shapes of different kinds. Then, after baking for only 5 minutes in the hot oven, they were cooled, and the whole family would sit around the dinning room table and spend hours decorating them with bowls of colored butter creme frosting and sprinkles. We were only allowed to eat a few of them each day before Christmas, savoring every bite, because we knew we would not have them again for another year.
Now my Mother has gone on, but a few years before she died, I started the tradition again at my home. I invite my sisters, friends and neighbors over for a glass or two of spiked eggnog, and this year I made a delicious Turkey Tortilla Soup, that we each had a bowl of, while we worked. I could hear my Mothers voice in my mind admonishing me as I worked on the cookie baking, “Sprinkle more flour on the board before rolling out the dough, Sharon, and put some on the rolling pin too!” Christmas movies, such as, “It’s a Wonderful Life” with Jimmy Stewart played in the background, as well as others, “Christmas Vacation” with Chevy Chase, and “White Christmas” with Bing Crosby . “Watch the cookies!” I heard her say again, “They burn so easily!” Although it was almost 70 degrees outside, it felt almost like the Christmas seasons I remember as a child on Grand Island, New York, at this, my house now, close to the Kentucky border of middle Tennessee, 50 years later.
These traditions, that allow us to remember our past, show us that our future can have the same wonderful joy-filled moments if we bring them with us into the present.
My gift to you this Christmas season is the recipe, written in my Mothers hand, for the Christmas cookies that I have enjoyed sharing and making with friends and family all these years. May your own traditions bring you as many joy filled moments as these continue to for me!
My Mom and my siblings enjoyed uor annual Christmas cookie baking the same as you and your family. ( If you check my facebook photo album you will see that the tradition lives on.) When my mother passed away back in 1983, I got my Mom’s metal cookie cutters and my little sister got Mom’s rolling pin. We did it that purposely so that we would have to get together to complete a batch of Christmas cookies using my Mom’s cutters & rolling pin. We have been getting together for nearly 30 years and the tradition is continuing with my daughters and grandsons joining us. We have so much fun and our cookies are sooooooooo delicious because they are made with love.
I love to hear that! It is something that gives us such a good feeling on these grey, cold winter days!
Thanks Sharon….sweet tribute to your mom. We never stop missing them. Bren
Sent from my iPad
That is so true, she is with me everyday in my thoughts
THANK YOU Sharon, that is so sweet !! I wish you and Dan a great holiday season, with a year that is wonderful in every way !!
Joyce
Thank you so much Joyce! I hope you an Lu are well and enjoying the Holidays!
What a great tradition. There’s something special about homemade Christmas cookies.
I ate too many of them yesterday! Hope you had a Merry one!