It wouldn't be Christmas without Tamales

If you live in Southern California, Christmas is time for tamales. Your sweet Mexican friends and neighbors will bring you plastic bags, filled with tasty meat fillings encased in tender corn dough. Muchas Gracias, you will say, and Feliz Navidad. Then when your friends turn their backs, you will devour your tamales, all of them. You will want more, and you might get another bagfull, but you surely will only get them in December for Christmas. But if you move away from Southern California, there's a good chance (sniffle) that no one will ever bring you a tamale again. People might even think that you should go and buy your own tamales, because they are available at every movie theatre.Ay caramba, amigos. Hot tamales are good too, but not for Christmas.

So you will have to resort to making your own tamales.

Warning: Making tamales is messy and time-consuming. Proof: My friend Denise and I turned out a cool six dozen in my kitchen; it took all morning to make them and all afternoon to clean them up.

Warning: Tamales are outrageously delicious and terribly addictive. Proof: West has eaten NOTHING but tamales since I made them-lunch, dinner, breakfast, lunch, dinner. If this keeps up, I'm going to rename him Westito and buy him a sombrero.

Last year I gave you the in-depth tamale making guide. You've got to click here to get it. This year, I'm giving you the fillings. I make red chile beef, cheese and green chile, and I usually make tomatillo chicken. But this year, I used my sweet and spicy chicken and it's been the run-away favorite. Here's my new three favorite fillings below, and if you give up before you get them made into tamales, they make super-fantastic tacos, too. Feliz Navidad, either way.

Tamales with Sweet and Spicy Chicken

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken (frozen is fine)

1/3 to 1/2 cup brown sugar (use the higher amount for tamales)

1 14 ounce can petite diced tomatoes, undrained

generous pinch of crushed red pepper

Place everything in the crockpot and cook on high for about three hours. Shred with fork. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chicken will absorb extra juices when shredded.

Tamales with Red Chile Beef

1 3 lb. beef roast, any cut

3 garlic cloves

1 onion, roughly chopped

1 (14 ounce) can Mexican style diced tomatoes with green chilies or jalapenos

2-4 tablespoons chile powder

Place all ingredients in crock pot on high for about 5 hours. Shred with fork and carefully discard fat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Tamales with Cheese and Green Chilies

shredded cheddar cheese and green chilies

optional: chopped olives, green onions, minced jalapeno

My friend Denise brought over some cans and we made some tamales in there too. Haven't steamed them yet, but I'm anxious to find out how they turn out.

I can't get enough of English Toffee Popcorn

Be Back this weekend with the recipe....

Christmas in Sweden and Orange Rolls

This season is so exceptional, so magical. I wish I could catch it in my hand and hold it tight, but almost everything worth holding is fleeting. My charges can't wait for Christmas day, but I wish it would never come. Remember when you were little and the minutes before Christmas lasted hundreds of years each? When you get older, you wish you could hot glue gun down the hands of the clock. There's simply not enough time to just stop and feel Christmas, to sit by the fire and stare at the tree, to reflect on the meaning of the holiday, to nibble on a candy cane, to share the warmth of tradition with others. I can do all of those things, but it's never enough. I want it to last forever. I wish it could be like the movie Groundhog's Day, but instead Christmas day. Not even Christmas Day, but I'd take any day in December. I truly love it. I feel as joyful as a cool breath of peppermint and I want it to last. But, since I can't stop time, I'm going to move right along with it, and squeeze every bit of pleasure out of the juiciest season. Hop on this crazy ride with me. It's much cozier when you're here.

One of my favorite rituals during this season is the Swedish tradition of the "Santa Lucia." Every 13th of December, Santa Lucia can be seen throughout Sweden spreading good cheer and sharing sweets of the season.

Traditionally, the eldest daughter of the family assumes the role of Santa Lucia. Wearing a dress of white and a lighted wreath in her hair, she serves sweet rolls and drinks to her family, singing carols all the while. Here's our very own little Santa Lucia, waiting to serve the orange rolls. She's growing up so I need to stop and stare at her for a little while, too. She's my picky girl, but this year she finally ate a sweet roll. Yes, a sweet roll, not broccoli or brussel sprouts. Her mean mother made her take a bite of a sweet roll, and she loved it! This was a good year to send her palate out on a limb, since I made two kinds of rolls: cinnamon rolls with maple icing, and sweet orange rolls. If I knew how to say delicious in Swedish, I would say it now. But since I don't, I'll say it slowly in English: De. Lic. Ious.

I use my mom's sweet roll recipe for a base, and you'd better plan on doubling it. It makes a fine gift for the neighbors in a disposable baking round, warm from the oven. But surprise-it also makes wonderful dinner rolls if you leave out all the sugary stuff. But you can do that in January. For now, you're supposed to be enjoying all the gifts of the season, and that means sugar. And time. Lots of it. And that's all you really need for these rolls. And this season.

Sweet Orange Rolls:

Estimated Cost: $3.00 for 12

1 and 1/2 cups milk

4 tablespoons butter

2 and 1/4 teaspoons yeast

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups flour

For assembly:

4 tablespoons softened butter

1/2 cup sugar

zest of one orange

Frosting:

zest and juice of one orange

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

about 2 cups powdered sugar

Heat milk and butter in microwaveable bowl in 30 second intervals in microwave, until warm but not hot. (Think baby-bottle warm.) The butter does not need to be totally melted. Add yeast and dissolve. If you have a free standing mixer, place butter mixture in bowl of mixture. If you're doing it by hand, just get a nice big bowl. Add sugar, salt, and flour, 1 cup at a time, to form a sticky dough. Turn out on to buttered surface and knead until dough becomes elastic and only slightly sticky. If you are using a free standing mixer, knead at medium speed for 10 minutes. Shape dough into ball, rub with butter, and return to bowl. Let rise for about 1 and 1/2 hours, or until doubled. Punch dough down and butter a flat surface. Press dough into 12 by 18 inch rectangle. Spread dough with butter and sprinkle with sugar and orange zest. Rub sugar and orange zest together with fingertips. Roll up dough, tucking in ends. Cut into 12 equal pieces. Place in buttered 9 by 13 inch dish. Cover and let rise for about 45 minutes, or until light and doubled. Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare icing by combining butter and zest until creamy. Add juice and vanilla and stir well. Add enough powdered sugar to make a very thick frosting. Spread over hot rolls and serve as soon as possible.
Next Up:

Christmas in Mexico

Christmas in France and the Cake of Kings

Instead of blogging, I have been grading term papers. Instead of blogging, I've been running many miles. Sewing pillowcases, too. (That's a suprise for my church group of Young Women.) Teaching lectures on Existentialism, Einstein and Freud. Homeschooling the charges on various topics including Lewis and Clark, the Islamic Empire, the excretory system, and transitive verbs. Under this heap of work, I'm here still and there is a Christmas light at the end of the tunnel. So let's plug it in and get started.

Joyeux Noel, or Merry Christmas in France, our next stop in our Christmas Around the World series. Christmas is a religious holiday and French families celebrate Christmas with a creche (or nativity) in their homes or at church. Carols are sung as baby Jesus is placed in his manger bed.

The three wise men are not placed with the creche until Epiphany Eve, on January 6th. At that time a "Cake of Kings" is baked with a hidden bean inside. The finder of the bean receives a lucky crown and becomes king or queen of the party. We make one every year.

I promised the charges that last night we would make our Cake of Kings. And by golly, a promise is a promise. It was 10:30 when I was finally pulling my little French chocolate almond cakes out of the oven. I put a bean in each cake, since it's no fun to have only one winner. West found his bean immediately and was henceforth known as "King West." But the future Queen ran into trouble. At first she couldn't find her bean, or so we thought. But then we realized that she had EATEN it . A cold hard pinto bean, right in the middle of her beautiful chocolate cake! She laid her head down on the table, and I thought she might actually cry a little. Sneakily, I slipped another bean into her cake crumbs and encouraged her to look again. Tragedy averted! I love it when I can save the day. Queen Sailor, the bean eater, went to bed happy last night. She said she is planning on keeping her bean forever. Take a lesson from the French and make a little cake a kings for the royalty in your family, only take care that the young monarchs spit out their beans.

And one last thing: As testimony that too much work can make one a little batty, I realized that those sables I promised to write about, I'd actually already written about. Sables are sandy and delicious and well worth making. You can roll them in green sugar or red sugar and give them away as Christmas gifts. They are the original slice and bake cookies.Here is the recipe. And here is the cake.

French Chocolate Almond Cake

Estimated Cost: $4.00

I made a half batch and baked it in three 8 ounce ramekins.

4 ounces semi sweet chocolate

4 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tablespoon flour

3/4 cup finely chopped almonds

pinch of salt

Melt chocolate in microwave until just melted. Cream butter and sugar in separate medium bowl. Add chocolate and mix well. Stir in egg yolks. Add flour and almonds, mixing gently. Beat egg whites until stiff and gently fold into chocolate mixture. Pour into 8 inch cake pan (slip in a dried bean or two) and bake at 325 for 45 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Here are some of my pics from my trip to France last year...

See you in a couple of days with Christmas in Sweden and Sweet Rolls

Merry Old England and English Toffee 101

I've been figuratively staring at a crack in the ceiling for the last couple of days, wondering what I wanted to highlight on my blog for the December season. Last week I thought about doing my favorite soups in the crock pot, but that seemed like a better fit for January. Then I pondered the idea of sharing only homemade gift ideas, but it didn't seem enticing enough for the whole month. The truth is, I've been longing to share Christmas Around the World again, just like last year. Not as last year's leftovers, but as a chance to revisit some of my favorite Christmas traditions, and maybe learn a little more about the way the world celebrates. Are you on board, dear readers? Shall we make it our yearly tradition, right here on Prudence Pennywise?

Last Christmas season, I was strolling the streets of London with my brothers and sisters. If you don't believe London is the most magical city in the world, just you try strolling around Marylebone Lane in December. You'll be lured into every toy shop with window displays like these. What I wouldn't give to take the charges to London at Christmas time.Preferably while they are still little enough to peer longingly into shop windows.

Speaking of peering longingly into shop windows, there are enticements for grown-ups too. Especially greedy grown-ups, like me.

Even if you don't go in the shops, the giant snowmen suspended from the roofs would make even Scrooge feel downright perky.

Scrooge is perfectly at home in London. Remember, the world's favorite Christmas story comes from England. Here's old Scrooge now.It is a fair, even-handed, noble adjustment of things, that while there is infection in disease and sorrow, there is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good-humour."- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

The English are particularly apt to be jolly and share a bit of laughter and good cheer, among other things. The tradition of the Christmas card comes from England, as well as many of our favorite Christmas carols, like "The Holly and the Ivy," "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," and "Good King Wenceslaus."

And the English are also responsible for my favorite homemade candy: English Toffee. It's buttery and slightly chewy, slightly crunchy with an incomparable caramely flavor. My favorite toffee is studded with nuts and slicked with chocolate. I'm sharing step by step instructions today. With a little patience in the first couple of steps, you'll be churning out toffee like an old English pro in no time. Make a little extra, and in the style of English, share some good humor, cheer and toffee with your neighbors.

Happy Christmas!
You need three ingredients to make English Toffee: butter, sugar, and vanilla.

You can add nuts and chocolate, but it's not absolutely necessary.

Butter a piece of parchment paper or foil and use it to line a 9 inch baking dish. Set aside briefly. Select a heavy bottomed saucepan to insure even cooking. Butter the bottom and sides of the saucepan to discourage the formation of sugar crystals. Melt butter completely over low heat. Add water and sugar to middle of pan and stir patiently until sugar is completely dissolved. Turn heat to medium-high and cook, stirring often, until toffee reaches 285-290 degrees for high altitude, or 290 for low altitude. If you see any sugar crystals forming during the process, you can brush them down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush.Now here's the deal: I never use a candy thermometer. When the toffee looks a medium caramel color, I stop cooking. My cooking contest friend and chocolate guru, Ruth Kendrick, wrote that the toffee will give a puff of smoke when it's ready. I've been using that as my guide also. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. You can also stir in nuts, but if I use them I usually scatter them into the prepared pan. Pour toffee into pan.Let your toffee cool for five minutes. At this point, if desired you can scatter some chopped chocolate or chocolate chips over the top. Let stand for a minute and smooth the top with a butter knife. You can sprinkle nuts over the top, if desired at this point also. Let cool completely. Break into pieces and serve.

Money Saving Tips: Save the pricey nuts for the top of the toffee where they'll have the added benefit of a beautiful presentation. Don't try to use margarine here-it won't work, but you don't need an expensive butter either. I've used Walmart, Albertsons, and Costco brands with good results.
English Toffee

Small Batch Cost: $3.50 with chocolate and nuts
1/2 cup butter (4 ounces, or one stick)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 or 3 ounces semisweet, dark, or milk chocolate
2-4 tablespoons sliced almonds, or other nuts
Lightly coat an 8 by 8 inch pan with cooking spray. Melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat. Add sugar and water and stir constantly until butter is melted and sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy (about 10 minutes). If sugar granules stick to the side, wipe them down with a wet pastry brush. When sugar is completely dissolved, turn the heat up to medium and stir constantly until toffee becomes a medium caramel color. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour toffee into prepared pan. Wait 7 minutes. Sprinkle toffee with chocolate and let stand a few minutes. Smooth chocolate with spatula and sprinkle with nuts. Wait until chocolate cools to break into pieces.

Next Up:

Christmas in France and Sable Cookies