Happy Boxing Day!
I’m still in Miami and loving this gorgeous “winter” weather. Bobby’s family has been amazing and we’ve been having a really fantastic time.
I’m actually home alone right now; I feel kind of sick so I’m missing out on dinner plans. I just had Christmas leftovers (turkey, mashed potatoes, and some veggies) and they were just as delicious today as they were yesterday. The recap is coming soon. In the meantime, check out these gorgeous pictures my dad sent me…
My mom makes Bûche de Noël every few years. Bûche de Noël is a traditional European dessert that’s served during the Christmas season. It’s also called a Yule Log. It’s mostly a French thing – the countries/provinces that make it (France, Belgium, Quebec, Lebanon, and more) are all francophone.
My mom usually uses 3 different recipes to make the 3 parts of the Yule Log: the cake part (sponge cake), the inside buttercream icing, and the chocolate outside icing (possibly buttercream as well? I forget).
This year she made a slug to be more realistic:
Reminds me of the banana slug that my dad and I saw in the Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.
Anyway.
My sister made Springerles, which are German cookies (biscuits?) that are made during the holidays. My Grammie always used to make them so I guess Julia took over that tradition this year. My dad said they were soft and flavorful. Definitely a success – Springerles are hard to get right.
To make the Springerles, you use a Springerle rolling pin to press the design onto a slab of dough; then you cut the slab into squares. This one is from Wikipedia:
Julia is a great baker, so she also made these loaves of Hungarian Bread for Grammie, Aunt Mattie, and Uncle Rudy.
I love baking presents. It’s such a nice way to show that you care. You guys all know how much I loved making those gingerbread houses…
I am going to go watch some TV (Glee, perhaps?) with a nice mug of tea. Want to be rested for tomorrow’s flight.
Merry (late) Christmas again, and enjoy your weekend. I’ll try to get up the many many recaps that I have for you this week!
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Tagged: baking, bread, cake, christmas, cookies, family, gifts
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Merry Christmas to you too! Hope you’ll feel well soon. Left overs are always more flavorful.
That yule log looks delicious! I feel your pain… I’ve been sick this Christmas too… either way, I hope you had a Merry Christmas!
Merry belated Christmas! I’ve only had buche de noel once in my life, and I doubt it was very authentic. It was filled with ice cream, lol.
Merry Christmas Maggie! Your mom’s yule log looks terrific! That’s probably the most realistic I’ve ever seen! I was toying w/ the idea of making one, too. But we ended up having a sweets overload so I didn’t even get to the ginger bread recipe you sent me! Next year!!
banana slugs!!!!! i saw those when i was in santa cruz many years ago! so cool!
we had a yule log this year too! it was my first time trying it and it was def good…very rich, but good!
merry christmas maggie! here was our yule log:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0Qiimoa8A8
Merry Christmas, Maggie!!
I hope you are feeling better and that you have a good flight. I can’t take credit for the slug. One of my mushroom stems came out wrong and your siblings said it looked like a slug and painted it. The start of a new tradition…lol.
Belated Merry Christmas Maggie,
As a veg grower and a small veg plot owner, I liked the ‘slug’ touch, made me smile. Here in Scotland, I have been seeing some really dark ones,nearly black. Anyway, thanks for sharing. Hope your feeling better now.
Sounds like you had a good Christmas! I love all the goodies you shared with us!
I hope you are feeling better and that you had a good flight back home!
merry (belated) xmas! i have always wanted to try a yule log….
Feel better Maggie. Never knew what a Yule Log was. Oh my gosh, sounds delicious. Hope your family saved some for you and Bobby as well as some of the Springerles.
Safe travels back home my friend!
Merry late Christmas to you, too, Mags! That Buche de Noel looks scrumptious!
No fun getting sick! I am sorry! Glad you had a great Miami trip~ Was the weather nice?
you’re mom’s treat and your sister’s Springerles….what goodies!
Merry Christmas Maggie! Wishing you my best!
xooxoxoxox
[...] just realized that I never posted about our trip to Miami. I was only there for about 4 days, so I wanted to spend as much time as I could being social and [...]