Christmas isn’t simply a holiday revolving around turkey, potatoes and peas. It is so much more than that. The food cooked during the holiday season holds immense value to a variety of cultures. So, we decided to look into FHS students' favourite recipes from their respective cultures. Below we have recipes from Mexico, Jamaica, and Germany. Enjoy!
Mexican Besitos de Nuez This is a Mexican Christmas recipe called “Besitos de Nuez” meaning “Pecan kisses”, supposedly they got their name because they are like real kisses: small and delicious, leaving you wanting more. They originated in Spain but are well received, not just in Spain but in Mexico as well. Easily prepared, and easily eaten, it is a sweet recipe that results in sweet tiny balls with delicous flavour.
(https://us.kiwilimon.com/recipe/desserts/walnut-kiss-cookies)
Ingredients
1 cup walnuts 1 cup butter, melted 2 cups icing sugar 2 cups flour 2 tablespoons vanilla essence
1 pinch salt
Instructions 1- Preheat the oven to 180o (350 F). 2- First crush the nuts to make them finer. Then in a blender, place the butter with 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, and beat (medium speed) until you get a spongy mass. 3- Add 1 cup of flour, vanilla, and salt, beat again at low speed until everything is mixed. Add the rest of the flour and the ground nuts, and finish beating a little more. 4- Form a ball with the dough, put it in a plastic bag to refrigerate it for an hour or until it is firm. 5- Form the balls from the dough, about 2.5 cm (approximately one inch), place them in an ungreased baking dish with a separation between them of 3 cm (a little over an inch). Bake for about 12 or 15 minutes until they have a light golden color.
6- After baking, let sit for 5 minutes, sprinkle the icing sugar and wait until they are completely cooled.
German Vanillekipferl This recipe is not only special because it’s from Germany and Austria, but also because it’s vegan, so it can be enjoyed by a variety of diets. They are called Vanillekipferl, they originated in Austria but the recipe moved its way to Germany and are now a sweet delicacy which are in nearly every German and Austrian Christmas dinner.
(https://veganonboard.com/vegan-vanillekipferl-crescent-cookies/)
Ingredients
7 oz (200 g) vegan butter diced 2 cups (250 g) flour all purpose / plain 1⁄2 cup (100 g) sugar 1 cup (100 g) ground almonds 1 cup (120 g) icing sugar or powdered homemade vanilla sugar
Instructions
Making the dough
1- In a large mixing bowl, mix and knead the flour, ground almonds, sugar and vegan butter into a uniform dough. 2- Shape the dough into four firm log shapes about 3 cm /1 inch wide and refrigerate them for an hour. Shaping and baking 1- Before you shape the cookies, preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) and prepare several baking sheets covered in baking paper or a reusable mat. 2- Remove the dough from the fridge, and cut the logs into 1 cm thick slices.
3- Using your hands, roll each piece into a rope with slightly pointed ends. Gently shape it into a crescent, and place it on a lined baking sheet. Repeat the process for the other pieces of dough. You should be able to fit around 16 cookies per tray. If not baking the cookies immediately, place the trays in the fridge to chill. 4- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes. You don't want the cookies to turn golden brown. When the tips of the cookies are just starting to brown, that's a sign they are ready. 5- Let the cookies cool down on the tray and firm up for 5-10 minutes, then carefully toss and dip each cookie in icing sugar, or powdered homemade vanilla sugar, for a generous coating.
Jamaican Gizzada and Grater Cake The following recipes are two sweet recipes eaten in Jamaican culture. The first is called Gizzada, or coconut tart, which is a traditional Jamaican pastry. It is a delicious treat made from a combination of coconut, ginger, brown sugar and spices all inside a buttery pastry cup. It has been a recipe since the 19th century, and has come from Portuguese descent.
(https://www.sweetandsorrel.com/gizzada-coconut-tart/#recipe)
Ingredients
Crust 2 cups AP Flour 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter (place in freezer for 5 minutes) 1/2 cup ice cold water
Gizzada Filling 2 cups freshly grated brown coconut (or store bought unsweetened desiccated coconut) 1 tsp freshly grated ginger -2 cups brown sugar 1 tsp grated nutmeg
1 tsp ground all-spice -1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon -2 tbsp vanilla extract 1 egg (optional)
Instructions
1- To make the dough. Add flour to a mixing bowl. Use a grater to grate cold butter into dough. Using your hands, press butter into flour until mixture clumps together and forms coarse pebbles. Add ice cold water a little at a time and knead until dough comes together and forms a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2- Prepare the filling.
3- If using fresh coconut: Add grated coconut to a bowl, along with grated ginger. Add brown sugar, grated nutmeg, ground all-spice, ground cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Stir and let sit uncovered for 30 minutes, or until all the sugar has dissolved. Stir occasionally.
4- If using store bought coconut: Add grated coconut to a bowl, along with grated ginger. Add brown sugar, grated nutmeg, ground all-spice, ground cinnamon, and vanilla extract. To a pot, add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil on the stove. Add coconut mixture to the boiling water and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, or until all the liquid has dissolved. Remove from the pot and set aside to let the mixture cool while you prepare the crust.
5- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
6- Remove dough from the fridge and press onto a lightly floured surface. Cut dough into 8 pieces. Roll each piece out into a round, and use a cup, cover, or anything you have to shape the rounds into discs, roughly 4 to 5 inches in diameter. To shape, lift up a corner of the dough and use the index finger of your non-dominant hand to gently push a section of the dough into the thumb and index finger of your dominant hand. Pinch your thumb and index finger together to create a crease. Repeat this all the way around until you form a pleated cup. Repeat for the remaining pieces of dough. Use a fork to prick the base of the cups.
7- Pre-bake dough for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with a beaten egg. Top with a spoonful of the coconut filling. Spread the filling around to fill the entire cup. Bake for another 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Let cool. Enjoy!
The second recipe that is popular in Jamaica is a grater cake, also known as Pink on Top or Sugar Cake. The recipe also uses coconut, an ingredient used often in Jamaica and other Caribbean cultures. A fun fact about the history of this dessert is that in the past, grater cake was made with wet sugar. This is raw or unrefined sugar, also called Muscovado sugar. But now white sugar is used instead. This is a simple dessert that looks harder to make than it really is, plus it only takes about an hour to cook. So if you are in a pinch to get dessert ready we suggest a grater cake.
(https://www.thepretendchef.com/jamaican-grater-cake/#recipe)
Ingredients
2 cups water 1 1⁄2 cups sugar 1⁄2 inch ginger root 2 cups grated coconut (1 medium) 1⁄8 teaspoon salt 1⁄8 teaspoon vanilla 1⁄2 teaspoon food colour
Instructions
1- Crack open coconut. Remove coconut flesh from the shell. Peel off the brown skin which is totally optional.
2- Wash and grate coconut flesh using a box grater, blender or a food processor.
3- Prepare a cake tin, casserole dish or any suitable container by rubbing vegetable oil in them.
4- In a saucepan, put water, sugar and ginger, place over medium heat.
5- Cook until sugar melts and the liquid is reduced but before it caramelizes and changes colour.
6- If the ginger is not aromatic at this stage, continue with the dish and remove ginger when you can smell it well.
7- Cook until it has reduced, stirring frequently. in coconut and salt to this syrup and reduce the heat to medium-low.
8- Stir in vanilla and keep stirring until the mixture starts coming off the sides of the pan. Take off the heat.
9- Scoop about 2/3 of the mixture into the prepared pan, spread loosely.
10- Add the colour to the remaining 1/3 of the coconut. Mix well and spread on top of the white in the bowl.
11- Set aside for 25-30 minutes to cool down and harden.
12- When formed, cut into bars and serve.
13- Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
I hope that this holiday season, you will try one of these recipes. Maybe even look into more of these cultures' holiday recipes, as this is only a representative sample of the few people we interviewed. Go outside of your comfort zone, try some new foods, and have a happy holiday!
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