CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS AND A RECIPE

Howdy, friends.  How are your plans for Christmas coming along? Do you plan to host a passle of people?

At Charles Goodnight’s JA Ranch in the Texas Panhandle, Christmas dinner was huge. The Goodnights entertained all their neighbors with a holiday party. An evergreen from Palo Duro Canyon was decorated with frosted raisins and strings of popcorn and cranberries. Dinner consisted of beef, turkey, antelope, cakes, pies, and other assorted dishes. Each guest received a gift and guests danced until daybreak.

At our house, we’re planning a much more modest celebration. Our two daughters will join us to share tamales and other TexMex foods on Christmas Eve. That gives us time to hear my husband read the Christmas story from the Book of Luke before we open our gifts. 

On Christmas Day, we’ve sometimes had ham or lasagna for dinner. This year, we’ll share a pot roast about one o’clock. By the time we've emptied our stockings on Christmas morning and nibbled on the candy that's always part of their bounty, no one is very hungry. Yes, even though we're all adults, we each have a stocking, We're big on some traditions. Seeing the food prepared for dinner and the Christmas china bedecking the table always whets our appetites.  

My hero and I haven't made candy yet, but we’ll probably cook fudge on Tuesday.  My mom was well known for her luscious pies at family dinners. At Christmas, though, she always made batch after batch of fudge and divinity. I thought for this special time, I’d share her divinity recipe with you.

Mamaw’s Divinity

2 cups sugar

½ cup white Karo syrup

2 large egg whites, stiffly beaten

½ cup water

Dash of salt

½ Tablespoon vanilla

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

1/c cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Beat egg whites until stiff and set aside. Cook sugar, Karo, water, salt, and cream of tartar until it forms a hard ball in cold water. Pour over beaten egg whites, stirring as you pour. Add  vanilla and nuts. Beat until it starts to harden. Pour into a lightly buttered 8” x 8” casserole to harden. 

Mom usually made one batch colored with food coloring. As a child, I thought the pink divinity tasted better than the plain white candy. 

Merry Christmas to each of you.

Caroline Clemmons is the award winning and Amazon bestselling author whose Christmas novella is STONE MOUNTAIN CHRISTMAS, available from Amazon at http://amzn.com/B00OQUTDXA 

Cowboy Kisses for Santa from Mrs. Claus