A look forward into the holiday (baking) season
I realize its only October and it might not sit well to think about winter holidays quite yet, I am anyway.
Every year from the beginning of November until just after the new year, I bake hundreds of batches of cookies, as well as cakes and other breakfast breads, snacks, pies, deserts and appetizers. I give boxes of cookies to friends, family and other people we work with or have frequent contact with during the year. My husband and I also often cater or at least help with several holiday parties as well as a Thanksgiving dinner in our own home.
So as I am thinking forward to what I am going to bake, how many pounds of flour, sugar, butter and nuts, how many dozen eggs, how much time I will need, who are we gifting to and what should we package them in I am thinking of my joy. It can take a lot of planning to bake this much, but I don’t mind, I don’t mind spending the money or the time and I don’t mind that the gifts often aren’t reciprocated, the whole thing is so warm and wonderful.
Holiday season baking is my favorite part of the late fall early winter. It brings me so much happiness when I bake the cookies and when I give them away, the smells and the smiles. As the days get darker and the temperatures are plummeting anything that brings some joy is a good thing.
Where does your end of the year (late fall early winter) joy come from?
(if you want to contribute a winter Joy piece for the blog click here)
October 28th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
I used to do that.
I’ll probably need to start up again.
My Mother has been doing it for decades but she turned 80 this year. Still very active and in good health, but she just can’t handle the load.
I’ll sit down and divide up the work. She can make her favorites and I’ll do the ones she’s not thrilled about.
Or I can come over on both Sat. and Sun and back with her in her kitchen. She might like that better.
I started early this year. No baking (except for cupcakes) but I did spent 7 hours making food for my student monitors in the library. A menu of ghoulishly named deviled eggs and dips. All free of high fructose corn syrup and with healthy alternatives. Try using extra virgin olive oil in your cakes the next time you bake. You can’t tell the difference. Honest.
October 28th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
Send some to me, please.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
I like your question about the source of joy this time of year…
have to think on that, tho, as my first thought is that every
day brings me closer to the solstice and the return of the sun.
But I know there is more because I am not as depressed or
oppressed by the darkness as I used to be.
But open to have you send some down here, too….
October 31st, 2009 at 2:09 pm
Who wrote this?
October 31st, 2009 at 7:10 pm
Char did!
November 20th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
I knew it was Char when she talked about baking dozens and dozens of cookies! I, too, find my holiday joy baking cookies and cakes for others and the joy they get when I give them something all-American to eat during the holidays. You have inspired me to start early this year, Char!