Memories: lots and lots of food

So this is probably going to sound weird, but the things that remind me the most of my childhood are all food. Boxed macaroni and cheese (with or without canned chili), the smell of apple pie, or - interestingly enough - nutmeg.

I know, right, nutmeg? I actually didn't know what that smell was that made me feel so nostalgic until very recently, when on a whim I sprinkled some nutmeg over sugar cookies before they went in the oven. I recognized the scent the moment I smelled it, and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy and nostalgic inside.

My family's been big on cooking for other people as a form of affection, and since we were kinda poor for most of my childhood, many many of those meals came from the blue box of mac and cheese or were baked cookies. They're both major comfort foods for me, if I've been really stressed out or need a mood boost I don't want a $10 bowl of pasta or a nice cut of steak, I crave a $2 bowl of over processed, almost fluorescent orange "pasta" (I use that term loosely...) or handmade brownies.

Aaaaaaaaand that should tell you why my family has weight problems. Well, that and our occasional dinner of "heart attack pie" - apple pie with a pack of maple sausage and cheese in it. :P

Holiday Catch-up

Today the holidays are officially over for me, since I left home this morning to come back to Halifax, and had my first class of the semester this afternoon.  It was a really nice break.

The whole break was pretty chill.  I spent most of the week before Christmas just lazing around recovering from exams, although I also finished up my Christmas shopping and baked a bunch of Christmas cookies.

On Christmas Eve morning, I got together with my friends from home to do our annual gift exchange.  My secret Santa donated a flock of chicks in my name through Heifer International, which I thought was a really excellent idea.  After the exchange we played a few board games before all going home to spend the day with our families.  

I went home and helped mom make supper, then in the evening we went to visit my grandfather.  We don't really have a lot of Christmas traditions any more, but our Christmas Eve is usually pretty much the same.  We visit with my grandfather for a few hours.  On the way home we drive through town and then take the scenic route instead of the highway so that we can see everyone's Christmas lights.  When we get home we have a glass of egg nog and watch whatever classic Christmas special happens to be on TV (This year it was Scrooge (the 1951 version)).

For Christmas I got a new camera, and a few clothes, and a ton of chocolate.  I also used the Christmas money I got from a few of my relatives to buy a new iPod.  Both my old camera and iPod were over 6 years old, so the sudden technology upgrade is kind of incredible.

My brother got home on the 27th, so then we had a smaller second Christmas for all the presents to and from him.  He got me Munchkin, which is one of my favourite games and I've considered buying it for myself several times, so it was nice to have it for myself and be able to introduce it to my friends who've never played before.  His flight got in pretty early in the morning, so we still had the whole rest of the day after that, so we went to visit my great-aunt, did a little shopping, and went out for dinner.

On New Year's Eve my family always has fondue for dinner, which is one of my favourite meals of the year.  It's delicious, plus it's a nice slow meal, so you appreciate each other's company more rather than just sitting down and stuffing your faces.  One of my friends always hosts a party, so that's how I spent my New Year's Eve this year, as usual.  He has three younger sisters between the ages of ten and twenty, and all four kids have friends over and usually a bunch of their aunts and uncles are there too, so it tends to be a little crowded and crazy (they also have a hyperactive dog, and five cats, which just makes it even more ridiculous), but I think New Year's Eve is better when there are lots of people.  We played a few board games, had some snacks, and then it was time for fireworks.  Their firework displays are always pretty impressive; they seriously must spend a few hundred dollars on fireworks every year.  I love fireworks.  After that there's always a glass of champagne for the adults and sprite for the younger kids, and after making a few toasts and talking a bit about the past year and the new year and everything, we all head home.

I didn't really make any New Year's resolutions this year.  Usually I do.  Last year I had a whole spreadsheet of resolutions, and they were all specific and measurable and everything, so that I could keep track of my progress and make sure that I actually did them instead of giving up after a month like I usually do.  I guess it helped somewhat, since I didn't give up until April.  I don't know.  This year I just don't know what to resolve, I guess.  I'm not sure what direction I want to go.  I guess my resolution would be to actually do things that I want to/mean to/feel like I should do, instead of just saying I'm going to do them and then being too lazy.

Nostalgia Cookies

Well, okay, that's not actually their name. But with these as a staple at all the family holiday gatherings and the sense of happiness just the smell of them baking brings me, they could just as easily go by the other name.

These cookies are dense and chocolatey without being overly rich, and are delicious whether they're covered in festive sprinkles or dunked in a morning cup of tea. The recipe itself is quite simple, and the only real time investment is letting the dough chill for a bit and, until you get the hang of it, rolling them out into pretzels.

Mom's Chocolate Pretzel Recipe

Makes 24 large pretzels or 36 small pretzels

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup softened butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa and salt.

In a medium bowl, beat together the butter and sugar, then beat in the egg and vanilla.

In 3 additions, beat in flour mixture.

Divide into 2 logs, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours, or overnight.

When ready to shape the logs, take them out of the fridge (If chilled overnight, allow 10-15 minutes for them to thaw slightly) and set the oven to 350 F

Divide both into 12 or 18 pieces depending on how large you'd like the cookies to be.

Choose one log to work with first, and return the other to the fridge.

Shape each pretzel one at a time: gently roll out a piece into a 6-8 inch snake.

Take one end and bend it over toward the middle.

Repeat with other side, and allow the two ends to cross over each other.

You're welcome to stop here, but if you'd like yours to look a little fancier, twist the two ends over each other 1-2 more times.

And then position them so the bottom of the twisted ends is at the bottom of the pretzel, like so:

After each pretzel is shaped, place it on a baking sheet. Shape the remaining pretzels and place them on the baking sheet, leaving a couple of inches between each one. Repeat with the other log that was in the fridge.

Bake for 10 minutes, or until set.

Enjoy with a glass of milk :)