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| Merry Christmas i am one of those who absolutely loves Christmas. i love shopping for the perfect gifts for family & friends, wrapping them, decorating my house inside & out. Every since i can remember i have been enthralled by the Christmas tree...decorated in beautiful twinkling lights, and all those special ornaments. my tree has somewhere around 1800 lights...and has many special ornaments...from my Moms tree...my Grandmothers, the ones my son made at school, yes, smiles, the egg carton ones as well, and the special ones i have collected through the years.It takes a week to get it all done, and when it is...i turn the lights on...and sit & just gaze at it |
| Christmas in Newfoundland Christmas in Newfoundland is a very special time, steeped in tradition, some things have been passed down through generations. The Christmas Cakes No home in Nfld would be without the heavy dark fruit, light fruit & Cherry cakes. It would be considered a great insult to not offer visitors Christmas Cake. They are made in October, then wrapped in cake cloths soaked in rum & seasoned till Christmas. They are made in cast iron "bark pots", mine was passed down to me from my Great Grandmother. God help anyone who walks heavily in the kitchen, when these cakes are baking, cause the cake might "fall". A major disaster!!! The Christmas Eve Supper Another tradition, in times gone by, Newfoundlanders, preserved food to get them though the harsh winters, when they were isolated in their communities & fresh meats & fish were not to be had. Cod, was salted & dried on flakes in the sun, then stored for the winter ahead. On Christmas Eve, we have salt fish, potatoes & scrunchions. The fish is "watered" for about three days ahead of time to soak out the salt. Then it is boiled. The scrunchions are small cubes of salt pork, that is fried in a pan with onions, which is then served over the fish & potatoes. All Newfoundlanders love it. Christmas Dinner Another major traditional meal. We have turkey, but the stuffing is a little different...and we call it dressing! It's a mixture of breadcrumbs, butter, onions, & savoury, which is locally grown. We also stuff both the cavity & the "ass", so we can slice it when we have a "cold plate". We boil salt meat (beef that has been picked in brine, and then soaked overnight), this is boiled in a large pot for about three hours, and then we add, cabbage, turnip, carrot & potatoes. The vegetables are cooked in the pot with the salt meat..The liquid from the pot, is then mixed with the turkey drippings to make the gravy. Yummm Dessert...is of course..."Figgy Duff", it's a raisin & fig pudding thats put into a cloth bag and also boiled in the pot with the salt meat & vegetables and served with a homemade carmel sauce" The Jannies Also called "mummers", are as much a part of a Newfoundland Christmas as Santa. Jannies are people that dress up in the most outlandish costumes that you could ever imagine...not store bought ones...but old clothes, long rubber boots, stuff from the house or shed!! Their faces are always covered, and you have to guess who they are, they come knocking on your door, and they carry an assortment of musical instruments, like the fiddle, accordian, guitar& bodrhon. The Jannies are always offered a lunch & a drink. They then play, dance, and sing. They never stay for long, and when they leave, they bless your house. To have the Jannies bless your house is considered an honour. And for Y/you all that have come to read here...an old Newfoundland blessing... "Long may your big jib draw"... |