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Holiday Treat Traditions Around the World
When the holidays come around, it always seems as if there are
treats galore! The stores quickly fill up with egg nog, wasail
ingredients, and chocolate shaped into just about every shape
imaginable. But this year, how about looking at the more
traditional holiday treats to spice up your gatherings. By
focusing on the traditional and meaningful instead of the gaudy
and commercial, you may find that you introduce your family and
friends to treats that they love to both eat and discuss.
In Austria, families traditionally spend Christmas Eve together,
starting the evening with a church service. Following church,
they gather for a traditional dinner. While their main course of
Gebackener Karpfen, or fried carp, may not suit everyone's
fancy, their dessert of Sachertorte may indeed. Sachertore is a
chocolate and apricot cake; the richness of the cake is
determined by the depth and quality of the chocolate used. The
cake is then frosted traditionally with chocolate frosting,
creating a delectable treat for almost any palate.
When December 6th reaches Germany, they celebrate the evening
with St. Nicholas coming to all the children. For the good
children comes a shoe or boot full of delicious chocolates,
cookies, and other treats. This just starts the holiday season.
On Christmas Eve, each family member receives a plate of all
kinds of treats, including fruit, nuts, marzipan, chocolate, and
cookies. These treats are sure to bring sweet dreams for
Christmas morning!
Mexico celebrates the holiday season with La Posadas, which
marks the journey of Mary and Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
Starting on December 16th, this celebration takes place each
night with people going from door to
door, singing traditional
songs and asking for admittance for Mary. When the door is
opened, everyone celebrates and the children enjoy the tradition
of the piņata. The piņata is a brightly colored container made
of either pottery (traditionally) or paper (in modern times)
filled with all sorts of treats for the children. One by one,
the children are blindfolded and try to hit the piņata with a
stick. Finally, the piņata breaks and everyone celebrates by
devouring the delicious candies and treats.
And in France comes probably one of the most indulgent treats,
the sabots. Traditionally, the sabots were wooden shoes that the
peasants wore. On Christmas Eve, the children would put their
sabots in front of the fire in hopes that they would awaken to
sabots filled with treats. In modern France, however, wooden
shoes are obviously not as prevalent. Instead, sabots are made
of chocolate by pastry shops and filled with all sorts of
candies. Obviously, these are no longer set in front of the fire.
For your next holiday gathering, why not pick a traditional
theme and impart both delicious food and knowledge upon your
guests. They will in all likelihood be thrilled not to rehash
the same tired holiday offerings.
About the author:
Jane S. Roseen became the sole Owner and President of Harmony
Sweets in 2005. Since then she has taken a small, successful
online gourmet chocolate shop and made it a name recognized
world-wide. Harmony Sweets' original mission focused on
individual consumers purchasing gourmet chocolates from around
the world for their friends and relatives. Roseen expanded that
mission to include corporate gift-giving.
Website: http://www.harmonysweets.com
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