This is only our fifth Christmas at the bakery but we already have some holiday traditions.
Like Suzanne Gray's gingerbread persons. I'm pretty sure this is her fifth Christmas decorating these beautiful, edible treats.
Her incredible attention to detail is what makes these cookies so special. You really don't want to eat them, but you could. They look happy to adorn a tree, all decked out in their royal (icing) finery.
This year we've got Bama fans, brides, grooms, guys in sweaters, girls in sweaters, mermaids, santas, and just regular party goers.
Then there are the holiday cookies and candies. The ones we only make in December.
Dream Bars, rum balls, almond spritz cookies, linzer cookies, chocolate fudge, peppermint fudge, peanutbutter fudge, pralines and divinity. Then add decorated shortbread in holiday shapes and colors, russian tea cakes and caramel nut bars. Pretty soon you have a beautiful platter, another holiday tradition at the bakery.
And the fruitcakes, which have been soaking in rum since October. Full of pecans, cherries, citrus and other dried fruits, they are delicious (not the regifting variety).
And the Christmas Stollen, a yeast bread full of fruit and nuts, and braided to resemble the swaddling clothes of the baby in the manger. A Christmas-morning tradition in my family ever since I can remember.
Lastly, there's the Buche de Noel (the Yule Log). A chocolate sponge filled with chocolate buttercream, rolled and cut to look like a log, and covered in more buttercream and ganache. The decorations are traditional -- meringue mushrooms, a marzipan Santa Claus, and sugared rosemary, and maybe a shortbread cookie decorated like a red cardinal. A lovely and delicious way to end your Christmas Eve dinner. By order only.
What are YOUR favorite holiday traditions?
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