Tag Archives: Christmas

Loading
loading..

Mince Pie & Tea

BSI Group: Consumer, Retail & Food Standards

This British festive pastry has origins dating back to the 13th century when European Crusaders returned from the Middle East with recipes containing meats, fruits, and spices. These early pies, known as “mincemeat pies,” combined minced meat (usually mutton), suet, fruits, and spices such as cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, symbolizing the gifts of the Magi. In the 16th century, the pies were rectangular, representing Jesus’ crib.

Over time, the meat content reduced, and by the Victorian era, the recipe had evolved to primarily include dried fruits, suet, and spices, aligning with the modern version of the mince pie. Traditionally enjoyed during the Christmas season, mince pies are now small, round pastries filled with a mixture called mincemeat, which typically contains no meat but a blend of dried fruits, sugar, spices, and sometimes brandy or other spirits.

Tea

Eggnog

December is National Eggnog Month

Historians’ best guess as to the origin of eggnog dates back to the English Middle Ages, where a warm, milky ale called ‘posset’, was consumed. Posset was often consumed with eggs and figs; eggs, figs, dairy, and sherry were products that only the wealthy could afford to enjoy at the time. Eggnog was thought to have arrived in the U.S. prior to the revolutionary war. Whereas most of the eggnog consumed in Britain was by the upper class (with sherry), as eggnog advanced throughout the U.S. like a milky river of frothy delight, it was generally consumed with rum or bourbon.

Because the agricultural-based colonies were flush with chickens and cows, the consumption of eggnog was not limited to crusty upper class Brits, but rather a drink that most people throughout the American colonies could enjoy. In fact, food historian, Emelyn Rude (2015), author of “How Eggnog (Almost) Changed the World”, explains that consumption of eggnog was a popular holiday pastime of many, even including West Point cadets, such as Edgar Allen Poe and Jefferson Davis.

The Nation’s Pioneer Land-Grant University


Nourriture Hiver

Egg Nog Riot of 1826

Christmas Bread & Tennessee Raw Milk

“Having visited my great grandmother, Omi, in Germany multiple times growing up, I’ve always had a special connection to German baked goods. While I have yet to find the perfect German pretzel in the U.S. or a recipe that yields a decent replica, I have discovered that stollen — a traditional German Christmas bread — is relatively easy to recreate in my own kitchen.”

Click image for recipe

Standards Virginia

More:

Thomas Jefferson’s Masterpiece

University of Virginia Financial Report: 2023 Net Position $12.580B

University of Virginia Capital Construction & Renovations

Raw Milk

Layout mode
Predefined Skins
Custom Colors
Choose your skin color
Patterns Background
Images Background
Skip to content