My "Holiday Cheer"

[Philippe Cordier]

I can't believe I've been away from the board for so long.  I've only been away this long once in the past three years (going on four years now, or is it five?). I've felt especially bad not even having time to drop in to read everyone's comments at the start of 1897, which has really been top-notch in the writing, acting, and production departments.  I missed most of the last three weeks and have just started viewing again a few days ago.  My viewing was suspended when Quentin was killed by Jenny; I remember how much I disliked the Quentin-as-zombie aspect last time, so I'm not entirely sorry I missed that now, although maybe my opinion would have changed the second time around. Thought Frid's recitation of the spell from The Egyptian Book of the Dead yesterday was superb; would have liked to have heard more.

I'm hoping I'll be able to start posting again in January, but come February with new obligations, I don't know if I'll be able to continue participating as frequently as I used to.

There's nothing more I can really add to the DS discussion right now, so instead I thought I'd share a bit of holiday cheer.

This is my version of a recipe that appeared in a national newspaper supplement, but I have changed it enough to truly call it my own -- I just borrowed the basic idea.  One thing I've done is change the proportions of rum and brandy flavors to reflect the penchant for brandy at Collinwood!

This is a fantastic alternative to store-bought eggnogs (and much easier than making your own eggnog) -- no eggs, no heavy, over-rich gloppy goo like the commercial brands.  It's much lighter and more refreshing!


"Vlad's Holiday Cheer"

(Makes 4 servings)

What you need:

Mixing bowl, or large jar or pitcher for mixing and storing
Wooden spoon
Measuring cup and spoons

Ingredients:

1 quart 4-percent (whole) milk (4 cups)
4 rounded tablespoons "Reser's Hot Buttered Rum" (carried in the refrigerator section at grocery stores during the holidays. I've suggested alternatives to this below if you're unable to obtain it.)
1 / 4 cup sugar (or 8 sugar cubes)
1 / 2 cup brandy
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Stir sugar, hot buttered rum mix, brandy, and vanilla extract until dissolved.  Stir in milk.  Place in freezer for several hours until very frosty.  May be stored in freezer.

Enjoy in front of the fire, or while watching Dark Shadows.

For Christmas Eve, stir in a couple dashes of peppermint spirits or peppermint extract, and serve with a candy cane in each glass.

Warning:  Very addictive!  Reserve for holiday imbibing only.  Do not attempt to operate machinery or heavy equipment if you consume as much as you'll probably want to!

Alternatives:

If you can't find the hot buttered rum mix in your store (it can also be ordered online), you can make your own.  I haven't tried this, but it shouldn't be too difficult to duplicate.  I would estimate using the following amounts based on the ingredients label:

1 cup brown sugar
1 / 2 to 2 / 3 stick butter
rum extract or seasoning to flavor
a pinch of salt

Blend together.

Now, if you don't want to go through THAT much trouble with the rum mixture, modify my original recipe as follows.  In addition to the ingredients previously listed (minus the prepared rum mixture), add:

1 / 4 cup rum
a pinch of salt

Enjoy the spirit of the season!

[kuanyin]

Sorry to hear that time will continue to constrain you. Hope you'll join in as you can!

[Misty]

Can't wait to try that "cheer". I'm always looking for a new offering for my Christmas Eve guests. Thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas!!

                                        Misty

                                   

[jennifer]

Wow Vlad as i've been having trouble sleeping
that looks like it could help(can't hurt says quentin)
i almost ran out to the store to go look for all
those yummy things! will do tommorrrow see ya and thanks
happy holidays!
jennifer

[Connie]

What flavor brandy would be best??

-CLC

P.S.  Is this fattening?  LOL

[Cassandra]

Hi Vlad,[wavey]  Been wondering where you've been lately!  It's nice to see you back again (even if it's just for a short while)    This Holiday cheer sounds good! It sounds sweet and I just love sweet drinks!  Thanks for the recipe and here's a toast to you!   Have A Blessed & Happy Holiday!!

Cassandra[/font]

[Happybat]

Vlad,

I've also missed seeing you here, but suspected - correctly it seems - that work has kept you rather busy.  What are you doing these days?  Still teaching?  I'd love to know more.  

And thank you for that recipe!  It sounds like something quite wonderful but less dangerous on the waistline than egg nog, which uses cream, although I may be wrong about that.  

Wishing you a bright and wondrous holiday season!!  (And a chance to watch more DS of course!)

Cheers!  

[Teresa]

Wow, that does sound quite tasty. I was wondering if you could use soy milk in place of whole milk. I have a problem when I consume whole milk and it sounds like skim just wouldn't get the same effect.
I am glad to hear you are well Vlad. I myself don't get to read or post as frequently as I used to ( at least at this time of year) and it's nice to see you back.
Happy holiday cheer to you too!
Teresa

[Philippe Cordier]

NUTMEG!

Aaarrggh!! How could I have forgotten that?

Sprinkle nutmeg on top of each serving.

********

To answer the questions, I'm sure soy milk would work -- as with most "healthy alternatives," I'm sure the flavor would be somewhat ... different ... but it should work.

I'm not sure what other questions were asked now, and the pages only printed out blank ...  but I did have a couple of other comments.

If you make the hot buttered rum mix yourself, the amounts I gave are probably far more than you'd need.  You could probably half the amounts I gave.  Remember that you use only about a tablespoon per serving, most of which is brown sugar, so it isn't too terribly fattening

The original recipe I saw didn't have the hot buttered rum mix at all, just the rum -- the prepared rum mix was my addition since I didn't have any rum on hand but did have the hot buttered rum mix, which added a delicious flavor.  To make, I'd just soften the butter in the microwave or melt slightly over low heat, then add the brown sugar and rum flavoring.

For a lower fat version, just use rum

Oh, yes, if you use rum, it should be dark rum.

I'm not sure about differences in brandy; I think whatever they drink at Collinwood should work.  

*********

Gosh, what a surprise to get so many pleasant well-wishes -- Thank you!

Blame my Linguistics instructor for my absence from the forum!  I haven't worked as hard in an introductory course since the classes that still give me nightmares from college years ago -- pre-calculus, statistics, and economics -- most of which I ended up dropping!  Somehow I survived it!  My other class was a breeze in comparison!)

[Philippe Cordier]

As long as I'm off-topic, I may as well make my book recommendation for holiday reading:  "In the Devil's Snare" by Mary Beth Norton (just published, hardcover, by Knopf).  Historian Norton's illuminating study examines the Salem witchcraft from a broader context of the Indian wars in Maine, to which many of the accused and accusers had ties.  Norton shows how the Indian represented the devil to the Puritan mind and helped set the stage for the witchcraft crisis.  This book also has far more detail and corrects many inaccuracies of previous studies.  Perhaps it goes without saying that she dismisses the "ergot fungus hallucinogen" theory, which she notes was convincingly discounted soon after it was proposed in the 1970s.  That's one of the "explanations" that seems to persist (for example, Lara Parker was planning to use it in her next Dark Shadows novel set in Salem).  If you're looking for a light read, though, say something along the lines of the movie version of "The Crucible," you might not enjoy this book.  Some reviewers on amazon complained about all the documentation and quotes in early American English.

Also ... when I was supposed to be studying linguistics, I discovered another book I'm enthused about: David Blaine's "Mysterious Stranger."  He's the New York "street" magician whose magic is the antithesis of David Copperfield's glitzy stage productions.  Like most magicians (actually, all that I know of), Blaine is a skeptic of "psychics."  There's a brief but fascinating description of a voodoo ceremony he witnessed in the Carribbean.

Perhaps a few people might also be interested in the new biography "L. Frank Baum: Creator of Oz" (St. Martin's Press, Oct. 2002).  This study of the greatest American writer of children's fantasy will send you running back to the original Oz books, and many of Baum's other fantasies (like "The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus," a recent animated version of which aired last night on the Cartoon channel, which creates an entire mythological world).  I reviewed the biography for a local publication in the context of an article on Baum's unconventional spirituality and feminism.  My view of Baum as someone who has contributed to spiritual awakening in the 20th century partly explains my negative view of some recent books that portray the Land of Oz in a manner completely at odds with Baum's spiritual vision.

*****

Oh, and ... remember to sprinkle nutmeg on the "Holiday Cheer"!

Merry Christmas, everyone.  And Happy Hannukah, Sacred Solstice, Merry Kwanza!

-Vlad

[Philippe Cordier]

P.S.  My apologies for straying so far off-topic.  I did try to work in some DS material ... but went a little overboard with some of my non-DS topics.

[Connie]

Also ... when I was supposed to be studying linguistics, I discovered another book I'm enthused about: David Blaine's "Mysterious Stranger."  He's the New York "street" magician whose magic is the antithesis of David Copperfield's glitzy stage productions.

I didn't know he had a book out.  What exactly is he writing about?  I LOVE watching him.  I'm not real big on magicians, but HE blows me away.

Levitating above the computer,
-CLC


P.S.  It seems to me that 1/4 cup of brandy to a whole quart of milk is not NEARLY enough.  How can anyone get wasted on that?  LOL
I mean, Quentin probably drinks more than that before breakfast!!

[Philippe Cordier]

Possible problems with the recipe ...

I mixed up a batch last night as I was wrapping Christmas presents and this time it tasted too rich, so I'd recommend going easy on the hot buttered rum part (which was my innovation).

Also, I forgot to mention that if you don't use the hot buttered rum part, you'll want to double the amount of sugar you use. Of course, you can cut back on the sugar a bit, though I didn't find this too overly sweet.  Rather like ice cream.

I put what was left over in my freezer overnight and this morning I saw that it had completely frozen over.  That's not supposed to happen with the alcohol, so you might want to follow Connie's suggestion and use more "spirits."  I forgot that the original recipe called for 1 / 4 cup more alcohol (which I had omitted since I was using the prepared hot buttered rum mixture and thought that was enough rum flavor).

Hope I'm not making this more complicated than it really is.  It's actually very easy.

Connie, I would just use a standard Brandy  -  E & J, Christian Bros., and Korbel are good quality and fairly inexpensive.  I wouldn't use a flavored brandy.

*******

Re:  David Blaine.  His book is part autobiography (though very elliptical), his thoughts on magic, a history of magic (Houdini, et al.).  Very attractive format and photos.  Also, interwoven through the text and photos are clues to a puzzle, very similar in vein to The Merlin Mystery (a puzzle I was involved with for some time a few years back).

I mentioned his skepticism toward psychics -- obviously he never met Madame Findlay!

The Salem Witchcraft book, on the other hand, doesn't include any photos.  One thing I forgot to mention is that she uncovered more information about many of the accused, who prior to this have only received brief mention.  She also examines the sexual politics of it all and discusses some of the lesser known witchcraft accusers -- for example some accusations were made by boys.  All in all, a fascinating book.

[ProfStokes]

Welcome back, Vlad!   It's so nice to see that you've returned to the board.  I hope that you'll be able to visit again before things become too hectic for you.  Happy holidays!

ProfStokes  

[Misty]

The rum mix is non-existant in my neck of the woods---it seems. Must be a territorial thing. Anyway, I made the mix according to directions and I'm glad I came back here because I didn't have the dark rum. Now I'm all set. Bring on the crowd!!  4 to 8" of snow forecast for Christmas. The hot buttered rum should hit the spot!!

                                          Misty