Cook up a Memory 

Kelly Wambach

When I’m asked about my family Christmas traditions and memories the things that pop to mind are the arrival of the Christmas catalogs, our family trip to town to buy our Christmas tree, and of course all the special holiday treats that made their appearance just once a year.

The Christmas catalogs started to appear sometime in the late fall. By the time Christmas arrived, the covers were worn, dozens of corners were folded over, and our lists for Santa were well organized in order of priority.

The trip into Fargo or Moorhead to pick out the tree was mainly a mom and dad thing, but us kids got to ride along. What I remember most about those trips was the back and forth between mom and dad as to whether or not we would get a long needle tree or a short needle tree. Most of the time, but not always, the long needle tree won out and made its way to our living room.

When it comes to our holiday treats, mom’s maple cut-out cookies and dad’s oyster stew are by far my number one picks.

Mom started her holiday baking right after Thanksgiving and continued right up to Christmas. By then the freezer was chocked full of ice-cream buckets filled with every confection you could possibly imagine. The maple cut-out cookies were always one of the last to be made. A wise decision on my mothers part for sure. Those sneaky little elves were known to rob them from the freezer, leaving none for Christmas visitors.

Christmas day dinner was mom’s pride and joy, but the traditional Christmas Eve oyster stew dinner was up to dad. At least for us boys. Mom and little sister dined on meatballs or another treat that she prepared, especially for the two of them. Thinking back, the little bit of extra time away from the kitchen may have given her a bit of a break to take care of last-minute details for Santa’s visit or maybe sneak in a much needed nap before Christmas Eve church services.

The maple cookies can be prepared well ahead and kept in manageable wrapped rounds in the refrigerator to be rolled, cut, and decorated as needed. I add 1/4 cup more of flour than mom’s recipe calls for to get a little stiffer dough. Roll thin and be sure not to overbake them.

Years ago, my mother hand wrote a set of all of our family’s traditional holiday recipes for each of us kids along with a little story as to how they became standards for our family’s holiday celebrations.

Remember to add ¼ cup more flour if you think you need it.

Dad’s recipe for oyster stew was quite simple. It consisted of canned oysters, lots of milk, butter, salt, and pepper and served with soda crackers, bread, butter, and jelly. No precise measurements. I actually liked, and still like, the broth, thick with crackers, just as much as the oysters.

I don’t remember dad ever using fresh oysters. You surely could substitute if you prefer. Just substitute one pint of fresh for the two cans in my recipe. I have tried fresh oysters, but I prefer using canned. Tradition, you know.

Oyster Stew: (my recipe)

1/4 cup butter

1 small onion diced

1/4 cup flour

2 cups of whole milk

2 cups 1/2 and 1/2

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp worchestershire sauce

2 cans whole oysters with liquid

1 tsp butter and chopped parsley to garnish. Optional.

Sauté onion in butter until tender in a heavy bottom kettle. Add flour and cook on low 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

In a separate heavy bottom kettle, combine the remaining ingredients. Heat slowly stirring often until bubbles form around the edges of the kettle.

(Scald 180 degrees) Slowly Ladle into flour and butter, stirring briskly until smooth. Return to heat and bring back to a slow simmer. Remove from heat and serve.

Heating the milk to the scalding point greatly improves the flavor. Be sure to stir often while heating.

A little dollop of butter on top of your bowl of stew and some freshly chopped parsley before serving turns it up a notch.

After all, it IS the holidays!

Continue to keep your traditions or start a new one.

Cook up a memory, and remember:

“The most important ingredient in a recipe is the memory it conjures.”

Happy holidays!