Texax Times Weekly -- Holiday Flavors of Texas

Statement

Texax Times Weekly -- Holiday Flavors of Texas

By: Sen. John Cornyn

The holiday season that spans Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year's celebrations displays the marvelous diversity of foods Texans enjoy as they gather with family and friends.

The holidays in Texas bring a renewal of ancestral traditions. Christmas Eve has special meaning for Polish-Texans, whose ancestors arrived at Panna Maria in Karnes County, southeast of San Antonio, on Dec. 24, 1854. Polish-Texan families may hold a Wigilia, or vigil, a holiday meal which begins after the first star of Christmas Eve has appeared. It starts with sharing good wishes and oplatek, a wafer-like piece of bread embossed with a Christmas scene.

Many Norwegians settled in Bosque County, in and around Clifton, north of Waco. One Norwegian tradition is an annual December dinner where lutefisk, a recipe for dried codfish, is served. The cod are imported from Norway, then soaked in lye water followed by lime water, and finally, in clear water. After being boiled, lutefisk is served with potatoes and white sauce.

A cherished custom in Mexican-American households is making tamales for enjoyment during the holiday season. Other favorites include the buñuelos, a deep-fried, sweet pastry sometimes served with hot chocolate on Christmas Eve.

As early holiday baking began in German settlements in Texas. "Children were told that the brilliant autumn sunsets in Texas were actually the angels baking cookies for Christmas," according to writer Dorothy McConachie. A favorite cookie was the anise-flavored springerle, a cookie with a design stamped on it.

The eight-day Hanukkah celebration observed by Jewish-Texans in December may include potato pancakes called latkes. Kwanzaa, which comes from words meaning "first fruits of the harvest," is a seven-day event celebrated in African-American homes. A final occasion in the seven-day observance is the Karamu dinner which might include dishes from Africa or the Caribbean or traditional southern dishes such as hoppin' john, a combination of rice and black-eyed peas.

A traditional recipe among Danish-Texans is ris a la mande, rice almond Christmas pudding. Another Danish treat served at Christmas time is an apple cake called aeblekage. A recipe enjoyed by Czech-Texans is vanocka or Christmas braid, a sweet bread.

New Year's falls on different days on some calendars. The New Year on the calendar for Muslims begins on Dec. 29. Asian-Texan families celebrate the Lunar New Year which typically begins in late January or February. Families of Chinese ancestry may serve a red sausage known as fung chung.

Many Texans would not begin the New Year without a serving of black-eyed peas for good luck. A Greek specialty often served on New Year's Day is vasilopita, St. Basil's cake, which contains a lucky coin.

Whether our families came here generations ago or just this year, from another state or another nation, the food and traditions they brought help create the splendid mosaic that represents Texas and unites us as one under the "Lone Star."

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