Mixed fruit and nuts!

Here's Jo, and here's Christmas Charlie and Billie except that they don't get to turn into elves until Christmas Eve.

In our idiosyncratic takes on Christmas, mine is genealogy. Every year I indulge in this for a few weeks, hoping to find a few more details on the family trees. New information is becoming available all the time, but alas both my and my husband's families drift off into the undocumented peasantry within a couple of centuries.

But I also find it a useful time to poke around in social history, generally using the censuses. This time I looked at the village of Wressle (or Wressell) in Yorkshire, because some of the Beverleys did come from there. I put the data on Minepast because it's a bit long for here.

Not all explorations turn up wonders, and this doesn't, but I note a few things. There is a notable ruined castle there, shown on the left, and on the census, there's a bailiff for the farmland around. There are a fair number of older people -- 60s and 70s -- in case anyone still thinks everyone died off at 35. Most of them  are recorded  as still working. It was a tough life back then.

The larger families with children every couple of years suggests that children weren't dying off quite as drastically as is sometimes suggested, at least, not in the country.

The selection of names was mostly pretty limited. Stand it the village street and call for Ann or Hannah and a lot of women would come running!

Anyway, it is an interesting way to peer into England's past. Shame there were no useful censuses before the mid 19th century. Do you see anything else of interest there?

Poking around in Scotland, I came across this family.

Eleho Cottage, Perthshire
Archibald Reid 35,Writer.
Charlotte 30 Married in 1827
10 little Reids from 2 to 13 and three others
Isabella Allan
Elisabeth Corelli
Isabella Swart

Alas for all poor writers, I could not find a record of Archibald Reid. Can anyone do better? I have this image of him indulging his muse while his poor wife deals with the 10 children. I'm not even sure what the Eleho might refer to. It seems to be linked to spiritual values of some sort. Anyone know?

As for more traditional Christmas patter -- our Christmas dinner is pizza, with red and green peppers, of course. We like fruitcake, and don't know why people have such a thing against it. Of course, a good fruitcake is made in summer and anointed with brandy at regular intervals thereafter. What's not to like?

I actually got drunk on fruitcake once. Truly!

I make mincemeat every year because in my opinion, North American mincemeat is all wrong. It's too sweet, and usually has too much cinnamon. I'd like to share the recipe, but over the years it's become one of those bits of this, bits of that ones. But basically for a goodly amount, take a pound each of raisins, sultanas, and currants. (Sorry, English cooking is all by weight, but you can guestimate all of this.) Add about 4 oz of candied peel and a pound of finely chopped apples. Half a pound of sugar and half a pound of suet. I don't like the powdery stuff that's everywhere now. It should be minced and in lumps  to have the right effect. The grated rind and juice of 2 oranges. 1.5 teaspoonfuls of nutmeg and allspice and .5 teaspoonful of cinnamon. Mush it all up with a food processor or blender (though a mincer is better if you have one.) Add about a cup of rum.

It might be on the solid side rather than runny. This is fine. When you make your mince pies, add a bit more rum to fix the problem! If you're not up to that, water or orange juice will do.

Enjoy!

I will shortly be sending my Christmas e-newsletter which will include some free fiction, though in at least one case, you get what you paid for!*G* You can sign up off any page on my web page, or check the newsletter page now and then because I'll put it up there at the same time. My newsletter directory.

As with all the Wenches, I'll be giving a copy of one of my Christmasy books to a randomly picked commenter here as long as I have a copy. The Christmasy novels are Christmas Angel, Forbidden Magic (though you wouldn't know it by the covers), and Winter Fire (which I wanted to call Christmas at Rothgar Abbey.)

And a very happy Christmas.

Jo

PS, dried fruit and peanuts is quite tasty.

Comments

[Ingrid]

How interesting that you keep finding new members of your family! Did you ever discover any connection to the town of Beverley (also in East Yorkshire)?
I've always thought it a lovely place (I was born in nearby Hull).
Apparently Beverley came out as the best place to live in Britain.

http://www.yorkshire-forward.com/www/view.asp?content_id=7062&parent_id=263

[Maggie Robinson]

I am actually someone who likes fruitcake, even without the brandy/whiskey added. My father would always send me a tin of it from some fancy mail-order bakery at Christmas, and I'd eat the entire thing myself as my family shuddered---not all at one sitting, though.

My mother-in-law's mincemeat pie always had venison in it, which she neglected to tell me at first. For about twenty years, actually. I'm psychologically indisposed to eating deer, so I felt tricked. But if you put hard sauce on anything, I'll eat it.

[Margaret Garland]

I like fruitcake too and get irritated at the jokes about them. I used to live in Dallas, TX and there was a fruitcake place in Corsicana, TX that is quite famous around the world. I used to stop by there on my frequent drives to/from Houston. Yum. What a lovely place. Take a peek at their web site: http://www.collinstreet.com/

And a friend of mine has a web site called "The Society for the Protection and Preservation of Fruitcake": http://www.fruitcakesociety.org/

So there all you fruitcake haters!

I used to delve into genealogy occasionally. Unfortunately for me, courthouses used to burn at regular intervals. Taking with them all my family's info. This is what I'm always told, anyway.

Merry Christmas to you all. Eat much and make merry.

Margaret

[NinaP]

Hi Jo!

My dh loves to make fruit cake. It is actually very good.

Wonderful mincemeat pie recipe. I don't know why, but I always thought it included some sort of game (venison, squirrel, etc...)

Very interesting info on Reid. With 10 kids, I'm imagining the muse abandoned him on a few occasions, allowing of other pursuits. Then again, if he was a romance writer, one could call it research.

Nina

[RevMelinda]

Thank you for sharing the Reids and your census adventures. (Elisabeth Corelli sounds like an opera singer to me. . .though perhaps she was a maid or an older relation?)

I took a first peek at census facsimiles on-line this summer in a search for my mother's birth family. (Who knew there was a Czechoslovakian community in Texas at the turn of the century? --Galveston was apparently a major immigrant gateway.)

It was an absolutely addictive process. Fascinating stories emerged just from comparing one census to another, as neighbors intermarried and children appeared. (Though the handwriting of the census-taker was appalling and spelling of names was fairly cavalier.)

Your mince pie sounds tasty but my mouth is really watering at the chance for Christmas Angel which would complete my collection of Rogues. . .

[Robin Greene]

What are sultanas? Are they golden raisins? I've heard of them before but never quite knew what they translated to in American.

Robin

[Kathy Kremer]

Speaking of progeny and the muse... Think of J.S. Bach who had about 20 children. He was prolific in EVERY sense of the word!

I'm not sure you can get suet that is meant for human consumption in the US. You can get it to make special winter bird feeders. The suet holds the seeds on to the ball. Would vegetable shortening be an acceptable substitute?

[Kalen Hughes]

OMG, Christmas Angel. *sigh* That was the first book I ever read by you, and I still have the battered copy on my Keeper Shelf.

[Joan Wilson]

I always make my own fruit cakes. and usually end up making 4 smaller ones too. one each for our sons and daughter. Now mincemeat I have never tried to make , but I found some Crosse and Blackwells in the local Sobey's grocery store. My D H loves his mince pies sometimes with Ice cream. We have our family tree going back to 1815 on my Mothers line. Our cousin in Ilkley has been busy with that. Most have something to do with trawler fishing boats... Have great Christmas and New Year... Joan

[Susan Wilbanks]

I have to confess I'm a fruitcake hater, but I'm consistent--I don't like desserts involving dried fruits, period. Not even raisins in oatmeal cookies. They're MUCH better with chocolate chips. And while I love a good, boozy bread pudding or the rice pudding at my favorite Indian restaurant, I eat around the raisins in those. However, I like dried fruits in savory dishes--chicken with dried apricots and that sort of thing.

My mom makes fruitcake cookies which the rest of my family is enamored of, but I figure that just means more homemade divinity and pecan pralines for me!

[Wendy]

Ah, putting the meat back in mincemeat! :-)

[Marissa]

+JMJ+

Jo: I read Winter Fire very recently and loved the way you played with the motif of mistletoe!

Now kissing is only the second thing I think of when I see mistletoe. I find that I remember Balder first! =P

[piper]

I have never been fond of either mincemeat nor of fruit cake. I blame it all on my dad. however, chocolate is another matter altogether

[Jo Beverley]

Jo here.

My posts are being rejected as spam! I'm trying a simple one to see if that gets through.

Jo

[Jo Beverley]

Okay, I'll try in little bits.

Jo here.

Ingrid, my husband's family comes from the Beverley part of Yorkshire -- Bubwith, Foggathorpe, Howden etc -- and we have to assume that at some point the name comes from them living in Beverley. But by the 18th century, they're a wandering lot who leave few records and no gravestones and such, plus it can be, or look like, Beverley, Beverly, Bewerley etc. But it's fun to poke around.

How interesting about Beverley being the best place to live. We've been there a couple of times and have liked it a lot. It has a nice feel to it. Lovely Minster and a pedestrian shopping area in the heart of town.

Jo

[Jo Beverley]

Margaret, burned out records are so annoying. My husband's mother's family were mostly from Erith in Kent and the church burned down there, taking most of the records. Before the Hardwicke Act in 1753, there was no obligation to send duplicates to the Bishop.

Then, my father's WWI army records were somewhere in London that was bombed in WWII, losing a bunch of unduplicated stuff. My sister is trying to piece together his army action. It seems that if you were wounded or ill and left behind by your regiment, you were added to another when you were ready to go on.

Jo

[Jo Beverley]

RevMelinda, it is the glimpse into stories in the past that I really like about genealogy. I wish our ancestors weren't such wanderers.

Another thing I noted about Wressle was that no two families had the same surname. That means that the sons must have moved on to other places to set up their families, I assume. Implies that the hamlet had as many people as it needed.

At that time, a lot of people were moving to the industrial areas for factory work, ship building etc like Middlesborough, which is where our Beverleys ended up.

Jo :)

[Mary Jo Putney]

Jo, I googled Eleho and found:

"Eleho comes from a Hebrew word meaning compassion for the afflicted<<

I suspect it's related to the name Elihu (which I first saw in the Robert Heinlein novel THE PUPPETMASTERS) several decades ago. American Puritans were fond of pulling odd names out of the Bible, esp. the Old Testament. My Oxford Dictionary of Christian names lists Elihu as meaning "he is God," so what the heck, maybe it is related to Eleho as translated from the Hebrew.

There are a lot of nasty commercial fruitcakes from whence cometh their reputation, but the good ones are very good, and of course there are a lot of English versions of fruitcake, so it's not surprising that you enjoy them. My local gourmet grocer makes an excellent one, and one year in a fit of wild indulgence I ordered a pecan and apricot fruitcake online. It was *amazing. *

Mary Jo, who unlike Susan W. adores fruit in desserts, dried or otherwise

[Susan/DC]

I'm one of those who doesn't care for fruitcake -- I love the cake and the nuts and the liquor but don't care for the dried fruit. I once worked in a university lab where one of the grad students said he didn't eat raisins because they made him think of spiders with the legs pulled off. I must have been at an impressionable age because I've avoided raisins ever since.

Most of my family comes from Russia/Eastern Europe, and many of those records were destroyed in WWII. We do have copies of the early 19th C US census documents where my paternal relatives are listed, and as you look at them over time you can see how the family grew (my father was one of 7).

Somewhat off topic, but I recently read a non-fiction book about a Jewish woman who got false papers and stayed in Germany during WWII. Part of what was fascinating was that the book includes photos of all the documents she had, both from her early life and her time during the war. One of her major worries was getting the clothing ration book under her false name. Following history through the paper trail can be fascinating for what it tells not just about the specific individual but about the society that requires these documents.

[Judy D]

I've never had mincemeat or fruitcake. Guess it wasn't a tradition in my parent's family. My dad lived in north Yorkshire for years. I plan to go to Beverley minister next year. Also Ormsley if I have time. I have copies of Winter Fire and Forbidden Magic and have read the others several times for my pleasure. Reading and genealogy are two of my main pleasures, one reason I love to travel to the UK.

[Jo Beverley]

Yes, RevMelinda, I think sultanas are golden raisins. Made with white grapes, not red.

Kathy, no, vegetable shortening won't do for real mincemeat. As people have said, mincemeat originally had meat in it. It needs to be animal product, and I gather it is specifically fat from around organs like the heart, but I have chopped up fat from joints of beef before now.

BTW, the best pastry is made with half lard, half butter IMO.

But I'd think you could get the powdery stuff. Anyway, ask a butcher. If you have a real one, he'll probably be pleased to tell you all about suet!

Jo

[Billie Jo]

Hmmmm my post did not show up

Trying it again

Billie Jo

[Barbara M]

I love mincemeat... Will try the recipe, as well as one I just got for butter tarts. Yum.

Re the census on Minepast:
William Hunt 132 Farm servant
Still working at 132??
Fascinating stuff.

[Billie Jo]

Hi Jo,

What a great way to start the post. With my name, lol. It is not very often that I get to see it elsewhere.

I don't do fruitcake. But I do geneology. I love it.

I have been at mine off and on for about two years. I have my Irish side back to 1740. But my Cherokee side is a bit more daunting. I keep plugging away at it though. I think it is important to do this for the future generation. This gives the kids a sense of family and tradition.

My little 5 yr old girl loves to work with me on it. She gets tickled pink everytime she learns about another member of the family.

I hope you and yours have a Happy Holiday.

Billie Jo

[Melissa]

I was really into genealogy for awhile, I one side of my family into the 1600's in sweeden. My problem is when I got that far back there were soooo many children and they were very difficult to find as adults. The other side of my family I haven't been able to get past the 1950's. My dad's real dad died when he was 13 and he was half indian, I am not sure how to go about researching this side of the family. I have tried death records and censuses. Any ideas?

[Cynthya]

I've read Winter Fire and Forbidden Magic and enjoyed them both very much. I will have to look for Christmas Angel.

I've never had mincemeat, but since I don't like raisins I don't think I'd like it. It's apple pie here for Christmas, or sometimes pecan pie.

Happy Holidays!

[Darlene Harrell]

I can only trace my ancesters back 3 generations because the court house where they all came from burned in the 1940's.

Paula Deen has a recipe for an unbaked fruit cake that is wonderful. I too am a fruit cake nut. (no pun intended)

[Jen]

Hiya Jo! Thanks so much for sharing your recipe for Mincemeat. I love it, but have never tried to make it myself. Now seems like a good time to try. I'm with you and I too love fruit cake.

Your blogs are always so interesting and full of historical information that I just love reading.

Have a wonderful Christmas!
Jen :)

[Emily]

While I don't care for fruitcake, I do greatly enjoy the most delicous mincemeat cookies every Christmas compliments of my mom. However, she doesn't make her own mincemeat; she uses already prepared mincemeat called Nonesuch.

[Tracie]

I must confess I have never had fruit cake or mincemeat. I guess that is not very Christmasy of me.

I cannot see how anyone who has 10 children can function. I have 3, my hat is off to anyone with more.

I would love to research my family. How does one start?

[Karen Miller]

In my family, fruitcake is actually "Hutzelbrot." It is a sweet yeast bread to which dried fruit (pears, figs, prunes, candied orange and lemon peel) and nuts (hazelnuts and almonds) are added. In fact there is so much fruit and nuts that the dough is just a binder. Traditionally, the bread is made three weeks in advance and is then ready to eat near Christmas. "The New German Cookbook" by Jean Anderson and Hedy Wuerz has a recipe for "Dried Fruit Bread" that is very similar to the one my family makes.

My parents are both from Germany. My maternal grandfather was able to trace his family back to 1754 through the village records. In fact, the records could have gone further back, but the village church burnt in 1736 with all the records. Eventually, I would like to research my father's side of the family, of which I know very little. Someday when my kids are all grown ...

[Laura Davies Tilley]

Hi, Jo - and all!

What a fun post! Genealogy and food. Two of my favorite things :D

I've been researching 18th Century Vermont and have found that spellings are very fluid. (My sister who isn't very interested in spelling thinks it is a marvelous idea that should persist today). :D

It does make it difficult to track some things down. And where my family is from (Wales), apparently last names switched regularly for a while, for many reasons, including that at one time they referred to who your father was (so, Robert's or Howell's, etc.) Confusing when the next generation used their own father's name - each son creating his own surname!

I've also bumped into the problem of records being lost in fires.

Happy holidays to everyone!
Laura

[TwinSoccerMom]

Mmmmmmmmmm...mincemeat. Haven't had that since my mom passed away seven years ago. After reading this I think I'll go search for her recipe.

Have a Merry Christmas!

[Jo Beverley]

Jo again.

"William Hunt 132 Farm servant
Still working at 132??" I'm sure that's my mistake. Probably 32.

Tracie, where to start in genealogy. That's a big question. Where does your family come from?

If one has roots in Britain or North America, the IGI site is great, and free.It's run by the Mormons. You can put in the details of people you know -- perhaps grandparents -- and start from there.

They also have the 1881 censuses up, and that's close enough for people in the family to know who was around back then.

The real big thing is, talk to the old folks before they take their memories elsewhere! Take a tape recorder and let them ramble. They'll probably love going over their memories, and most kids love to take part in that.

Jo :)

[Kathleen Smith]

My family is lucky in that my grandparents did the research and took the family tree back to the time each of their families came to the Colonies or the United States. We just need to keep it up from there. It is not that easy as my mother was one of 13. One aunt had 14. At the annual family reunion it can be difficult to keep track of how one is realted to another.

I like fruit cake, particularly one that has been soaked in a bottle of alcohol for the past year.

[Jo Beverley]

Sorry. Forgot the URL.
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/igi/search_IGI.asp

[catslady]

I little bit of fruitcake goes a long way lol. They all seem to be so different - some I love, some I don't.
My husband has an uncle who has been doing geneaology for overf40 years - he's now in his 70's and devotes full time to it. He's gone back hundreds of years and it's facinating.

[kaidi]

I love mincemeat pie! I also like fruitcake, but sometimes it seems there is too much fruit and not enough nuts. It reminds me of the Star Trek movies with the whales, too. When they were back in the 1980's and not quite getting the slang right, one character says another is "fruitier than a nutcake". I still use that phrase instead of the correct one.

[catslady]

oh for goodness sake - not one but two typos - sorry. over 40 (guess I was going to spell it out lol) and of course it's fascinating.

[Toni Longton]

I have tried fruit cake and just didn't care for it. As far as mincedmeat never even tried that. I think this year we are going to do steaks and red potatos for dinner we recentley moved to another state so I really didn't want to go traditional.
My sister gave me this awsome recipe called oreo cookie balls. Using a whole bag of oreo cookies chop them till its a fine powder like substance and add a packet of cream cheese mix well roll into balls and refrigerate for 1 hour melt a few chocolate bars in double boiler and dip oreo balls in chocolate dip. Put on wax paper and refrigerate. Serve when ready to eat or just grab as needed. Merry Christmas Everyone

[Jane]

I've never had fruitcake before, but I love rum cake. Has anyone ever tried Panettone. It's from Italy and I think it's either bread or cake. They come in nice, pretty boxes and they sell them in supermarkets and department stores. Always wanted to try it, but wasn't sure what it is.

[kay]

Melissa: Since your father was half Indian, there should be a record. The Cherokee, Delaware and Miami all have pretty good records.

Jo: My mother always love mincemeat pie, I thought it was icky. I think it was the name.

[Tracie]

Jo, All my grandparents are gone. I've heard our roots are English, Scottish and Irish. My father did a bit of looking into it but I think he too found the snag of fires.

I can't say I'll try the fruitcake but I will wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

[Kris]

I had mincemeat for the first time last week, made by a friend from Scotland. It was not my favorite thing, but it was fun to try it, and her pies looked so wonderful.

I also do not like fruit desserts, except for cranberry in scones and rasperry/blueberries in something called a clafuti.

from Texas

[Robin Burgess]

Well, here's one I bet you haven't heard of. My aunt used to make fruit cake cookies and I loved them. I hear a collective shudder from all you fruitcake lovers out there!

It was a basic cookie dough recipie that she added green and red marichino (sp?) cherries and pecans to. I'm sure it had all the fruit cake spices in it also. I'm not a lover of fruit cake, but I sure loved those cookies. She has since passed away, but I have the origional recipie in her handwriting that I cherish. Sadly, my family won't touch them, so I don't make them any more.

[Claudia]

I didn't know about this blog and thank you Jo Beverley for letting me know all my favorite authors are here. (doing a happy dance now).
In my country (Argentina) we don't eat fruit cake, but I love it and I make it for xtmas. we eat something called "Pan Dulce" (sweet bread) with nuts and fruits inside.
I do love English xtmas. traditions.
Love

Claudia

[Frances]

Jo, I am with you about fruitcake. Mom used to start hers about 6-8 weeks before Christmas. I still love it that way all these years later. Wonderful memories.

As to the geneology, one branch of the family can be traced back to the early 1500's in Cornwall. All very respectable until they landed in the New World. Then I found one who had 5 AKA's after his name. Bad boy.

[Lynn (romsfuulynn)]

More on Archibald Reid
In the Edinburg Advertiser of Jan 30, 1829
Under the heading of:

LIFE ASSURANCE.
Life Assurances continue to be effected by the company on equitable terms and a DIVISION OF PROFITS with the shareholders both in this and the Fire Departments, continue to be made at the expiration of every five years.

This is followed by a list of locations and agents.

But it appears to be a spare time thing.

[Betty Breithaupt]

I LOVE fruitcake and used to make it every year but now resort to one made by Trappist monks which is very good but not as dark as I like it. I don't know why a company can't make something that doesn't taste like sawdust. Mincemeat is another delicacy that I LOVE. You're right that the pies the bakeries sell here are all too sweet and pale. The special dishes of the holidays are one of the things that add to the enjoyment of the season. I do think that nothing tastes like it did when I was young though
Traveling around looking into your genealogy is addicting. My son and I have spent twenty five years just on our American ancestors. Haven't been able to investigate on the other side of the pond yet though.
Merry Christmas!

[Leslie Lanning]

My mother shares your passion for Genealogy. She has traced our family so far back to the American Civil War. She has found relatives in the same regiments as well as family on both sides. She shares her findings and her knowledge of the research process with others in the area and others in the distant family.

She's the one that turned me on to your books. :)

[Carol]

Please put my name in the hat for a Christmasy Book. The comment I'll add is not on the tread...instead I'd like to say: the Company of Rogue books are my favorite series of all time. Thanks, Carol

[Kalen Hughes]

I'm pretty firmly in the anit-fruitcake crowd, but I LOVE Christmas Stollen!!! I make this every year:

1 Tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
2/3 Cup warm milk (110 F/45 C)
1 large egg
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 1/2 cups bread or All-Purpose flour
1/3 cup currants
1/3 cup golden (sultana) raisins
1/3 cup dried cherries, quartered
1/3 cup candied lemon peel
1/3 cup candied orange peel
3 ounces marzipan
8 Cardamon seed pods, seeds removed and crushed
1 teaspoon Almond Extract
1/3 cup powdered sugar

In small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Let stand until creamy,
about 10 minutes.

In large bowl, combine yeast, egg, white sugar, salt, butter, almond extract, Cardamon, and 2 cups of bread flour. Start mixing. Once mixed well, add reminain flour 1/4 cup at a time. When dough begins to pull together, turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead in
currants, raisins, dried cherries, lemon peel, and orange peel. Easier to do if you knead fruit in one at a time, instead of all at the same time. Continue to knead until dough is smooth, 8-10 minutes.

Lightly oil a large bowl, place dough in bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover and let rise in a warm place (about 85 F) for about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.

Lightly grease cookie sheet. Deflate the dough and turn out onto lightly flour surface. Roll dough out a little, making a roughly square shape. Roll out the marzipan and place in the center of the dough. Fold the dough over the marzipan, as you shape the dough into a loaf, pinching the seam together when done. Place loaf on a cookie
sheet, seam side down. Cover and let rise in a warm place, 40-60
minutes or until double in size.

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Bake the loaf at 400 F for about 10
minutes, then turn down the heat to 300 F and finish baking for about 40 minutes. What you really want is a golden brown crust. Once done, pull out and brush butter over the top. Sprinkle the powdered sugar over the top of the loaf after buttering, then place back in the oven for 3-4 minutes to help set the sugar.

Cool on a wire rack, cut and Enjoy!

Or just buy the one they sell at Trader Joe's, LOL!

[Lady Jane]

Hi, Jo! Your Winter Fire is one of my favorite novels! I even have a copy for the lake and two at home! :) Happy Christmas!

[Jo Beverley]

Carol, warm praise definitely gets your name in the hat!*G*

Lynn, thanks for getting a hint of Archibald Reid. I wonder if that worked like Lloyd's, where the partners were more like investors. That was very profitable for centuries until a few big claims zapped them. Then it was disastrous because they were liable for the debts.

Of course, going back to, I think, the early 19th century, shareholders were liable for the debts of a company. That was why holding shares wasn't a very popular form of investment unless you were a hands-on risk taker.

As referred to in Tempting Fortune, some of you may remember.*G*

Jo

[Sue]

Hi all, great information on this thread. I love real Christmas cake and mince pies but can't get them easily in Ontario. I guess I could make them but then I'd have to buy a stove which I've managed without for 20 years now.
For the geneologists out there: I am a member of a British site called Genes Reunited which has the family tree set up and has the Census, Births Deaths and Marriages on line. It's very easy to use and will point out "hot matches" when you add someone who appears in another tree. I am addicted to it and need help!
Jo's Christmas books are a big favourite of mine. I love the 12th Night novella and Winter's Fire (oh and Star of Wonder).
Happy Christmas everyone.

[Lesley Hartwell]

Mince Pies, Fruit Cake and Christmas Pudding, all homemade and all essential for a traditional Christmas. BTW, my favourite Christmas read is The Wise Virgin, so thanks for that.

Merry Christmas to everyone

[Sally M]

Happy Holiday Season! I have never been a big fan of fruit cake or mince pies - but my Auntie Annie makes a Pumpkin cake with all the fruit and nut bits in it and its scrumptious!!
The Jo's rogues are my favourite books, i've thrashed every other book in the series numerous times & Christmas Angel is the only one i can't get my hands on.... so please wordwenches pick me, pick me! - i am desperate to find out Leander's story!! its my only christmas wish! Along with Auntie Annie's pumpkin fruit cake! (and my very own rogue!)

[Kristen]

My great-grandmother used to make mince pies, though I don't remember if I ever had any of it. I will definitely try out your recipe, however.

As for fruitcake, I've never been able to enjoy it, but there was one doing the rounds in my family for years. It was finally so rum-soaked, we had to get rid of it because the fumes alone were causing some wild behaviors when we all got together.

On a side note, I recently got my hands on Winter Fire, and enjoyed it as much as the rest of them.

[Kayanne]

I found this about Eleho - The word Eleho comes from a Hebrew word meaning compassion for the afflicted. I also found it used as a first or middle name.

[Julie]

Hi Jo and gang! I was SO pleased to be reminded of Winter Fire. I was laying in bed last night thinking about a book to read for Christmas and of course, Forbidden Magic is my favorite, magical Christmas story. Now I will pull out Winter Fire as well.

Also, my mother loved both fruit cake & mince pies. Though I remember my grandmother making and canning mincemeat in the summer. And it did include meat, raisins, booze and spices. I thought it was pretty nasty but I was quite young. Might like it now - but not adventurous enough to buy a jar to make a pie & possibly NOT like it. Will have to look around a bakery to see if they have tarts of mince or something small to try.

Cheers & happy holidays to all the Wenches & their fans!

Julie

[Pat Punt]

Dear Jo, Will send some references I found regarding 'Eleho' to your newsletter address. As to your comments on census searches: I found out through the census that my 3-bedroom house was built in 1898 (not 1902 as I thought) and in 1901 there was a mother, father, four teenage offspring, plus two boarders living in this house! Where they put them all is not revealed in the census...

[Jo Beverley]

Pat, re the house, my maternal grandparents raised 6 kids in a 2-up, 2-down terrace in Bolton. As best I can tell, parents in front bedroom, probably with any young children when there were any. All the kids in the back room in two beds.

Downstairs, the front parlor was kept pristine for rare events like the priest dropping by, or a funeral. The back room did everything else including baths in a tin tub in front of the fire.

Tiny kitchen scullery extension out the back. Toilet down the end of the small garden.

At the least there was lots of family togetherness!

Jo

[Martha Lawson]

I would love to win a book from you!! Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!!

Martha

[Lily]

Jo,

I remember reading a short story with a christmas theme and you said it was a special thank you for the readers :)

[Nathalie]

We don't cook much... we buy cakes and stuff, but I think we don't have a lot of time for preparation :)

[Jo Beverley]

Thanks to Pat Punt who sent me extra information on Eleho, including that there was is a Lord Elcho that seems to often be written, presumably by mistake, as Eleho.

Which took me to a yummy book on Google Books on the peerage. Here's the snippet from under the Earl of Lincoln.

"Henry,born March 9th, 1771, lieutenant
colonel in the first foot guards, married, December 30th, 1799, Miss Charteris, daughter of the late lord Eleho; Louisa, married the second son of Henry Dawkins, Esq.;"

Published 1812
Author Arthur Collins.

As good as a Christmas present. Thanks, Pat!

I found this confirmation on thepeerage.com

"Susan Charteris was the daughter of Francis Wemyss Charteris, Lord Elcho and Susan Tracy-Keck. She married Lt.-Gen. Sir Henry Clinton on 23 November 1799. She died circa 1816.
Her married name became Clinton."

Jo :)

[Cait]

I did make Fruitcake and have several wonderful recipes. I try to make them in September if the grocery has candied fruit. Mine have candied pineapple and cherries and nuts with lots of butter, very little peel and raisin. One recipe is all brazil nuts. And altho brandy is good, I like rum, sherry, and whisky too. The problem is even 1 fruitcake can last for years.
We haven't had mince meat since my grandmother died. A very long time. But all I have is the jarred stuf. Have had it for years. I wonder if it's still any good.
Cait
It must be all those store made thing that give fruitcake a bad name.

[Cathie]

Jo, thats so neat with the family history. My husband family is Irish and he did some and still working on that with his brother, but someday he does want to go to Ireland. I'm full Polish and really would love to learn more of the history. My sisters are doing that now with the family tree part and had some printed up recently for me. Just so fastinating what to learn! Not gone back as far as you but just to know more is so great!

[CL]

Jane
Panettone is a sweet Italian bread made with candied orange and lemon zest and raisins. I love it.

I am not too keen on the American fruit cake. I love the English version and Dundee cake.

When I was a teenager growing up in England I had several penfriends in Texas. One of them sent me a fruitcake one Christmas.
To me, and my parents, it was like a bunch of fruit "glued" together. Not much cake:)

[~ Nita Shoemaker ~]

Hunting lost relatives is great fun. Our family has a mystery relative. David Lair, my great great grandfather left Missouri and got on the train to go to Arkansas with a wallet full of money. He never came back. All records list him as "missing" or "lost." Funny thing is... years later, some of his sons went to Arkansas to live. I've always wondered about that. The customs in those days wouldn't make allowances for a guy who just up and ran away from home. It would have been too embarassing. Anyway, that's what I think happened. Have a very Merry Christmas, everyone, and Happy Holidays, too.

[Anne]

Give me the brandy, hold the fruitcake! LOL! Thanks for sharing your recipe and traditions. I'll have to tell dh and the kids about the pizza tradition - they'll dig that!
I've read those books (of course!), but I would love to get a copy straight from the hands of my favorite romance writer! :)

[gloria]

Hi yes geneology can be very interesting. Have you checked out roots web they do things like this. I hope you can eventually track everyone down as it's nice to know your history. Well good luck and Happy holidays to you and yours. Blessings.

[Jane George]

Just wanted to say Hi and thanks for the mince recipe. I agree about most being too sweet so I shall happily try this one.

Please don't add my name for the book drawing. Don't need copies!

[Jane George]

PS Love fruitcake.

[Gretchen F]

Forbidden Magic is one of my favorites, but I love all your books. I'm the only fruitcake lover in my family, so we don't have it because I would eat it all!

[Deborah Giordano]

I loved reading that - hope you have more like that
debbie
Maine

[Leslie Whiting-Poitras]

Just went to Scotland this past summer and got to see all the graves from the family dating back to the early 1800s. There are way too many Alexanders, Johns and Roberts. Good luck in digging up the past!

[Misti Taylor]

It is interesting that you keep searching for some kind of pop up of family after finding out that two centuries ago they are peasantry. I find this fascinating because the records kept by those other than the wealthy were slim to none. I find geneaology fascinating. My grandmother's mother is from Ireland and her father from England, but she was never interested in her own family history which was much more fascinating than my grandpa's even after they divorced. She spent countless hours trying to compose some kind of geneology track for his side of the family but it only goes back a hundred years then it trails off. No one else has picked it up since she died, but I think it would be interesting to see how far the information goes back. Her father's family had a geneology done but it's in French so she gave it to a niece who's fluent. A census would be a good place to look for further research. Thanks for the tips.

[Kathy Kremer]

I did some geneology work several years ago but my problem was illiteracy before about 3 generations back. There was no family bible because they couldn't read or write. Census records were a little helpful because a professional person took down the information. Before about 1850 the census only gave the name of the head of household then the ages/sexes of everyone who lived in the house, for example John King age 55. Then you'd look at the tables to see that there was a man aged between 60-80 (probably the grandfather) a woman aged 40-50, probably John's wife and a variety of male and female children ages 20 and younger. I remember looking at one family in the county where my father was born. There was a child born every year except one and then the next year she had twins. Those women must have been so strong to be perpetually pregnant and still run the household. And when you think that the mortality related to childbirth and postpartum infection was about 25% before 1900, the odds were definitely against living to an old age.

[Arden]

I’ve always thought genealogy to be very difficult; the few times that I’ve tired to find out more about my heritage I’ve always hit immediate roadblocks and no one seems to know how to surmount them. I’m always told I don’t need to know where my family acme from anyway. = (

[piper]

I think my uncle was tracing our geneology on m ymother's side, but it seems to be pretty obscure ;) On the other side, well we know it to a point. what is also interesting is trying to find relatives living now. Not so easy to trace the daughters and their children (of the original immigrants). we had a family reunion this past summer, and most of the offspring of the male descendants were present (easy to find with an uncommon last name), but no daughters since know one seemed to know the married names.

[Maureen]

We are not fruitcake lovers in our family. We much prefer chocolate. I hope you and your have a Merry Christmas.

[Teresa W.]

Not much of a fruitcake lover here! Although my mom makes her own homemade fruitcakes for her husband because he loves it!

[Carol G]

Just managed to get at my email--dealing with ice storms, power outages, little things like that. Anyway, I am episodically interested in geneology--in other words I find it interesting, but don't put a lot of time into it. Unlike some members of my family, who are always digging up new facts. So far, everyone has been mainly just going back to when the ancestors arrived in the Colonies (first ones were 3 brothers from England in 1635). It is way to easy to get sidetracked, and since the family trees can grow worse than Topsy if you try to work back from both wives and husbands...! My daughter and one of her cousins almost came to online blows over whether a particular Everett had done some surveying in different communities back in the 17th century!

[Michelle]

I was in northern England for vacation in late October. At a B&B in Northumberland, Christmas Pudding came up. A couple there went on and on about how wonderful it was and said that Marks & Spencers made the best.

Anyway, I spent some time online in November trying to find a way to order Christmas Pudding online. It was very difficult, but I managed to order a M&S Christmas Pudding, a small walker's one, Christmas Pudding brandy sauce and a Christmas cake.

Is there anything I need to know about serving it? Any tricks? I assumed it would come with some recommendations, but now I'm getting a little worried.

[Jo Beverley]

Michelle, I'm not sure about the M&S Xmas pud. Generally it's steamed on Christmas Day.

I mean, it's steamed when it's made -- sometime in summer, of course -- for hours. Then briefly steamed on Christmas Day just before serving. But I know that I have simply microwaved it for that second time. I'm sure that's sacrilege, but there you are.

You don't want to put it in the oven because it should be moist, not dry.

If the brandy sauce is brandy butter, you just serve it with the hot pudding. The user adds a dollop then eats.

I've always preferred a rum sauce which is a white sauce with sugar and lots of rum. Sort of like a custard, meaning the sort of custard you pour over a pudding, not an egg custard that's firm.

Sheesh, speaking two languages can get tricky at times!

The Christmas cake, you just eat as cake.

Anyone here from England who's more familiar with M&S Xmas pud? I'll ask my relatives.

Cheers,

Jo :)

[Carolyn Olsen]

I would love to be able to travel around the world to see all the old castles and sites of the villiages and things. HIstory is just one of the things I love about life. I think that's why I find your books so enjoyable, I actually picture myself in the book.as for mincemeat. I can't say I'm a fan, I still try in every year to see if I will change my mind but so far no luck.

merry christmas

[Helen]

The bowl full of Christmas pudding is covered with greaseproof paper (wax paper may do)wrapped tightly around the top and placed in a saucepan of boiling water and gently boiled until heated through. Mrs Beeton recommends boiling one and a half hours for a one pint (20 oz) pudding. Keep adding boiling water as needed to avoid boiling dry but the water shouldn't go near the top of the pudding. One tradition is to slide silver sixpences or other coins or even charms into the pudding to be discovered by your guests. One exciting way to serve Christmas pudding is to tip it onto a warmed plate, pour heated brandy over top and set it aflame. You can pass hard sauce (a mix of butter, confectioners sugar and a little brandy) for people to eat with their pudding.
When my mother was growing up, everybody had to pitch in when the pudding was being made. In those days raisins were not seedless and each raisin had to be cut open to remove the pips! Once the ingredients were ready, each member of the family stirred the big bowl of pudding ingredients and made a secret wish.
My mother says that sultanas are what Americans call raisins, and that English "raisins" are much larger and sometimes called muscats. The OED says sultanas are made from yellow grapes, but that doesn't mean that they are golden raisins since it is the drying process that determines the raisin color, not the type of grape.

[Pam P]

Not a fan of fruitcake either, but I do like the Stollen. I remember one year my father received a lot of business gifts, mostly wine and fruitcakes. We enjoyed the wine, and had to think who w could give all those fruitcakes to.

Winter Fire is one of my favorites, too - the mistletoe and food fight, lol.

[Jo Beverley]

Oh my, I'd forgotten seeding raisins. What a sticky job that was.

Jo :)

[Michelle]

Jo,

Thanks so much for the tips with Christmas pudding. The couple at the B&B did mention microwaving vs. steaming. After hearing so much about it the past couple of months, I'm really looking forward to trying this Christmas pudding. I think the Brandy Sauce will end up being brandy butter because - based on the photo - it did not look like a sauce you poured. Perhaps it's the "hard" sauce that Helen mentioned.

Kalen,
Thanks so much for the stollen recipe. I've become a big fan of stollen the past couple of years. I saved your recipe and will try to work myself up to make it. I've never worked with yeast before and have to admit that I let any recipe with it intimidate me.

[Earlene Gillespie]

Hi Jo and happy holidays to everyone here. I can't say that
I ever got into the fruitcake frenzy. Maybe it wasn't made right
or something. the one time I tried it wasn't very good. Dry and
ucky. LOL. I don't like dried fruit so maybe that was it.

[Elizabeth Rainbird]

Dear Jo,

It is so interesting to read you are in to genealogy. I am a Scot with some Irish so my ancestors are fascinating. I have walked through a door and met the most interesting and fascinating people I am sure you will get some good stories out of yours as well
Elizabeth rainbird

[elle]

hi im a big fan all the way over in Australia and i just wanted to say merry Christmas to everyone and i hope the wheathers not to hot on christmas day or in your case to cold! bye!