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The holiday feast is one of the oldest Christmas traditions that traces back seemingly forever. Some families may want to borrow from their cultural history, while others may choose a more modern Americana course selection. Regional pockets of the United States also add their own unique takes on Christmas season dinners.

For instance, in the South, they have spice-rubbed turkey, corn pudding and sweet potato biscuits, and in New Mexico, they have romeritos made of dried shrimp and potatoes, tamales, sweet fritters and la vizcaina, which is made of salted cod, tomatoes, onions, peppers and olives. No matter which kind of feast is laid out this year, the richness of culture behind the Christmas feast has a seasoned past.

In Mrs. Crowen’s American Lady’s Cookery Book, published in 1847, Mrs. TJ Crowen instructs young women how the holiday feast should be arranged. She first suggests placing “a high pyramid of evergreens in the center of the table,” where a roast turkey of “uncommon size” will be placed on Christmas Day.

This main course will be flanked by a cold boiled ham and a fricasseed chicken or boiled turkey with oyster sauce and oyster pie. Mashed potatoes, turnips, boiled onions, dressed celery, apple sauce, pickles and mangoes will all be placed near the ham.

Next to the chicken, will sit oyster sauce, large pitchers of sweet cider will be placed diagonally on opposite ends of the table. For dessert, two large mince pies, ice cream, jams, pastry puffs, ripe fruits, nuts and wine were commonly present.

To read more The Holiday Feast With Christmas Candy

Kids and Christmas just go together. It’s no wonder they love this holiday, with no school and lots of gifts. It is the perfect time to combine kids and Christmas by having a Christmas party for kids.

There are some great ideas for festive gatherings, especially if you have a neighborhood full of little ones.

Since they will very likely be fairly cold after the first Christmas party house, at the next house they can do indoor activities and have hot chocolate. Why not let them make some ornaments and Christmas party decorations that they can design and take home to put on their own tree?

You can include several different materials and perhaps take a few Polaroid’s so that they can have instant pictures. You could also have magnetic cutout material on hand so they can make photo magnets for their parents.

Once the big scavenger hunt is over and a few prizes have been handed out, it will be time to warm up again with hot chocolate and other goodies. If a warm fire in the fireplace is an option, then this would be great for roasting marshmallows or making

S’mores, while everyone gets some sheet music out and starts singing a few Christmas songs. Between songs everyone will want to talk about what a great time that they have had and more than likely are ready to start planning for next years Christmas party.

To read more Bringing Cheer To Your Neighbourhood With A Christmas Party For Kids

Christmas and Hanukkah are holidays that are both celebrated by many people, are steeped in tradition and revolve around religious events. The Jewish people celebrate the Hanukkah holiday every year to remember to Maccabees revolt.

When Maccabees and his people went to the Temple of Jerusalem, during the revolt, they became sad because the temple had been destroyed and many items were looted. Maccabees organized his men and they repaired and cleaned the temple.

After the cleaning, they wanted to rededicate it but they did not have enough oil to light the Hanukkah menorah. The only available oil was in a small flask, and could only last a day.

However, when they lit the menorah, it continued burning for eight days. Christmas, however, has its own story. It is the celebration of the Birth of Jesus Christ and is memorialized every year on December 25th.

For both Christmas and Hanukkah, many traditions include special foods. One of the popular Hanukkah foods is a doughnut which has no hole. The doughnut is called sufganiyot and it is made by dipping it into hot vegetable oil and then powdering it in sugar.

The doughnuts are usually sold in the streets for a month prior to Hanukkah, due to their popularity. There is also the latke, which is made by mixing potatoes, onions, flour and eggs and then deep frying them in hot oil.

One tradition within the Christmas holiday is the Christmas cookie. Many families may get together during Christmas to make holiday cookies as part of their family traditions.

Both Christmas and Hanukkah are a time for parents, children, friends and other family members to celebrate their relationships as they celebrate the holidays. At Hanukkah, parents offer their kids Hanukkah gifts and encourage them to study the Torah; they listen to Hanukkah music and sing Hanukkah songs.

Presents are also given at Christmas, carols are sung and Christmas music can be heard everywhere.

To read more The Holiday Traditions Of Christmas And Hanukkah