DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

   Dress up caramel squares by dipping them in sprinkles, crushed nuts, and bits of candy. Add a drizzling of dark or white chocolate to make them even prettier. Candy Box Caramels ingredients 12 ounces   chocolate- and/or vanilla-flavor candy coating*, coarsely chopped 1 cup   toffee pieces, crushed; finely chopped pistachios; and/or nonpareils 48 short plastic or wooden skewers (optional) 1 14  ounce   package   vanilla caramels (about 48), unwrapped 2 ounces   chocolate- and/or vanilla-flavor candy coating*, coarsely chopped (optional) directions 1. In a microwave-safe 4-cup measure, place the 12 ounces candy coating. Microwave on 100% power (high) for 3 minutes or just until melted, stirring every 30 seconds. 2. Place toffee pieces, nuts, or nonpareils in a shallow dish. If desired, insert a skewer into each caramel. Dip one caramel into melted candy coating; turn to coat as mu...

The Christmas Cake  as we know it today comes from two customs which became one around 1870 in Victorian England. Originally there was a porridge, the origins of which go back to the beginnings of Christianity. Then there was a fine cake made with the finest milled wheatflour, this was baked only in the Great Houses, as not many people had ovens back in the 14th century. PLUM PORRIDGE Originally people used to eat a sort of porridge on Christmas Eve. It was a dish to line the stomach after a day's fasting, which people used to observe for Christmas Eve, or the 'Vigil' as it was called long ago. Gradually, they began to put spices, dried fruits, honey etc in the porridge to make it a special dish for Christmas. Much later it was turned into a pudding, because it got to be so stiff with all the fruits and things, that they would tie it in a cloth, and dunk it into a large cauldron of boiling water and boil it for many hours. This turned into Christmas Pudding. ...

   FIRST MENTION OF FEAST OF NATIVITY ON 25th DECEMBER: Possibly the earliest mention of a special feast for the Nativity on the 25th December is in the Philocalian Calendar in the year 354. This does refer back to earlier information from 336. However, in 388, St Chrysostom wrote that the observing of the festival of the Nativity (on December 25th) was not yet ten years old. *WHEN CHRISTMAS CAME TO BRITAIN: The first records show that St Augustine came to Britain with his missionary monks from Rome, and on Christmas Day 598 it is said that he baptised more than 10,000 English people in the Christian faith. *According to the Venerable Bede in his History of the English Church, the legendary King Arthur was crowned by St Dubricius on Christmas Day, somewhere very close to this date. *In the year 816, the Council of Chelsea enforced the observance of Christmas on December 25th in Britain. This date was formerly called 'Mothers Night, a vigil in honour of the re-birth...

From Washington State to Washington, D.C., these towering trees help make winter festive. Quick: what’s green, at least 65 feet tall, stands in an iconic location, and gets lit up like a Christmas tree? Yes, it’s the Christmas tree—one of America’s tallest and perhaps its most-photographed—that hovers over New York’s Rockefeller Center. This year, the tree will rise a whopping 74 feet into the air and be lit on November 30 with great fanfare. When it comes to our cherished symbols of Christmas, few towering, twinkling firs can rival Rockefeller Center’s yearly display of yuletide cheer. But some of them succeed, at least when it comes to height: America’s tallest Christmas trees can top 100 feet. And they make for fun stopovers during the holiday travel season. You’ll often find these trees in unlikely places. For nearly 20 years during the 1970s and ’80s, for example, National Enquirer  owner Generoso Pope placed trees in excess of 100 feet next ...