Another New Year. A chance to wipe the slate clean and start afresh. I hope you enjoy this wholesome, healthy New Year recipe. Share it with your friends over a cuppa. I’m sure it will become a favorite.
Recipe for a happy 2016
Take twelve whole months, clean them thoroughly of bitterness, hate and jealousy. Make them just as fresh and clean as possible.
Cut each month into 28, 30 or 31 different parts, but don’t make up the whole batch at once, prepare it one day at a time.
Take the following ingredients, and mix well into each day:
One part of faith, one part of patience, one part of courage and one part of work.
Add to each day, one part of love, hope, generosity, and kindness.
Blend with one part of thankfulness, one part of meditation and one part of good deeds.
Season the whole with a dash of good spirits, a sprinkle of fun, a pinch of play and a cupful of good humor. Pour this into a vessel of love, cook thoroughly over radiant joy, garnish with smiles and serve with a cherry of cheerfulness.
You’re bound to have a happy year.
And if that fails bring out the champagne or Grossmutters Scripture cake. Scripture cake is also known as “Bible Cake”, “Scriptural Cake” and “Old Testament Cake” and was extremely popular in the latter part of the nineteenth century. The cake was meant as a way to teach young girls baking and Bible verses. The cake was sweet to eat, and a chance to modestly exhibit knowledge of the Bible. It was fun in the form of an early trivia game, and a great dish to take to a church supper. The original recipe didn’t include the ingredients only the amount next to the scripture.
Grossmutter’s Scripture Cake
1 cup butter (Judges 5: 25)
3 ½ cups plain flour (1 Kings 4: 22)
2 cups sugar (Jeremiah 6: 20)
2 cups rasins (1 Samuel 30: 12)
2 cups figs (1 Samuel 30: 12)
1 cup warm water (Genesis 24: 17)
1 cup chopped almonds (Genisis 43: 17)
6 eggs (Isaiah 10: 14)
1 tab honey (Genisis 43: 11)
pinch salt (Leviticus 2: 13)
1 teas mixed spice (1 Kings 10: 10)
2 teas baking powder (I Corinthians 5: 6)
Method: Follow Solomon’s advice for making good children, (Proverbs 23: 14) or you can cream butter and sugar, add honey, eggs and water. Sift flour and baking powder together. Proceed as in ordinary rules for cake making putting in the fruit and almond last of all. The raisins should be seeded, figs chopped and almonds blanched and split. Beat well. Place in a large tin and sprinkle with slivered almonds.
Bake in a hot oven approximately 2 ½ hours. Biblical references are from the Authorised King James Version of the Bible.
There are so many ways to wish family, friends, acquaintances, and strangers a Happy New Year. I have German/English heritage and for some unknown reason in our family it has always been the tradition to have a Scottish toast. We’d raise our glasses and in our broad Australian accents recite
May the best ye’ve ever seen
Be the worst ye’ll ever see
May a moose ne’er leave your girnal
Wi’ a tear drap in his ee
May ye aye keep hale an he’rty
Till ye’re auld eneuch tae dee
May ye aye be jist as happy
As we wish ye aye tae be.
If you are like me you may need a translation:
May the best you’ve ever seen
Be the worst you’ll ever see
May a mouse never leave your store-room
With a tear drop in his eye
May you all keep hale and hearty
Till you’re old enough to die
May you all be just as happy
As we wish you all to be
We’d link arms and sing Auld Lang Syne by Robbie Burns as the clock struck twelve. These days I listen to it on YouTube.
During this festive season I wish everyone I meet a Happy New Year and whatever your race, religion, gender or sexuality, whatever language you speak, wherever you are right now, let’s all make sure that we have an amazing 2016.
May this coming year be filled with Peace and Joy
