Preserving Holiday Food Traditions

Air Date:
Heard On The Larry Meiller Show
Pierogi-bluberry, image by Wikimedia Commons user Martali44
For a traditional meatless Polish Christmas Eve dinner, pierogis filled with fruit is a treat. Image by Wikimedia Commons user Martali44.

This time of year, many of us are looking forward to holiday foods that mark both the season, and where our families came from. Larry Meiller learns how holiday food traditions have been transferred from Old World to new, and how we can be sure that those traditions are preserved for generations to come. (Originally broadcast on December 9, 2013)

Featured in this Show

  • Bitters Make For Sweet Holiday Traditions

    This time of year, many people are immersed in holiday traditions, both old and new. And it’s such a pleasure to not only partake in those traditions, but to pass them on to the younger generations.

    Alyssa Tsagong, the audience services manager for both Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Public Television, said her family has a long-standing tradition of holiday parties featuring brandy Old-Fashioneds. Back in the day, that was a special treat because the rest of the year, a brandy and water was the available libation, Tsagong explained.

    So, when the holiday parties were renewed, Tsagong said she wanted to find her own place in that living tradition. She decided to create her own cocktail bitters. The recipe, from “America’s Test Kitchen” calls for intriguing ingredients, like mugwort and gentian.

    Those who are curious can hear Tsagong’s story on the Wisconsin Life episode, “Homemade Bitters for a Holiday Tradition.”

    Tsagong shared that her bitters have been used in a new and unexpected way, too.

    “A new cultural component of my bitters-making odyssey has included my very adorable, older mother-in-law, who is Tibetan,” she said. “She’s decided that I’ve crafted her perfect cocktail by using Wisconsin pressed apple cider that is warm, with a little brandy and a couple of drops of the citrus bitters that I created alongside the old-fashioned bitters.”

Episode Credits

  • Larry Meiller Host
  • Judith Siers-Poisson Producer
  • Kathleen Ernst Guest

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