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Santa Claus Costumes and
Customs. Creating your Own Gifts
What
do pomanders, soap, geraniums and Turkish delight
have in common? They are just a few of the many
suggestions for gifs you can make throughout the
year to delight your family and friends and to give
meaning to the phrase. “It’s the thought that
counts.”
Many
of the ideas can be grouped together in the form of
theme baskets, so that you can make a collection of
co-coordinated items as a composite present or
choose to create a single gift as a smaller token.
Pomanders
Pomanders were made in the middle Ages to scent
rooms and sweeten the
air, and add fragrance to linens and clothes.
Equipment
Citrus fruit
Whole cloves
½
inch wide tape
Nail
or darning needle
Orris root powder
½ in
wide ribbon
You
can use any citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons,
clementines and satsumas, kumquats, and limes. Stud
them with whole cloves either all over, in a
geometric pattern or at random.
The traditional pattern for a divided orange is made
by wrapping tape around the fruit in criss-crossing
directions to divide it into four segments. The tape
may be outlined with cloves to fill in the segments
or simply to make the pattern of a cross. Use a
nail or darning needle to pierce the skin.
When
you have completed the design, put the fruit in a
paper bag, sprinkle in 1 tbsp of orris-root powder
for each large fruit and close the bag. Leave the
fruit in an airing cupboard for 2 or 3 weeks so the
fruit will dry and the spices mellow. Remove the
masking tape and replace them with pretty decorative
ribbons.
Pomanders tied with ribbons make attractive tree
decorations and pretty fillers for gift baskets.
Fruits with closely studded designs will last for
years and can be used year after year.
 Lavender-scented
Soap
Victorian recipes for lavender soap used whole
flowers, which gave a rather gritty texture. Grind
the flowers in a food processor for a smoother
product.
Equipment
4 oz
unperfumed white soap, grated
5
tbsp water
3
tbsp lavender flowers, ground
1-2
drops lavender oil
1
drop food coloring
Funnel
Cardboard tubes such as discarded cigar tubes, to
use as molds
Vegetable oil
½
wide lace edging
Place soap and water In a large bowl in the
microwave and process on high for two or three
minutes, or melt in a bowl over a pan of simmering
water. Stir the mixture and add ground flowers,
oil and coloring.
Pour
the mixture through a funnel into a mold, sealed at
one end and stand it upright until the soap is set
in two or three hours.
Remove the mold and cut the soap diagonally into
short sticks. Polish with a few drops of oil on a
soft cloth and tie into bundles with lace edging.
Scented Geranium Leaf Jelly
Ingredients
3/14
lb cooking apples, chopped
7 ½
cups water
Juice of 2 large lemons
20
large scented geranium leaves, plus extra for
garnish
Sugar
Put
apples in a large pan with the water, lemon juice
and geranium leaves
Bring to a boil, and simmer until fruit is tender.
Strain the fruit and liquid through a jelly bag,
suspended over a large bowl
And
leave for at least 2 hours. Do not squeeze the bag
or the juice may become cloudy
Measure the juice and pour it into the cleaned pan.
Add 1 lb sugar to each 2 ½ cups juice. Stir over a
low heat to dissolve the sugar, and then bring to
boil. Fast=boil for about 10 minutes, until setting
point is reached. Stir in the chopped geranium
leaves, allow to cool slightly then stir again.
Pour
into clean warm jars or glasses, cover with waxed
circles and transparent paper covers and label.
Turkish Delight
Ingredients
1 ½
cups hot water
1
tbsp powdered gelatin
2
cups sugar
Scant ½ tsp citric acid
2
tbsp rosewater
¼
cup Confectioners sugar
1
tbsp cornstarch
Pour
the water into a pan, sprinkle on the gelatin and
stir in the sugar and citric acid
Stir
over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to
a boil and boil for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from
the heat and set aside for 10 minutes without
stirring. Stir in the rosewater.
Rinse a jelly roll pan in cold water, and then pour
in the mixture. Level the top and leave in a
refrigerator for 24 hours.
Sift
together the confectioners sugar and cornstarch and
sprinkle on a piece of non-stick baking paper. Turn
the sweetmeat onto the paper and cut into squares
with a sharp knife. Toss the pieces in the sugar
mixture to coat them on al sides. Pack the pieces
between layers of non-stick baking paper and store
in an airtight container.
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