Majeskas
The Kitchen Tree
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around our house. My kitchen tree sparkles with frosted fruits and The Boys’ Tree is in the family room. The Dining Room – well, it has my grandmother’s bible opened to the Christmas Story, our Savior is nestled in the middle of the dining room table, surrounded by 3 wise men, a shepherd, cattle, and His mother and father. And, if you look really close, under the table, you will find on one of the chairs snuggly pushed up to the table . . . filled with . . . Majeskas.
The Boys' Tree
For some reason, the boys never look there. They’ve found my Christmas treats hidden in luggage, behind towels, in my sweater drawer. But they never look on the dining room chairs pushed up to the table or on top of the freezer in the garage. The Truffles and Bourbon Balls are in sealed containers on top of the freezer in the garage – chilling until the celebrations begin.
I bet they would never find them on the washer and dryer – but that’s too warm a place for candies.
Caramel is not on the top of my yum list. Yet, Majeskas are Christmas Spirit wrapped in caramel.
Someone always gave my grandmother a box of Majeskas for Christmas. Out of a dozen Majeskas, I would be allowed 2, maybe 3 over the entire season. On those occasions, I adored caramel – because Majeskas transcend mere caramel.
As with all good things worth eating, the recipe eventually found its way into my grandmother’s cookbook – a cookbook that had innumerable recipes sticking out in all directions that didn’t come with the book, but found their way there. The Majeska recipe came to Grandmother via Mrs. Taylor who rode with us to church on Sundays.
Christmas time is where we seek the best – Because God gave us His Best – Jesus. We seek the best by giving with our hearts the best within us – gifts, hugs, songs – and feast food.
This week, I will be making the following feast must-haves:
- Grandmother’s Coffee Cake
- Truffles
- Scalloped Oysters
- Normandy Pie
- Grandmother’s Breakfast Casserole (Recipe on Monday)
And so much more. From Blue Cotton Memory to You – I want to share my Majeskas and Wish You a Very Merry Christmas Week.
Mrs. Taylor’s Majeskas
2 Cup white sugar
1 3/4 white Karo
2 Cup Whipping Cream
1 stick butter
1 tsp. vanilla
Marshmallows
I make this recipe over a 2 day period. On the first day, use a heavy aluminum pan to cook sugar, Karo and butter. The larger the better – it cooks more quickly. A larger pan is necessary to ensure the mixture does not spill over the pan when it bubbles working its way to soft boil. Stir the sugar, Karo and butter while cooking slowly.
When about to soft boil stage, add cream slowly and keep stirring until it reaches 245 °. If you do not have a candy thermometer, then use the method my mother taught me. Keep a cup of cold water handy and as the mixture bubbles, drop a dab in the cold water. If you can roll it into a soft ball it is soft boil. After you add the cream, it will take about 10 minutes for the mixture to work its way back up to soft boil (245 °). When it reaches soft boil, add vanilla, stir and pour onto “2 lightly buttered cookie sheets” and let cool.
Now, let me tell you about the lightly buttered cookie sheets. They unnerve me. Maybe if I were pour the mixture out in the freezing cold, but the freezing cold is not always on hand to help as it is this year. I have buttered the broiler pan (it’s pretty big with about 2 inch sides) or a large casserole dish.
The next day, I gather my scissors (to cut the wax paper you will wrap around the candy), my marshmallows (which you will cut in half round-wise) and the caramel. It is easier to cut the caramel into sections and use a rolling-pin to thin before cutting in squares and wrapping around the marshmallows. Then wrap each in wax paper.
All for a little bit of heaven wrapped in wax paper – totally worth it!
I pray your Christmas Season is filled with Joy, that the Spirit of Hospitality overcomes the business of the Holiday, and that the Gifts the Father put within you are just what you wanted!
8″Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4: 8-10)
