Day 57: With a 12-pound, 8 month old Mischief Monster in the house, I am forgoing a Christmas tree for the first time in my adult life. There was once when abject poverty meant the tree consisted of a two-foot high "skunk spruce" decorated with buttons, but every other year, I've put up a full-sized (as in "ceiling-scraper") tree. They've been artificial since I was in my 30's, torn between the ecological conundrum of whether to kill a living being or to support the plastics industry, and I have to admit it's not something I've completely resolved in my mind even now. In any event, the question is resolved this year. I do not want to spend the holidays yelling at my little babycat. It wouldn't be fair to him or to me. That said, it ain't Christmas without Spritz. I usually make them on St. Nicholas' Day (December 6), but got a bit behind and didn't bake until the following morning. My recipe is adapted from the good old red-and-white buffalo-check Better Homes and Gardens cookbook to use 1 cup butter and 1/2 cup margarine to obtain the flavour and texture I prefer, and of course they are lavishly (and I mean lavishly!) dipped in sanding sugar or topped with a candied cherry or fruit peels.
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