Every year, since I was a little child, homemade candy has been a tradition in my family. My momma would make fudge, divinity, Martha Washington and peanut butter candy, amongst other delicious treats for us. She would put it in tins or a big jar that she "recycled" and put it under the tree. We were instructed to Not get into it until Christmas Day. Of course, that never happened!
We always had shenanigans going on, as four Italian kids with mischievous minds do, and as soon as opportunity presented itself, we would sneak in. One of us would stand at the door as "the watchman", one would stand in the entrance to the room, a third would be the designated absconder and the fourth would be the "platter" of all things good and hold onto the bounty! With each in our designated space we would fulfill our responsibility and then, laughing, we would run off in different directions with cheeks full sugary goodness thinking that we had just robbed the National Reserve and absolutely positive that momma would never notice the deficit in those containers.
On Christmas morning she would get them out from under the tree and open the lids. Passing around the goodies she would exclaim as to how much the candy had "settled" in the jars. We would glance at each other knowingly, and without saying a word, dip our hand in to retrieve a piece, all the while agreeing with a nod of our head. Being the responsible, honest children that we were, we had Always "fluffed" up the remaining pieces so that it made the level appear to be more than what was there and were completely confident that it worked!. Her comment was an affirmation to that effect.
It wasn't until many years later, and each of us with grown children of our own, that momma confessed and told us that she had known all those years ago about the "elves" that visited our home and ate the candy!
I have chosen to continue to "feed elves" in my family. I often reflect on the things my siblings and I did as children and I wonder just how much we really got away with...if anything at all. And it makes me smile!
Your mother was a bit of a Scrooge to tempt you like that and then make you wait until Christmas. She was inviting you to learn the practice of cheating since she knew you would violate her strict rule and knew all along that you were doing it.
My mother always had nutritional snacks for us like dried fruit in the evenings when we were watching TV, a family ritual in those days. But, around Christmas time she would make Christmas cookies and many varieties of candy to share with guests and the family during the entire season. We kids were always there when she was making fudge and taffy and bars and all the wonderful things she made, snatching them up right out of the oven or pan after making. And then, every evening she would make a plate of candy for us to sample. We never overindulged because there was always plenty. And, we didn't have to do any sneaky raiding when our friends came over because there was always candy for them to eat as well.
I think one Christmas my mother wrote that she made something like, "30 pounds of candy," when she was in her 70s and all of us kids were long gone. Her recipes can be found here:
