[Photo by: skampy/Flickr]

Would you fly halfway around the world just for a meal? I suppose if you would, no ordinary experience would do. No, this meal would have to be overwhelming, exploding with flavor and seductive in every bite; to put it simply: it would have to be orgasmic.

I often speak with travelers who admit to fantasizing over a specific gastronomic experience in a foreign land, and if given the opportunity, say they would hop the next flight just for a taste of the perfectly delivered dish.

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Unless otherwise noted, recipes for the following Yuletide breads and cakes are included in The Festive Bread Book by Kathy Cutler:

Golden Bread (Sicily) (Treccia Dorata) – The recipe for this crusty and impressive loaf is printed in The Art of Sicilian Cooking, by Anna Muffoletto.

Baba, Apple Raisin Cake, Light Fruit Cake from Warsaw, Honey Cake, Christmas Cake, Poppy Seed Rolls – The recipes for the cakes and rolls traditionally served in Poland on Christmas Eve are included in an excellent cookbook on Polish cuisine, The Art of Polish Cooking by Alina Zeranska.

Stollen – Classic German Christmas bread, originally symbolized the Christ child in swaddling clothes.

Almond Stollen – A sourdough version of stollen.

Bremen Kuchen – A rich bread traditionally served with coffee in Bremen, Germany.

Birnbrot – The Swiss serve this pear bread with hot chocolate.

Gugelhupf – An Austrian Christmas bread.

Julbrod – A wreath-shaped Swedish Yule bread.

Swedish Tea Ring – This delicate cake is enjoyed at Christmas in Sweden.

Swedish Christmas Braid – The golden hue of saffron and the spiciness of cardamom make this a popular holiday bread in Sweden.

Swedish Twist – A beautiful bread, studded with cherries and shaped into a twist.

Julekake – This cardamom-flavored Yule cake is a big favorite during the Christmas holidays in Norway.  An excellent bread for company at Christmas.

Kringle – Served in Denmark, this bread is horseshoe-shaped with a nut or fruit filling.

Julekage – A Danish sourdough version of the Norwegian Yule cake.

Jolakaka – This Icelandic Yule cake is a cardamom-scented version of the Scandinavian cake.  If you make this in a coffee can (one of two suggested ways in the recipe), turn on side and place a candle in the center.  Then frost and decorate with candied fruit for a striking centerpiece.

Viipuri – These pretzel-shaped delicacies, often filled with Christmas cookies, are loved by the Finns. 

Finnish Potato Rye – A hearty, dark rye bread that goes well with a Christmas dinner.  Plainer than most festive breads but with plenty of character.

Finnish Coffee Bread – Served all year long in Finland with Sunday morning coffee, this becomes a Christmas treat in the shapes described in the recipe.  One of cookbook author Kathy Cutler’s favorites because of its cardamom flavor and handsome appearance when glazed.

Vanocka – This Czechoslovakian bread is often referred to as a Christmas twist.  But you can enjoy this great bread, as Czechs do, on other festive occasions as well.

Hoska –This beloved Christmas bread was served by Czech immigrants throughout this country, achieving popularity among Americans of all backgrounds.  Three layers of braids make hoska an especially striking addition to any festive gathering.

Polish Christmas Bread – From an old family recipe, this bread makes a large, horseshoe-shaped loaf filled with candied fruit and nuts.

Kolach – This bread is popular in Ukrainian homes on Christmas Eve, when it is placed on display with a candle during supper.

Ukrainian Christmas Doughnuts – A favorite on Christmas Eve among Ukrainians, these filled doughnuts are irresistible.

Hungarian Christmas Bread – A special Hungarian bread, with a raisin and poppy seed filling.

Christopsomo – In Greek, psomi means “bread” and the name of this recipe thus means “Christ’s bread.” A fragrant and delicious bread for celebrating Christmas.

Greek Feast Bread – This bread in a three-leaf clover shape commemorates the Trinity.  The traditional symbolism makes it a favorite at Christmas.

Brioche Wreath – At Christmas celebrations, the exquisite French brioche is served in the shape of a Christmas wreath.

Panettone – A great favorite in Italy throughout the year but especially at Christmas, panettone (meaning “little loaf”) has also become popular in the United States.

Pandoro di Verona (Golden Bread of Verona) – This delicate bread is frequently served, especially at Christmas, in Verona.

Pangiallo – Rich with spices, nuts, and candied fruit, Romans love this Christmas bread.  Pangiallo is so heavy with fruit and nuts that it won’t rise very much.

Spanish Christmas Loaf – A favorite in Spain, with a delightful almond fragrance.

English Christmas Bread – A rich, fruit and nut filled bread.

Boxing Day Cake – In Britain, Boxing Day is the first weekday after Christmas, a legal holiday on which gifts (often boxed) are given to mail carriers and others in similar occupations.  This spicy bread is a great after-Christmas treat.

Yankee Christmas Bread – Potatoes are an ingredient in this rich Christmas bread.  An old-time favorite in New England farmhouses.

Poppy Seed Loaf – A delicious poppy seed and honey filling makes this bread a Canadian favorite, especially at Christmastime.

This Sicilian feast day is called the Festival of Lights, and St. Lucy is often referred to as the Saint of Light.  St. Lucy went blind on December 13, the shortest day of the year according to the ancient Julian calendar.  In Syracuse, the festival begins with a procession of clergy, dignitaries, religious societies, and laymen costumed in green tunics with magenta sashes (the saint’s colors), carrying lighted torches, marching to the duomo (cathedral), where the Christian martyr is represented holding her eyes in a vessel.

According to legend, during a great famine Syracusians went to the duomo to ask for the assistance of Santa Lucia.  While they were praying, a ship carrying grain came into the harbor and saved the city.  In Sicily, cuccia (dried chick-peas and wheat kernels) are traditionally eaten in a variety of prepared dishes on December 13 to commemorate this miracle. 

The Christmas season in Sweden begins with St. Lucia’s Day.  On December 13 a daughter of the household is clad in a long white dress, sometimes with crimson sash and stockings.  On her head she wears a whortleberry crown into which lighted candles are fitted.  In this costume she goes throughout the house at dawn waking family members and serving them buns and holiday breads with coffee.  Two of the foods traditionally served on St. Lucia’s Day are St. Lucia’s Crown, bread shaped like the crown worn by the daughter of the household and St. Lucia’s Cats, buns that are favorites with young and old.  Recipes for both are given in The Festive Bread Book by Kathy Cutler.

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Any society where people greet one another by asking “Have you eaten yet?” is my kind of place. It’s a simple question that says quite a bit about a culture and its savory way of life. Food is just one of those magical things that bind people in the plainest and most complex of ways—an unspoken connection of sensory overload that speaks volumes in an otherwise non-connected situation.

Travel and food have always been the links to many of the people I have met and befriended—whether it was feasting on casado with strangers at a local soda (small restaurant) in Costa Rica, or snacking on biltong under the dim light of a boma in South Africa, food kindled conversation and sparked the beginnings of transcontinental friendships.

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St. Barbara lived in the Middle East in the third century, at a time when  Christianity was sweeping across the Roman empire.  Barbara became a Christian, living out her faith by giving bread to the poor.  Her conversion angered her pagan father, Dioscorus, who ordered her to be tortured.  According to one legend, after refusing to give up her faith, Barbara was decapitated by her father, who was struck and killed by a bolt of lightning soon after.  Another account holds that her unnatural father was about to strike off her head when the lightning flash laid him dead at her feet.

St. Barbara became the patron saint of artillery and arsenals and the saint invoked against lightning.  Although St. Barbara is no longer included in the Roman Catholic Church’s calendar because of doubts about her authenticity, her holiday continues to be celebrated.  For centuries, Christians in Syria and Lebanon have started the Christmas season with her feast day, lighting candles, serving cakes made of wheat flour, and holding a pageant in honor of the saint.

The recipe for St. Barbara’s Bread can be found in The Festive Bread Book, by Kathy Cutler.

The Culinary Archives and Museum, Providence, Rhode Island
Farmers’ Museum, Cooperstown, New York
The Chocolate Museum, Bruges, Belgium
Museum of Bread Culture, Ulm, Germany
Museum of English Rural Life, Reading, UK
The Olive Museum, Imperia, Liguria, Italy
Ramen Museum, Tokyo, Japan

I grew up in your cliché Italian family.  Big, loud, lots and lots of cousins, and meals that could show up any catering hall on any given day.  We are also a very close family-  actually, I would say we are downright intrusive-  if there is something you don’t know about yourself someone will definitely let you, and the rest of the conspirators, in on the secret before you have time to defend what is left of your integrity.  Having said all of that, there is also a lot of love, support, and sacrifice that is shared between us all.

This past week it was my cousin’s 48^th birthday.  He has struggled with a rare illness that has caused a tremendous amount of suffering for both him and our family.  So of course every birthday and every holiday has become a celebration of life.  His wife began planning the meal months in advance trying to accommodate her husband’s favorite foods while honoring the staple Italian dishes:  pasta, meat, hoards of bread, fish, some kind of Parmesan concoction, and of course the salad that most never get to.

Before my cousin became ill I could never understand the hype and neuroticism that went into organizing these parties.  My mother would call religiously reminding me of the event and guilting me into coming even if I had RSVP’d to something else months in advance.  To be honest, I dreaded going most of the time for the sheer monotony of the way things always played out: Arrive- bitch, eat- bitch, clean- bitch, eat dessert- bitch, kiss goodnight-bitch.  All the bitching and teasing and screaming little cousins would sometimes cause temporary insanity that could last for days.

Last Sunday my cousin invited me and my immediate family over for the leftovers from the birthday party that she had put her blood, sweat, and tears into.  It was a smaller, quieter meal that allowed for more intimate conversation and appreciation.  The food seemed to taste better than when it was first made, and for those few short hours all I could think about was how incredibly grateful I am to still have my cousin sitting at the head of the table like he always does, laughing, joking, and smiling through the aches and spasms that have become a normality of his daily life.

I once read that “all is ephemeral” and to truly appreciate the blessings we have been given we must examine our own transience.  Those words stuck with me because I often live for the future.  I tend to plan life out in increments of time often missing the everyday nuances and awakenings that should be fueling a passion to live only in the present.  My cousin is someone who has always inspired me through his beautiful attitude, light heart, and ability to make everyone around him laugh and smile.  Even now, with the constant doctor visits, treatments, pain, anguish, frustration, and fear he still, somehow, lives for each day– lives for each moment–  and there can truly be no greater inspiration then seeing one’s own transience and embracing it.

I know that the next time I get the call from my mother saying that there is a “family party” coming up I will instinctively roll my eyes.  The sights of heaping plates of food, unruly cousins, and gossiping women will flood my head, but deep down I will smile knowing that what I have is something exceptional –- something that many others do not have — and I will think of the moments and memories we will share with my cousin and I will be grateful for another meal together.