Book Description
Enhance your Christmas celebration with any of the thousand delectable recipes gathered together in this cookbook treasure. Quilters from across North America offer recipes--both comforting and exotic--from their smorgasbord of food traditions.


About the Author
Louise Stoltzfus learned the arts of quilting and cooking from her mother, Miriam Stoltzfus. While she puts occasional stitches in one of the many quilts her mother always has in frame, Stoltzfus regrettably seldom finds time for quilting. Stoltzfus authored the first quilters’ cookbook, Favorite Recipes from Quilters. She also co-authored The Central Market Cookbook, The Best of Mennonite Fellowship Meals,and Lancaster County Cookbook. Stoltzfus is an editor for Good Books and director of The People’s Place Gallery in Intercourse, Pennsylvania. Dawn Ranck helped to make her first quilt—a doll quilt—at age seven, with the help of her Grandma Engel. She is currently handpiecing a Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt. Ranck also enjoys cooking and gardening and combines the two by growing herbs and using them in her cooking. Ranck is Designer and Production Manager for Good Books.


Excerpted from A Quilter's Christmas Cookbook by Louise Stoltzfus, Dawn J. Ranck. Copyright © 1996. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Introduction This marvelous collection of holiday recipes proves once again that many people who quilt are also fine cooks. Here are choice dishes from quilters throughout North America—from Inverness, Florida, to Los Alamos, New Mexico; from Paoli, Indiana, to Pine Grove Mills, Pennsylvania; and from St. Mary’s, Ontario, to Gridley, California. We hope these recipes warm your heart, your hearth, and home. We hope you discover new dishes and rediscover old favorites. We hope you and your family find the fellowship and camaraderie which come from gathering around a table laden with good food. A Quilter’s Christmas Cookbook is the result of many hours of time given by many different people. Hundreds of you, the people of the quilting community, responded to our call for recipes, and then also agreed to help us test them. To each of you, we offer our sincere thanks. Thank you for hand-copying your treasured holiday recipes and sending them to us. Thank you for graciously testing recipes at the height of summer when "Christmas" ingredients are often difficult to find and the temperature outside is considerably different than at the time of the holidays. Thank you for telling us the name of the quilt you were working with at the time you submitted recipes. Those patterns, listed with your names, provide a kaleidoscope of original patterns, along with familiar and frequently used designs. We also thank Phyllis Pellman Good and Esther Becker for their editorial and organizational assistance without which we could not have completed this project. — Louise Stoltzfus and Dawn J. Ranck Sample Recipes Potato & Caviar Hors d’oeuvr
Susan L. Schwarz
N. Bethesda, Maryland
Americana Hearts
Makes 24 servings 6 medium red potatoes
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh chives
2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp. red caviar 1. Do not peel potatoes. Cut into 24 1/4-inch slices. In a vegetable steamer, cover and steam potato slices for 12 minutes or until tender. Set aside to cool. 2. In a bowl combine yogurt and sour cream, stirring well. Spread this mixture to 1/2" thickness onto several layers of strong paper towels. Cover with additional paper towels and let stand for 10-15 minutes. 3. Carefully scrape yogurt mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a fluted tip. Set aside. 4. Combine the chives and parsley and press 1/2 tsp. herbs onto each potato slice. Pipe 1/2 tsp. yogurt mixture over herbs. Top with 1/8 tsp. caviar. Serve immediately. Glazed Brie
Nancy Jo Marsden
Glen Mills, Pennsylvania
Tumbling Blocks Charm
Makes 10-12 servings 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds, or hazelnuts
1 Tbsp. whiskey or brandy
14-oz. round Brie, 5" in diameter
lemon juice
apple or pear wedges
seedless grapes
crackers 1. Mix together sugar, nuts, and liquor. Cover. Chill up to one week. 2. Place Brie onto 9" pie plate. 3. Bake at 500 degrees for 4-5 minutes until slightly softened. Sprinkle sugar mixture on top. Bake 2-3 minutes until sugar is melted and cheese is heated, but not melted. 4. Brush fruit wedges with lemon juice. Serve Brie with fruit wedges, grapes, and crackers. © Good Books, Intercourse, PA 17534

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In this new recipe collection, discover hundreds of favorite Christmas dinner and holiday recipes from quilters across North America! From favorite holiday breakfast dishes to Christmas Eve meals and from Christmas cookies and snacks to traditional dinners, A Quilter's Christmas Cookbook overflows with the bounty and generosity of the holiday season.

Many quilters are ordinary women and men who love both quilting and cooking. They spend lots of time in their sewing rooms, creating quilts and covers for comfort. Many also spend lots of time in their kitchens, making meals to provide sustenance for themselves and their families.

Here are their treasured holiday recipes -- the foods they serve and the meals they make during this wondrous season of the year! The recipes range from easy-to-make and homey foods to elegant holiday dishes reserved for that one special meal each year during the time of Christmas.

Also includes a collection of stories about Christmas quilts, food as gifts, and other family Christmas memories.

Louise Stoltzfus is the editor of Favorite Recipes from Quilters, the well loved quilters' cookbook!

SYNOPSIS

From the Backcover