One of the things I love about cooking is sharing the discovery of new foods and preparations with others. So much of the joy of food comes from this sharing, much of the time being the one learning, sometimes being the teacher. Other times you just get to be there to witness someone achieve a successful adventure into something new to them. No matter which it is, it is something that brings me a great deal of enjoyment. This leads me to todays post…

In our modern age, Christmas has changed from what they were generations past. Families seem to be far more spread out around the country, or the world, and getting together over the holidays becomes much more difficult. The joining of extended families at the same table for Christmas dinner seems to be getting more and more rare.

Fortunately, this year we were able to spend Christmas dinner with my sister and her family, and as we live very close to one another, we were able to combine efforts on the dinner. I handled the bird, stuffing, gravy and cranberries, she handled the rest.

My sister is a quite capable cook, but like most people she hasn’t ventured too far outside of her day to day comfort zone. But she has the spark of someone who seeks to venture into new territory, and I have enjoyed sharing some recipes and kitchen time with her since she moved here from the Coast. One of the things that fell to her for Christmas dinner was dessert, and much to her credit she decided to head into what was for her uncharted territory and make a Cheesecake.

Dinner came off really well, and we all had a healthy helping (or two) of the bounty that was presented. I could tell from the conversation that my sister was equal parts excited and nervous as the time for dessert came about. She had chosen to do a Candy Cane Cheesecake with chocolate glaze, and it looked great. So hurdle one was cleared, because we all eat with our eyes first.

She cut generous slices, and served it up to an eager group. There is an old saying that ‘the proof is in the tasting’ – and the tasting proved that she had nailed it. The texture was great, the flavour even better. It was an awesome Christmas time flavour, and a perfect finish to a great meal. It was really good, and it was so neat to see the confidence that came to her in the knowledge that she has just nailed a new skill. I really enjoyed watching her realize that she had done a great job of something new.

Nice job sis, you just chalked up a new skill to be proud of and drawn upon again!