Unexpected Christmas History; And A Cookie Swap at Groton Historical Society
From Ginger to Jello: An Unexpected Christmas History, talk by Clara Silverstein. Tues. Dec. 1 at 7p.m. at the Boutwell House.
The 19th century poem that begins "T'was the night before Christmas" has given us visions of sugarplums, but in reality the Puritans banned Christmas in 1659 and celebrations were somewhat muted until Christmas became a Massachusetts holiday in 1856.
The program traces the authentic history of Christmas celebrations in Massachusetts through popular foods of the 1770s, 1850s and 1930s. Sample and smell tastes of Christmas and leave with historic recipes to try.
Clara Silverstein is Community Engagement Manager at Historic Newton. A former food writer at the Boston Herald, she has published three cookbooks, including The New England Soup Factory Cookbook, a top-selling soup title onAmazon.com. She has directed the Chautauqua Writers' Center, coordinated an Oral History Project at Fidelity Investments and published articles in Runner's World, Hemispheres (United Airlines in flight magazine) and the Boston Globe. She blogs about historic recipes at heritagerecipebox.com.
Thanks to Groton Commissioners of Trust Funds this event is free.
Holiday Cookie Swap and Open House
Sunday, Dec. 6, Groton Historical Society will host a holiday open house and cookie swap from 1-4 PM. The Boutwell House, 172 Main St., will be decorated for the holidays thanks to Groton Garden Club. There will be live music courtesy of Indian Hill Music. We encourage visitors to bring a dozen of their favorite cookies and their family food memories to share. For more information contact the historical society at info@grotonhistoricalsociety.org or call 978-448-0092.