For some it’s Grandma’s traditional plum pudding. For others it’s Dad’s secret roast turkey recipe. Maybe for you it’s Great Aunt Maude’s famous fruitcake.
Christmas food traditions are as much a part of the celebration as the tree and the gifts.
In my family it has always been cheese pies and shortbread.
The shortbread makes sense. Descended from Glaswegians on both sides, the Scottish favourite is a given.
It was always made into petticoat tails when I was growing up but I’m rather partial to a cookie cutter.
But cheese pies? I’ve no idea. They’ve just always appeared at Christmas time. Childhood memories of helping to make them are not only mine but belong also to my nephews and sons.
The Christmas baking bug finally bit last week. The Eldest Son had received his final year results, everyone was happy and relieved and it was finally time to focus on the upcoming festivities.
Blessed with a cool day and with Christmas music blaring, four batches of cheese pies and two lots of shortbread were churned out.
The smell of fresh-baked cheese pies conjured memories of Christmas past, bringing peace in the grief of Christmas present.
EDIT: If you have come looking for the Cheese Pies recipe, I am afraid it has had to be removed for personal reasons. You’ll just have to drool over the photograph.
Master of Something I'm Yet To Discover 
This is a new one to me… the cheese pies, that is. Tell me, though, about petticoats tails?
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You press the dough into a round, pinch all around the edge and score it into segments. When you break a piece off, it looks like a petticoat tail. 🙂
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Ah! This I did not know (obviously). Thanks! 🙂
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Reblogged this on The Federation of Women's Institutes of Canada and commented:
This is a traditional Christmas recipe for Cheese Pie from a blogging friend in Australia. Something for you to try, perhaps?
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Maggie, have just sent you an email about this. (Just letting you know in case it’s sitting in your email spam folder!)
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I used to do lots of baking, but not so much nowadays, but those cheese pies look very good – can spinach be added?
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Gasp! Jude! I never mess with the recipe!! 😉
You could try it. You would probably need to chop it fairly fine. If you do it, let me know how it turns out. 🙂
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Cheese pies! Look marvellous! Am going to give those a go!
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And you are in the perfect season to be baking in a hot oven. I have to time mine for a not-stinking-hot day. 🙂
Hope you like them!
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Crikey, H – you bloody tempt me, you horrible thing ! 😀
These look absolutely DELICIOUS !
Pity you can’t cook. Or draw. Or run. Or blog. Or raise a family. Or – I’m bored now.
X !
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They’re just leeeetle pies. And that’s why I use the shapes for the shortbread – so I don’t eat a whole round in one sitting. 🙂
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Most enjoyable post H. I share your Scottish ancestry, and therefore shortbread is a favourite. I bake cheese pies too, without the lids, so I suppose they are tarts! Yours look wonderful!
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Barbara, you’re the first person I’ve come across who even knows what a cheese pie is, let alone has made them. Maybe they’re Scottish! 😉
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Perhaps they are known by other names? 🙂
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I will be over straight away for some of that deliciousness. 🙂
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What a good idea! You can warm up before your polar plunge. 🙂 (Damned hot 12km run last night, let me tell you, even at 6.30pm.)
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Too bad we can not share season to season. 🙂
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The cheese pies look super yummy. My mom and dad used to make the best fruit cake – eve the haters would have loved theirs. I miss that, but I have started a tradition of my own with cookies. It’s wonderful to have those traditions because it does give a special meaning to Christmas.
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That’s great. I think maybe I need to find my own tradition too. I’ll think on that for next year. 🙂
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What? I know I’ve been busy and late to this post but was there a recipe for those gorgeous cheese pies? Surely you are not withholding such special knowledge from your dear readers? Heather? Hello?
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Sorry, Barbara. I got into trouble for sharing it.
Never did understand family secrets.
Hey, is it your birthday where you are? ‘Cos it was yesterday here so I’m slightly confused.
Well, whatever, hope you have/had/will have a Very Happy Birthday!!
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Oh, dash it. Well, I suppose that is what the internet is useful for….sleuthing out good recipes, right? Actually, yes, it IS my birthday for about four more hours. It is the 22nd here and already the 23rd there, if I’m not mistaken. Speaking of sleuthing, I’m impressed you know that. Did I leave a clue somewhere?? XX
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I was just paying attention (and taking notes) when somebody else was asking the question. 😉
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Well, thank you very much! And thank you too for such a heartfelt reply to my post about my daughter yesterday. Looking over my comments I realized suddenly I might have given you a bit of short shrift in my reply. Not my intention, but my emotions were more on the surface than usual and if my reply was curt, believe me, my heart was not. I know you understand all about loss too. So here’s to cheese pies and messy boys and happy days ahead for all of us.
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I didn’t think you’d given me a short shrift reply. It was lovely.
And here’s to finding joy wherever we can in the messiness of life. 🙂 xxx
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It is – or was – your birthday?! I hope you are having a wonderful Birthday Week (yes, at our age we need a week for celebrations!) and you are spoiling yourself silly 🙂
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Thanks, Joanne! The durn birthday collides with Christmas so It is a total afterthought even for me. Merry Birthday which is all just fine with me!
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Then it seems to me that the only sensible thing to do is plan a Faux Birthday Week in your favourite month of the year and celebrate in personal style at that time!
In fact, that sounds like such a good idea, I think I might need to create a Faux Birthday Week for myself 😉
Merry Birthday and Happy Christmas!!
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Hi Joanne! I’m just home from driving around where I was listening to an interview of the guy whose family invented “Festivus!” Remember that Seinfeld episode, by chance? so if they can have a faux Christmas, I see no reason why I can’t have a faux birthday. Brilliant Idea!
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Let me know when you chose and I will celebrate in spirit with you! 🙂
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I still find it odd to read about how hot it is for you at Christmas. I’m struggling with the image!
I’m behind schedule this year and I’m hoping I’ll be able to make some shortbread cookies today. They are not a tradition for either Gilles or I, but I started making them a few years ago when I discovered we both had a deep lust for them.
Your cheese pies look amazing and well …. they’re cheese. How much better can that be?! I am curious though – what’s a patty pan? yes – I had a chance to read the recipe before it disappeared into the vapour. Hopefully Mr Google can help me find a version 🙂
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