January Traditions

SNOWFLAKES and 
WINTER WONDERLAND FUN

"Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together. " 
V.M. Kelly

I love snowy mornings! There is just something so still and mystical about waking up to a world hushed by a thick white blanket of snow. It seems to muffle the sounds of the world and makes the warmth of indoors seem all the more inviting.    Snow to me represents so many happy memories-  beautiful sunny days on the mountain spent skiing with my dad. Sledding as kids. Snowball fights, snow angels and snowmen. And warming nearly frost-bitten noses over a steaming mug of hot cocoa.   But "Snow Days," when school was canceled due to deep snowfall, were perhaps the best of all.  Climbing out of our cozy beds we'd follow the smell of sizzling bacon to the kitchen where we'd find our mom serving up a tasty breakfast of snowflake shaped pancakes drizzled in warm maple syrup. And then, still in our pajamas, we'd feast while watching the snow fall silently outside, burying us deeper and deeper in its majestic cloak.

After growing up with snowy winters, it has been a big adjustment for me to now live in a climate where it doesn't snow. Not that I mind the seventy degree Januarys, but I do get a little nostalgic for frosty patterns on the window panes, the inviting warmth of cozy fires on frozen nights, and the thrill of an afternoon playing in fresh powder- whether it be sledding, skiing, ice-skating or just making a snowman.

I found this January, however, that doing my mom's winter traditions helped to bring a sense of those winter-wonderland days into our home, as we filled it with paper, pancake and pretzel snowflakes,  the "arctic chill" of polar-animal fun, and the "frosty" delight of snowman pleasantries (nevermind the palm trees and bright sunshine outside). 

Here are my family's January traditions that I re-lived this year and my mom's ideas for making the most of this magical winter month. 

MAKE SNOWFLAKE PANCAKES

I used cookie cutters because I don't have pancake molds like my mom does. (She got her's at Williams and Sonoma.)  To make cookie cutters work I decided to wrap a piece of tinfoil around one part of it so I would have something to lift up and remove the cookie cutters with once the pancake was ready to be flipped. I'm glad I did because the cutters got too hot to touch.

To make the pancakes, I just set the cookie cutters on a hot griddle and poured the pancake batter into it.  The key I found was having the batter be liquid enough that it would run into all the nooks of the snowflake but thick enough that it wouldn't run out from under the cookie cutter. (I'd also recommend greasing the sides of the cookie cutters with cooking spray beforehand so they separate easily from the batter once you need to remove them.)     When it was time to flip the pancake, I gently lifted up on the tinfoil handle I created, very slowly until it came loose, flipped the pancake and let it finish cooking...

...then voila! Snowflake shaped pancakes!  (And the best part is, you can use any cookie cutter shape you want to make pancakes  for other occasions or holidays!)

MAKE SIZZLING SNOWFLAKES

For a fun after-school snack or leisure time activity, these are a hit with kids and so easy!  Just pair them with some sliced apples, berries, or even a veggie for a healthier snack. 

First, take a store-bought flour tortilla. I like to use the ones from Costco that are not already cooked- they fold easier and are much tastier!

1.  Fold the tortilla in half twice (Picture 1). Then fold it once more (Picture 2).  Then, cut out shapes exactly like you would a paper snowflake. 

Then, unfold your masterpiece to see what it looks like! 

Heat some oil or butter (coconut oil is great for something like this as a healthier alternative to regular oil).  Once the pan is hot, lightly fry the tortilla on both sides until it gets light brown and crispy.   Immediately transfer to plate and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. (You want it to still be hot and moist from the oil so the sugar will stick). And bam! You have a sizzling snowflake treat!

 Here's another one we made. 

COZY UP ON THE COUCH AND READ SNOW BOOKS 

AND POEMS

Another fun afternoon activity was when our mom would read to us Robert Frost's poem Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. She would read it slowly aloud and then have us, young as we were, offer interpretations on what we thought he might have meant by each stanza. This poem is noted for its deep meaning and its fun to talk about. If nothing else, its a great poem that evokes the mood of a frosty, snowy day in January. 

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

BY ROBERT FROST

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

Some other books we enjoyed: 

The Snow Queen (a tale retold and illustrated by many authors including Mary Eingelbreit)
Winter Lullaby, by Barbara Seuling
The Snow Child, by Freya Littledale
Its Snowing! Its Snowing!, Jack Prelutsky


Another tradition in our home was singing. We had "singing time" every morning before school (I'm not kidding), where my mom played the piano and we sang songs. And of course the songs were always tied into the season or month :) 

In January we would sing: 

"I Like to Play in the Snow," words and music by Janeen Brady 
"Suzy Snowflake," words and music by Sid Tepper
"Playful Little Jack Frost," words and music by Janeen Brady

MAKE SNOW CONES (aka  SNOW CREAM)

This was impossible for me to do without snow, but its a fun treat if you happen to have some snow on hand: 

Scoop fresh, clean snow into a bowl. Heat some maple syrup until just before it boils. Pour over the snow and enjoy an unusual but tasty treat! Its like a winter shaved ice.

Or try the Victorian version: 

Take 1 C milk, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1/2 C sugar. Beat well until frothy. Place mixture in a large bowl and add enough clean snow so that the liquid is completely absorbed. It will have the consistency of sherbet. 

 LEARN ABOUT "SNOWFLAKE BENTLY" 

and JOHANNES KEPLER

Each year growing up we'd spend an afternoon learning about these two men and their important contributions to our understanding of snowflakes.

   In the early 1900s, Wilson Bentley, then a young boy, happened one day to look at a snowflake through a microscope, an act that ignited within him a lifelong passion to study snowflakes.  As a result, his life's work is largely responsible for our present day knowledge about snow and its intricacies.   Bentley, spending 46 Vermont winters alone in a shack, captured over 6,000 images of fragile flakes by catching them on a blackboard and quickly photographing them before they melted away.   Before his discovery no one knew the incredible and beautiful patterns of snowflakes, many assumed they were just puffs of falling snow.     

Talk about "Snowflake Bentley's" discoveries and teach your children about how snowflakes are formed.   You can also talk with them about Johannes Kepler, who discovered that snowflakes are ALL 6-sided and that there are 6 major kinds of snowflakes: spatial dendrites, stellar crystals and capped columns to name just three. Show your children pictures of these different shapes and wow them with the fact that, like human thumb prints, there are no two snowflakes alike! 

Photographer Andrew Osokin captured these images with a macrolens. They are real snowflakes! And they absolutely BLOW my mind! 

Then . . .

                BE "Snowflake Bentley" for an AFTERNOON

After you've learned about these two men and the formation of snowflakes, have a shot at trying to capture and look at your own snowflakes! 
  

You will need:   Black Paper,   Magnifying lens

  When it is snowing outside, chill a black sheet of paper in the freezer for about ten minutes. Immediately take outside and catch snow as it falls. When flakes land on the paper, look at them with a magnifying glass to spot their incredible patterns! You'll be impressed with how well you can see them even with just a simple magnifying glass. 

CUT OUT PAPER SNOWFLAKES

                          

While taping up our paper snowflakes to the window, I noticed something strange on the surface of our pool out back. It looked like thick plastic. Walking outside to investigate, to my shock and utter excitement I found that it was ICE! We had been experiencing the coldest January in 25 years where we live, but I never thought it would actually freeze the surface of our pool.  I was so happy I could have cried! It was like the tiniest little piece of my childhood winters had found me!  As if, like magic,  nature had made an exception to itself, and acknowledged my efforts to make the most of our snowless January with this little gift of winter. 

MAKE SNOWFLAKE PRETZELS

This recipe is to make 4 large pretzels (or six small ones).  (I halved the original recipe so double it if you wish.)

1 package dry active yeast
3/4 cups + 1/8 c lukewarm water 
1/8 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tbls butter, softened
1/2 an egg
3 cups all purpose flour

Egg Wash
1 egg
1 tbls water
Coarse Salt


Dissolve yeast in the water until dissolved. Add sugar, salt, butter, egg and half of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in remaining flour a little at a time until dough forms. Turn it out onto a floured surface and form into a smooth ball. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate four to six hours. 

Once the dough has about doubled in size, punch it down and divide it into four equal parts (To make smaller pretzels divide it into six equal parts and adjust the following steps accordingly.) 

Setting all but one piece aside, divide that piece into four smaller pieces.  Then, roll three of those four pieces into long, thin ropes as pictured below. 

Overlap the three ropes on a greased baking sheet, as pictured below, to make the form for your pretzel. 

Take the remaining quarter piece and divide it into six equal parts. Then divide each of those in half until you have twelve small  pieces of dough. 

Take one of the twelve pieces and dip it in a little water so that it becomes sticky. Attach it to the end of one spoke. Attach a second piece to the other side, as pictured below on the right.  

Continue this until you have attached two small pieces to each of the six spokes on your snowflake, as pictured below.  Then, repeat  these steps to make your other pretzels.  

Make the egg wash and brush it onto each pretzel. Then sprinkle the coarse salt over them. 

Bake at 400 degrees on a greased baking sheet for about 10-15 min. or until golden brown. Enjoy!

And last but not least . . .

MAKE SNOWFLAKE-SHAPED SUGAR COOKIES

Betty Crocker made this awesome frosting  that is perfect for your snowflake shaped sugar cookies!  It comes complete with shimmering blue sprinkles!

  SNOWMEN AND POLAR ANIMAL FUN STILL TO COME! . . .