Congratulations Kristie!!!!! You got them all right. Here's a little background to expand on a couple of the answers (for those that may be curious)... Question 3) hot spiced drink Mulled wines were popular festive drinks in 19th- century London. They were undoubtedly much safer to drink than the untreated water. To make Smoking Bishop, take 6 bitter oranges and stick them with 6 cloves each. Put them in a bowl, cover with (cheap) red wine, and set in a warm place for a day. Squeeze the oranges into the wine and strain. Add port. Heat, and serve with a cinnamon stick. Question #4 - In the Ukraine, if you find a spider web in the house on Christmas morning it is believed to mean: A) Good luck One Christmas morning, a poor woman, who could not afford decorations, found that spiders had trimmed her children's tree with their webs. When the morning sun shone on them, the webs turned to silver. An artificial spider and web are often included in the decorations on Ukrainian Christmas trees. Question #5 - modern Christmas custom borrowed from ancient Rome's New Year's celebrations is: C) Displaying a wreath on the front door of one's house Romans wished each other "good health" by exchanging branches of evergreens. They called these gifts "strenae" after Strenia, the goddess of health. It became the custom to bend these into a ring and display them on doorways. Kristie, I'll be packing up your surprise pack within the next couple of days. Are you still at the same address since we last traded? Thanks again and Merry Christmas everyone! .....Heather

cookie8, You need to start Plum Pudding (Christmas Pudding) about six weeks before you want to serve it. Suet is raw beef fat especially the hard fat around the loins and kidneys. You can substitute Crisco but you'll loose the authentic taste of the pudding. I describe how I steam mine in the recipe below. I have served this to my neighbor who is British & lives in England half of the year. Her family has written me from England saying it's the best pudding they've had & asking for the recipe. Since I've never eaten Plum Pudding in England...I can't vouch for their compliments but we sure enjoy it! Here's my recipe: PLUM PUDDING WITH GRAND MARNIER HARD SAUCE Makes about a dozen servings. 2 Cups Chopped Walnuts 1 3/4 Cups Dried Currants 1 3/4 Cups Golden Raisins 3/4 Cup Chopped Candied Orange Peel 3/4 Cup Chopped Candied Lemon Peel 1/2 Cup Chopped Candied Citron 1/2 Cup Chopped Pitted Prunes (dried PLUMS, hence Plum Pudding!) 1 Cup AP Flour 1 Teaspoon Salt 1 Teaspoon Ground Allspice 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger 2 Cups Dried Fresh Breadcrumbs, lightly toasted (you can use those crumbs in the paper tube affair...I won't tell) 1 Cup Firmly Packed Light Brown Sugar 3 Eggs, slightly beaten 1/3 lb. Ground Suet (I have to grind this in my food processor) 1 Granny Smith Apple, cored and finely chopped 1 Carrot, peeled and grated 1/4 Cup Fresh Orange Juice 1/4 Cup Grand Marnier 1/4 Cup Cognac 1 Teaspoon Sugar Butter a 2 1/2 quart mold thoroughly (use a bundt pan w/o too many details) Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl or stockpot. Mix in flour, salt, allspice, and ginger. Add breadcrumbs, brown sugar, eggs, suet, apple, carrot, orange juice, and Grand Marnier and mix well. Pack tightly into prepared pan. Cover with parchment paper cut to fit. Then, cover with foil and tightly seal foil down around edges of pan. Push your finger through the hole in the center of the bundt pan and crimp the foil down around the hole to seal. Then, place another larger piece of foil over the entire pan and seal tightly at edges. Lastly, take a knife and poke through this second layer of foil where the hole is to allow steam to penetrate pan. Place a rack in a large kettle and sit the pudding pan on the rack. Fill kettle with water to half-way up the sides of the pudding mold (pan). Cover kettle. Turn on the heat and bring to a strong simmer. Turn the heat down to a slow simmer. Steam the pudding for 2 - 2 1/2 hrs. adding more water, as necessary. After the pudding is done, discard all wrapping materials and allow the pudding to sit for about 5-10 minutes. Place a plate over the pudding and flip to unmold. Then, return pudding to the baking pan (you unmolded it just to make sure it didn't stick). Heat the brandy and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat, swirling pan occassionally, until warm. Ignite with a match. Pour over pudding. Wrap the pudding tightly and store in the refrigerator for 3-6 weeks to mellow. Serve with hard sauce GRAND MARNIER HARD SAUCE 1 Cup unsalted butter at room temperature 3 Cups powdered sugar, sifted 1/4 Cup Grand Marnier 1 Egg Yolk Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add Grand Marnier and yolk and beat until smooth. Transfer to a serving dish. Refrigerate until firm. Bring to room temperature before serving. Store leftovers in the refrigerator. /tricia

Another fan of Miss Marple! I am talking about the BBC series with Joan Hickson as Miss Marple, cause there have been some others that aren't as good. The gardens in that series are always gorgeous too. Oh, if only I could have lots of balmy rain and no 5-below days, then I too could have roses like Miss Marple's, dash it all. But I digress. I love Downton, but, really, the kitchen? I could not work there. Cramped cellar-like space, no exhaust fan or high-btu cooktop. But mostly, I am always surprised at how shabby the Downton Abbey kitchen is, from the pots and pans, to the rickety shelves, to the grimy walls. So, no, I am not a fan of Downton's kitchen! Love the rest of it though. Here is a link that might be useful: BBC series with Joan Hickson as Miss Marple This post was edited by shannonplus2 on Fri, Dec 14, 12 at 20:54

No it is not a fruitcake, although it has many fruits in it. Fruitcakes are hard and baked, puddings are steamed and somewhat soft. It's a pudding, with many fruits, that has been cooked in a steamer, in a mold or wrapped in cheesecloth, then aged. It is often called a Plum Pudding, but can only be called this if it has plums in it. Being very rich in taste, a little goes a long way. Often it has brandy poured over it, and soaked in for weeks as it ages. And in many homes, served with a brandy butter "hard sauce". Traditionally, a gold coin is cooked in it, and the person who gets it in their serving is said to have good fortune for the coming year.