I chopped down my Bella Gold peacotum. It's a beautiful piece of fruit but no where nearly as good as Orangered apricot that ripened at the same time. My tree had very curled up leaves again this year. Maybe someone else will have a different opinion but here it was no contest, Orangered by TKO in one swing. Anymore I don't have time or room for pretty faces without substance. I like Spice Zee. Agree with Patty that the texture is smoother than most nectarine. But it's no better than Arctic Jay and not nearly as good as Honey Royale for my taste. I was eating all three at the same time although Honey Royale is somewhat later. Mine has some russeting even in the greenhouse. Not an issue for me. My Sweet Treat pluerry fruit is still rock hard. The fruit is well colored but no bigger than my biggest sweet cherry. I was expecting it to be earlier but being just planted this year it got a late start. Bay Laurel says it ripens in 2-3 weeks so guess it's not late. This post was edited by fruitnut on Wed, Jul 17, 13 at 10:44

My grandmothers had very different kitchens -we made the big car trip to my mother's mother only twice a year but her home and flower garden's were a big influence for me. My grandparents bought their big old home when they got married (one hundred years ago) and never left it. She was born in the 1880's. The kitchen was a huge room in the back of the home. The floors were wood, and the stove sat by itself on the back wall -a monstrous unit -in which she baked the best pies. White painted cabinets with glass doors extended up to the ceiling and covered one entire wall except for the window. A large table with an oil cloth was on another wall next to the door to the big dining room and the rest of the house. The sink and refrigerator sat by the porch door, a big screened cool place covered in vines. She put up all her own preserves and still canned much of their food when I was little. My father's mother and father lived near us and had a quirky farm house built in the 1700's. (she was born in the early 1900's) The long-before added on kitchen was a dark long very narrow galley that I hardly can remember but in the 50's was decorated with fiesta ware and mexican motif. My mother was a fabulous cook and interested in decorating. She was ahead of her time in many ways in the mid 50's and had my father pull down walls in both the kitchen and between the LR and DR. She removed another door and wall to a little laundry room off the kitchen (putting the washer in the basement) and built in a desk and bunk - making the kitchen live much larger. She had a small tv mounted high up in the kitchen as part of a peninsula she added. To my later childhood home in the early 60's she gutted the pantry and had a built in stainless steel wall oven w/ss wall tiles added to expand the kitchen, built-in cutting boards and a desk on another wall that was a large shelf to match the counters and supported from the ceiling with chains. Later she designed an addition so the kitchen window became a pass-through over-looking the family room with a big bricked area for the woodstove and TV. (you could watch tv while washing dishes) There were wall mounted speakers for the sound system. The original pass-through door for the milkman remained, along with a built-in ironing board. She still seemed a little ahead of her time after I left home in the very early 70's; her next home she designed with a totally open kitchen-dining room (keeping room). Mom always planned everything in her homes to suit herself and to function best for her. I guess that is why I care so little about what is "in" but more what I like and what works for me!! I have so enjoyed reading about people's memories!!

Other than the traditional Turkey, ham, mashed potatoes and stuffing. I do not make anything from my childhood holiday meals. My family made things like candied yams with the marshmallow topping, pistachio pudding with the pineapple, marshmallows and I want to say cottage cheese or something like that and a version of I guess you would call it Waldorf salad. I called it apple salad with mayonnaise, nuts, raisins and I forget what else. Sadly none of those things appeal to me as an adult but they were staples at all the family holiday dinners. We also always had ribbon candy and these little candies made with fruit and nuts and sadly I haven't even had those since I was a kid. I do make things from my husbands family holiday dinners though. Like sausage stuffing. I first had it when we had Christmas dinner with his family and I have been hooked every since. Also like to make the Portuguese Roast Pork and Linguica his family likes to have at Christmas as well. I do remember my great grandmother making rum balls and rum soaked fruit cake as well. I do like fruit cake but I do not like anything with alcohol in it because I don't drink the flavor is over powering to me. But I do remember all the adults getting each other stockings full of different nip bottles and giving them to each other. They enjoyed their cocktails :) it is funny I just never acquired a taste for alcohol even though most of my family enjoyed it.

We had them for New Years dinner and really enjoyed them too! Very tasty and not difficult to make.