Hundreds of viewers wrote in with recipes in response to TODAY’s call for hand-me-down holiday dessert recipes. It was tough to narrow it down, but here are the three finalists who were chosen to share their family stories and recipes. From their families to yours — enjoy!
Recipe: Orange juice balls (on this page) Recipe: Chocolate Chistmas dream (on this page) Recipe: Grandma Duff's sea foam (on this page)
Aimee Fortney is from Fairview, Tenn. and is the author of “Savor the Recipes.” She and her husband, Michael, have one daughter, Michala, who is 9 years old.
Aimee says, “My mom made these for our family at Christmas. Friends that I have had since childhood remember coming over and eating these at our house. I love them, and now my daughter asks for them every Christmas.”
Crush vanilla wafers in a food processor or blender to make fine crumbs. Add all other ingredients and mix with your hands. Form into balls and roll in powdered sugar, or nuts or coconut. Refrigerate to set. Store in refrigerator.
Sasha Bunn is from Brooklyn, N.Y. She is 25 years old and has her own video company.
Sasha says, “This is a family recipe handed down from my dad. This is what he made for my mom the night he asked her to marry him. Even though my parents are now divorced, they are good friends and every Christmas we make it to honor the love which is shared by our family. My parents always said that even if the marriage did not last, the family would survive. This is a tribute to that love and the survival of our family.”
For the crust: Mix all dry ingredients together, then cut butter into flour and press into pan. Bake in an oven heated to 350 degrees for 10 minutes until crust lightly rises.
For the filling: Place heavy cream in a saucepan and heat slightly. Add chocolate to pan and stir until melted. Turn off heat once mixture has thickened and put into crust. Refrigerate.
For the topping: Place heavy cream in a saucepan and heat slightly. Add chocolate and stir until blended. Add butter and stir. Pour mixture over filling and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Jan Dobrich is from Waukesha, Wis.
Jan says, “It’s just not Christmas without it.”
Boil sugar, syrup and water until it spins a thread 3 inches long. Beat the egg whites; just before they are still, pour syrup mixture slowly over beaten egg whites, beating fast so syrup does not harden. When you hold up a spoon and it pours slowly and is not shiny, quickly add flavoring and nuts and drop by spoonfuls on waxed paper.
© 2012 MSNBC Interactive
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