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The Scent of Christmas
Christmas was a big holiday in our home—lights, flavors, and heart. Mom transformed the house every December, setting up not one but two Christmas trees, draping the outside in twinkling lights, and crowning every window with a wreath. But the true center of gravity, the heartbeat of the season, lived in her kitchen.
Every year, she baked pizzelles, butter cookies, and lemon drops; the aromas of anise, lemon, and butter drifted through every room. Platters of her treats made their way to friends, neighbors, and even her doctors. It was her love language—crispy, delicate, and coated with icing and sprinkles. She taught me how to bake—at one point, I was cooking handmade spaghetti and my own tomato sauce. That’s right, I’m 100% Italian, though I don’t look it.
My first years away from home were hard, but every holiday season, pulling out Mom’s worn recipe cards grounded me. The familiar mixing, rolling, and baking made it feel like she was standing right beside me. My husband enjoyed every bite, and the cookies helped smooth over a few tense moments at work. I still keep a book full of her recipes—some I’ve mastered, others continue to challenge me.
Then, about ten years ago, I found I was sensitive to gluten. You can imagine what that meant for Mom’s recipes. My first attempts at gluten-free versions were… well, let’s just call them educational. The cookies crumbled if you so much as breathed on them. Eventually, thanks to xanthan gum and the rise of measure-for-measure gluten-free flours, things began to improve. A recent trip to Termini Brothers at Reading Terminal Market changed things again. Their gluten-free cookies were so boldly flavored that I felt newly inspired—bring on the strong extracts! Anise oil has become my new best friend.
Now, the next hurdle: sugar. My eye doctors have advised me to cut back, so I’m experimenting with reduced-sugar and no-sugar versions of my favorites. That challenge is still very much a work in progress—but one I’m determined to crack. But I keep in mind that holiday magic isn’t about perfect cookies; it’s the memories we create and share, one batch at a time.
Night to Dawn 48 delivers horror and science fiction with a humorous twist, as in Matthew Wilson’s “Diet or Die;” the unspeakable, as in Hal Kempka’s “Turkey Shoot;” and occasionally, a happy ending, such as Charles Gramlich’s “Soft They Were, and Broken.” Happy or grim, the stories will keep you up at night, reading to their satisfying conclusions. The collection of short stories, poetry, and illustrations, presented by Barbara Custer, includes:
“The Golden Hour” by Rod Marsden
“Eel Soup” by Marge Simon
“We, the Possessed” by Rajeev Bhargava
“In Widow’s Weeds” by Hillary Lyon
“Truth” by Lee Clark Zumpe
“Small Differences” by Christopher T. Dabrowski
“Crime Scene Confidential” by Marc Shapiro
“Interview with a Reluctant Vampire” by Margaret L. Carter
“Mike Walker and the Old Tree” by Linda Barrett
…and many others, including dark poetry and illustrations by Marge Simon, Sandy DeLuca, Denny E. Marshall, Chris Friend, Elizabeth, Vin Davis, Hattie Pierce, and other contributors.
They call her Balloon Lady.
When Barbara Custer was in high school back in the 1970s, she weaned on Dracula and Dark Shadows, and has always enjoyed a good horror or science fiction flick. She did not begin writing until 1990, when a college professor encouraged her to try writing to help process her grief over her mother’s death. A Stephen King fan, her horror and science fiction short stories have appeared in numerous small press magazines. Her novels include Twilight Healer, Steel Rose, When Blood Reigns, Infinite Sight, The Forgotten People, City of Brotherly Death, and two novellas: Close Liaisons, and Life Raft: Earth. She’s been publishing Night to Dawn Magazine since 2004.
Basically, she’s a ghost balloon that haunts the towns near Philadelphia, PA. When she’s not working on Night to Dawn projects, she’s enjoying a fright flick. She maintains a presence on Facebook, Linkedin, and The Writers Coffeehouse forum. Look for the photos with the Mylar balloons, and you’ll find her.
Buy the book at Amazon.
The apocalypse of the movie screen and the printed page has become a reality. A microbe threatens humanity, making Corona seem like the common cold. Innocents die to appease young and hungry gods. A doctor feeds the souls of his patients to a demon. Featuring Marge Simon, Lee Clark Zumpe, Margaret L. Carter, Rod Marsden, Matthew Wilson, and other authors.
Barbara lives near Phila., PA, retired from her job as a respiratory therapist. Nowadays, she chases Mylar balloons at the supermarket, enjoys a fright flick, or works on horror and science fiction tales. Many of her short stories have appeared in numerous small press magazines. She’s been editor of Night to Dawn Magazine since 2004.
