"Next Year in Cuba"

Every year we make a large batch of Cremé de Vie or Cuban Egg Nog, if you will.

Photo: Jae C. Hong, AP

And every year we toast, "El año que viene estamos en Cuba." "Next year in Cuba."

This started in December of 1961. We had been in this country for a little less than a year and it was obvious that the whole silly revolution thing was going to blow over soon. Of course, it was.

My parents raised their glasses and said the toast, "El año que viene en Cuba." 

My mom would always add, "Si Dios quiere." "God willing."

Year after long year. It will be next year for sure. Next year. No, next year. Maybe next year...

"Si Dios quiere."

The toast endured, even as we quickly and soberly realized that even if we could return, we no longer would. We were Americans now, with Cuban roots. This is our home.

Ah, but Cubans love their roots. We're proud of where we came from. We have endured loss and longing for many years. But we're not dumb.

Now when we raise our glasses and toast, "El año que viene en Cuba," it has become a prayer. Not that we would really ever return to live there, but that our homeland will one day be free and that we will live to see that day.

I gave an interview to the Associated Press last week. Now the story of "The Toast" is being run in hundreds of news outlets across the country. Here's the link on Fox News Latino. (Also, I'm quite delighted to be quoted next to my friend, author Gustavo Perez-Firmat, but that's not important right now.)

It's a proud and bittersweet moment for me to be the face of Cuban exiles and our broken dreams.

But I promise you this, I'm not going to stop toasting, or stop praying for this until Cuba is free.

It may be many, many more years (I hope not) but I'll continue to say it until I take my last breath, "El año que viene estamos en Cuba."

Si Dios quiere.

Finding Joy

There has been so much preparation leading up to this week. Of course, I'm sure it's been like that in every home that celebrates Christmas. And also, did it seem like December just vanished in a puff of smoke, or is that just me?

We're not the people who put up Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving. We take our time and savor December. We slowly add decorations and touches as the month progresses. It makes it all feel so much more magical to me. I never want Christmas to be a thing that needs to just "get done." *shudder*

I was very deliberate this year about slowing down and taking care of myself and my family. I was determined to find joy in everything we did this year. Can I just tell you - slowing down is hard! Especially when the rest of the world is in full go! mode.

In fact, for about the first two weeks of December, all I had was this Merry Christmas pillow, which makes me totally happy, but that's not important right now.

This month I did manage to design, print and send out invitations to Nochebuena early in the month.

I've got 32 people coming on the 24th and there won't be any room for a Christmas tree, so I got a few smaller trees and put them in corners of our living room. So really, it's more like setting the stage than Christmas decorating.

I was happy we took our family photos back in September for our Christmas card. I don't know that we would have managed to get all of us in one area code otherwise. (See the photo in my blog header at the top of this page.)

Christmas around here happened slowly, deliberately. We took the time to watch Christmas movies and celebrated as we made Crema de Vie for our friends.

We got up early before the rest of the world and had coffee and shared dreams.

We went to parties and shared our food.

And we shopped a little. Mostly online. We made lists and shared ideas. And slowly added design elements to our "set."

I even got inspired (Thank you, Pinterest!) and made word garlands using my new Silhouette Portrait. (Still not done. I have a bunch more to hang today and tomorrow.)

What I have found is this: That I find no joy in perfection and in hurry. Perfection and hurry are way too demanding for me. But, without the tyranny of having to have everything up in one day, (who tapped, anyway?) I find that I'm enjoying the holidays more. There seems to be much more time for the fun and the celebration and all this makes me a nicer person.

We took time to really celebrate Advent and the coming of our Savior on Christmas day. And that just added to my personal joy. Seriously. There's something to be said for anticipation and preparation. It's as God intended.

After all the slow decorating and the taking time to enjoy the season, it turns out that my house is looking pretty darn festive for Nochebuena and Christmas. Now it's time to start preparing food and wrapping gifts. And I'm not stressed about this at all, because I took the time to take care of myself this season.

I found joy right on my doorstep. Who knew?

Feliz Navidad, my friends!

Cuban Crema de Vie Recipe - A Toast!

In the first few years of my family’s exile, we still had high hopes that that whole pesky revolution nonsense would quickly blow over. Every year around the holidays we would make our Cuban egg nog, which we call Crème de Vie (or Crema de Vie - “the cream of life”).

Every year we would raise our glasses at our Nochebuena celebration and toast:

“El año que viene estamos en Cuba.” 

My family continued hoping and toasting year after year after year.

And time marched forward.

We grew up.

We assimilated.

We married.

We had children.

My parents grew old.

My dad passed away.

Every year during the holidays we make the Crème de Vie.

So much life has happened, and so many years and hopes have come and gone and still we toast:

“Next year we’ll be in Cuba.”

The toast has taken on a life of its own even though it has lost much of its original meaning. But we continue to make the Crème de Vie, and we continue to toast. It’s one of my very favorite Cuban Christmas traditions.

I just made the first batch of Crème de Vie for this holiday season. My daughters helped make and bottle it and, of course, we had to try it. I was about to recite the usual toast, when a new and unexpected hope clutched at my heart and brought tears to my eyes.

I raise my glass to you all with this toast:

“Cambio.”

Crema de vie

Crème de Vie (Cuban Egg Nog) Recipe

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 6 egg yolks
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• ½ cup white rum

1) Mix the sugar and water together over very low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves – about 3 minutes. It has to be just low enough so that the sugar doesn’t carmelize, but makes a thick sugary water.

2) Put the egg yolks in a blender and mix with the condensed milk.

2 crema de vie leche condensada

3) Slowly add the evaporated milk and mix completely.

4) Flavor with the vanilla.

5) Pour the mixture into the sugar-water and mix together.

6) Finally stir in the rum (as a preservative. =D)

3 crema de vie bottles

Makes about 5 cups, or two and a half bottles. 

Salud!

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Make it and Take it

I'm a giver. I give. (You could possibly call me a bit co-dependent, but that's not important right now.)

Anyway, back to giving. I'm giving away my personal label designs for Creme de Vie (recipe here) and for Homemade Dulce de Leche (recipe here.)

Here's the Crema de Vie ~ Feliz Navidad! Label.

And this one is in case you'd just rather have a tag.

Also, I made and packaged some Dulce de Leche and those tags are available too.

If you just pop on over to the Tiki Tiki these downloads are all yours completely free of charge.

After all, it's Christmas! And I'm a giver. ;-) Ho! Ho! Ho!

Salud!

I don't know anyone who truly likes egg nog.
And then they try our Cuban Egg Nog and all perception changes.
We call it Creme de Vie. ("creme" rhymes with Auntie M. and "vie" rhymes with More For Me! =D)

Rather than making cookies for gifts, we make and "package" the Creme de Vie. (we also keep a whole lot for ourselves, too.)
Typically we make it for the non-Cuban side of the family.  They seem to like it. Or at least they are very polite about it.
They have not yet asked us to stop, anyway. =D

Here is our super secret family recipe. Guard it with your life!

Creme de Vie (Cuban Egg Nog)
1 can condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk
6 egg yolks
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup rum (make it Bacardi for the Cubanness of it)

Mix the sugar and water until the sugar is dissolved over very low heat, stirring constantly - about 3 minutes . It has to be low so the sugar doesn't carmelize, but makes a thick sugary water. Put the egg yolks in a blender and mix with the condensed milk.  Slowly add the evaporated milk and mix completely.  Flavor with the vanilla.  Add the sugar water and finally the rum as a preservative. ;-)

Now that I've told you, I'm going to have to kill you.