Tamales...

My family has a really tasty tradition. Each year for Thanksgiving dinner my grandparents bless us with homemade tamales. These rolled delights are so good we often stuff ourselves so full we feel and look like giant tamales! We always fight over who gets to eat the few leftovers the next day, and feel sad when they're gone. They're one of those foods we dare not eat at Mexican restaurants, because we know in our hearts no one could possibly make a tamale better than Dee Dah's tamales.

Last year Dee Dah & Paw Paw decided it was about time they pass on the tamale making to some of the younger generations so that we can make them for our own families as they grow. So, last Christmas when everyone was at my parents house we had Tamale Day. Everyone was required to participate, and we all learned the secret and specific art of making Dee Dah's tamales! Seeing how much work it was made us all appreciate the hundreds they've made for us in the past. Talk about a labor of love!

We were each able to take home 2 dozen of the tamales we made that day, and I've been secretly hoarding my 24 in the freezer all year! I made 6 sometime in the spring, but have been saving the rest for days when I just need something special! A few weeks ago I decided it was time!

What started as an ordinary Sunday afternoon, ended up a trip down memory lane. I went into my nap with a full tummy, and a happy heart! Now if only I had more tamales...