El Día de las Velitas (The Day of the Candles)

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December 7th is when people light candles in front of their houses or on their balconies, in honor of the Virgin Mary and for a lot of Colombian families is the beginning of the Christmas season.

Colombia is my homeland! The country I was born and grew up, the United States is now my home, but I still have strong roots in Colombia. Traditions and food culture are cultivated into every Colombian, and living in a different country for 25 years, will never weaken them.

Like many people who left Colombia and have been in another country for a long time, I've lost touch with some of these wonderful Christmas traditions.

Colombia is mostly a Catholic country, so most of the December celebrations are based around this religion. I shared a post with Colombian Christmas and New Year's Traditions before, but today I want to go deeper into "El Día de las Velitas or Noche de Velitas". This was one of my favorite traditions while living in Colombia. On December 7th is when people light candles in front of their houses or on their balconies, in honor of the Virgin Mary and for most of Colombian families is the beginning of the Christmas season.

Most families and friends get together and cook traditional Colombian Christmas recipes, listen to music and light candles.

Here are some recipes to help you celebrate "El Día de las Velitas" like you are in Colombia.

Colombian Buñuelos Recipe

Buñuelos are a traditional Colombian Christmas treat, but they are also popular year round for breakfast with hot chocolate or coffee. On December 7th in Colombia, friends get together to celebrate “el dia e las velitas”, a Christmas tradition in honor of the Virgin Mary. They light candles in front of their houses or on.

Check out this recipe

Buñuelos Colombianos (Colombian Buñuelos)|mycolombianrecipes.com

Coconut Natilla Recipe

Natilla is a sweet custard that is traditionally served during Colombian Christmas gatherings. There are many variations of this dish throughout the country but this Natilla is my grandmother’s recipe and is very special to me. I called my mom and one of my aunts for the recipe, but they didn’t have it because they

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Colombian Hojuelas or Hojaldras Recipe

I want to share another traditional Colombian Christmas treat with you. These Hojuelas or Hojaldras are a delicious fried pastry that we eat with Natilla and Buñuelos at Christmas gatherings. Just writing this post made me homesick and I began missing the holidays in Colombia with my family. Growing up in a big Colombian family

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Natilla Tradicional Colombiana Recipe (Colombian Christmas Sweet Custard)

Natilla is a sweet custard that is traditionally served during Colombian Christmas gatherings. There are many variations of Natilla in Colombia. This traditional Colombian Natilla recipe is made with panela, a sweet brown product made from sugar cane, also known as piloncillo in Mexico. Panela is the key ingredient to make a traditional Colombian Natilla.

Check out this recipe

Colombian Sabajón Recipe

Sabajón is the Colombian version of eggnog, spiked with Aguardiente (firewater), a strong alcoholic drink made from anise and sugar cane or rum.

Check out this recipe

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Comments

Carlos Barrios

December 31, 2011 at 9:35 am

Happy New Year to you too. Just want to thank you so much for all of the great recipes we get and the GREAT ONE was your moms tamales!!! Made them for the 24, they came out EXCELLENT!!!

Erica

December 30, 2011 at 6:16 pm

Thank you!

Chris

December 23, 2011 at 6:12 pm

Merry Christmas to you and your family, Erica!

Joanne

December 23, 2011 at 8:03 am

Happy holidays, Erica! I hope you have a lovely celebration!

Karen

December 22, 2011 at 12:35 pm

Merry Christmas!

norma

December 22, 2011 at 10:18 am

A ti tambien y tu linda familia.

Ivy

December 21, 2011 at 11:08 pm

Feliz Navidad dear Erica. All the best to you and your family.

Juliana

December 21, 2011 at 6:46 pm

Erica, Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year to you and your loved ones 🙂

Joan Nova

December 21, 2011 at 4:00 pm

All the best to you and your family for the holidays and new year.

Claudia

December 21, 2011 at 1:53 pm

Wishing you a joyous holiday week, Erica. May your days be merry and bright!

Belinda @zomppa

December 21, 2011 at 1:09 pm

Happy holidays!

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