Leaving the World

When you drive a while to get there, you stay. Three and a half days at the happiest place on earth. It is especially exciting when you are seven or four. When the swings are not crowded you stay on eight times until your aunt excuses herself, taken by headache or stomachache . . . it is so hard to distinguish. You tear off a ride and beg for more. You don't mind screaming at top speed and often lift your hands against the wall of air. You enjoy measuring yourself and asking if you make it. You are fascinated with Lincoln because he is a robot. You eat cotton candy and popcorn twice. You fill a tube with sour sugar. At four your most frequent question at Disneyland is, "Are we outside?" While Soaring over California you turn to inquire, "What's behind us?" By ten, you have graduated to "single rider" status on California Screamin' as you walk right on, no line. You are impressed they could think of the coolness of Autopia in 1955. You walk by drained rapids and bemoan the closure. You hold your baby brother on Small World. You are an older child.

American Girls

We knew it was a holiday and we went anyway. To the Grove. To the American Girl store. We reasoned it was better than Disneyland on a holiday. The Grove was wall to wall. The store was wall to wall. As I kept track of Bo and Taylor and Gramma on the down escalator, a presence swept by. I halted our descent, waiting for the next one to board the moving stairs. She was older, in a jeweled caftan. I turned down the stairs and saw Helena turned up, making sure her mother (?) had indeed embarked on our slope. Our eyes met. I kept her secret. Her hair was high, her face natural. I liked her immediately. But, I've always liked her. Almost without exception I embrace all British actors and she is one of my favorites. She stars in one of my favorite movies: Howards End. No, there is no apostrophe. As I reported my sighting to mother, I identified Helena as the bad woman in Harry Potter. Bellatrix. I guess that is the fate of all actors. One role, or in this case, their latest role. In her shopping bag, she had an American Girl.

Early in the Morning

I guess I'm not the only one up. I just heard a softly squeaky door and Brian's music. By my computer is 4:18 am in California. Looking out my window earlier, it is snowy white in St. George. Snow is quiet. I knew I wouldn't sleep again and the last of our company leaves at 7:30 this morning. It's been a holiday season of reunion. Donn (father's first son) and Nancy always come after Christmas. Because of father's mild stroke, Jerry (father's brother) came from Camarillo with two of his kids, Jim and Cheryl. Jerry played the role of honored elder as father is in the care center. Maysen asked if they hit him with a ping pong paddle in school. Ah, the dreaded paddle of yore. Donn, Jim, and Cheryl were among the lucky cousins, growing up together. Brian, me, and Robin came along almost a generation later; we were the only ones our age except for a few of the first-generation cousins' children. My dad's side of the family has always been old. My mother is an only child. Also making visits this Christmas are Tom (father's second son) and his family. Brian's music is off. He's either returned to slumber or taken to the shower. Last night we also welcomed Irene (one of the first-generation cousins' ex-wife) and one of our favorite people. She came for dinner with Bud (her new husband who can wear gold-yellow nicely). He thinks she is funny. Robin and I at the stove:

Me: I like Bud (all words with inflection).
Robin: I love Bud (as she fixed her gaze through the hanging pots and pans).

They were nearby visiting a daughter of Bud's. We made Grandma Lusby's Cinnamon Raisin Cookies, a recipe that is at least 160 years old. Katherine (Tom's daughter) helped us roll out and cut out and bake. It took Irene exactly 10 seconds to say, "Are those Grandma Lusby's cookies?" We shall see what the day brings. Will I venture out to cycling? What percentage of Christmas decor will we box? Will the trees come down? Will I make it to the cabin with many of them this summer? Normally when people list a series of what-if questions, they mean to say yes to them all.

Cinnamon Raisin Cookies
Gertrude Lusby via Irene Fisher

2 C sugar

1 C shortening

2 beaten eggs

2 T buttermilk or sour milk

1 1/2 t cinnamon

1 t nutmeg

1 t each of soda and salt

about 2 1/2 C sifted flour

1 C raisins put through a meat grinder ( i use a mini cuisinart)

1 C nuts, chopped fine

Roll out and cut with cookie cutter (make them bigger than your hand). Sprinkle sugar over before putting in the oven at 375 degrees F for six to eight minutes.

Best Snaps of 2010

Gingerbread Cookies for All

We have taken father's tradition of gingerbread cookies every year at Christmas. He would make them himself in earlier years, all by himself. Now, we delay until Donny arrives and make them all together. Donn delivers a tinful to Tom when they return. All father's children were raised on gingerbread cookies. Robin hosted our event this year and we arrived to chilled dough. We wore aprons. Robin made the frosting this year, instead of father's traditional storebought vanilla. That night we took him a large gingerbread female at the care center. I intentionally skimped giving him his dessert which looked like a flat banana cake with cool whip frosting. I find I cannot easily feed him things I would not eat myself. He devoured the gingerbread after his dinner.

Gingerbread Cookies
Bob Lusby

3/4 C shortening
1 1/2 C sugar
2 eggs
3/4 C molasses
1 t cinnamon
1 t ginger
1 t baking soda, dissolved in 4 t hot water
4 C flour

Cream shortening and sugar. Add in beaten eggs and molasses and soda. Add flour and spices. Chill. Roll out and cut into desired shapes. Bake 10 to 15 minutes at 350 degrees F. Frost with vanilla frosting.

Our Holy Family

Mary, Joseph, and the babe

Wise Man (post dessert) pictured with Joseph.

Photos by the angel who brought glad tidings of great joy

with a fearful grandmother shepherd at her elbow who wore

a cooking apron with her headress.

Surprise: Small Stocking Stuff

We are very excited. Mother's stocking preparations are complete. Since everyone loves a list and everyone loves gifts, here is what Santa decided on. There is something very covert about piling in gifts to treelight, clad in nightwear. One should do this more than once a year.

1. silicone baking liner (for the toaster)
2. Ghirardelli Luxe Milk Almond
3. Listerine Whitening Multi-Action Pre-Brush Rinse
4. Bahlsen Hit biscuits
5. Hershey's Special Dark Pieces
6. glass bead bracelet
7. Pilot Precise V5 Rolling Ball Extra Fine Black
8. Savina Nail Color in Charcoal Sparkle
9. Lu Petit Ecolier Extra-Dark Chocolate
10. Two Crabtree and Evelyn Citron samples of body soufflé and body scrub
11. Bare Escentuals Venus lipstick

Christmas Eve

This is the second year for our new shared Christmastide—at mother's on Christmas Eve and at Robin's on Christmas Day. I will let you in on the little menu for the eve. We have made it simple, roasty, and delicious (we hope).

Pork Roast

Potato-Gorgonzola Gratin

Roasted French Green Beans and Brussels Sprouts

Waldorf Salad

and for dessert

Baskin-Robbins Yule Log (Mother and I did not say no when we were in the shop yesterday; this is as French as we get this year.)

Cherries Glacées (super delicious; frosty cherries are festivity.)

Cherries Glacées
Serves 10

2 lbs sweet cherries
1 12-oz package semisweet chocolate chips
1 C half-and-half or light cream
1 1/2 t vanilla

Wash cherries but do not remove stems or pits; pat dry with paper towels. Place in a single layer in jelly roll pan; place in freezer until 15 minutes before serving. About 15 minutes before serving, remove cherries from freezer; let stand at room temperature to soften slightly. Do not allow cherries to thaw completely. Meanwhile, in a heavy 2-quart saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate pieces into half-and-half, stirring frequently, until smooth. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla.

Arrange cherries in large bowl or platter. Pour chocolate sauce into small bowl. Let each person dip partially frozen cherries into chocolate sauce.

Seasonally Speaking

If you are like me, you have bookmarked and torn-out recipes you must make. Some of these recipes insist on perfectly seasonal ingredients—ripe tomatoes and pears, the roots of winter, fresh berries. And, if you're like me you don't use enough Spanish onions. As I often comb through a stash of recipes (which I've tried without success to keep to three notebooks), I find I've missed the season. Again. From The Olives Table, I have for a minimum of 8 years running missed the window of opportunity (late summer and early fall) for Carl's Pagoda-Inspired Tomato Soup. But, this fact is good luck for the coffee cake, pork loin with pear and cranberry pan sauces, chocolate crunchies, and any iteration of fudge or cinnamon. Heather brought me this bottle from DC. I often walk by, unscrew the lid, and inhale.

Carl's Pagoda-Inspired Tomato Soup
Makes about 8 cups

1 T olive oil
2 Spanish onions, roughly chopped
8 to 10 medium beefsteak tomatoes, roughly chopped
3 T chopped peeled fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/3 C soy sauce
1 T fish sauce
2 T toasted sesame oil
1/2 t to 1 t chopped Scotch bonnet, jalapeño, or Thai chile pepper
1/4 C white sugar
1/4 C chopped scallion greens, for garnish
1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

Place a large skillet over medium-high flame and when it is hot, add the oil. Add the onions, tomatoes, ginger, and garlic, stirring well after each addition, and cook until the onions and garlic are lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, chile, and sugar, stirring well after each addition, and cook until slightly reduced, about 15 minutes. Transfer the soup to a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until smooth. Strain and discard the seeds and pulp. Reheat if necessary. Garnish each serving with scallions and cilantro.

Chocolate Crunchies 
Dorie Greenspan
Makes 24

1/2 C toasted walnuts or pecans
1/2 C soft raisins
1 C corn flakes
1 C semisweet chocolate chips or 6 ounces finely chopped semi- or bittersweet chocolate
Fleur de sel, optional

Finely chop the nuts and toss them into a bowl along with the raisins and corn flakes. Gently melt the chocolate chips or chopped chocolate in the top of a double boiler or in a microwave oven on low power. Pour the chocolate into the bowl and stir until all of the ingredients are evenly coated. Drop mounds of the candy mixture into paper petit-four cups or onto a sheet of wax paper. (She uses a 2-teaspoon cookie scoop to do this, but you can divide the candy by heaping teaspoonfuls.) Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Hey, Good Lookin' . . .

I used to make a lot more goodies than I do now. I bake when I'm at home with family. But by myself, I normally wait for an occasion. Last weekend presented my occasion as I entertained a happy few on Friday evening. I overspeak; they brought the goods. I supplied Ikea gingersnaps in the red tin. The tin is so nice; the cookies are yum. Andréa made her mother's cocoa recipe. It is delicious. So, on Sunday, I made molasses cookies since all the ingredients were in the house and it was not a huge batch. I couldn't have been more pleased (don't overbake). I gave away two gift bags and ate the third gift bag when a friend cancelled later on. Next time I plan to have the cookies and the cocoa together. 

Old-Fashioned Cocoa

Andrea Schindler

Stir together 1 C powdered milk, 1/4 C cocoa powder, 1/2 C (rounded) sugar, and a dash of salt. Add 4 1/2 C hot water, 1 can evaporated milk, and 1 t vanilla. Stir well with a wire whisk. Heat over medium heat (do not boil). Add cinnamon, malt, whipped cream, or marshmallows to your fancy.

Mary Jones from Cleveland's Molasses Cookies

Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin

2 C flour

2 t baking soda

1 t ground cinnamon

1/2 t ground cloves

1/2 t ground ginger

1/2 t kosher salt

1/4 C molasses

1 C sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

3/4 C vegetable shortening, melted to equal 1/2 C, cooled

1 extra-large egg

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. Stir in the salt. In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the molasses, sugar, melted shortening, and egg at medium speed for 3 minutes. Turn the mixer off and add half of the dry ingredients to the bowl. Turn the mixer to medium-low and mix to incorporate, scraping down the sides of the bowl, as needed. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix to combine. Chill the dough for about 15 minutes, to make it easier to work with. On a lightly floured surface, roll half the dough out to 1/8-inch thickness. Use a 3-inch round cutter to cut out the cookies. Place them on a parchment-lined or lightly buttered baking sheet, spaced about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle a little sugar over the tops of the cookies, and bake about 12 minutes, until they puff up slightly and are starting to crack in the middle. The cookies will be crisp on the outside and chewy in the center.

Cataloguing: Part 2

The season of mail continues and not a card in sight. The element of surprise in a mailbox, however, continues with mice in a box finger puppets. One of my December goals is to visit Chinaberry for real in Spring Valley. I cannot wait. I have long loved their catalog for their choice of wares. I find a lot of intriguing book titles. Like this. Recently, mother gave me her Eat, Drink, and Be Chinaberry cookbook for my birthday. They don't sell it anymore and I have consulted hers at every turn when I'm home. They have no plans to reprint. It is by my bed.

Two more personalized gifts have captured my fancy. A photo puzzle with tin. It is $17.99 in the sale catalog, though listed here at $23.99. And, a photo deck of cards (listed in the sale catalog at $14.99 instead of $19.99). If you order by December 14 and enter NEWHOLIDAY25, you can have the lower price. Love a custom gift. Love photography. And, it's really quite unique although I'm perhaps the biggest proponent of the candle and agree one can't go wrong with it.

A Large, Fine Meal

roasted tom with pomegranate glaze

the contessa’s gravy

buttermilk mashed potatoes

herb and onion stuffing

cranberry sauce

corn pudding

pineapple dressing

virginia rolls with butter and jam

green peas

relish tray

and the pies

dutch apple

pecan

coconut cream with meringue

Brian once watched a movie where a character ordered "a large, fine meal" and he was brought to a feast at a banquet  table. The tom was prepared sans glaze. Mother could not find a way to baste the turkey in the plastic bag. She is a dévotée of the oven turkey bag. The turkey appeared pale and wan. It tasted fine. I have never been one for "quick tips" in the kitchen. The potatoes were nice. My goal was to prepare them in a plain delicious potato-y way since they were served with gravy. I didn't want much competition on the plate. I thought the cranberry sauce was a bowl of winter gems. Our raspberry jam was super yum and nicely tart. Someone had made it and given it to mother. Brian liked the turkey, corn pudding, potatoes, and stuffing; he is our classic. Father ate a large plate and helped himself liberally to black olives from the relish tray during the feast. Jeff loved the pineapple dressing his mother used to make and the stuffing. At Robin's feast, they most enjoyed their homegrown carrots roasted with olive oil. 

Cranberry Thanksgiving

But forget all that today. It was Thanksgiving, her favorite day of the year. The cranberries had been picked, boxed and sent to the market. The dried corn had been soaked and the corn pudding made. The turkey was roasting in the old iron oven. Turnips, tiny green peas and a pumpkin pie were ready. Then cranberry bread was cooling on the wooden board. The real work was done and the feast was almost ready.

Every year Grandmother invited a guest for dinner and allowed Maggie to do the same. 

"Ask someone poor or lonely," she always said.

It never mattered to Maggie or her grandmother that the red carpet was worn and mended or that the silver spoons didn't match. Friendship and sharing were important. Everyone knew that. 

Grandmother's Famous Cranberry Bread
(Get Mother to help)

2 C sifted all-purpose flour
1 C sugar
1 1/2 t baking powder
1 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 C butter
1 egg, beaten
1 t grated orange peel
3/4 C orange juice
1 1/2 C light raisins
1 1/2 C fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a large bowl. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Add egg, orange peel, and orange juice all at once; stir just until mixture is evenly moist. Fold in raisins and cranberries.
Spoon into a greased 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan; cool on a wire rack.

Recipe tested by the Food Department of Parents' Magazine.

Cataloguing: Part 1

1My family receives a lot of mail, much of it catalogs. My mother orders from them. I think it is great fun looking at catalogs. I rarely order from them. So, when I visit the family, I browse the catalogs. I have been especially interested this month as it tis close to December and we are getting in the mood.

Today I came across a gift I can approve of, the personalized topographic jigsaw puzzle. There is also the satellite jigsaw which could be very beautiful, depending on your address. I like this gift for several reasons. The price is not outrageous. The gift is well, personalized. A potential heirloom. Of visual interest. It's a game. It's frameable. And, it could help you out of a scrape when you forget your address.

And while we're talking about games. There is the marshmallow shooter. Appeals to the toy and game aspect of Christmas gifts. The whimsy of Christmas past. For all ages and ideal for grown men. Again, the price is not outrageous. I am a big fan of the price not being outrageous.

Another useful treasure is the aluminum ice tray. Off-the-chart visual interest. Living as one's grandparents. The thwack of breaking ice. Freezing frozen metal. And, a set of two. This is a very tempting product friends.

For the high-ticket contingency, I found this nicely festive. Ideal frame for lovely tokens, one's own accroutrements. It would be such fun to arrange.

I guess this choice stems from loving fire and recently watching A Little Princess with the attic room candleabra. I love it. I envision a stark, dark dining room with a very grande candleabra.

Stockings, Not Nylons

The children have taken on the charge of mother's stocking these past years. It is very fun. I am a bit exacting toward the others. I insist on each finding a few items that are small, light, and her favorites. They hand them off to me before Christmas Eve and I keep them in a drawer in my closet. Despite our annual successes, I have run into a few snags with their offerings. Robin always buys mother a dish cleaner wand or other tall kitchen item that either takes up most of the stocking or sticks out of it unbecomingly. I like whatever sticks out the top to be either cute or festive. Brian often buys heavy-laden sacks of candy. They take up much of the space and weigh down the stocking. In fact, sometimes, a few items are forced to linger outside the stocking what with these choices I previously mentioned.

One year I hit the jackpot. An Eloise pencil box. I think it was her favorite gift she has received from moi. I will spend the rest of my years trying to top this. I read a few neato lists of stocking "stuffers" here. I dreamed up my own list for the joy and entertainment of my kith and kin.

1. doublesided tape
2. jerky and batteries, for the man in your life
3. pens and Sharpies
4. good paper scissors
5. handmade candy cane
6. box of spice
7. jewels, for the woman in your life
8. lip gloss, nail polish, emery board, foot file
9. See's chocolate chips
10. iTunes gift cards
11. Lindt truffles
12. car washes
13. new box of crayons
14. socks
15. Johnson's Creamy Baby Oil with Cocoa and Shea Butter (heavy but worth it!)
16. bubble gum or a favorite candy bar
17. small packages of a favorite cookie (for example, Santa will give me Nutter Butters if I am good. He will give Brian Lorna Doones.)
18. sunglasses
19. super cool matchbooks
20. money
21. hair bands
22. deck of cards
23. and the stocking within a stocking: elegant hosiery

I Love You Sew Sew Sew Sew Much

My niece Taylor and I have a lot in common. We can both look cross-eyed and we can both whistle. These are no small talents in this family. Often the three eldest take turns for their sleepovers at Gramma's house. Since Taylor let fly last month she wanted to learn to sew, I was glad she was up next. Thus, our Saturday night. We started by choosing and cutting out frabric for her sewing project. Our time was short before taking in a high school production matinée of The Phantom of the Opera, punctuated by a real fire drill. I only shushed her and Gramma once in medias play. We came home to preheat the oven and whip the whites for our cheese soufflé (is there anything easier and more noble? nay). We plated a simple and delicious salad and used some of my favorites dishes and chargers. I am not a charger girl but felt it would add to the elegance of our table. We also made a chocolate chip cookie dough with toasted walnuts and See's chocolate chips. We had never tried the See's chips and let us recommend them without apology. Gramma especially recommends them. We ate the cookies after our dinner by candle and used her favorite teapot with her favorite French Vanilla hot drink. Whipped cream. She took up her sewing as the cookies baked. After sweets, we graduated to the sofa for more sewing and a showing of A Little Princess. A movie I love and she watched with interest. Here is the close-up of her salad she requested I digitally record. 

At bedtime, I read A Bargain for Frances and Gramma chose to read Humbug Witch. Though we spent much of the weekend in decorum, she enjoyed a riotous time in the bath and thought this picture of her would be fitting.

Cheese Soufflé

The Best of Sunset: Over 500 All-Time Favorite Recipes from the Magazine of Western Living

Makes 4 to 6 servings


3 T butter
3 T flour
1 C milk
Dash ground red pepper
1/4 t dry mustard
1 C shredded Cheddar or Swiss cheese
Salt
4 or 5 eggs, separated


Melt butter in a medium-size pan over medium heat. Stir in flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute (do not brown). Remove from heat and gradually stir in milk; then add red pepper and mustard. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce boils and thickens. Add cheese; stir until melted. Season to taste with salt. Remove from heat and beat in egg yolks, one at a time. In a small bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer or a wire whisk until they hold distinct  but moist peaks. Stir in about a fourth of the whites into the cheese mixture, then carefully fold in remaining whites until blended. Pour into a well-buttered 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish or four to six 1-cup ramekins. Draw a circle on surface of soufflé batter about 1 inch from rim, using a spoon or the tip of a knife. Bake in a 375 degree F oven until soufflé feels firm when lightly tapped and crack looks fairly dry (about 35 minutes for a 1 1/2-quart soufflé dish; about 20 minutes for ramekins). Serve at once.

The Unexpected

Here is mother pictured at her Saturday night party at the rehab facility. You can tell she loved it. Then there were three others who look like her descendants loitering around the halls. They look like a cross between Patti and the Chipmunks. Of any of the family who could be in a rehab facility, we would not have guessed it would be mother.

 Father turned 88 the same day. We celebrated at Robin's on Sunday night.

Jeff and I had a last supper at the Pizza Factory before he moved to Texas. He has now reached his destination. The only thing I have found is a duracell battery in the grass and father's home health nurse found a tie tack that I happen to know is Stephen's. Hopefully that is all they left behind. He never planned to move before James left for his mission.

I finished the binding on my sampler quilt what with all the sitting time I've had with mother. It is a miracle the whole is finished.

 

October Weather

In my experience the reunion of long-ago friends is likely to be average. But, not this weekend. Despite this norm, I spent a lovely visit with my true and steady girlhood friend, Karen (also). She continues strong, comic, and heartfelt. Scott ran the marathon and she hoped to get together. I was eager to rejoin. I spent a happy hour with her on Saturday evening during a day of running to and fro across a couple states. I loved engaging. Her husband came home and we kept it up. He is a man who will engage. They are normal in the best way. The next morning they came to the homestead to rejoin with my parents and enjoy a conference brunch featuring this coffee cake, fruit, bacon and eggs, and sausage. Jeff and James arrived at 10 on the dot following Karen and Scott. Sadie Ann enjoyed such a morning of sofa dwelling. We took some snaps, spouted commentary, and ate m&ms from the knock-off Beatrix Potter harvest dish. I had a bag of magazines ready to send with the travellers and forgot. The magazines are now on mother's hospital tray as we receive rain in St. George. The next morning, mother fell on the slick driveway and fractured her pelvis and her elbow. We are warm inside. Mother sleeps.

The Menu

I love those occasions that call for a menu. Like a dinner party, a weekend of guests, a restaurant. For a dinner party, I create a printed menu to place by the table setting of each guest. My menus are less ornate, more simple as I progress through life. When I learned Jeff and James would come for a long weekend, the first thing I did was jot down menu ideas. To me, the menu is anticipation at its best. The meals leaned toward the crock-pot and Mexican. Few complained. Friday night was slow-stewed chicken for tacos. Sunday morning was coconut french toast and for after church a pot of slow-cooked bbq beef for buns accompanied by vinegar potatoes and green salad with bleu cheese and mushrooms. As the dryer and the dishwasher hum, I sit here full of brunch from

The real image was not taken: four empty plates. Something I've never seen at this establishment. We fell upon the manhole sized chocolate chip pancake, a bacon, avocado, and pepper jack omelette, and dark horse winning breakfast burrito. The small pot of salsa was empty. Did I mention the plates were empty? We will not eat again, but I pen some more menus.

Saturday Night Baths

Sometime this year I bought a product from The Body Shop. This is not news. In fact, last time I was in the shop, a sales associate labelled me one of their best customers. Folly? Perhaps. Yet, I continue to flash my green card and buy with discounts. The product I bring to you today is a cleansing oil. The scent of my oil is heavy and foreign. It is probably not a terrific match for me. I could care less. The idea of a cleansing oil is right up my alley. Last week, I was presented a travel size almond cleansing oil from L'Occitane. It has a lighter, slightly sweet fragrance. Often I don't apply body lotion after a shower. I tell you, friends, it is rich.