THE HIT LIST

THIS CHRISTMAS, TAKE A HIKE

Tired of long lines? Having trouble nding the perfect gifts? Stressing out about organizing your family’s annual Christmas party?

Certainly, the hustle and bustle of the holidays can leave us saying, ‘Bah humbug!’ Perhaps a date with nature can alleviate those Christmas blues. Fortunately, Lake and Sumter counties have plenty of hiking trails where you can renew your Christmas spirit.

PEAR (PALATLAKAHA ENVIRONMENTAL AND AGRICULTURAL RESERVE) PARK

Enjoy a guided hiking tour with Lake County park rangers, or simply discover this amazing 318-acre park by yourself. PEAR Park is home to 160 species of birds and 40 species of butter ies.

4800 University Avenue Leesburg, FL. 34748 352.253.4950

LAKE OKAHUMPKA PARK

Enjoy a one-mile paved walking trail with multiple tness stations, plaques that identify trees, and a wide variety of plants.

6085 E. S.R. 44 Wildwood, FL. 34785 352.689.4400

FLAT ISLAND PRESERVE

Enjoy old ancient oak trees and unique birding opportunities as you hike at this 2,300-acre conservation area in the Okahumpka Marsh. Flat Island Preserve features two wooded islands, as well as a 440-foot boardwalk leading to a canoe launch.

2301 Owens Road Leesburg, FL. 34748 352.343.3777

LAKE LOUISA STATE PARK More than 20 miles of hiking trails through thick Florida vegetation provide plenty of opportunities for wildlife viewing and bird watching.

7035 U.S. Hwy. 27 Clermont, FL. 34714 352.394.3969

PUT CAITLYN JENNER OR SNOOP DOGG UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE

Looking for the perfect gift for that someone who is hard to shop for? Cameo.com has the answer: a personalized video message from a celebrity.

For $2,500, Caitlyn Jenner will be happy to say Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, or just about anything you request (within reason, of course). Too pricey? How about a message from Snoop Dogg for $900? On a tight budget? Steve Spurrier will talk for $149. Still too much? Consider lifeguard/ boxer BrawlnBarnes. She’ll say hello for a mere $7.

Cameo.com o ers a choice of more than 30,000 athletes, musicians, actors, reality TV stars, and creators from YouTube, TikTok, and more, so you’re sure to nd something special for anyone. Prices range from $1 to $2,500 for each personalized one-minute video to anyone you want to surprise.

Visit cameo.com to nd your favorite celebs and purchase.

DID YOU KNOW?

Forty-six years ago this month, the Mote-Morris House was added to the National Register of Historic Places. E.H. Mote, who served eight terms as Leesburg mayor, built the home for $9,000. In 1918, the house came into the possession of the Morris family, which resided there for the next 70 years. The home known for its Victorian Revival architecture contains some interesting features, including an L-shaped stairway leading to three bedrooms on the second oor, a clawfoot, cast-iron tub, and a four-story turret, or small tower. The Mote-Morris House is located at 1195 W. Magnolia St., Leesburg.

BUILDING PLAYHOUSES FOR CHILDREN

Kudos to local teams and businesses who signed up to build and customize wood playhouses as a special holiday gift to children during the second annual Jingle Build-O , hosted by Habitat of Humanity of Lake-Sumter.

Teams will do onsite building on Dec. 5 at The Square, 122 E. Main St., Tavares, or o site at a location, date, and place of a team’s choice. All building supplies, instructions, coaching, tools, paint, and paint supplies will be provided by Habitat.

Families selected to receive a playhouse were chosen by schools and community members throughout Lake and Sumter counties. The playhouses will be designed to t each child’s interests or special accessibility needs, such as a wheelchair access.

The builders’ playhouses will be on display in downtown Tavares as part of the city’s Christmas Celebration. The public can also view them online for one week as part of Habitat’s Virtual Christmas Village, Dec. 5-8.

Online voting at habitatls.org/jingle-build-o will determine the winner of the Community Choice award for the public’s favorite playhouse, and also the top winner of the Jingle Build Playhouse Pro’s award. Winners will be announced Dec. 9.

The 2019 Jingle Build-O winners at the inaugural event were: First National Bank of Mount Dora (top prize); Coldwell Banker Camelot Realty (most creative playhouse); Florida School Nutrition Association Lake County Chapter (Team Spirit award); and Lowe’s (First to Finish award). BP Smith Construction, Lake County Eagles Aerie No. 4273, Data Graphics, and VoluntEARS also participated in the rst build-o .

CELEBRATING THE MAN BEHIND M-I-C-K-E-Y

Disney venues may be some of the happiest places on earth year-round, especially during December.

That’s because Walter Elias Disney – aka Walt Disney – the famous entrepreneur, animator, voice actor, creator of Mickey Mouse (in 1928), lm producer, and theme park namesake – was born on Dec. 5, 1901. This year would have been Walt’s 119th birthday.

With that said, this month may also be a time for lament since Dec. 15 is the anniversary of Walt Disney’s death. This year marks 54 years without him. And for those that may not realize it, Walt Disney has ties to Lake County. His grandparents and parents lived in Paisley – a small unincorporated village on Lake County Road 42 that meanders along the southern edge of the Ocala National Forest just about 56 miles north of Walt Disney World.

According to Florida-back-roadstravel.com, Walt Disney’s grandfather Charles Call, a teacher and a farmer, lived in Paisley with his wife Henrietta and daughter Flora.

Charles and Henrietta Call are buried side by side in the small Ponceannah Cemetery, just west of Paisley on CR-42. Their graves are marked by a vertical white stone log toward the back of the cemetery.

Documented history also tells us that Walt Disney’s parents lived in Florida long before they moved to Chicago, where Walt was born, then later moved to Missouri, where Walt spent much of his childhood.

Walt’s father, Elias, married Flora Call on Jan. 1, 1888, in Kismet, Florida. Today, Kismet is a ghost town, but back then, it was located north of Paisley in the Ocala National Forest.

JAZZ AT THE MANSION

Jazz diva Michelle Amato is slated to sing a combination of classic and holiday jazz tunes at 4 p.m. Dec. 27 on the outdoor terrace and spacious lawn of Howey Mansion, 1001 N. Citrus Ave., Howey-in-the-Hills.

Michelle trained at the University of Miami’s School of Music and has toured or recorded with Yanni, Quincy Jones, Jon Secada, Al Green, Donna Summer, Michael McDonald, and Celia Cruz. She also has been a featured soloist with the Memphis Symphony and the South Florida Pops.

Guests will be able to maintain social distancing at the concert, which is the second event of the Howey Mansion Music Series for 2020-’21.

“Scheduling a full season of music during a pandemic has certainly been a new challenge, but we are so fortunate to have a unique outdoor venue that enables us to welcome audiences on the terrace of the mansion to enjoy music in a safer environment,” says Arisa Kusumi Sullivan, executive and artistic director for Howey Mansion Music Series.

The December concert will also feature a contest for the best decorated holiday-themed lawn chair, and the winner will receive a prize. Guests may bring a picnic. A cash bar will be available, too.

General admission for the Dec. 27 concert is $23 per person; children 12 and under are free. Visit howeymusicseries.org to purchase tickets. A rain date has been set for Jan. 3.

The Howey Mansion is a 7,188-squarefoot Mediterranean Revival Style home of 20 rooms on 15 acres in Howey-in-theHills. It was built in 1925 by citrus land baron William J. Howey, who was also the founder of the town.

Michelle Amato

PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING

According to recipeland.com, various pudding recipes, especially bread pudding, have been traditional Christmas dishes since the 10th century.

The website goes states that the treat was known as “poor man’s pudding” because it was created as a means of salvaging stale bread back in the day. The bread was soaked in milk or water, then sugar, butter, fruit, and/or spices were added, and then it was baked.

Sometimes the mixture was housed in a “sop” – a hollowed-out loaf of bread. Modern bread pudding is made by pouring custard and other avorings over cubed bread and baking it.

Other types of Christmas puddings include “ ggy” pudding famously mentioned in the Christmas carol of “We Wish You A Merry Christmas,” the plum pudding Mrs. Cratchit presented during Christmas dinner in Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” rice pudding, and English-style meat puddings.

Many current Christmas traditions, including culinary ones, can be traced back to Victorian era England, where various puddings – including bread pudding – became classic Christmas fare.

If craving some, but baking is not your thing, visit Turners Kitchen+Bar, 114 S. 5th St. in downtown Leesburg for a scrumptious slice of the restaurant’s very own White Chocolate Chunk Bread Pudding.

You won’t be sorry. The perfectly textured, vanilla custard- lled bread pudding served warm and topped with white chocolate chips, bourbon raspberry sauce, and whipped cream, is reminiscent of something straight out of grandma’s kitchen, with its sweet and tempting aroma radiating straight from the plate and into your mouth.

Jack Braton, Turners owner and chef, says he learned how to make bread pudding from an old Gullah woman in South Carolina, where he grew up.

Jack says the woman’s recipe was much like the old traditional-style Christmas recipes, right down to the use of stale bread. He took her recipe, changed it a bit and re ned it into what he serves at the restaurant. He says his secret is that he uses par-baked French Batard bread he expertly shingles and weaves together with the other ingredients until it is structured into something resembling a cake.

“It has all the avors and goodness of bread pudding, but it’s just more re ned in the way it’s built. There’s no doubt it’s bread pudding, but it behaves more like a warm, gooey, piece of warm delicious cake,” Jack says, adding that he has been serving the dessert at Turners for the past six years, and before that, for brunch

A TIME FOR GIVING

We usually feel generous around this time of the year and want to share what we can with the less fortunate. These charities will appreciate you showing your holiday spirit with monetary donations:

LAKE CARES INC.

LakeCares.org

352.383.0100

WE CARE OF LAKE COUNTY INC.

WeCareLakeCounty.org

352.742.0021

CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF CENTRAL FLORIDA

CFLCC.org

352.460.0700

ANGEL FLIGHT SOUTHEAST

AngelFlightSE.org

352.326.0761

LAKE CARES FOOD PANTRY

LakeCares.org

352.383.0100

LEESBURG FOOD BANK

LeesburgFoodBank.com

352.326.5463

LEESBURG HUMANE SOCIETY

LeesburgHumaneSociety.com

352.669.3312

HUMANE SOCIETY OF LAKE COUNTY FOUNDATION INC.

HumaneLake.com

352.589.7400 / 352.343.7936

EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION OF LAKE COUNTY

EdFoundationLake.com

352.326.1265

GREATER CLERMONT CANCER FOUNDATION

GCCF.us

352.435.3202

SPECIAL OLYMPICS FLORIDA

SpecialOlympicsFlorida.org

352.243.9536

at the Glenview Country Club in The Villages, where he worked previously. “It’s a simple recipe, but a very technical process.”

Jack takes pride in comments he hears from people about how much they like his bread pudding.

“I love it. I have been making this bread pudding for over 20 years and I never get tired of hearing it,” he says.

But perhaps the very best thing about the bread pudding at Turners is that you don’t have to wait until Christmas to indulge, since it is available year-round.

It could just become one of those things you start dreaming of after dinner while cozying in front of the television under a blanket or craving for breakfast to complement a fresh cup of hot co ee or tea.

Either way, why not savor a heavenly slice of this White Chocolate Chunk Bread Pudding, then steady yourself for a New Year’s Resolution to ween yourself o of your Christmas – and no occasion needed – dessert addiction.