Displaying a Christmas nativity scene is a long-standing tradition, but it can also present a bit of a skewed view of the actual events of Jesus’ birth. While each person depicted in a traditional nativity scene is a part of the Christmas story, not all the characters were present in one place on the night Jesus was born. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were in a stable that night due to the overcrowding in Bethlehem’s inn (Luke 2:7), but the Bible never mentions whether or not animals were present—in fact, it never even mentions a stable. The shepherds, once told of Jesus’ arrival, left their flocks to worship the newborn King (Luke 2:16). However, the angels, which are often part of nativity scenes, bore the good news to the shepherds in the fields (Luke 2:8–14). As far as we know, there were no angels flying visibly over the place where Jesus was when the shepherds arrived. In addition, the wise men (the Bible never says how many there were) were also probably not present that first night. The magi visited Jesus some time later, when He was in a house (Matthew 2:1–11).

Unknown Author

CATEGORY	CUISINE	TAG	YIELD
Eggs, Dairy	Italian		1	Servings

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4	c	Powdered sugar; sifted
1	c	Cake flour
15	lg	Egg whites; (1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2	ts	Cream of tartar
1 1/2	ts	Vanilla extract
1/4	ts	Almond extract
1/4	ts	Salt
1	c	Granulated sugar
1/2	c	Amaretto
1	pt	Pistachio ice cream; softened
1	pt	Chocolate ice cream; softened
2	c	Heavy cream
1	c	(6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

CAKE
FILLING AND TOPPING
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. To make the cake, combine the powdered sugar and cake flour.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the egg
whites, cream of tartar, vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt until
well mixed and soft peaks form. Beat in the sugar, a little at a time , and
beat until stiff but not dry. With a rubber spatula, fold in the dry
ingredients until the flour is just incorporated. Pour the mixture into an
ungreased 10-inch tube pan, shaking the pan lightly.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the top springs back when touched
and is golden brown. Invert the pan onto a bottle or funnel and cool
completely.
5. To assemble, using a serrated knife, cut the cake into three layers.
Sprinkle each layer with some of the amaretto. Place one layer on a serving
plate. Spread the pistachio ice cream on the bottom layer and top with the
second layer. Spread the chocolate ice cream on the second layer and top
with the third layer. Freeze the cake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until set.
6. Meanwhile, to make the topping, in a chilled bowl, using an electric
mixer on medium speed, beat the heavy cream and the remaining amaretto
until it forms soft peaks. Spread on the top and sides of the cake. Return
to the freezer.
7. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, over low heat, melt the chocolate chips,
stirring until smooth.. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Pour the
melted chocolate onto the prepared pan, spreading it 1/4 inch thick. Let
chocolate set for 15 minutes. Using an oiled heart shaped cookie cutter,
cut out hearts. Place them on top of the cake. Keep cake in the freezer
until ready to serve.
My notes: This was absolutely wonderful, however next time I am going to
start with a boxed angel food cake mix. Also I had to let the chocolate set
more than 15 minutes before I could cut it, I guess my house was too warm.
And now that soda pop no longer comes in bottles and funnels are mostly
plastice, I had a very hard time finding somewhere to invert the cake,
finally I just used the full amaretto bottle. The source for this recipe
is: 1001* Chocolate Treats by Gregg R. Gillespie
Posted to recipelu-digest by "Sarah Navarro" <[email protected]> on Feb
22, 1998

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