There aren't many bakeries in North Carolina where you can taste the same Christmas cookies your great-great-grandmother had when she was a little girl.
Built in 1799, the Winkler Bakery is likely the oldest bakery in the state. Stepping inside is like walking into a time-capsule of the past 200 years: The sweet scents, the sound of the cracking fire in the oven – and Sister Deborah in the kitchen, a bonnet on her head and her hands coated in flour, rolling out gingerbread cookies for the next generation of wide-eyed children.
"Right before Christmas, when everything starts to get a chill in the air, the bakery would start preparing cookies for the holiday season and for Christmas," says Sister Deborah, selecting an angel-shaped cookie-cutter that was handmade by the tin-smith just down the road, then pressing it into the soft gingerbread. "Ginger cakes, of course, with molasses and good spices. Sugar cookies. There would be tea cakes."
While the oven warms a Moravian sugar cake behind her, Sister Deborah tells stories of Christmases long, long ago.
But they are more than just stories: In Old Salem, the old traditions are alive for you to experience.
Time capsule of old-fashioned North Carolina Christmas traditions
The bakery was originally established to serve the surrounding Moravian community. Two hundred years later, Winkler Bakery draws people from across the state – and beyond. During the holidays, especially, visitors flood the antique rooms hoping to find the same sweets North Carolinians have been eating for generations.
"This is actually a nutritious dessert with black molasses, ginger and spices that will soothe a cough or congestion," explains Sister Deborah, holding out a gingerbread angel. "The black molasses strengths your blood, and it's delicious!"
In the 1800s, travelers might carry these crisp gingerbread cakes in a saddlebag while riding through the dry, harsh North Carolina winter. The unique blend of spices makes them filling and soothing.
"They could pull them out in the evening and build a fire and fix a hot drink," says Sister Deborah.
During Christmas, baking these kinds of cookies and treats would be a holiday activity the entire family would get involved in.
"It was something you would gather your children around, and they would be rolling cookies, and you would be rolling cookies. Everybody had something to do, and that was their Christmas activity," says Sister Deborah.
Love Feast, Christmas pyramids and other Moravian traditions
Modern day Winston-Salem is built around the Moravian settlement of Bethabara, which was established in the 1750s when 15 Moravian Brethren walked from Bethlehem, PA and landed in central NC.
Moravians purchased around 100,000 acres from Lord Granville, developing a series of settlements around the Piedmont. Their influence on the architecture and traditions of Old Salem can still be seen in the preserved historic structures that line the streets – a tinsmith, woodworker, a potter, the church, the school, the Winkler Bakery and others.
Along the Main Street, a Moravian example of a 'Christmas tree' can be seen – but instead of a tree, families would build a Christmas Pyramid. Sometimes painted green and decorated with foliage, the wooden pyramids have multiple shelves, on which families would decorate with Bible verses, candles, the Nativity scene and sometimes cakes and sweets.
Instead of focusing on gifts, the Moravians focused primarily on community gatherings and sharing time together.
"A big part of this community is the Love Feast," says Sister Deborah. "A Love Feast bun is served in the church with a creamy, sweet cup of coffee."
The Love Feast is indeed a feast for your senses, according to Sister Deborah.
"The music is playing, and little children carry racks of candles. The men carry racks of coffee mugs, and the women usually carry baskets of love feast buns. Each person lights each other's candle, and then you sing and you break bread together," she says. "They hold their candles high and sing their songs together -- and love each other. That's why it's called a Love Feast."
She feels the simplicity of that traditional Christmas surpasses all the jangle and frills of more modern celebrations.
She feels fortunate to work in the 200-year-old bakery where those old-fashioned traditions are still remembered – and where something as simple as a ginger cookie can soothe someone's soul.
More mysteries from Christmas Past
Christmas is full of stories and mysteries from the days of yore. Do you know the secret behind the 'little' Christmas tree hanging over a Raleigh highway? Have you seen the mysterious remnant of a 1960s Christmas village? Hear about these Christmas mysteries on our holiday-themed podcast!
