Christmas feast!

[Brian Ellis]

For teatime tomorrow, we have a fruit cake that our daughter made in October and has been maturing with a dose of VSOP brandy every week.

For dinner, a traditional turkey is too big for two of us and chickens have little flavour, so we have opted for a nice 3 kg duck, waiting patiently in the fridge. I'll slow-roast it to allow all the fat to drip out, served with potatoes oven-roasted in duck fat, veggies and an orange sauce made with oranges picked from the tree on Christmas morning. We'll follow this with a mature Christmas pudding with a home-made vanilla and brandy egg and cream custard. The only thing missing will be the sprig of holly stuck in the pudding (holly doesn't grow here!).

I plan a spicy duck and veggie curry, cooked in coconut milk, with Basmati rice, for the 26th, to use the leftovers. I have a couple of habanera chillies and a bright green jalapeno waiting for that, along with some cumin seed for the pestle and mortar.

Can't wait!

[Fat Tone]

It's turkey here, at my parents. Its the law!

[Dr Mordrid]

Turkey & all the fixings + homemade pies at daughter & son-in-laws place. Am prepared for family rolling me out in a wheelbarrow (she's a damned fine cook!!)

[cjolley]

Lot's of family here for a few days from out of town.
Ham and baked goods.
Becky has won ribbons at the Oklahoma State Fair for her baking.
Giant snow storm coming. Guess we will be stuck in the house with 11 people and a LOT of food.
Wheeee....

[Brian Ellis]

And it's a beeyootiful Christmas morning here. Sun shining, wall-to-wall blue sky, already 14.2°C at 09:20, promising 17-18° max. almost no wind. We'll have a light lunch on the patio at midday (miso soup). Am off to pick the oranges for the sauce and stuffing now. Bon appétit, everyone.

On a more sombre note, the village here has ~1500 inhabitants. I found out that there are 35 families, from elderly widows, through single mothers to families with up to 5 children, about 130 persons in all, with no income, receiving aid (last year, there were about 12 such families). The Church provides them with basic, cheap food (pasta, bread, margarine, canned stuff etc.). The communal authorities has budgeted €2000 for extra help for Christmas, but that won't go very far. There is little in the way of welfare state. People who have been laid off get €600/month unemployment benefit for only 6 months, after that zilch. 12.1% are officially unemployed and increasing rapidly. Three of us pensioners, none of us with large incomes, have clubbed together and arranged with the Mukhtar (mayor) and the priest, with the aid of local shops, to provide each of these 35 families with a chicken (two where there are 4 or 5 kids) for their Christmas dinner (13 chickens each). I hope that this will bring them a little joy. BTW, when they go to the shop to collect their chickens, they are not told who provides them, just local citizens. Only the Mukhtar and the priest know who we are. I mention this, not to receive glory from you lot, nor to feel good, but only to make you think that there may be some desperately poor people in your neighbourhood who would be overjoyed to receive a little help, however small, in these days of economic crisis.

[Dr Mordrid]

Obviously I didn't hit the woods for deer season this year, but usually our camp of 6+ donates 2-3 deer to one of several charities that specialize in getting deer butchered and distributed to numerous food banks. Since Michigan hunters can shoot more than one deer, and our (often unwillingly farm-fed) whitetails can dress out between 150-350+ lbs (with a few clearing 400 lbs), that can add up fast. This year the group harvested enough (bow and gun) to contribute 4 for a total of over 1,000lbs of venison.

[Brian Ellis]

In today's paper:

http://www.cyprus-mail.com/opinions/our-view-return-spirit-christmas-what-cost/20121225

It’s funny how the less people have, the more they seem inclined to give.

http://www.cyprus-mail.com/cyprus/touched-generosity-people/20121225

[Dr Mordrid]

We see that here too. With all the troubles of the Detroit area charitable giving & volunteerism are through the roof. Our church (Evangelical Lutheran), the local Catholic churches, 2 Shia mosques, 1 Hindu temple, a Korean church and 2 synagogues all work together on aid projects.

During this time of year the synagogues, Hindus and the Shia mosques take over the Christians food kitchens etc. so we can celebrate our holidays. Been going on for decades. Go figure. We, of course, try to return the favors.

[Fat Tone]

The disparity between the haves and have-nots, those in health and those suffering etc really got to me this year.

So rather than send dozens christmas cards through the post this year I made a donation to the local hospice and sent a friendly email explaining. No complaints.

[Jammrock]

Ham, noodles, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls... and for dessert, cookies and Danish Christmas pudding (Ris Ala Mande).

[Dr Mordrid]

My daughter makes a bread-raisin pudding that's to die for - gawd, can I ever OD on that stuff. Jeezzzz....