Tomorrow is Christmas. Christmas! I get a glow just thinking of the wonderful meals that structure Christmas day at my in-laws’ house. The eclectic menu blends American with French, Mediterranean, and Indian. Might sound a little strange, but I couldn’t imagine Christmas any other way. Quiche Lorraine and coffee cake while presents are being opened. Plenty of hot coffee. After a nap, a few chapters of a new book or DVD, and some quiet conversation, we regroup around the dinner table for leg of lamb, beef curry, mattar paneer, dolmades (which we rolled the previous day), spinach pie, nicoise salad, the secret family-recipe cheese ball, and a nice wine. Dessert could be Christmas chocolates, baklava, or ice cream. Plenty of hot coffee. Mmmm, Christmas.
Wishing you and yours a safe and restful holiday. May the new year bring you much joy. -Eatist
3 responses so far ↓
Clay Hensley // December 26, 2008 at 4:55 am |
Your holiday dinners sound so elegnat!
Christmas cuisine in my family is not so high-class.
The concept of the casserole seems to be the central construct behind all Christmas potluck dishes served in West TN:
- Baked green beans soaking in a sauce anchored in cream of mushroom soup, and topped with Durkee onions (crispy fried onion rings from a can ..I had forgotten what Durkee was until I just discovered it in my grandmother’s cabinet).
- Asparagus smothered in Velveeta cheese. Five different versions of Rotel dips.
- Chicken & dumplings. (Okay, I am a sucker for chicken & dumplings. Won’t complain there.)
- Eight different Jell-O salads.
I haven’t had to chew since landing in Memphis. I can’t wait to return to NYC to eat something healthly with a texture other than creamy rich.
your mother-in-law // December 29, 2008 at 1:36 am |
I am overwhelmed! I’ll try not to disappoint you on your upcoming visit.
Cindy // January 27, 2009 at 4:21 am |
I’m very late in commenting, since I didn’t know this blog existed, but my, that’s an eclectic holiday dinner (sounds wonderful), and my, oh, my, I had no idea people still ate the way Clay’s family does. Is all of TN a time capsule of the fifties, or is it just the food?