Toadfish Monastery

Do any Siblings have any interesting Christmas traditions in their family?  We have a few which you might find entertaining:

1) Ever since Mrs H's grandparents immigrated from Holland about 100 years ago they have always kept back at least one Christmas pudding (cooked) until the next year, and stirred it into the new pudding mix.  I can personally vouch for the line being unbroken since 1970, and the older generation were quite certain it went back to the arrival of Granny Kuipers in the UK.  Nobody has any idea whether it goes back beyond that to Holland; it might easily be very old indeed.  I can't believe nobody ever checked on that, but afaik they didn't.
At the moment the tradition is being kept up by us and also by a branch of cousins.  One year we had to give them half our pud to keep their line going and once or twice we've had to cut mouldy bits off, so not a whole pudding has always gone in.  But we claim the tradition has not been broken thereby.  Homeopathy?  Maybe.

2) For the last 15 years we've tried to get the entire family: spouses,  kids and all to come here for a weekend to make the family cakes and puds.  Mrs H also does some for friends, so we make something like 15 cakes and 15 puds.  We mix the stuff in a big plastic box and do the bulk of the hard work with a dough-hook on a mains electric drill.  The cakes are baked in our coal stove, our gas stove and often next door as well.  The boiling of the puds takes 2 or 3 days, again on 2 stoves.

(http://i647.photobucket.com/albums/uu198/RamblingSyd/Baking.jpg)

3)   Before Mrs H ices the cakes, she and I sit down with a hypodermic syringe each and large tumblers of mixed rum, brandy and sherry (etc) and we inject the cakes with considerable volumes of booze.  Last night I was putting 20ml into the small cakes and 40ml into the big ones.  Believe me, you can taste it.  Considerable quantities of rum also go directly into me (drunk, not injected) which is why I'm feeling a bit rough this morning.

What a happy cooking scene! It does me good to see it.

Mr, Ops likes to make apple brined turkey every year (I think the recipe is down in our recipes thread). He just loves to fuss over it. Even though I'm vegetarian, I enjoy the smell of the marinade, made the night before cooking (oranges, cloves- good smells!) and sitting down outside with him at the grill, where he cooks it over a fire. We always have a "fire beer" together, usually a nice warm Guiness Stout, as we're usually freezing out there. Soon the chill is gone. 

Lovely tradition David!
When I was a small child my mother used to do a lot of traditional Christmas preparations together with me, it became a tradition but it was broken (first downsized) when I grew older and my school and her job made it hard to find time. I guess it broke completely when I got a home of my own.  :(

We used to make traditional pork sausage (yes from scratch), grinding pork meat and fat as fine as the grinder allowed mixing it with a few cooked potatoes and spices to a batter and then stuff it in to its casing (sheep intestine usually). The finishing touch was to let it simmer slowly in a good broth until they where cooked.

We made quite advanced Christmas decorations in our living-room windows which faced the street, little winter landscapes and such. We cleaned the house together one day and put up the decorations the day after.

We used to bake gingerbread cookies and saffron buns (I did try to do that on my own when I lived in a bigger flat with a bigger kitchen but it wasn't the same  :'( ) I miss proper saffron buns... Turmeric might give them the proper colour but not the right taste!

The only tradition that have been lingering to the present day is the Christmas meatballs. We make them a bit heavier on the allspice than our standard recipe and we make them smaller usual too and great effort is made to shape them as perfectly round as can be. ;D
My mother usually makes the batter and I roll them while she is frying. 200 a batch takes its time. :D

^ and ^^ Lovely.  Just the kind of traditions which make Christmas real.  Nowadays too much of it comes out of very expensive, shiny boxes.  Mrs H's family always go for a load of expensive junk novelties in the stockings.  They normally sit around on shelves for a bit and then get chucked out or dumped on Oxfam.  I've tried to discourage this and stick to a few really good presents.  And in fact this year I'm going to propose another present 'truce' again to Mrs H so we'll only buy each other a wanted book or suchlike, nothing big.  There's nothing either of us wants, anyway.  But this year there'll be seven of us here including Cap'n B, and that's all I need.

Quote from: Darlica on December 02, 2010, 11:05:19 AM
The only tradition that have been lingering to the present day is the Christmas meatballs. We make them a bit heavier on the allspice than our standard recipe and we make them smaller usual too and great effort is made to shape them as perfectly round as can be. ;D
My mother usually makes the batter and I roll them while she is frying. 200 a batch takes its time. :D

I would love to see a recipe for proper Swedish Meatballs, Darlica - they are a well-known but I suspect wrongly translated food over here.

I've never tasted them, but I'd love a chance to.  :meal:

Quote from: Aggie on December 02, 2010, 02:39:57 PM
I would love to see a recipe for proper Swedish Meatballs, Darlica - they are a well-known but I suspect wrongly translated food over here.

I'm not sure there even is such a beast...  :D

Meatballs isn't really that traditional food, it's a fairly young dish here... They are widely popular though.
That means that there are probably as many variations of meatballs as there are people cooking them! And when it comes to the ingredients, well that varies a lot: type of meat, potatoes or bread crumbs, cream or soda water, a whole egg or just the yolk...  civil wars have been fought over less! ::)   ;)

The ones my mother and I make isn't very traditional at all, we usually have garlic in them, that would make any traditionalist cry for sure! But they taste good. ;D

If L or I can find the time to scramble up and translate a recipe, we'll post it in the kitchen area. :)

OK, thanks!  I think meatballs are almost universal, but I thought there might be something in the spices or whatever that makes them "Swedish Meatballs".   If not, at least I can tell the folks here that it's the real thing, they'll believe me. ;)


I am almost too timid to ask for Mrs. H's pudding recipe - Christmas pudding seems not to have crossed the pond, or at least has faded with time, so there's an air of mystery to it.

Rum-laced Christmas cakes are another story - Mom has a very good recipe using natural dried fruit (none of the green-died candied frankencherries) that gets good and tipsy every year.  I think last year she almost dropped the bottle and over-rum'd it - delicious!

---------

Our Christmas tradition that may be a bit unfamiliar to the rest of you is Christmas Morning Wife Saver - hmm, how do I describe this beast?  It's kind of breakfast in a baking dish and includes ham, eggs, cheese, bread, butter, milk and cornflakes.  It can be made up ahead of time and put in the fridge overnight, then put in the oven Christmas morning while the presents are being opened.  As far as I know, despite being easy to make this is almost never eaten except on Christmas morning, and is quite possibly a uniquely Canadian thing.

A basic recipe goes like this:

QuoteIn 9 X 13″ buttered baking dish (use a BIG dish), put 8 pieces of bread, Add
pieces to cover dish entirely. Cover bread with cooked back bacon slices or
ham slices. Lay slices of cheddar cheese on top, then cover with slices of
bread (to make it like a sandwich).
In a bowl, beat, eggs, salt and pepper.To egg mixture, add dry mustard,
onion, green pepper, Worcestershire sauce, milk and Tabasco. Pour over the
'sandwiches'. Cover and let it stand in the fridge overnight.

In the morning, preheat oven to 350° F.

Melt 1/4 lb butter and pour over top. Cover with crushed corn flakes. Bake 1 hour in 350° F oven.

Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

(http://www.canadianparents.com/uploads/recipes/big/recipe_xmaswifesaver.jpg)

Delicious, and usually holds you over until turkey dinner.  :meal:

Dad's tradition at Christmas is to make fancy coffees, rimming the cups with sugar, adding a liberal dose of liqueur, and topping with whipped cream. Essential (to stay awake) after Christmas dinner.  It's also become a bit of a tradition open up stockings first thing in the morning but to save the presents for after breakfast except one - Dad is always pointed to a bottle of liqueur to open early so we can spike our morning coffee, too.

Great thread idea -- fun to read everyone's contributions!


Tradition I Have 'Updated'...
Maternal grandmother made a hoaska (braided sweetbread) each Christmas. My version has something different rolled into each of the braid sections (usually cinnamon/sugar/orange zest in one, cloves & raisins in another, honey and almonds in the last); it's kind of a nod to the mythical magi.

:meal:

Although Grandma invited us to stay with her and help with the baking every year, her hoaska was the one recipe she would not write down for me! The best I could ever get out of her was a twinkling smile and, "First you take your sweet roll dough..."




Defunct Tradition Which I Would Not Have Carried On...
Mom's creche had a detachable Baby Jesus. It came out on the first Sunday of Advent with the dramatis personae roaming about on adjacent coffee tables (Joe & Mary; angels; shepherds watching their flocks by day & night, with dogs; wise guys & their entourage; villagers; the whole schmear) subject to frequent rearrangement -- EXCEPT -- the Baby J who made a dramatic entrance on Christmas Eve. Mom then cut up yellow yarn into ~2" lengths and stacked them (much like cordwood) next to the stable.

Each night after Reciting The Rosary As A Family, we each had to evaluate our behavior. If we felt we had been good, we could transfer a piece of yarn to the plastic manger to make it more cushy and welcoming. If we felt we had been deficient, we had to remove a piece of yarn and it was all our fault if the Baby J had to sleep on cold, hard plastic !!11one!!   To be honest, I don't actually remember this happening  (perhaps I repressed it as too horrible?)  but the *fear* of it has clearly stuck me to this day...

(http://www.originalicons.com/images/icons/Holidays/Christmas/1100785120_1712680836.gif)

Ooh, that thing with the yarn sounds a bit of a guilt-trip.  Glad it's defunct.  Aggie, I'll get the pud recipe for you soon; right now Mrs H is working at home on the computer because she can't get to work in the weather conditions.  And personally I find the wife-saver recipe great until you mentioned the corn-flakes.  I reckon I'd leave those off.
Wow, what a lovely lot of traditions from all over the world.  ;D  ;D  ;D

Just gotten back from a looong night out on the rails, so I am too tired to write anythign comprehensible at the moment. I'll try to write something when I have slept for a bit.

Just a quick impression: I once found an american cookbook with a recipe for what the authors  swore on the souls of their mothers was genuine, honest-to-God, hyper-authentic Swedish Meatballs.

The mince contained such things as garlic and chicken bouillon cubes, and the whole thing was finished off in a yoghurt-and-dill sauce, and recommended serving the result with rice. In other words, that recipe made the Swedish Bikini Team look like Ingmar Bergman .

(The cookbook also featured such culinary delights as a "salad" consisting mainly of tinned mandarin oranges, mayonnaise, miracle whip and grated radishes. )

Oh, I just had a look at teh german Wikipedia and saw that they wrote that meatballs are traditionally made out of elk meat in Sweden and Finland.  :censored:

I might just have to hijack this thread as a startign point for a crusade!  :smite:

I actually like moose and reindeer sausage.
Hunting in Norway of big wild animals is quite tightly controlled, so I see no problem there (apart from potential radioactive 'memories' of Chernobyl).

Quote from: Sibling DavidH on December 03, 2010, 09:11:21 AM
And personally I find the wife-saver recipe great until you mentioned the corn-flakes.  I reckon I'd leave those off.

Those make the dish, actually - you crush them up into small bits and they get crispy when you bake 'em (I think Mom puts the butter on AFTER the corn flakes, will have to check).  It'd be a bit of a spotty, soggy mess without them, I reckon.  It's similar to putting a breadcrumb topping on macaroni and cheese casserole, or an oatmeal topping on a fruit crisp.

Meatballs were always traditionally made of venison chez nous when I was a kid. A deer yields a few dense roasts, a couple of steaks, a larger portion of stew meat and a LOT of hamburger.

Of course, I could always go to IKEA and pick up a kilo bag of the authentic thing, right?  :censored:

Quote from: Aggie on December 03, 2010, 04:20:55 PM
Of course, I could always go to IKEA and pick up a kilo bag of the authentic thing, right?  :censored:

What? Here IKEA is a furniture store.

I have only one Chrstmas tradition, to go away to a hotel and I don't know how much longer I can afford it.

OK, I am now writing a short text on the cultural history of meatballs in Sweden. So as not to clutter up this thread any more, I'll post it in the food section once I am done.

By the by, the pudding-making looks like a very nice christmas tradition , David H!  :)

Thank, Lindorm!

BTW,

Quotethe cultural history of meatballs in Sweden

- this comes close to Pastafarian theology.  :mrgreen:

Quote from: Griffin NoName on December 03, 2010, 04:41:42 PM

Quote from: Aggie on December 03, 2010, 04:20:55 PM
Of course, I could always go to IKEA and pick up a kilo bag of the authentic thing, right?  :censored:

What? Here IKEA is a furniture store.

Lasset uns beten!
Und siehe, Herr, wir sind gekommen, uns niederzuwerfen zu
deinen Füßen und abzulegen das grosse Gelübde:
Wer sind wir? Wo kommen wir her? Woran erkennt man uns?
Wenn wir im Zoo einen Elch sehen, rufen wir aus:
"Kuck mal, ein IKEA!"
Wir kommen aus dem Land der rätselhaften Schraubenspanner,
der kleinen Holzzapfen und metallenen Stützkreuze. Wir
sind die Jünger des Imbus und man erkennt uns an unserer
Family-Karte.
Wir glauben daran, dass wir den Tand aus dem Schnäppchenmarkt
wirklich brauchen, dass die kleinen, dünnen Nägel die Rückwand
wirklich halten und daran, dass "Akrobat" ein toller Name für
ein freikombinierbares Regalsystem ist.
Die Bretter, die unsere Welt bedeuten, sind aus der Kiefer,
der Birke, der Kirsche geschlagen oder der Buche nachgebildet,
in jedem Fall jedoch furniert.
Wir stopfen riesige Pakete in unsere MiniVans,
bis die Heckklappe nicht mehr schließt,
denn siehe, wir lassen uns nie etwas liefern
und zusammenbauen schon gar nicht!
Wir stehen unseren Mann, unsere Frau im Kampf
gegen die Montageanleitung und den Kreuzschlitz.
Für unsere Kinder haben wir auch zu Hause einen Raum voller
bunter Bällchen und jeden Nachmittag gegen Fünf ruft einer
von uns durchs ganze Haus: "Der kleine Marvin kann jetzt
aus dem Kinderparadies abgeholt werden!"
Manchmal freveln wir und suchen andere Einrichtungshäuser auf
doch reuig kehren wir zurück in den Schoss von Carl Gustavs
Untertanen. Denn siehe, jene Häuser sind unrein, denn sie
verkaufen am Ausgang kein Smoerrebroed und in ihren Restaurants
gibt es keine Hackfleischbällchen mit Preisselbeeren.
Und so wollen wir nun geloben, dir ewig treu zu bleiben,
du Paradies der freilaufenden Billis, Kawaljas, Sponsiks,
Spisas, Kraps, Butts und Alks.
Wir, die wir vor "Harpun" nicht wussten, wohin mit unseren
Schuhen, wir, die wir nicht ahnten, was die Serie "Norskaer"
aus unserem Badezimmer machen kann.
Und wandern wir auch im finsteren Tal, wenn wir uns die Arme
brechen beim Versuch, den Bezug "Aalem" auf's "Clippan"-Sofa
zu zerren, verzagen wir nicht, denn wir haben das Licht gesehen
und siehe, es war eine "Torped"-Kerze und sie steckte in einem
"Empati"-Kerzenständer und war sehr guenstig.
Und jetzt werden wir alle Schweden. Omen!

(Frank Goosen & Jochen Malmsheimer aka Tresenlesen)

I do not believe I have ever had Swedish Meatballs although it is a a household word here, like Spanish Moss¹, Dutch Oven², French Fries³, Mexican Standoff ⁴, and the classic combo -- Russian Hands & Roman Fingers.

;)


¹  which infests trees in what were originally French settlements in the southern U.S.

²  much americanized casserole dish

³  known to the actual French as casse-croûte américains affreux

⁴  classic description of the USA-USSR Cold War policies

^ excellent!

----------------------------

Here's Mrs H's classic xmas pud recipe as requested - she was kind enough to type it out and I'm just pasting it in:

Greetings, Toadfish!
Christmas Pud Recipe

½ cup      raisins
½ cup      sultanas
½ cup      currants
½ cup      breadcrumbs
¼ cup      plain flour
1 cup              grated apples
1 handful           chopped cherries
1 handful         flaked almonds or chopped walnuts
zest and juice of one lemon
zest and juice of one orange
½ teaspoon   mixed spices
¼ teaspoon   grated nutmeg
2   beaten eggs
mix all together and stir in sufficient beer to make a very stiff mixture.

Grease steaming bowls and put mixture into bowls, up to 1 inch from the top, put a circle of  greaseproof or baking paper on top of the mixture inside the bowl, and silver foil  over the top: over the rim and 2 inches down the side.   Tie the foil  on and steam for 6 hours.    Take top off bowls, there should be a lovely fruity/spice aroma coming off and the mixture should be a rich dark brown.   If not, steam for some more.    When cool, re-cover with new paper, and this will keep for a year in a cool dark place.     When you want to serve it, steam for one hour, tip onto a plate, and serve.   

If at a family or celebration meal, pour a tablespoon of brandy over the top, light the brandy and bring to the table.     

Happy eating!

I do hope you enjoy this, it is an approximation of our Christmas pudding, a very traditional pudding in England.   I usually make between ten and sixteen puddings so I have had to reduce the mixture, we also chop up one pudding from last year as part of our Christmas traditon.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Note from David: hopefully your bowl will have a rim, under which you tie the string round the bowl to hold the foil on.  When you've knotted it, bring the string diametrically across the top and tie to the opposite side of the loop to make a lifting handle.

(http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRkD4GMp21vkO8xaAVRNlYD0F93HuUdJZmnjMR4SkRq0Z-OF4vedQ)

 :thumbsup:

Thanks to you and Mrs. H!

For some reason, I have always thought that suet was an indispensable pudding ingredient, which is perhaps why I've been scared of 'em.  I will try it out this year if I get the chance. 

I'm not sure what is considered 'mixed spices' over there, but I'm a dab hand with a mortar and pestle and could take a pretty good crack at it I think.  It would be hard to get it too far wrong with only a 1/2 tsp I think (probably cinnamon, cloves, allspice and cardamom in diminishing proportions will suffice).


The ingredients-freak in me gets a big grin at the specificity of the first three ingredients, which some people would just read as 'raisins, raisins, raisins' (currants are a distinct beast, but really are just dried grapes of a certain variety, not blackcurrants, AFAIK).


------------------------

Quote from: pieces o nine on December 04, 2010, 04:02:16 PMDutch Oven<sup>2

2</sup>  much americanized casserole dish

I know an alternate definition for that one that involves blankets and flatulence, not food, but I suspect it's derived from the cooking vessel.  ;)

You're very welcome!

QuoteI have always thought that suet was an indispensable pudding ingredient,

Mrs H says it does traditionally have a lot of suet and sugar, but because we both have a weight problem and I'm diabetic, she does it that way.  I guarantee they are excellent and IMO taste no different from others I've had.

Quoteprobably cinnamon, cloves, allspice and cardamom in diminishing proportions

She says fine, but also a little nutmeg, coriander and ginger.

QuoteThe ingredients-freak in me gets a big grin at the specificity of the first three ingredients, which some people would just read as 'raisins, raisins, raisins' (currants are a distinct beast, but really are just dried grapes of a certain variety, not blackcurrants, AFAIK).

She says they do make a difference.

You will understand that only Mrs H and you understand this.  I am the man who did for cooking what Idi Amin did for hang-gliding. :D

Lovely job on the reduction of sugar and suet - this is right up my family's alley (well, me and mum anyhow, I'm sure dad would be fine with beef fat).

My error on omitting the ginger!  That was an obvious blunder.  The nutmeg is accounted for in the recipe, so I didn't consider it; coriander is one of my favorite spices but I associate it more with savoury dishes. I will make sure to include it in the mix.

OK, I'm putting this on the 'definite' list for this year.

Quote from: AggieThe nutmeg is accounted for in the recipe

Oops!  Bit of a blunder there, I'm sure you don't have to put in two lots.

I really hope it turns out well for you.  :crossedfingers:

It looks gorgeous, too. Thank you for the recipe!

Griffin, doesn't your local IKEA store have a food section? We have them here. There's the cafe, but there's also a little Swedish grocery just beyond the cash registers.

They didn't last time I visited one. But, that was years ago, so who knows, they may now. I am so retro!

Quote from: Sibling DavidH on December 06, 2010, 09:05:01 AM

Quote from: AggieThe nutmeg is accounted for in the recipe

Oops!  Bit of a blunder there, I'm sure you don't have to put in two lots.

I really hope it turns out well for you.  :crossedfingers:

Not at all - I presume the mixed spice is a premade blend, and a little extra nutmeg is needed for the pudding, so it's not actually redundant unless you are doing it the long way about like I will be. ;)  It's analogous to putting poultry seasoning plus sage in the turkey stuffing, or chili powder plus cumin in (non-authentic) chili.

Swato. that little poem had me almost falling out of the chair! :D

I'll see if I can finish the Meatball Treatise sometime this weekend.

Yes, Swato, I should have given you a few LOLs for that poem.  Sorry, I was carried away by puddings.

Far less subtle, but also fun, Is Tom Lehrer's  Christmas Carol (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSlpCBek1_M).

Then there is this classic:
http://www.yolanthe.de/aktuell/advent/adv-loriot.htm

 :ROFL: :ROFL:  :ROFL: :ROFL:  :ROFL:

That is truly excellent.  The cosy style is perfect; you don't know anything's going to happen until, suddenly, hat sie den Förster umgebracht.   Classic.

I can't read German so I used Google translate,

Advent It turns blue the night, the stars are flashing,
Schneeflöcklein softly falling down.
On Edeltännleins green tops
accumulates a small white tip.
And there, breaking through from afar
the dark forest, a bright light.
Forest House kneels with candle glow
the forester in the men's room.
In this wonderful night
it has killed the forest ranger.
He was her in the home care
for a long time now, much in the way.
So they agreed with it:
On Niklas evening it should be.
And when the little hare went to bed,
the fawn her eyes,
ordered directly from the front
the husband of iron sights.
Awakened by the blast turns up only the hare
two-three-four times the trial nose
and rests on sweet in the dark
Meanwhile, the stars are twinkling confidential.
And indoors in the parlor,
hence there is blood from the forester.
Now the forester must be broken down
the husband to cut up clean.
She quickly added him to the bone
Weidmann left for custom.
Full care she puts link to link,
what the husband so far avoided.
Reserves a portion back fillet
as a fixed daily roasts.
And then packed it goes to four -
the radicals in gift paper.
From afar's sounds like silver bells,
in the village you can hear barking dogs.
Who is it that in so deep night
so late still makes his rounds?
Knecht Ruprecht is on golden carriage
riding up a deer.
Tell me, good woman, you still have things
the poor people make fun?
The six packages, holy man,
s' is all that I can give.
Black Peter goes on a journey
The silver bells ring softly
the forester's house is burning the candle,
the bell sounds, it's Advent.


###########

what on earth? care home? is this what my parents can expect?

The translation is somewhat suspect to say the least.

Essentially, Mrs Forester likes to keep a tidy house.
Unfortunately, Mr Forester and his habits get in the way of her doing so.
Infact, Mrs Forester realizes that the core of the problem is Mr. Forester himself -so she promptly kills him with a shot of his own gun, incidentally waking a poor sleeping hare whilst doing so! (Don't worry, the hare fell asleep again soon afterwards)

Mrs (or should I perhaps say Ms.?) Forester then starts breaking down the carcass, following all the customs when preparing a deer or other animal. The filet she keeps for herself, but wraps the other cuts in parcels.
As it happens, St. Nicholaus aide, Knight Ruprecht, happens to stop by somewhat later, asking for gifts to bring a bit of joy into the lives of poor fellow humans. Mrs. Forester promptly hands over the parcels to Ruprecht, who thanks her,a nd then departs with is golden sleigh, towed by deer with silver bells all tinklling.

And, as the churchbells toll, and the candles burn in th ehouse of the Foresters, the peace and tranquility of christmas descends upon the land.

I found it very funny indeed, if a bit bloody. ;)

Good summary/recapitulation Lindorm!
The effect is heigthened by the (slightly overdone) old-fashioned style and the free use of diminutives.

I hope this is the right youtube clip (no sound on this PC, so I can't check at the moment)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayvXxADjACg

Good job there, Lindorm, but IMO the Google version is even funnier.   ::)

A therapist gave me what he claims is an authentic Swedish meatball recipe but I'm not sure that I trust the veracity of his claim.  ::)

Goodness, I wonder what you were supposed to do with the meatballs?  :unsure:

Hey, Sheila, lovely to hear from you again.  Happy Christmas!

Quote from: Griffin NoName on December 20, 2010, 02:48:04 AM
Goodness, I wonder what you were supposed to do with the meatballs?  :unsure:

First they are small (no fixed size, the measuring sits in my fingers) a teaspoon measure here is 15 ml and that would make a good size dollop to start with, then they shrink in the frying pan...

Meatballs survive well in the freezer, they can be eaten warm  as a part of dinner or lunch or cold on bread. We don't eat the whole batch in one sitting I promise!  ;D

Back on page 1 of this thread I described our annual mass cake-and-pudding day.  Well, today it came round again.

(http://i647.photobucket.com/albums/uu198/RamblingSyd/Cake_Bake.jpg)

That's the son-in-law, his mum, Cap'n B and my #1 daughter, also bits of me.  _{Yes, I know I look manic - I was trying to face the camera and hold the drill steady all at once.}

Looks like a fun day.    :)

What a jolly good-looking bunch!

Here in the states we're gearing up for Thanksgiving Day, Thursday the 24th. I have to go shop for pumpkin pie ingredients.

Thanksgiving? That was a month ago.  ;)

I might take a run at that pudding recipe again this year, with a few personalizing tweaks. I wonder if Mum's got the cake started yet?  We are celebrating Christmas like pagans on the Winter Solstice ths year (sister has to work on the 25th, so she's coming out early; I'm going to come back to Cowtown so she has some family to celebrate with, but it won't be a proper Christmas dinner).

We'll do some family oriented dinner on TG although I still think the date as a celebration for genocide. As for Xmas... I hate that everything is already about it and -obviously- what to buy for it, bleagh!

I usually go to a hotel party for the few days over Christmas, but cannot afford it any more. That means I will spend Christmas entirely alone and isolated, family all too far away, and none prepared to visit me, and friends all busy with their own families. I reckon on about a fortnight of desperation. No wonder suicides go up at Christmas.

Quote from: Sibling Zono (anon1mat0) on November 14, 2011, 10:57:20 PM
We'll do some family oriented dinner on TG although I still think the date as a celebration for genocide.
...

That's why I love this bit so very much!
[youtube=425,350]2VbYZDohsHk[/youtube]

Isn't it odd turkey feaures at Thanksgiving and Christmas? Surely for festive animals, fowls, etc. they should be unique per festival. Seems unfair turkeys feature twice.

The "Christmas Ham" and "Easter Ham" are also holiday staples here in Amurka.  As a child I once asked why we celebrate the birth of a Jewish rabbi with a ham.

Just one more question met with a horrified, lingering silence...  :giggle:

Sing 'Oi vay Maria'.

We (the carnivores in my family, anyway) we thinking of going English and trying a goose for Christmas this year. (Anglos- please post goose recipes, as we have no idea.)

I don't think of Thanksgiving as a celebration of genocide, but as a celebration of the sharing nature. The red people shared dinner with the white people, after they had helped them learn how not to starve in this land that was alien to them at the time. I'm sure it took a lot of courage on the parts of both parties, just as it does today to face family members after the conflicts of the year.

I kind of like Thanksgiving, because it's just about being together. Put down the tomahawks and muskets and pass the sweet potatoes. Maybe if our pie-holes are filled with pumpkin we can have a peaceful meal together.

It's so non-commercial that it's barely a blip in the U.S. market. The stores go right from Halloween to Christmas decorations without a pause.

It's almost a secret holiday!

Hi, Opsa, here's my recipe for Christmas goose:


Roast Goose.

This needs to cooked in much the same way as roasting any bird, though it is like duck quite fatty so worthwhile cooking it on a wire tray in the roasting tin, so that the fat drips down and away from the meat.

A good strong flavoured stuffing can be used.   I like to use a mix of celery, mushrooms and apricots or apples.    Finely chop them and  mix together with breadcrumbs, sage or other herb and seasoning.    If it needs a bit of binder add some hot water.           Alternatively a couple of lemons quartered and put in the cavity will give a nice subtle flavour.    

When the goose is ready to put in the oven, prick the skin all over with a sharp fork or knife.    Scald the skin by pouring boiling water over it, and then pat dry with a paper towel before lightly powdering with some plain flour.    Put in a very hot oven for half an hour 425o F 220o C and then reduce the heat to 3500C 1800 F for a further 3 hours.
Geese are rather large 10 – 12 lbs which is the timing for this.    If larger then cook for longer [approx 15 minutes for each 1lbs].      

To test that any bird is cooked put a sharp knife or knitting needle into the breast and if the liquid that comes out is clear then it is cooked, if it is slightly cloudy then cook for longer.      

When it is fully cooked take it out of the oven, cover with silver foil or a thick tea towel and leave to stand for 15 minutes whilst you are making gravy, and finishing the rest of the meal.

I like to serve with a gooseberry sauce – boil up some gooseberries and a cooking apple, add a little sugar – it needs to be quite tart so that it cuts the fattyness of the goose.     Sieve or puree and serve cold with hot roast goose.

Have a nice Thanksgiving, everybody.


Note from David:
I hope this arrives in the right place, as the forum suddenly seems to be listing the threads backwards - i.e. last post shown on top of page 1.  Weird!

Curiouser and curiouser: threads are displayed normally on Fartbox but reversed on Chrome!  Anyway, the post is up (somewhere).

EDIT: We've now found that what is in fact happening is that when we log in as Wendy, all threads are displayed inverted, but as David all is normal.  That's why Fartbox showed normal - it logged in as D whereas Chrome was temporarily set to W.  ???  ???  ???

 :blush: :blush:
OK, I was very slow: it was a setting in Wendy's profile.  I had no idea such a thing existed. :blush: :blush:
It's still a bit odd, though - I'm sure it was OK last time she was logged in.

Quote from: pieces o nine on November 15, 2011, 02:55:57 AM
That's why I love this bit so very much!
[youtube=425,350]2VbYZDohsHk[/youtube]

:offtopic: on my part.
My favorite in that movie is this:
[youtube=425,350]buZZyUBwymA[/youtube]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buZZyUBwymA
She should have received an Oscar for that alone.

Welcome, Wendy! And thank you so very much for the recipe. I'll print it out for Mr. Ops. He'll be so pleased. :hug:

I love Wednesday Adams with all my teensy weensy shrivelled and charred pumpy heart parts!

Quote from: Griffin NoName on November 14, 2011, 11:15:17 PM
I usually go to a hotel party for the few days over Christmas, but cannot afford it any more. That means I will spend Christmas entirely alone and isolated, family all too far away, and none prepared to visit me, and friends all busy with their own families. I reckon on about a fortnight of desperation. No wonder suicides go up at Christmas.

I have the 24th and 25th off this year, L on the other hand works the 24th which is the BIG day here in Sweden... :(

I'm sad to hear that you wont be able to go to your hotel party this year, spending major holidays alone sucks, I know.

The things that make me happiest at this time of year are the lights and the fact that the ginger preserves go on sale and I can afford some to put on my bagel.

Ooh- and chocolate oranges!

^ Oink!

Hey- we don't eat them all at once!

We had pumpkin muffins for breakfast today, though!
:flyingpig: < YUMSIES!

On Thursday we had ECHO's xmas disco, which is an old tradition by now.  The disco and all their staff work for free and are brilliant with the participants.  It's such fun to see participants, carers, staff and volunteers all dancing away.  It's much too loud for Wendy and me, but we stay for an hour, chat with everyone and take photos.  Sad: the little old lady who recently tried to walk to Leominster twisted her ankle getting on the minibus, and couldn't dance.  We cheered her up a bit.

Friday was the Xmas lunch at a pub; 30 of us eating, all in Santa hats and tinsel.  The food was very slow in coming, but it just gave us more time to talk and socialise.  I love these gatherings.

I've played my Christmas with the Smurfs album every Christmas morning for the past 15 years. That always makes me smile. ;D

Update: the 2012 mass cake- and pudding making was yesterday.  Note - a posh new drill to do the stirring.

(http://i647.photobucket.com/albums/uu198/RamblingSyd/2012_bake_1.jpg)

Can you see my hearing aid?  It's in there.  ;D

Drill, David! Drill! :mrgreen:

No! I can't see it at all. But I can see a very happy crew.  :D

And much fun was had by all involved.

:)

(love the white drill cake-stirring implement)

No cannot see hearing aid. Can see ear!!

(http://i647.photobucket.com/albums/uu198/RamblingSyd/ear.jpg)

It's there, I promise.  The main bit is behind the ear: you can just make out the transparent tube running into the earhole.  ;D

No I can't, either!

Is it the slightly darker area at the top of the ear, around 11 o'clock?

Looks like a fun time!

Quote from: OpsaIs it the slightly darker area at the top of the ear, around 11 o'clock?

In that area, yes.

(http://i647.photobucket.com/albums/uu198/RamblingSyd/ear-2.jpg)

Beats the heck outta a largish, hollowed-out ram's horn, does it not?

:)

Very nifty. Although  your latest picture looks like you slipped when shaving your ear.

Of course, that's just a bad blow-up of the big photo.  If I'd got Wendy to take a proper close-up, it would be obvious. :mrgreen:

Shades of poor Vincent Van Gogh, Griffin!!!

Ohhhh, I think I can make it out, now. I was looking a little to the north of that. Wow. Quite inconspicuous, I'd say.

It's a good thing van Gogh didn't go deaf or he wouldn't have had anywhere to stick his hearing aid.  They'd have had to nail it to his head.

:ROFL:

Quote from: Sibling DavidH on October 30, 2012, 01:39:13 PM
It's a good thing van Gogh didn't go deaf or he wouldn't have had anywhere to stick his hearing aid.  They'd have had to nail it to his head.

Nails?  How barbaric!  Staples are much neater.

:o  ::)

Maybe he could have worn a headband and just let it dangle by his ear-hole.