I was so lucky to be joined for Christmas in Dresden by my friends Rita (from L.A.) and Craig and Brad (Cranny) from Rockhampton (and the Contiki tour). We had a fantastic day celebrating together and I was very proud to cook my first Christmas meal ever. Of course, it wasn´t a very traditional Christmas lunch as my apartment only has a stovetop with 2 burners and a microwave, but under the circumstances, I think I did pretty well!
The lead up to Christmas was pretty intense. So many people in the Christmas market and then everything closed (even McDonalds!) from 2pm on Christmas Eve. I think the restaurant I work in was one of the only places in the whole city open that night because that is the traditional time for German families to exchange gifts. Most stores were also closed for the 25th and 26th - certainly very different from at home with the rush of last minute shopping and then the start of the sales!
Rita brought a Christmas tree with her and a DVD fireplace (pictured above) to make the house look festive and the first part of the meal was laid out around the tree (pictured below) - lots of yummy German sausages and cheeses, dried fruits and nuts, dips, and apple chips - all from the nearby Christmas markets. Veuve Cliquot is quite cheap here (at least compared with home) so there was a bottle of good champagne to start off!
While eating, we played a gift swapping game using a deck of cards so everyone got 1 gift and 1 lucky person got 2 (depending on the cards! Lucky Rita!) Though these games have sometimes ended in tears, everyone was pretty happy with what they ended up with (lucky Cranny got the Natacha CD I bought at the concert in Lucerne - the dubious Swiss pop singer. I got some sleigh bells and a wooden puzzle - there are the sleigh bells you asked about Katie!)
Second course was soup. Lack of food processor meant it was a tinned Potato soup which was surprisingly thick and tasty! A good time to start on the red wine too...
For 3rd course, Rita had brought along some Christmas shaped pasta which we cooked up and added a pesto sauce. They were very cute santas and snowmen... almost felt guilty eating them! More red wine of course.
Main course was the most ambitious given the cooking limitations. Pork steaks with gravy, mashed potatoes and beans. Everything seemed to come together (though maybe we should call them smashed rather than mashed potatoes) though it was possibly the latest christmas lunch ever... no sense in rushing all this food though - and I didn´t have to work that night, so we could take our time and enjoy the food wine and company. More red wine, and starting on the absinthe and vodka by now...
Last, but not least, was the Chocolate pudding to finish the meal. Very wisely, this was also the course requiring the least preparation (after all that wine!) - prepackaged pudding with plastic spoons. Surprisingly tasty, though! I didn´t even manage to open the dessert wine that was in the fridge...
Overall, a fantastic day, despite the failed attempts to use Skype to call friends and family back in Australia (definitely need a better net connection next time...). It was so great to have company and I really appreciated all the visits, cards and emails!
I hope everyone back home had a great Christmas. All of my thoughts for the New Ýear!
posted by rovert74 at 4:49 PM
2 Comments:
Glad your Christmas Day was a fun one, as it must be hard being a long way from Oz! Our New Year was spent with one of your St K's fans, Maxine White, mother of Alexander, who asked me to tell you that she misses you so much at St K's, and though your replacement is very good, he just doesn't have that eclectic charm you brought to the St K's choirs and music!! She did wistfully ask if you were coming back.....I let her down gently on that one!
3:05 AM
Hi! For those who read the comments ... This is Trevor's friend Rita and I'd just like to second that Christmas was fantastic! Trevor's talents seem endless ... whether it's his music, photography, writing ... even his ability to make people feel at home in a bar when he performs ... the boy's got chops! It was a brave lad who faced creating so lavish a feast with so few resources and he did an amazing job, all the while making his guests feel welcome and content. Every course was a delicious success. Just think of what the guy could do in a proper setting! I think that, next time he's at someone's home for a visit, they should strap an apron on him to see what he can do in a real kitchen! I know I plan to do that when he comes to visit me. Anyway, thanks for a faboo Christmas, Trev - you're a bigger prince than any of those old Saxons on that wall, and you don't need to get bitten to prove it!
1:21 PM
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