Need some ideas for Christmas Dinner

Miscellaneous
48

The French really do know how to cook, and eat. It’s a group activity, designed to take time. Enjoy the food, enjoy the company, etc type of thing.

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49

The first major cookbook in English giving household recipes set out in 1660 ‘A Bill of Fare for Christmas Day’:

Oysters.

  1. A collar of brawn.
  2. Stewed Broth of Mutton marrow bones.
  3. A grand Sallet.
  4. A pottage of caponets.
  5. A breast of veal in stofado.
  6. A boil’d partridge.
  7. A chine of beef, or surloin roast.
  8. Minced pies.
  9. A Jegote [gigot] of mutton with anchove sauce.
  10. A made dish of sweetbread.
  11. A swan roast.
  12. A pasty of venison.
  13. A kid with a pudding in his belly.
  14. A steak pie.
  15. A haunch of venison roasted.
  16. A turkey roast and stuck with cloves.
  17. A made dish of chickens in puff paste.
  18. Two bran geese roasted, one larded.
  19. Two large capons, one larded.
  20. A custard.

The second course for the same Mess.
Oranges and Lemonds.

  1. A young lamb or kid.
  2. Two couple of rabbits, two larded.
  3. A pig souc’t with tongues.
  4. Three ducks, one larded.
  5. Three pheasants, 1 larded.
  6. A Swan Pye.
  7. Three brace of partridge, three larded.
  8. Made dish in puff paste.
  9. Bolonia sausages, and anchovies, mushrooms, and Cavieate, and pickled oysters in a dish.
  10. Six teels, three larded.
  11. A Gammon of Westphalia Bacon.
  12. Ten plovers, five larded.
  13. A quince pye, or warden pie.
  14. Six woodcocks, 3 larded.
  15. A standing Tart in puff paste, preserved fruits, Pippins, &c.
  16. A dish of Larks.
  17. Six dried neats [ox] tongues.
  18. Sturgeon.
  19. Powdered Geese. Jellies.

Christmas: A Biography, by Judith Flanders

I’m trying to understand what larded meat is, but I probably don’t really want to know.

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50

I’ve got an idea, well, 2 ideas of larded meat. One has to do with the old idea of a larder or pantry. The other, I think, may have to do with untrimmed meat or adding fat scraps for juiciness. If the former, yuck. If the latter, I at least understand.

edit: found a link talking about larding meat.

What Does Larding Mean in the Culinary Arts? (thespruceeats.com)

52

Not hard, just use pork fat back. I can see how easily it can be done.

54

Nothing that I don’t call myself :laughing:

55

Just buy a well marbled New York or rib roast and have that.

You’re welcome. :wink:

56

And people wonder why life expectancy rates were so low back then.

57

To get slightly serious, the wife and I talked about the Covid-era inflation on meat prices. Her being a mostly vegetarian (flexitarian) she’s happy at the prospect we’ll eat less meat because it will be healthier for everyone. If our meat industry collapses (probably not yet) larding cheap pieces of meat might become a thing again.

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59

R. I. P. RockerUte

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60

We used to allways do fondue Christmas Eve (both cheese and oil/meat) and then, on Christmas Day a big roast beast.

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61

I’m a mushroom fan. I like them generally, especially sautéed in butter with a bit of garlic.

We decided to simplify our Christmas Eve meal. Three family members made their favorite soup and we had special rolls with the soup. We
like Martinelli’s-type drinks (teetotalers) so we had several varieties available. Two types of excellent homemade pie (pumpkin and apple) for dessert. Then on to open a gift or two for each of us and lots of fun reminiscences. We had a great time, the food was delicious and low-stress. I think we’ll keep doing Christmas Eve this way.

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We did Chinese hotpot.

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New Golden Dragon