As a reward(?) for having been overseas for the last 6 years, 2006 was the year that Tom & Rachelle got to host Christmas lunch. So exciting was the prospect, that 21 family members signed up to come for lunch with an additional 3 for the evening. How were we to cope in a 2 bedroom bungalow with 21 people on a day forecast to have rain and 16C in Melbourne, and with snow in the mountains (this is after having 42.5C only a few days earlier mind you)? It could have been done with a detailed plan and timetable orchestrated to perfection, but then we could also choose the other option and "wing it"... which is of course what we did.
After being badgered by the sisters in law & others for "what do you want us to bring, Christmas is only 6 weeks away", a few essentials like the ham, trifle, rocky road and icecream pudding were delegated to various parties. More worrying than what we were going to eat was "where are we going to sit?" and "what happens if it rains?". For the latter I didn't worry too much despite it always being a distinct possibility that it could rain or snow in Melbourne the day after being 42.5 degrees, mainly due to the fact that every time in the last six months that rain was forecast we got a rumble of thunder, 3 drops of rain and the the clouds passed over and the sun came out... this would happen on Christmas day too, right?!
On to the seats... and tables... well a brainwave struck and we thought a couple of trestle tables in the back garden would do the job just fine, and with Tom's mum's connections at St Mary's, surely we could get a couple of tables from the hall and some chairs too. Well this turned out to be no problem at all. With nice white tablecloths from Margaret promised, the plan was working well.
A moment of panic hit when I realised that I was going to be out of the country for a week prior to Christmas, with only a few days to prepare, and do all the shopping (not to mention all the year end stuff at work... a pretty busy time for the Finance team). So I had to get the menu and shopping list sorted. No problem for sweets - all these wonderful ideas in the Delicious magazines and I'm sure with the help of Claire and Justine we can make them all. Then I settled on the mains - Italian Roast Pork (a la Jamie Oliver), Salmon fillet on the barbie plus lots of interesting salads...but then I realised that Claire doesn't eat Pork or Fish - she'll have to have Ham... or maybe we could do a rolled turkey roast too... yes let's do Turkey as well. And then the starters would be a choice of Mackerel Pate or Ham & Goat's cheese salad. And the whole house to be decorated with blue and silver theme.
Well in the end it turned out pretty well... considering it did actually rain... quite a lot. Also we forgot to serve the Ham until late in the evening for Tom's Ham and cheese toasties. So for those who are interested, the final menu was:
After being badgered by the sisters in law & others for "what do you want us to bring, Christmas is only 6 weeks away", a few essentials like the ham, trifle, rocky road and icecream pudding were delegated to various parties. More worrying than what we were going to eat was "where are we going to sit?" and "what happens if it rains?". For the latter I didn't worry too much despite it always being a distinct possibility that it could rain or snow in Melbourne the day after being 42.5 degrees, mainly due to the fact that every time in the last six months that rain was forecast we got a rumble of thunder, 3 drops of rain and the the clouds passed over and the sun came out... this would happen on Christmas day too, right?!
On to the seats... and tables... well a brainwave struck and we thought a couple of trestle tables in the back garden would do the job just fine, and with Tom's mum's connections at St Mary's, surely we could get a couple of tables from the hall and some chairs too. Well this turned out to be no problem at all. With nice white tablecloths from Margaret promised, the plan was working well.
A moment of panic hit when I realised that I was going to be out of the country for a week prior to Christmas, with only a few days to prepare, and do all the shopping (not to mention all the year end stuff at work... a pretty busy time for the Finance team). So I had to get the menu and shopping list sorted. No problem for sweets - all these wonderful ideas in the Delicious magazines and I'm sure with the help of Claire and Justine we can make them all. Then I settled on the mains - Italian Roast Pork (a la Jamie Oliver), Salmon fillet on the barbie plus lots of interesting salads...but then I realised that Claire doesn't eat Pork or Fish - she'll have to have Ham... or maybe we could do a rolled turkey roast too... yes let's do Turkey as well. And then the starters would be a choice of Mackerel Pate or Ham & Goat's cheese salad. And the whole house to be decorated with blue and silver theme.
Well in the end it turned out pretty well... considering it did actually rain... quite a lot. Also we forgot to serve the Ham until late in the evening for Tom's Ham and cheese toasties. So for those who are interested, the final menu was:
Appetisers
Blinis topped with Tasmanian smoked salmon, cream cheese and dill
Basil & Cashew dip with biscuits
Champagne (and Aussie sparkling) with/without strawberry schnapps
Starters
Smoked Mackerel Pate with cress salad and sourdough toast
or
Chicory and mixed leaf salad with Prosciutto and grilled goats cheese
Mains
Porchetta seasoned with Fennel and Chilli (Italian style Roast Pork a la Jamie Oliver)
Barbecued Salmon Fillet with lemon and dill
Roasted Turkey Fillet with cranberry
Leg Ham
accompanied by
Butter bean pepper and goats cheese salad
Tomato, Bocconcini and basil salad with balsamic dressing
Rocket and Spinach salad
Red cabbage, apple and walnut salad
Tom's spuds
and a variety of condiments including Tomato Relish, Chutney, Apple and Cranberry sauce (but no gravy!)
Dessert
Nora's Christmas pudding
Catherine's Midori trifle
Margaret's pudding ice cream
Marie's Christmas cake
Mini cheesecakes with cranberry fruitmince topping
Homemade chocolate truffles
Teresa's Rocky Road
Fruit & Cheese platter
Justine's Bayerisher shortbread
Gingerbread hearts & stars
+ more
1 comment:
And a great day it was too! A very sucessful Christmas day.
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