The Christmas Chronicles by Nigel Slater. Read Along Thread 2022 PART 2

[LillianGish]

A continuation of the brilliant thread started by @Dillidilly who I hope is still lurking somewhere and reading along

We can't get our tree till DS gets back from uni on Friday either as we go to a Christmas tree farm and he always cuts it for us. Hoping there will be some left.

Well, DD and I decided to follow in Nigels footsteps this evening as we were in London and look at the windows of Fortnum and Mason. They were very simply done but the upper floors were lit up as an Advent calendar which was wow. Not sure what Nigel would have made of the fact that Picadilly was jammed with cars tooting their horns and flying Moroccan flags after their World Cup win but it was a great atmosphere.

👋

I still haven’t caught up. Hoping to have a leisurely morning tomorrow and will read the last few chapters (7 onwards). However I can see that I’m happily in sync with Nigel, as we went on our tree hunt today!

Hope you all are well and enjoying the season. 🎄🎄🎄

@Ihavedogs very impressive, managing to keep your tree alive for so long! A small nursery local to us has a Christmas tree farm and we get ours from there, as do our neighbours. We all go there in November to choose our tree. I love wandering around the plantation looking for the perfect one. When you've found it, you tie a label to it with your name and phone number. Then we go home and all have hot chocolate together. We phone the nursery up a couple of days before we want the tree and it is cut on the morning of the day you've said you'll collect it. Monday is our collection day!

How special is that, @Confusedmeanderings !

It's carole service this morning. Basically the 12 lessons and carols, but shorter and with the male voice choir singing.

And an afternoon finishing decorating and then tidying up.

11 December
Decorating the tree and a lamb roast
Beautiful photos of Nigel's tree in this chapter and some wonderful pin-sharp memories of decorating it - tinged with real sadness. The older I get, the more there is a bitter sweetness to Christmas festivities - remembering the people who are no longer with us, people we have celebrated wonderful Christmases with in the past. But Nigel was shockingly young when he lost his mum! I particularly like this line: "If I hadn't collected decorations for years, I would use nothing more than white lights, no balls no lanterns no ribbons." This thought flashes through my mind every year when the tree has just been installed and strung with fairy lights, but there is no more evocative memories box than my bag of Christmas tree decorations - collected from place to place over the years. That's why my kids always want to be there for the tree decorating and why I'm glad my own mum still waits for me to decorate her tree.

Our Christmas tree farm no longer allows you to reserve trees by tagging, its really annoying. I take Nigel's point about lights being enough but it would look a bit dull during the day with no baubles. We can't put ours in the window either but we you can see it at the back of the room from the street.

@Confusedmeanderings I have has lots of tree failures over the years, but have struck lucky with this one. I do love the act of going to get a real tree, although Fraser Firs are somewhat limited and not sold everywhere. Our local garden centre grows their own trees but they are only available to purchase there rather than at the farm.

Moving to today, was it only me filled with horror at the suggestion of laying out baubles on the floor? That would be a recipe for disaster here.

Once again I am loving the thought of the butter beans and spinach, although DH is not a fan of beans, especially butter beans, whereas I love them.

Ah @Ihavedogs, lovely that you’ve had your tree for so long.

@picklemewalnuts it sounds wonderful! I absolutely love being able to take a little peek into others’ homes at Christmas time.

I have put the tree in our bay window this year (didn’t last year although I can’t remember why not!), hung the lights and added a few ornaments, and already everything feels just that little bit more magical. I’ll finish decorating it today, and will also hang our string of lights along the fence.

I really like the notion of generosity toward others with decorations/lights/trees - I know that being able to appreciate others’ beautiful creations, right the way from modest to quite spectacular, is one of my favourite things about the season. It brings so much cheer, and also a feeling of connectedness.

Last year I made the stuffed duck recipe but I used legs instead as I already had them in the freezer. I just put the stuffing in a small roasting dish and laid the legs on top, then made sure to baste often with duck fat. It turned out very nice.

I loved reading about Ris a la Mande and the traditions around it. Ironically it wasn’t our Christmas pudding at home (my grandmother served Vienetta!). But I’ve had it from time to time of course. I also make it once in a while at Christmas (we have two branches of my ILs over for a Danish Christmas every January), and this year I’ve got two little chocolate and marzipan pigs coming - IF the order gets here in time, to give as prizes.

My favourite Danish Christmas treat is Æbleskiver - a small spherical, doughnut/pancake. Beautiful little pillows of loveliness, served with jam and sugar, alongside gløgg (sweet mulled wine). You make them in a special pan and last year DH got me a cast iron one for my birthday so I can make them whenever I want, for life! Very nostalgic, and delicious too.

Reading about cards is very nostalgic too - I still have all the letters and cards my grandmother sent to me over the years. Christmas correspondence would be franked with special ‘Julemærket’ stamps sold to support Children’s homes. Many people in Denmark buy these for use in December. This year’s edition pictured (showing Fredensborg Castle, the Royal Palace situated in the small town my grandparents lived in, one of my favourite places on earth and a real happy place for me). ‘Daisy,’ Queen of Denmark, has designed the artwork for the stamps on several occasions.

My grandfather died when he was just about to retire, in the same week my first daughter was born (the circle of life illustrated quite keenly 😔), so most of my adult life my grandmother was on her own, that’s why I mention her more.

I’m sitting next to the tree just now, and the smell is wonderful.

My great uncle's wife was Danish and I always loved going to their house - it seemed so "exotic". Lots of lovely food and a flag pole with the Danish flag in the garden. 🇩🇰 Ironically, the Christmas stamps come out too late here to use them for international Christmas cards. The post is so slow nowadays.

Just made first batch of mince pies with my homemade mincemeat. Thanks for all those Danish reminiscences @TangledWebofMincemeatDeception. I love hearing about other people’s traditions.

@Swissnotswiss I have a little table-top Danish flag that I use for significant events (birthdays, Christmas, celebrations of any kind, really).

@LillianGish I’ll write some more! All about our Christmas with grandparents, the food, traditions, customs and my favourite memories. Just have to get the business of the day sorted first. 🎄🎄🎄Your mince pies look beautiful and I’m sure they taste divine too. We haven’t made any yet! Have to bake, and eat our way through, the lussekatte for St. Lucia’s day (Dec 13th) first!

Lots of lovely memories you're sharing, thank you all!

<waves to @crackersforcrackers> welcome!

I'm a bit tired so won't do the beans and spinach today. I'll save it for later in the week. We're having chicken with butternut squash and roasties, all sprinkled with some bbq seasoning that's been hanging about. Fast and easy!

Decs are nearly done. DH is from the 'get it out, throw it up, get it cleared away' school, whereas I like to take my time and tweak.

Here's the tree-

Oh how gorgeous!! Love seeing others’ trees.

Here’s a peek at mine. It’s not done yet, lots of bare spots to fill; but I’m done for tonight. Beef is in the oven to make steak and ale pudding for dinner, and I’m relaxing with a cup of tea. The third advent candle is lit and I’ve got Carols from King’s playing.

Bliss.

Oh...forgot the peek!

Oh lovely, Tangled! Some beautiful ornaments! I don't have much tasteful- it's all things my mum has discarded over the years. I can get it to tie together with ribbons and serious restrictions on colour

I buy a lot of gift ribbon, it looks great! I've barely used any this year, but I've got more to do.

Here’s our tree - not at all Nigel but I like it!

@LillianGish i just read your comment about the tree hunt on previous page. Lovely! I really like the perfect imperfection of a natural tree, and I loved reading about your various unloved/unwanted/unappreciated trees over the years. You’re right - once it’s inside, trimmed and lit up, every single tree becomes perfectly beautiful, however small or wonky or otherwise imperfect it might have started out. ❤️

Lovely variety, Chessie! Lots of individual ornaments. I'm starting to use them more.

I LOVE seeing all your trees. Thanks for posting - will post mine when its up.

Nigel has just this moment put his tree on Instagram!

Nigel’s tree is much classier than mine!

I had a lovely chat with a new guy at church- we have nigel in common ! Can't remember how it came up, but it was great to find something to chat about so easily!

12 December
A fine and fruity chutney

DH has just rejected the recycled Woodland Trust Christmas cards we carefully chose last time we were back in the UK on the grounds that "my fountain pen won't write on them!" He was entirely bemused when I pointed out that this was an excuse worthy of Nigel Slater. I have now commandeered them for my NVN biro. Actually I think he's a bit late in sending in them in view of the postal strikes - he clearly hasn't seen the note: "It's better not to send a card than to send one that arrives in the flat days after Christmas"
Thank you all for being here so I can share this anecdote - no-one in RL would know what I was talking about