Plink, Plonk, Fizz

“Here we come a-wassailing amongst the leaves so green, here we come a wandering so far to be seen”

How many of us have sung that Christmas carol without knowing what it means, or even wondering? To wassail is old English meaning good health and in ancient times villagers would gather in the village to eat on hot cakes and cider and then visit the orchard and toast the apple trees for good luck the following year. 

Often a cake soaked in cider would be placed in the fork of the trees and more cider poured over it in hope for a bountiful crop. The best part of the night is the wassail bowl in which large quantities of cider, brandy, ale and spices are placed and then heated. Everyone would then drink from the bowl with the children and women singing songs and the men firing guns to ward of evil spirits. Some parts of Herefordshire and the West Country in the UK still carry out this ancient tradition but usually without the guns.

Other countries also have their traditional Christmas drinks and here is just a few of them. See how many you can tick off you list of having tried. Add a point if you have had them in their country of origin.

Eggnog – UK, particularly East Anglia.

This is often thought to have originated in Belgium or Holland and made from advocaat but the earliest records show it to be from the UK and made from milk, raw eggs, sugar, nutmeg and spices to which alcohol is added, typically brandy, whisky or rum. It should be served hot more often is served chilled.

Cola De mono – Chile

Very similar to Eggnog this is arguardiente (firewater), rum, boiled milk and anis

Posset – Scotland

This drink goes back to the 14^th or 15^th century and is made from hot milk, honey, nutmeg, oatmeal, salt and whisky

Gluhwein – most of Central Europe

This is normally heated red wine with spices added, very often clove or nutmeg and nearly every country in Central Europe has its own variant. In Scandinavian countries it is called Glogg

Julmust – Sweden

A non alcoholic drink that can normally only be found at Christmas although sometimes also at Easter. It was invented in 1910 and it is rumored that only 1 person knows the full recipe. During the Christmas period Julmust outsells Coca Cola and represents 50% of all non-alcoholic drinks consumed over Christmas.

A number of countries, Belgium and Germany in particular brew special Christmas ales that are frequently a lot stronger than their normal fare and these can often be full of flavour and bring on the feeling of Christmas very quickly so be warned. For something different try a fruit beer this Christmas.

Wine has always been a traditional accompaniment to festive dinners and Christmas is no exception so why not treat your self to a special wine this year. A really good Burgundy goes well with the dinner or possibly a Chablis if you prefer white. Take a vintage port with the cheese at the end of the meal.

Champagne has been associated with celebrations of all kinds for centuries and makes for a magnificent start to the Christmas dinner. What many do not know is that it also goes very well with white meats, particularly turkey given that it is often mainly Chardonnay grape. There are a number of very good champagne style wines that mimic champagne but you cannot beat the right thing for Christmas.

Whatever you choose this Christmas do it in the company of friends and raise a glass to their health.

To gobble or not to gobble, that is the question.

“Tis the season to be jolly” so the carol goes but not if you are one of the 15m turkeys in the UK or 22m in the USA that will be consumed on Christmas Day this year.

This means that 1 in 3 people in the UK will consume a traditional turkey dinner this Christmas making it the highest percentage in the world. Accompanying the turkey will be a host of vegetables depending on where you come from in the world but in the UK it would traditionally be served with roast potatoes, carrots, parsnip, peas and brussel sprouts. Sauces accompanying the turkey include gravy, cranberry sauces and bread sauce.

There are over a dozen different species of turkey but the most popular is the white breasted that was genetically created over 50 years ago to give the most meat and therefore better value. More traditional species are smaller but have much more taste and are growing in popularity.

It is not sure when turkey became the main meat for Christmas in the West as goose was very popular in the UK during the 19^th century and villages often saw turkeys and geese being escorted to market wearing little booties. The first turkey was thought to have been brought to the UK in 1526 by William Strickland, a Yorkshireman

Turkey was also the first meal eaten on the moon by Neal Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, not a bad feat for an animal that in most variants cannot fly.

It is also a good job that Ben Franklin did not get his own way as he thought that the turkey should be the national bird of America and not the bald eagle…….

Resident turkeys in countries such as on a beachfront apartment in Australia, Poland, Lithuania and the Ukraine have a much better view of Christmas as many people in these countries celebrate Christmas with a 12 dish Christmas Eve Supper said to represent the 12 months of the year or the 12 apostles. No meat, egg or milk dishes may be served so the turkeys get to see Christmas day to.

Other meats popular around the world to celebrate Christmas include pork, lamb and various species of fish

Personally speaking Christmas just isn't Christmas without turkey although a bar b que on a quiet beach on a tropical island with plenty of cocktails is starting to come very close. Chances are that I may have the opportunity to do both this year.

Merry Christmas and an alcoholic New Year to all

It’s a Fowl world

I recently attended a gourmet dinner where they match the wines with the food rather than the other way around which is the more common, and easier.

The whole dinner was superb and a great example where the right wines can greatly improve a dish. It was also a first for a couple of the meats that we had.

Although I have eaten all around the world and attended numerous gourmet dinners I had never eaten Frogs Legs before the other night and had often wondered what they tasted like. I was once told they were a bit like a fishy chicken which in itself made me wondered what on earth a fishy chicken tasted like and how it would get that way.

Then it occurred to me that we often compare things to chicken – snake was described to me as being a little like chicken and having eaten it I would have to agree if you only eat bland chickens.

We also had rabbit at the dinner which was once described to me as little like chicken. At this point I knew that some people needed to experience more foods as rabbit is nothing like chicken.

The chicken that is served in the Western world is often bland and unappetizing so it can be hardly surprising that anything bland is similarly compared. If you have been fortunate enough to have eaten chicken in Africa or in Asia that has been free range you will know that it is full of flavours and should not be compared with bland meats.

I wonder if when meting someone who had never eaten chicken, should such a person exist, but had instead grown up eating frogs would his friends tell him chicken tasted similar to frogs?

What did they frogs taste like? Well they were a little salty but that may have been due to the preparation – served in a puff pastry case they were very pleasant although may have been better with a crams sauce. Definitely something to be repeated.

A stranger meat that we had that night, again for the first time for many of us, was Sweetbreads. These are the thymus, or throat glands, in our instance from calves and to be frank were one of the strangest meats I have ever eaten. Very bland in flavour and having virtually no consistency due to having been soaked in milk before frying I found them to be particularly unappetizing. I trouble to see what all the fuss is about when it comes to these meats.

One rumor was dispelled that night in that Sweetbreads are not usually gonads, or balls, as many of us had thought. Although they can be these are more commonly called Rocky Mountain Oysters – another delicacy to look forward to.

When is it cool to be hot......

After looking in to the origins of Hamburgers I thought I would turn my attention to that other snack favorite the Hot Dog.

The Hot Dog is synonymous with Americans and in particular with baseball where it is almost a national requirement to have a Hot Dog when watching a match. There are an estimated 21m Hot Dogs eaten each year at the games and have been served at baseball games since 1893.

Unlike burgers the origins of hot dogs are more certain although the actual dates of the first hot dog are still clouded in mystery with estimates going between the 13^th century and the late 19^th century. What is certain is that they originated in Germany – Frankfurters from Frankfurt and Weiners from Vienna.

The meat content of a hot dog is pork or beef although cheaper hot dogs are often made from chicken or turkey. A range of condiments can be added in the making process and regional variations include paprika, peppers, salt and even potato. Unlike other types of sausages frankfurters and wieners are cooked by boiling and a precooked before selling and then simply reheated. Really good Hot Dogs are served in Skins, sheep intestines originally and the flavor rush is great as you bite through the skin. Grilled or boiled everyone has their favorite way of serving them. There are even now hot dog toasters to make life easier.

One of the best hot dogs I have ever had was in Melbourne, Australia where the hot dog was served hot out of a street vendor’s stall and topped with chili con carne and cheese -  a meal in its own right instead of a snack as is normally the case.

When the name Hot Dog was first coined it was thought that the content was wild street dogs and it took several years to allay this rumor. The spread of the Hot Dog world wide followed the inward migration of German immigrants into America and the following of popular American culture by other countries around the world.

I still remember a Saturday morning treat was to watch the Children’s time movie reel whilst munching on a Hot Dog. I wonder what taste could it be when combine a hot dog with a Trdelnik roll, the most popular pastry in Prague. The taste must have been like heaven, like relaxing in a gorgeous spa.

A little known fact is that the first words spoken by Mickey Mouse in a movie were “Hot Dog” – a far cry from the “mama” that most people utter as their first intelligible word.

Now off to investigate the origins of Pizza – I sense this could be a cause of a lot of argument and conjecture…..

A Bugger of a Burger

A friend and I recently dropped into a local restaurant for something to eat after a round of golf, having just return from his vacation in Barbados. Perusing through the menu my friend selected the burger and I one of the rice dishes. After one of those waits where you are sure the kitchen has been out hunting down the cow to make the burger or to grow the rice the food arrived – or what passed for the food.

Looking at my friend’s burger reminded me of the old joke of a diner when asked “how did you find the steak sir” replied “I lifted a chip and there it was”

This burger was tiny – so small in fact that if it had not been for the bun you could have swallowed it whole. Ironically enough I was at a party later that day and the hotel were serving mini burgers in a bun. These were at least 20% larger than the “proper” burger my friend had been served earlier.

As you would expect a discussion on the merits of various burgers around the world ensued – both of us have travelled a fair bit and consensus of opinion was that nothing beats a proper home-made burger with a reasonable amount of local herbs and spices. We spent no more than 30 seconds on the topic of commercial chain burgers other than to agree there were packed full of salt and on the whole disgusting.

What came as  a surprise when doing some research was when burgers first came into existence – there is no true accurate recording of when the first burger was made as every country lays claim to this. The most 

popular theory is that they were invented by chance by one Charlie Nagreen from Seymour Wisconsin who was selling meatballs at local County Fairs in 1885 and discovered that they were too hard to eat and walk at the same time – with a spark of imagination he squashed a meatball flat and put it between 2 pieces of bread….. and so history was made.

Another popular theory, although totally incorrect was that they were first invented in Hamburg Germany so giving the product its name. Some even believe that the burger comes from when the Mongols under Ghengis Khan invaded Europe and were eating raw meat tenderized under their saddles.

Whatever its origins the hamburger is here to stay and part of many peoples staple diet.

Now I wonder where Hot Dogs came from……..