Traditions are important in every family, regardless of religion or how you choose to observe the holiday season. They provide meaningful and cherished lifelong memories and more so, an opportunity to spend quality time together. Family traditions can be as simple as you make them; they can be a Christmas Eve family game night by the fire, preparing a holiday meal as a family, saying grace or even a Sunday spent together helping others at the neighborhood food bank or soup kitchen.
The holiday season is steeped in traditions. From locale to locale, state to state, and nation to nation, each has specific meals and foods that are served at holiday time. With Thanksgiving the first event of the holiday season, we go on to Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, Christmas, and Kwanzaa. New Years Day rounds out the holiday season. Making the perfect meal for these holidays can be as simple or extravagant as you wish to make them. Let’s discuss the perfect holiday meals, and ways to enjoy them to the fullest.
The Special American Traditional Holidays
Let’s look at each of these holidays, and see what a typical holiday meal would be comprised of:
- Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, comes at different times each year because it falls on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar. This translates to November-December on the Gregorian calendar. Focus on this Jewish holiday is on the lighting of the menorah. It is done during this holiday in commemoration of the re-dedication of the Temple after destruction by the Greeks. During these 8 days, after the menorah is lit, participants will feast on chicken or brisket. Latkes – potato pancakes – are a specialty during this celebration. They are traditionally served with applesauce.
- At Christmas, participants celebrate the birth of Christ. During this holiday time, many fine meals are served. For hundreds of years, goose has been the choice for the holiday meal. Although more a tradition in England, people in the United States still serve goose. Roast turkey, duck and pheasant are also served. The Smithfield ham, a special ham from Virginia, is also popular. Such things as cheese logs, Chex mix and eggnog round out this holiday season.
- Kwanzaa was established in 1966 in the midst of the Black Freedom Movement. Kwanzaa is a cultural holiday. It is practiced by Africans of all religious faiths, and was created by Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor of Africana Studies at California State University. The premise of Kwanzaa is to preserve, revitalize and promote African American culture. It is celebrated for seven days, from December 26th to January 1st. Meals served during Kwanzaa are typically of African origin. These include African vegetarian stew, Akara, a fritter made from black eyed peas, fried okra, Duro Wat, a spicy Ethiopian chicken stew, Tsebhe Sga, an Ethiopian beef stew, and Mafe, a peanut butter stew that is made throughout West Africa.
No mention of holiday meals is complete without mention of the 12-dish Christmas meal that is a big tradition in the European nations of Poland, Ukraine and Lithuania. The 12 dishes represent the 12 apostles and 12 months of the year. Because of the fast taking place, no meat, eggs or milk are allowed during the supper. Typical foods are fish, mushrooms and various grains. Herring, carp or pike are eaten, fixed various ways depending on locale.
Among the many things that form our foundation and hold us together as a family and as a society are the traditions which we hold dear. Whether happy, somber or pious, traditions help to anchor us in our daily lives and establish us as members of a unique segment of the general populace. Christmas traditions, in particular, help to identify our system of beliefs and values, as well as our heritage - right down to what we eat for dinner on that most sacred of days. While some annual holiday meals simply reflect a celebratory attitude, still others mirror a deeper understanding and appreciation of the true spirit of the season. Let's have a look at the traditional foods which people around the globe use to grace their tables as they gather to enjoy their holiday feast.
There are two traditional Christmas dinners that are enjoyed by the people of Argentina. Some of the natives typically prepare Ninos Envuettas - three inch squares of steak, filled with meat, spices, hard-boiled eggs and onions, which are rolled before cooking. Others celebrate by preparing roast peacock, garnished with some of its own vibrant feathers. These entrees are then surrounded by a variety of regional side dishes.
BRAZIL
In Brazil, the Christmas meal is quite a feast, offering large quantities of food, such as a wide variety of dishes which include fresh vegetables (including Couve a Mineira - kale, highly seasoned with garlic) and luscious fruits. Accompanying these are bowls of zesty, colorful rice and platters filled with ham and Ceia de Natal - Brazilian Christmas turkey.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Carp is the main course for Christmas dinner in the Czech Republic. To introduce the meal, fish soup is served, as well as a variety of salads. As a complement to the fish, sides which include potatoes, eggs and luscious vegetable dishes are served, and the meal is topped off with Christmas cake, heavily peppered with raisins and almonds. Rather than enjoying their feast on Christmas day, folks in the Czech Republic share their traditional holiday meal on Christmas Eve.
DENMARK
The Danish prepare a feast of succulent goose, filled with prunes and apples and draped with a luscious lingonberry sauce. This is served with roasted brown potatoes and colorful red cabbage. Preceding the entrée is rice pudding, containing a single whole almond - the lucky recipient of the almond wins a special treat at the end of the meal, often consisting of a marzipan. Like the Czechs, the folks in Denmark enjoy their holiday feast on Christmas Eve.
EGYPT
Those who celebrate Christmas in Egypt share their holiday meal well after midnight on Christmas Eve. Traditional fare consists of soup, boiled meat and rice, and is topped off by Kahk - biscuits which are sweet to the taste and decorated with a cross. The eating of Kahk, too, encompasses a separate tradition which reflects the eating of similar biscuits by the Moslems on Eid el Fitr.
GERMANY
Folks in Germany celebrate the holiday with a huge feast which begins with roast goose and breads that are laden with raisins, dried fruit, nuts and citron (known as Christstollen). Also on the table are deliciously spicy bars (Lebkuchen), Dresden Stollen (another form of fruited bread) and marzipan. Prior to this, a separate dinner takes place on Christmas Eve which includes roast pig, macaroni and white sausage.
ICELAND
As in Denmark, the people of Iceland include a tasty rice pudding with their Christmas meal, filled with raisins and a single almond. The main course consists of smoked mutton and leaf-bread (Laufabraud) - a slim, deep-fried wheat bread that's decorated with elaborate patterning. In lieu of the smoked mutton, some families feast on Rock Ptarmigan - a small winter grouse found in Iceland - which has a wonderfully gamy taste and can be fairly difficult to acquire.
ITALY
Italians celebrate the holiday with two wonderful feasts - one on Christmas Eve, the other on Christmas Day. The meal on December 24th brings a variety of seafood dishes, lentils, pasta, numerous salads and - quite often - Capitone (roast eel). Christmas Day brings the second feast, consisting of platters of regionalized Italian appetizers (salami, olives, spiced meats, etc.) and soup. For the main course, there are typically several varieties of pasta, including lasagna and tortellini, among an assortment of other shapes; and numerous meat and vegetable dishes, as well as salad. The three traditional desserts that are present at most holiday feasts are panforte (gingerbread), torrone (nougat candy) and panettone (fruitcake).
PERU
Peruvians celebrate the Christmas holiday with a feast of roast turkey, tamales and numerous types of salad. The traditional dessert is fruitcake, as in some other countries. Up until this point, folks celebrate quite heartily from the beginning of the season, and enjoy food from a plentiful number of vendors selling regional favorites through the marketplaces. The Peruvian feast isn't given the same emphasis as the Christmas meal is in other areas of the world.
POLAND
The Wigilia - traditional Polish Christmas dinner - begins with the breaking of a thin wafer (the Oplatek) by the head of the house, and is followed by a variety of dishes that are inherent to the region, as well as the more basic staples that can be found in most areas of Poland. These items include beet soup, sauerkraut and dumplings, noodles with poppy seeds, a variety of fish recipes and prune dumplings. Desserts are also abundant, and include strudel, fruit compote and a type of porridge made of grains, raisins, honey and nuts (known as Kutya).
SWEDEN
While the feasting begins on December 13th, along with the festivities, it reaches a crescendo on Christmas Eve, with a huge Christmas smorgasbord. The holiday fare consists of jellied pigs' feet, Lutfisk (cod in cream sauce), ham and porridge. Included in the yuletide celebration is the traditional Doppa I Grytan (meaning, "dipping in the kettle"), in which those who are gathered dip small hunks of dark bread in the juices of meats, such as pork, corned beef and sausage.
ZIMBABWE
Large feasts are enjoyed for the Christmas meal in Zimbabwe, and are typically prepared by a number of the women in a particular part of the community - or those who are members of a specific church. Traditional fare may include roast ox, bread with jam and porridge that's made with cornmeal. An alternative to the roast ox is goat, although some families partake of both types of meat during the holiday meal. Beverages traditionally include cups of sugared tea.
While the methods of celebration differ from country to country during the holidays, most employ a tradition which includes gathering with friends and relatives to break bread. In the spirit of the season, they enjoy a sumptuous Christmas feast containing foods that have their traditions firmly rooted within generations of family members.
Regardless of where you live, each holiday has its own traditional meals. Because we live in such a fast paced society, with both parents often working outside the home, it is often next to impossible to spend days in the kitchen preparing a holiday meal. Planning ahead is essential, and using food items that are quick and easy is the name of the game. Here, we provide information on making the holiday meal not only enjoyable, but easy on the cook and host/hostess. A meal does not have to be elaborate to be elegant. I will share a recipe for standing rib roast as an idea of elegant but not elaborate dish for your holiday meal.
A well-marbled standing rib roast with four ribs
Ingredients
sea salt
cracked black pepper
garlic powder
whole garlic cloves
meat thermometer
aluminum foil
1. Season the roast with sea salt, pepper and garlic powder. Allow to sit over night to allow the spices to permeate the meat. Keep refrigerated, then allow the meat to sit at room temperature one hour before cooking.
2. Make slits in the roast and insert slices of garlic. Dry roast in a 300-325 degree oven until desired doneness is reached. Temperatures on a meat thermometer should read: 130°F - very rare, 140°F - medium rare, 160°F - medium well done, 170°F - very well done. Remove the roast from the oven a few minutes before reaching the desired temperature. Let stand at room temperature for 2o minutes, then carve in thin slices.
3. Typically, this roast is served with the pan drippings – “Au Jus” – the juice of the meat.
A holiday meal can be easy and elegant. Take time to plan your next holiday feast, and make it as easy on yourself as possible. I hope you take the time to try this recipe if at all possible. As always in parting I say, “Let’s Eat”!
sea salt
cracked black pepper
garlic powder
whole garlic cloves
meat thermometer
aluminum foil
1. Season the roast with sea salt, pepper and garlic powder. Allow to sit over night to allow the spices to permeate the meat. Keep refrigerated, then allow the meat to sit at room temperature one hour before cooking.
2. Make slits in the roast and insert slices of garlic. Dry roast in a 300-325 degree oven until desired doneness is reached. Temperatures on a meat thermometer should read: 130°F - very rare, 140°F - medium rare, 160°F - medium well done, 170°F - very well done. Remove the roast from the oven a few minutes before reaching the desired temperature. Let stand at room temperature for 2o minutes, then carve in thin slices.
3. Typically, this roast is served with the pan drippings – “Au Jus” – the juice of the meat.
A holiday meal can be easy and elegant. Take time to plan your next holiday feast, and make it as easy on yourself as possible. I hope you take the time to try this recipe if at all possible. As always in parting I say, “Let’s Eat”!
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