Unsurprisingly, I’ve never hosted Christmas before. So 2011 was a first. We had a wire-sculpture little tree with some tinsel piled on top like a gold Afro, and a waxen Buddha and a picture of Channukah candles, just to even out the celebratory provenance of the day. Dave did a yellowtail braai, and Jacqui brought some utterly wonderful salmon-mascarpone pancakes which she served with a sort of Christmassy marmalade sauce. And there were salads and fruits and some plates of roast chicken. Not a gammon or turducken in sight, thankfully.
I used the opportunity to make the second of the challenge recipes for the ‘Inside the Jewish Bakery’ challenge. I’m weeks behind on it, but baking steadily away to catch up.
The florentines were delicious, but a little too floppy and finicky for my liking. My mom’s best friend has been making these things for years, so I guess I’m also just more partial to her recipe, which firms up more convincingly, and also incorporates citrus peel for a brilliant counterpoint to the nuts and chocolate. But I’m being picky, as usual. Florentines. Yum.
