I didn't like the drive one bit, but it was very much worth it!
So nice to finally have christmas with family again after two covid years.

Very odd to see my cousins youngest suddenly grown into a very nice teenager, deep voice and all.
Their oldest has changed into a grown up at almost 18 years old, and just as nice as his younger brother.
You want to know it all?

I'll try!

I have no idea how my 80 year old uncle manages to do this every year, I think it's absolutely amazing!
Completely relaxed in the open kitchen too, chatting away with everyone while getting all dishes ready at the right time.
First starter: Very traditional christmas thing, real hot in the seventies and still a part of our christmas dinner every year.
Puff pastry filled with a ragoût, chicken this year.
Filling plus a bite from the pastry for me, rest of the pastry for my dogs.
Family completely fine with this, they've seen me struggle with my diabetes before.
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Second starter (made by cousin) we had to assemble ourselves to accomodate personal preference.
Very thinly sliced stewed pears, a variation on another christmas classic. I don't know if this is a thing in the UK, but you stew special stewing pears with portwine. Usually they are served whole with the main dish but somethimes they're used in desserts.
This pear 'carpaccio' was perfect for me, the thin slices meant not too many carbs.

Came with a balsamic dressing, arugola, blue cheese and walnuts.
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OK, here goes:
- Broccoli.
- Peas.
- Green beans.
- White wine sauce to go with the veggies.
- Salad with egg, salmon, cherry tomatoes, avocado, feta, arugola, assembled by yours truly under direction of my uncle.
- A Thai diced potato and peas dish, very nice, had a single dice and some peas.
- Thinly sliced potatoes, had a single slice.
- A sauerkraut dish. Very tasty, and the dish I blame for going slightly higher than expected. Who would expect dates and cranberries in their sauerkraut!
- Pumpkin purée. Yuck! I tried it because my cousin called out how good it tasted. Confirmed I really dislike pumpkins so strongly that I involuntarily made a rather rude face upon tasting, which everyone thought was hilarious.

- Red onions, yum!
- More pears, some cooked with portwine and some with water, giving them a very pretty red and white look. Didn't have them.
- Snow peas.
- Chicory and cheese casserole, had a lot of that!

- Leg of lamb.
- Rollade. (A rolled up cut of pork. In this case the pork was local wild boar.)
- Red wine sauce to go with the meat.
- Celeriac and potato mash.
- Stewed mushrooms
Everything (except for the pumpkin

) was delicious, and it was very easy to keep the carbs down to a sensible amount (except for the sauerkraut surprise.)
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Dessert:
A white chocolate pudding with a layer of raspberry jelly in the middle, sprayed with golden glitter spray and sprinkled with pink sugar.
This one made by my cousin again.
I had two raspberries and two small bites, very good pudding!
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Nailed it!
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