An Elegant Christmas Eve Dinner

Since long before I was born, Christmas Eve has always been a special event at Yaya and Randy's home, complete with a delicious and elegant dinner. It's been a much loved tradition for us to dress up and drive over to their home, always arriving slightly late. The table is always set with Aunt Mary's antique red stemware, and special ornaments sit by each of us girls' plates from Randy. This year, however, with Yaya in the middle of a move, Christmas Eve dinner was moved to our home.



With Christmas falling on a Sunday, there's been a flurry of early preparation for both Christmas Eve dinner and our Christmas meal (so that everything will be ready ahead of time and not interfere with Sabbath worship). And with the annual Christmas Eve dinner being at our house, we cleaned the house until it sparkled with Christmas spirit, set an elegant (if somewhat more country, reflecting Mom instead of Yaya) table, filled the house with the smell of wonderful, nutritious food, and welcomed my grandmother and her husband at our home after years of partaking of their hospitality.

Not quite the Christmas Eve we're used to, but delightful nonetheless!



*Christmas Eve Menu ~ 2011*

Appetizers:
- Candied pecans
- Cream cheese spirals
- Pepper jelly crackers

Dinner:
- Cranberry ribbon salad (a traditional, Christmas Eve must)
- Turkey with marsala sauce, garnished with parsley and candied cranberries
- Mashed potatoes and gravy
- Apple and walnut stuffing
- English pea casserole (another Christmas Eve favorite)
- Whole wheat dinner rolls

Dessert:
- Ice cream sundaes
- Assorted cookies and chocolate covered peanut butter balls