Dinner is Served
Your starter, sir. Egg mayonnaise, cock a leekie soup, oysters, salmon mousse or snails glazed with butter. Which would you prefer? Fishing is my trade, it pays enough for one meal a day. The main course, sir? Roast turkey with cranberry sauce, plaice baked in white wine, cream and rosemary or a succulent half-pound steak. We buy beans and spices to flavour the rice. For dessert, Christmas pudding or pears baked in red wine. And to follow, biscuits with Camembert Stilton or Brie, and a glass of port. We can't afford dried milk so our baby will die. To finish, an Irish whisky, peppermint creams and petit fois. Or would you prefer a brandy? Relax sir, with your cigar. by Mary Palmer
Christmas Dinner
Lifting a sprout to my mouth, there was a moment when I paused as if struck by a random thought. The sight of cranberry sauce, of turkey and all the rest; the smells that rose steaming, from the mulled wine, potatoes, chestnut stuffing; the sound of merrymaking - the pulling of crackers, reading of silly jokes, laughter and argument - all the noise of the party, they all drove away the moment before the thought was nurtured and I plunged into excess again. by Mike Daniels
Roast Turkey with Stuffing and Gravy Cock a leekie Soup Salmon Mousse