Christmas Dinner I

This is Christmas Dinner I because there is of course going to be Christmas Dinners II and III all within the next week. This is Singapore where we love our food, and we are talking about our family, which loves food even more than your average Singaporean, so there. Anyways, this was a soiree that my sister threw for friends from work and it was veritable success if we should say so ourselves. I think everyone had a great time, and I finally got to meet the people who help make my sister's otherwise crazy demanding job that much less painful, so that was nice :) A whole ton of cooking went on on Saturday though and I imagine that's the kind of effort that goes into preparing a Thanksgiving meal, except without the oversized bird. The pictures are on Flickr and here's the menu:

Smoked Salmon Tortilla Pinwheels
With Dill & Cream Cheese Dressing

Savory Meatballs
Spiced with Cumin and served with Lingonberry Sauce

German Potato Salad

Roast Chicken with Sausages and Sage

Spiced Saffron Basmati Rice
With raisins and almonds

Seafood Stew
In an olive-basil marinara sauce

Honey Baked Ham

Parmesan Creamed Spinach

Hearty Baked Mushrooms
In balsamic vinegar and olive oil

Assorted Pastries

Oh, we also played Cranium, and Sam and I totally rocked! Considering I was jetlagged and she was the youngest in the group, we were definitely at a distinctive disadvantage. But nooo, 12 year-old or not, that girl spelled "jettison" with great aplomb and confidence (despite never having heard the word before in her life), managed to decipher my terrble humming of K.C. & the Sunshine Band's "That's the Way Uh-Huh Uh-Huh I Like It" (even though she didn't know the title- which were the only lyrics she knew anyway), and guessed my sculpting of a turtle even before I could shape its head. Someone say Dynamic Duo??!!