Let the holidays commence!

Well the Christmas holiday has started.  After the extreme hours of the play last week, it feels surreal to be blogging in my pyjamas at 8.30 on a Monday morning!!  The drop in temperature has made it feel more festive though.  These were the ice patterns I found on the roof of the car when I ventured out on Saturday morning.

We've been to a couple of Christmas meals as well.  The one on Saturday was at a lovely old pub in a village a few miles away.  The food was fantastic and the table (which my Mum had decorated with home-made floral arrangements for each of the ladies) looked great! 

The second meal took place in Woodstock (small town to the north of Oxford) yesterday lunchtime.  This was the "Christmas meal with male in-laws" which has developed into a bit of a tradition over the last 20 years since Husband's parents separated.  To be honest, it's lovely to see father-in-law but brother-in-law always "tries my festive spirit".....! 

Mother-in-law was supposed to be coming over from Lincolnshire for the Christmas weekend but this is looking uncertain at the moment.  Basically, following blood tests related to another health issue entirely, she has been told that she has Tuberculosis.  She has had an X-ray and this will give us more details later in the week.  At the moment I'm just encouraging everyone to "Stay Calm and Carry On"!

Anyway, in my on-going search for interesting things to make/eat over the festive season, I came across this simple recipie for 'Drunken Figs'.

180g of dried figs (about 12)
185ml of port
1/2 cinnamon stick.

Combine the figs, port, cinnamon stick and 60ml of water in a small saucepan.  Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to low, then cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until the figs are soft and the liquid is soft and syupy.  Cool.

Serve with Chicken Liver Pate and thin slices of toasted crusty bread.

Another possibility for Christmas Day, I think.