Merry Christmas

Six of us assembled for our first Christmas Day celebration  - a veritable feast of slow-cooked wild venison haunch with blackberry sauce, roasties, celeraic mash, spiced red-cabbage, roast parsnips and Brussels sprouts with bacon and chestnuts. This was followed by my first ever Basque cheesecake, served with spiced figs and vanilla pears. The dessert worked out well after a minor glitch when I realised I didn't really have the right sort of tin to cook it in. It was certainly very popular - the caramel flavoured crust contrasting perfectly with the sweet, creamy interior.

The day included Christmas music (with some singing along), a friendly competition to create the best paper hat (one of the better creations modeled by Sarah in the extra - we didn't really ever choose a winner), a game of  Exquisite Corpses, a couple of games collaborative story writing and various other games. 

In the late evening we were joined by some friends whose parents had gone to bed.  I finally caved in about one o'clock  - I think our final guests left around two! A really lovely day surrounded by family and friends. And we get to do another version on Tuesday, so Lizzy and CJ can join in!