Christmas Theme Dinners Part 2

Let’s start with holiday movies. Take your favorite movie and use that as a starting point. Use the time period and any mention of food in the movie to set up your menu and what the attire will be for the evening.

Holiday recipes come from all sorts of cookbooks. You may decide on a down home Christmas meal or eat dinner as the Pilgrims may have enjoyed it with pheasant instead of turkey as the main dish. Try a recipe book based on holiday songs or poems. You’ll find a lot of references to meal ideas with those.

Think back in your own family history. Maybe your family is of European, Asian or African descent. Fill the table this year with foods that reflect what would have been eaten by your family members hundreds of years ago. Research the traditional dress of the time so that everyone can look the part.

Regional themes can reflect the variety of traditions in different corners of your own country. How about a traditional New England feast or a Southwest meal? Go down south to Texas and you will find some other favorites you may not have thought to add to your Christmas meal before.

Christmas is not just about spending time together but the spiritual significance. Everyone could dress as the people did in biblical times and enjoy foods prepared as they would have been enjoyed in the New Testament around the time that Jesus was born.