Danish holiday meal

(Gerry Furth-Sides) Let’s share a meal with friends on the fourth day of day of Christmas, with our Danish friend, @tableconversation. We tried to make it worthy of her luminous xmas tree and treasure trove of holiday decorations that fill the living room.  And this simple, yet elegant and tasty meal would warm the heart of any guest all winter long.

The impromptu “fun” challenge was bringing the meal over in the pouring rain.  On the menu was a green salad, red cabbage, sausage, brussels sprouts and crunchy homemade cookies.  Greens are a must for this holiday reminding us all that spring is coming.

Our Danish holiday meal followed the classic menu of pumpernickel bread, asparagus (a treat usually reserved for spring and here Mexican grown), baby potatoes, sausage, red cabbage done in a sweet and sour manner.

The star of the meal, the potato sausage, echoed last year when I ordered one from Denmark from a Minnesota distributor. The meal was inspired by wonderfully caring and careful Huntington Meats at the Original Farmers Market. The pork sausage with Pear and Fig was irresistible among their astonishing array of handmade sausage. The “very Danish” Pork sausage with

Huntington Meats has been a favorite of our’s for decades and they have been at the market much longer than that. The careful and caring gentleman behind the counter is Head Butcher, Jon Escobedo.  He even labelled the individual sausage packages for us.

Shopping can be an experience for any meal, especially when it starts at the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles. All sorts of ethnic foods abound there, with some vendors dating back a century.I

nstead of extending the season with 12 days of Christmas as in the UK, Danish Christmas starts on December 1!  Let’s follow both!

The major celebration on Christmas Eve consists of an elaborate dinner lasting far into the night, with presents opened all through it. Roast pork, duck, boiled potatoes, red cabbage and gravy are “musts.” Risalamande rice pudding with cherry sauce is dessert, with a whole almond hidden in one, traded in for a prize or extra present. 

While we overlapped some of the Danish menu, we certainly felt the most important part of any Danish get-together: Hygge, a definable word that is the feeling of welcome, warmth, and coziness.  

‘God Jul’!

The wine Barbara chose for this was the 2012 Tempranillo-Malbec blend from Abacela in Southern Oregon’s Umpqua Valley. It was extra special because she was introduced to it during a winery tour there. Made half and half from each grape, it was bright, fresh, fruity and perfect with this Danish style holiday dinner.