What is the most unusual dish traditionally served at your family's holiday meal?

[muffinmom]

This might be familiar to some, but weird to others: pineapple casserole. It was foreign to me when I first encountered it at my in-laws, but now my side of the family likes it so well that they've added it to their menu.

[TN Mama]

I don't find it unusual, but others do - tomato aspic with homemade mayonnaise.

[muffinmom]

Maybe only Tennesseans serve weird stuff, lol.

 

Tell me, what does tomato aspic taste like?

[RoughCollie]

I hope Jean in Newcastle sees this thread!

 

The most unusual foods we eat at Christmas-- and I don't think any are -- are Stollen and lebkuchen.

[StephanieZ]

Butternut squash ravioli for Christmas Eve is approaching tradition here. Mmmmm.

[Truscifi]

What is tomato aspic? And what are stollen and lebkuchen? I'm always curious about new foods! :bigear:

 

I think we're pretty standard here, but I recently found out some people think homemade whole berry cranberry sauce is unusual because it has actual berries in it. Personally, I won't eat that cr@p from a can, but I love my homemade cranberry sauce!

[TN Mama]

Maybe only Tennesseans serve weird stuff, lol.

 

Tell me, what does tomato aspic taste like?

 

We're not from TN, so that's out. Tomato aspic tastes like a gelled spicy v8 or bloody mary. It's not my favorite thing in the world and I might not eat it without the homemade mayo. Now a bloody mary, I'd take that anyday.

 

Does the pineapple casserole have cheese in it? I think I had that at a church potluck (in TN). Interesting.

[Matryoshka]

The most unusual foods we eat at Christmas-- and I don't think any are -- are Stollen and lebkuchen.

 

Heh - stollen and lebkuchen are utterly traditional! :tongue_smilie:

 

We always have cold cuts (ham, salami and roast beef), cheese and liverwurst sandwiches on Christmas Eve. And we used to always have Christmas in Tennessee every other year as a kid - these were always served there. But my grandparents were both born in Germany, so I think we can't blame Tenneseee.

[RoughCollie]

Heh - stollen and lebkuchen are utterly traditional! :tongue_smilie:

 

:iagree: My mother is German, so this is normal to me. DH thinks these foods are exotic, and he won't eat them.

 

I fed my kids liverwurst since they were old enough to eat it, and only one of them likes it now.

[ereks mom]

;)

[MyLittleWonders]

Nothing unusual here, but when I was a kid, it was lutefisk. {{shudder}} Thankfully I was never made to eat it, and when all the adults were brave enough to admit they couldn't stand it, it stopped being served. ;)

[weaver_67579]

This is from my Slovenia side. We also had kielbasa along with either ham or turkey and the trimmings.

 

My in-laws have stromboli.

[Lolly]

We are not unusual people at all. I really can't think of a single unusual dish that we eat. However, we LOVE pineapple casserole (yes, the one with cheddar cheese and Ritz crackers). My side of the family found it a bit strange at first, but it is now a regular there. Who can resist it?:D

[Peela]

Its not unusual to us because its a traditional Aussie dessert especially for Christmas, but Pavlova might be strange to Americans, I am not sure.

Its a meringue base smothered with freshly whipped cream and fruit- traditionally banana, kiwifruit, strawberries and passionfruit, but there are many variations. Its light but yummy, which is perfect.

Also, seafood is very common for Christmas here.

It was 40C here on Christmas day- well over 100F. Hence the non traditional Christmas food. People have all sorts of things.

[Dobela]

My inlaws think pomegranates are an unusual part of the fruit bowl and salad is disgusting.

 

I on the other hand think lasagna is bizarre for Christmas dinner...give me roast beef or turkey with all the trimmings. Shrimp cocktail for an appetizer would be fine, or maybe french onion soup...mmm.

Well, we have lasagna for Christmas every year now. After Thanksgiving I just can't do more turkey or ham. I do roast a small chicken in my crockpot for Christmas Eve. This year we had it with instant potatoes, homemade bread, salad, deviled eggs, canned cranberry sauce, and gravy.

 

The lasagna is a family recipe and we all love it. I made it on Christmas eve so I could just pop it in the over on Christmas Day. My son knew this and asked if I would just bake it for breakfast. So I did. Those who wanted lasagna for breakfast ate it with leftover homemade bread and salad. Those who didn't ate biscuits and sausage. :001_smile:

[Mom2J112903]

This is from my Slovenia side. We also had kielbasa along with either ham or turkey and the trimmings.

 

 

 

My MIL's parents were from the same area so this is what she always serves for Christmas Dinner.

 

We have chicken-corde-on-blu (or however you spell it :tongue_smilie:) and hashbrown casserole for Christmas Eve dinner. My Mom fed this to my then BF on our first Christmas together back in 1998 and he asked for it every Christmas since then. When we were married, I continued the tradition. This is the only night that he gets this meal and he savors every moment of it.

[ScoutTN]

Maybe not too unusual, but it was new to me until I married DH:

Brussels sprouts and artichoke heart casserole. Yummy and a bit different from the typical green beans or broccoli casseroles.

[unsinkable]

What is tomato aspic? And what are stollen and lebkuchen? I'm always curious about new foods! :bigear:

 

I think we're pretty standard here, but I recently found out some people think homemade whole berry cranberry sauce is unusual because it has actual berries in it. Personally, I won't eat that cr@p from a can, but I love my homemade cranberry sauce!

 

I love homemade cranberry sauce but I also like the jellied canned kind.

 

I know it's your right to use whatever words you want but I think calling it cr@p is a bit harsh. I can totally understand if you don't like it but that is different than calling it cr@p.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just to satisfy Roughcollie -

 

Traditional Filipino foods served at my MIL's holiday meal:

 

Figgy Piggy (they just call it a roasted pig's head but this is what I call it.)

 

Chocolate Meat - nothing chocolate about it - this is a blood pudding

 

Lumpia - Filipino egg rolls - delicious!

 

Empanada - mini stuffed fried "calzones" with peas, carrots, meat and raisins - also delicious

 

Rice of course

 

Other sides which vary each time.

[justamouse]

:iagree: My mother is German, so this is normal to me. DH thinks these foods are exotic, and he won't eat them.

 

I fed my kids liverwurst since they were old enough to eat it, and only one of them likes it now.

 

My Irish Nana married a German and we were also fed liverwurst. She ate it with onions. All those foods are normal to us.

 

I'll have to think about this one.

[Kimberly in IN]

Tomato aspic is my all time favorite food, made w/ tomato juice, not V-8. Don't like mayonnaise w/ it. Just had to mention that when I read it as an unusual food. And, never lived in TN or had relatives that did. We have it at every big food event and sometimes other times.

[elizabeth]

Oyster pie...Gah. I call it snotballs en croute. Mom insists on this and Plum pudding which is the most drunk you can get on baked goods. She bastes it with whiskey or brandy for weeks while it is wrapped in cheesecloth in her pie safe.It is a frightening creation that makes me think one of these days when she lights it the whole dam* house will go up . Again gag.

[Susan in KY]

Its not unusual to us because its a traditional Aussie dessert especially for Christmas, but Pavlova might be strange to Americans, I am not sure....

 

Here's one American who thinks Pavlova is marvelous. :001_smile:

[TN Mama]

Here's one American who thinks Pavlova is marvelous. :001_smile:

 

:iagree: And another!

[BikeBookBread]

Christmas Eve - homemade pizza and sometimes jalapeno poppers.

[Natalieclare]

Every year on Christmas Eve, our family eats Bagna Cauda. This year, we happen to have leftovers, so we get it again tomorrow for lunch. Yum!

 

Last year, I bought butane burners big enough to handle my cast iron pans. Now we can sit around the table dipping our veggies into the scrumptious mixture of oil, butter, anchovy paste and garlic.

 

You can read a bit about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagna_C%C3%A0uda

[RoughCollie]

Figgy Piggy

Chocolate Meat

 

You read my mind! :001_smile:

[mammaruss]

We have chili on Christmas Eve.

[silliness7]

We have homemade tamales and enchiladas. Yum!! Bet you can't guess my ethnic heritage. :001_smile:

[OrganicAnn]

We don't really eat unusually food. I like unusual food, but the rest of the family likes fairly normal food. So our most unusual would be brussel sprouts, which I love.

[muffinmom]

We're not from TN, so that's out. Tomato aspic tastes like a gelled spicy v8 or bloody mary. It's not my favorite thing in the world and I might not eat it without the homemade mayo. Now a bloody mary, I'd take that anyday.

 

Does the pineapple casserole have cheese in it? I think I had that at a church potluck (in TN). Interesting.

 

Yes, and hereis a recipe that is like the one my mil has been making for years.

[muffinmom]

Butternut squash ravioli for Christmas Eve is approaching tradition here. Mmmmm.

 

Yum!

[muffinmom]

We have chili on Christmas Eve.

 

 

We had that this year too. Next year I'm thinking about doing fondue.

[helena]

Its not unusual to us because its a traditional Aussie dessert especially for Christmas, but Pavlova might be strange to Americans, I am not sure.

Its a meringue base smothered with freshly whipped cream and fruit- traditionally banana, kiwifruit, strawberries and passionfruit, but there are many variations. Its light but yummy, which is perfect.

Also, seafood is very common for Christmas here.

It was 40C here on Christmas day- well over 100F. Hence the non traditional Christmas food. People have all sorts of things.

 

Oooooh!! Pavlova looks YUMMY!

I wonder if there's a way to make vegan meringue?

Our main holiday meals usually involve tamales.

[Unicorn.]

We have homemade tamales and enchiladas. Yum!! Bet you can't guess my ethnic heritage. :001_smile:

 

TEXAN! :lol: And yes, we are "like a whole other country", and therefore, our own ethnicity... :lol: Tamales, enchiladas, lebkuchen, and stollen.....Sounds perfect!

 

I'm beginning to think our traditional meal is unusual because it is identical to Thanksgiving. Christmas Eve is tamales, queso, and chili though.

[Stacia]

At my in-laws', we have fondue (beef & fish) & fries, along w/ all sorts of neat dips & salads! :drool5:

 

Of course, we have the uber-traditional Buche de Noel for dessert. :001_smile:

[ConnieB]

Well, we have homemade Sushi and Tempura for Christmas Dinner for the last 4 years......not traditional, but we all love it a lot more than we like Turkey or Ham.

[muffinmom]

Well, we have homemade Sushi and Tempura for Christmas Dinner for the last 4 years......not traditional, but we all love it a lot more than we like Turkey or Ham.

 

It makes sense to do something your family loves, unusual or not, then let it become your unique tradition. My MIL insists on a boatload of mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I dutifully make them, though NO ONE eats them. She feels guilty if they're not on the table, because they've always been there.

[muffinmom]

We have homemade tamales and enchiladas. Yum!! Bet you can't guess my ethnic heritage. :001_smile:

 

Maybe I should adopt your ethnicity, because I get a strange craving for Mexican food right after both Christmas and Thanksgiving!

[joni470]

Butternut squash ravioli for Christmas Eve is approaching tradition here. Mmmmm.

 

Would you share that recipe?

 

-Savannah

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