Christmas 2021. We’ve chosen not to take the long-ass drive back to the locked-down Netherlands. Some people in the family circle choose not to get vaccinated, and several also refuse to get tested before meeting up. This, for me, is more than enough reason not to meet up for several days. There also has been an eye surgery in a family member on the other side of the family, on the 23rd of December. Meeting up for long Christmas dinners was not high on the recommendation list for speedy recovery. Another good reason not to go.
Instead, we chose to stay in Bavaria. Locked up in our house. Potentially enjoying the beautiful nature in our close surroundings. But life of course had other plans in mind for us.
Three days ago, our daughter Lara developed a big fever. Although she was generally active and drank well, she was clearly unhappy about her situation. This morning, we had the feeling that she was improving quite a bit, although her temperature is still slightly elevated. Our boy Rafa, on the other hand, decided to also go all in. About halfway through the morning, he also had developed a high fever. Poor thing. He’s pretty miserable, but he’ll be alright.
So far for our Christmas plans. No nature. No outdoors. No camping. Nope. Just sitting inside with Heike and the kids. You can say what you want, but it’s family time, for sure! I looked out the window today. The weather is pretty sad anyway. Not missing much.
To make Christmas slightly Christmassy for Heike and me, I spent some time this afternoon throwing together a nice Ottolenghi recipe of hassleback beetroot with lime leaf-infused butter baste. I had only a few beetroots, so made a version with a twist, and used parsnip and carrot to fill the oven tray. As a cherry on the pie, we still had a piece of marinated pork neck in the freezer. We rarely eat meat, and even more rarely so at home, but I thought a Christmas dinner was a good enough excuse to prepare a good piece of meat. That’ll be enough for the next couple of months, I guess.
The food was good (but we both agreed that beetroot was better than the other two, so it seems Yotam knows what he’s talking about). The kids are asleep (always pretty easy when they are helped getting to sleep by a fever). The gin and tonic are chilled. I guess it’s time to get intoxicated while watching a still to be determined horrible Christmas movie. Merry Christmas!
Robin Heinen 