By mid October people in the UK and worldwide are planning the dates and menus for Christmas and end of year parties. Many clubs are planning the calendar for the club's year ahead, which will be given out or announced at the end of the year party, before everybody disappears for Christmas holidays and New Year holidays, so they know when to be back for the January events.
We recently made Banbury cakes to use up leftover pastry. We just looked in our fruit bowl and fridge to see what we had and googled recipes. If you are booking or buying for a small British dinner party or large, themed party, consider supplying:
Eccles cake. Pic from Wikipedia.
British Food to buy, make, serve
A few ideas: Yorkshire pudding as a savoury with beef. Banbury cakes, Eccles cakes, parkins, Bakewell tart, Bakewell pudding. For Easter, hot cross buns. For Christmas, mince pies.
Sampling Wine and Mince Pies
In the UK restaurants and wine bars are already ordering in mince pies to be served as part of the menu or a free addition at the end of a meal or served with wine. Berry Brothers wine shop in central London, near Piccadilly Circus, they told me this week, has just ordered mince pies.
You might want to arrange an event with a theme for a club or group. For example, for a birthday.
Singapore's Hash Harriers Birthday Boy Choice
In Singapore the Hash House Harriers, a group of jungle running ex-pats, has runs set by somebody whose birthday is the same week or month. The birthday boy chooses the menu which is themed and with food from their home country, such as fish and chips from the UK, curries from India, Chinese food from China and so on. If somebody else of the same nationality had chosen your favourite food the previous week, you have to be more inventive. Its's all fun to introduce new things.
Singapore National Themes
In Singapore at meetings when there is no birthday person, they also hold a seasonal theme for national days. If you have a club, you could plan your year ahead with national days. You might hold your running circuit around a church or temple and/or hold the end of evening meal at a place such as Singapore Danish Seamen's Church.
Other ideas, a Russian orthodox church, a Chinese or Indian temple, a French language centre, a Japanese Club, a Polish centre.
If you can't organize a venue and a Chinese or Indian restaurant (usually plenty of those so it's easy to organize One of Singapore's lady's run nights ends at a Chinese restaurant. Chinese restaurants are a budget choice if people are all paying for themselves. I also went to a Chinese restaurant with a speakers' group in Hong Kong.
Christmas Potluck
At Harrovians (Toastmasters' International) Speakers Club we have a Christmas potluck party and most people bring along their own national food, savouries such as British cheeses, French cheeses, and desserts such as as mince pies from the UK. Stollen comes from Germany, with its marzipan centre.
Hanukah Food
At Harrovians we have had a seasonal December party, with Hanukah and Christmas foods. Hanukah foods include: Savouries: brisket (a cheap fatty cut of beef plus potato latkes (grated potato patties, fried, round or triangular, like Swiss Rosti which is made big and pan sized and cut into portions, and American hash browns which are individual portions). Sweet desserts: doughnuts (sufganiyot) are requirements. noodle kugel and, of course, latkes and doughnuts
Italian Pandoro
Last year, pandoro, (which I had seen and sampled find in Italian restaurants and cafes in London, England, as well as supermarkets), was brought, provided by a Venezuelan member. I learned that pandora is found, not just in Italy but, also Spanish speaking countries.
Why else would you serve British food, other national food, or multi-national food? To welcome somebody from the UK, or to organize a farewell party for a colleague going to the UK.
A themed party might attract visitors and involve helpers to raise money for charity, such as a fundraising tea, or a coffee morning. You could ask two or three people or the whole group to bring along to a potluck party a food from the UK.
A packet of biscuits from your home country would also be welcome at an event if you are given a lift (in America you would say, given a ride), or are invited to a free event.
A Canadian visitor to London, UK, gave our Harrovian Toastmasters group maple syrup biscuits. I was intrigued by the flavour, the shape, with the leaf pattern stamped on the top.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
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