12 dishes for Christmas 2022 (what to cook for the Christmas table)

Orthodox believers await the onset of a bright holiday - the Nativity of Christ, which comes to us on January 7. Until this date, it is customary to fast to cleanse your body, both physically and spiritually.

The whole world celebrates a great holiday on January 7, which begins on the night of the 6th of 2022, when the first star appears in the sky.

Relatives and friends gather around a large table, on which there are a lot of goodies, cabbage rolls, vinaigrette, pies with cherries, and other goodies. Everyone's favorite winter holiday is celebrated with joy and fun. This is already a tradition that continues from year to year.

The Christmas table is rich in an abundance of dishes for every taste. It is important not to overeat after a strict fast. There is no need to “pounce” on food, otherwise it may become bad. Eat in moderation until you feel full, as they say, you need to be able to stop in time.

It is on the seventh that you can include meat dishes in your diet, and on the sixth, only lean ones, but this does not apply to those who do not follow these traditions, they can eat everything.

Christmas Eve: first star

The holiday begins on the evening of January 6 - Christmas Eve begins. According to church rules and folk tradition, on this day they do not eat until the first star appears in the sky - in memory of the Star of Bethlehem, which showed the Magi the way to the place of the Nativity of Christ.

They also say that Christmas is not celebrated alone - it is a family holiday. It was customary to gather either with the parents, or with the whole large family at the eldest in the family. Before the first star, the housewife had to prepare several obligatory Lenten Christmas dishes. The main items on this menu were kutia, or sochivo, and vzvar (uzvar).

Christmas dishes from around the world

All over the world you cannot find a country where people remain indifferent to Christmas, where housewives do not prepare for the festive table with special zeal, and children do not gobble up their signature treats on both cheeks. Even small states have their own special traditions on this evening; even the laziest housewives prepare their family’s favorite dishes.

• England. The main dish of the evening among the British is plum pudding, which is prepared from the most aromatic and healthy ingredients, including figs, prunes, orange zest, almonds, rum and lard with a mixture of cinnamon, cloves and cardamom spices. In addition to the fatty dessert, turkey with sour berry sauce is served for dinner, and the table is additionally decorated with mistletoe.
• Germany. The Germans are indifferent to sweets, which is why their Christmas table is filled with a wide variety of sausages. Here you can find spicy sausages of all flavors and shapes, pork knuckle, stuffed goose, potatoes in butter and more. For dessert, baked apples, gingerbread or strudel are traditionally served.
• Italy. Seafood dishes, a variety of broths, pork leg stuffed with meat and spices, as well as kotekino, a fatty spicy sausage that is prepared exclusively for the New Year holidays and served with lentils, are incredibly popular here.
• Poland. Poles prepare their Christmas meal with special care; on the table there is kutia seasoned with honey and dried fruits, stuffed carp, herring, meat products and borscht along with mushroom dumplings. It is believed that the spicier the housewife's dishes are, the more successful the coming year will be.
• Russia. In the traditions of Orthodox Russians, a special custom has been preserved - to place at least 12 dishes on the Christmas table in honor of all the apostles of Christ. The table should be rich and varied in salt so that next year will be just as generous and fruitful. Popular dishes include sweet kutia, pancakes with a variety of fillings, jellied goose stuffed with apples, dumplings, herring, cabbage rolls, borscht, fried fish, meat sausages and butter pies.
• USA. It will come as no surprise to anyone that the traditional American dish for Christmas is a turkey stuffed with cheese, cabbage, mushrooms, prunes and other delicacies. The second most popular dish is pork steak or ham with red beans. And for dessert, the hostesses spoil the family with blueberry pie or cinnamon roll.
• France. No reveillon here is complete without a good bottle of wine and spicy pastries. However, each region lives with its own special traditions: residents of the capital celebrate the holiday in an elegant way - with oysters, lobsters, canapés with goose liver and champagne; in eastern France, guests are served goose; in Brittany - buckwheat cakes; in Burgundy - turkey stuffed with chestnuts. And for dessert, almost all pastry shops offer the popular Christmas log-shaped cake.

Sochivo, or Kutya

An indispensable dish, without which neither Christmas nor Easter were celebrated in pre-revolutionary Russia. Christmas Eve - from Sochiva, or kuteynik - from Kutya, this is what they called the day before Christmas. And he spent the whole time waiting for the miracle of birth. It was believed that the richer and tastier the juice, the more productive the next year.

The products from which kutia was prepared were endowed with special meaning: grain was considered a symbol of resurrection to life, honey - a symbol of health and a prosperous (sweet) life, and poppy promised prosperity in the family.

Pre-revolutionary everyday life writer A.A. Corinthian wrote: “In the evening, on the eve of the Nativity of Christ, Russian people, who invariably adhere to the old pious customs, do not break fast: according to the Church Charter, they are allowed to eat only juice at this time. Breaking the fast - in the morning, after early mass; and until the morning Filippovka still stands in Rus', going from November 15 (28) until the merry joyful Christmastide.”

However, wheat was not always the basis of kutya. In the southern regions of Russia, rice was more often cooked. However, nuts, honey and dried fruits remained a constant part of the recipe.

Traditional recipe sochiva

• wheat grains - one glass,
• poppy seed – 100 g,
• peeled walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews - 100 g,
• honey - 3 tbsp,
• dried fruits.

Crush the grains in a wooden mortar, adding a little warm water so that the wheat shell comes off. Then the kernel must be separated from the husk by sifting and washing. Cook crumbly lean porridge in water, adding 2-3 glasses of water to the cereal.

Grind the poppy seeds until you get milk of the poppy seeds, add honey to it, mix and add to the wheat porridge. At the very end, add crushed nuts and dried fruits steamed with boiling water.

Rice juice

• rice - 1 glass,
• raisins - 50 g,
• prunes - 50 g,
• dried apricots - 50 g,
• almonds or walnuts - 50 g,
• honey - three tbsp.

Rinse the rice, add cold water and bring to a boil. Drain in a colander and rinse again with cold water. Then pour in 1.5 cups of cold water and cook until tender without removing the lid. Steam dried fruits in hot water (15–20 minutes).

Chop prunes and dried apricots. Crush the almonds. If all the water has not boiled away, it should be drained and the rice should be cooled. Add dried fruits, honey and nuts to the rice.

Vzvar

The second mandatory dish of the Christmas table. They prepared a broth from dried fruits, but instead of sugar they added honey. The most popular was apple broth with the addition of dried or soaked cranberries, lingonberries or raspberries.

In the south of Russia, smoked pear was always added to the drink. Mint, oregano, currant leaf, thyme and other aromatic herbs are often added. There is no need to boil the broth: just pour boiling water over the fruit and leave to infuse. A thermos is perfect for these purposes. It is often diluted with broth and eaten in the form of a liquid sweet porridge.

Christmas: Abundant Breaking of the Fast

When the night passes and after the service the family returns to the house, the long-awaited holiday of Christmas begins. Lent is left behind, and meat dishes, milk and butter pies, fatty fish and luxurious desserts appear on the table.

It was believed that baked goose (or other poultry) and pork dishes should be an indispensable attribute of the Christmas meal. Of course, in the pre-Christmas days, millions of geese, ducks, turkeys and chickens were brought to the country's markets.

“Christmas in Moscow was felt for a long time - with a cheerful, business bustle. We just started fasting in Filippovka, on November 14, for the Nativity Fast, and at the freight stations, especially in Rogozhskaya, geese cackle day and night - “geese trains” to Germany: before, before the glacier-cars, it was a live cargo. You won't believe it - hundreds of trains! The goose walked through Moscow - from Kozlov, Tambov, Kursk, Saratov, Samara... I don’t remember the Poltava region, Poland, Lithuania, Volyn: the paths from there are different. And duck, and chicken, and turkey, and grouse... capercaillie and hazel grouse, bacon-brisket, and... - whatever the soul requires for Christmas,” wrote Ivan Shmelev.

Vinaigrette for Christmas - Rozhdestvensky

This bright and colorful dish is not a simple salad, but a very symbolic treat. Each component of this snack has a sacred designation.

Beets are blood, carrots and potatoes are a close connection with nature, beans are tribal unity, cabbage is divine power.

Products:

• Potato;
• Carrot;
• Beet;
• Sauerkraut;
• Boiled beans;
• Vegetable oil;
• Salt to taste.

Preparation:

√ We bake or boil all vegetables (the first option is preferable). Then cool and clean. Cut the vegetables into cubes.

√ Add cabbage and butter beans to them. Salt and mix. You can add canned peas instead of beans.

Christmas goose with sauerkraut

• small goose,
• cabbage - 800 g,
• bulbs - 4 pcs.,
• cumin - 0.5 tbsp,
• salt,
• oil.

If the carcass is frozen, let the goose lie in the refrigerator for a day. Then wash the goose, rub the outside and inside with salt and caraway seeds. If possible, you can boil the whole goose in red wine, for about 40 minutes. The wine will soften the bird.

Stew sauerkraut with butter and onion in a saucepan, covered. Stuff the goose with this cabbage and fry on a baking sheet, pouring a little broth on it and pouring it over the goose. Then the goose fat will melt - you will pour it on it.

Fish baked royally on Christmas Day

On Christmas Day, fish was always served on the table. For this purpose, exclusively river fish was purchased. It was believed that sea life could take all household happiness into the sea. For royally baked fish you need to purchase:

• pike perch or carp (approximately 2-2.5 kg);
• a glass of rice;
• a pod of sweet bell pepper;
• carrot;
• onion head;
• half a lemon (juice from it);
• salt and seasoning for fish.

Clean the fish, gut it and rinse it. Carefully remove the backbone and as many seeds as possible. Dry the carcass with napkins, add a little salt, season with spices and sprinkle with lemon juice. Leave the fish for an hour to marinate.

Boil the rice in slightly salted water. Cut the pepper into strips, chop the onion as finely as possible, grate the carrots on a grater with the largest teeth. Fry the vegetables in vegetable oil until soft, add a little salt, and mix with rice.

Stuff the fish generously with the prepared mixture, because it will be the main dish on the table on Christmas. Sew up the abdomen. Place the fish on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and cook in the oven for 40-50 minutes. The temperature must be kept around 180°C.

You can serve fish royally without a side dish. However, if one is intended, then baked potatoes are best suited as a side dish for Christmas.

Pig on the table

Pork was an equally traditional product on the Christmas table. According to legend, when Jesus was born, all the animals joyfully greeted the divine baby in the manger - except the pig. She grunted annoyingly and prevented the baby from sleeping. That is why, as punishment, the pig became an indispensable dish on the Christmas table.

Even during Lent, they began to transport whole convoys of pork to the capitals, to central fairs - there were huge carcasses, barrels of corned beef, and suckling pigs. “It’s bad, it’s bad, but two or three pork carcasses are needed, and black pigs to fry with porridge, about three dozen, and white ones for aspic, molosnichki, two dozen, so that there will be enough for the beginning,” wrote Ivan Shmelev in “The Lord’s Summer.”

Many dishes were prepared from pork, but in every wealthy home the table was decorated with suckling pig with porridge or cold pig with horseradish.

Pork belly stuffed with cabbage and apples

In the old days, porridge was served with pork legs, but you can also make buckwheat porridge with pork belly with cabbage and apples. It will turn out very juicy.

• pork belly - 800 g,
• cabbage - 400 g,
• apples - 5 pcs.,
• butter - 1 tbsp,
• onion - 1 pc.,
• salt and pepper.

Chop fresh cabbage, add salt and squeeze. Add finely chopped sour apples and butter to the cabbage and mix. Wash the pork belly, chop the bones in several places, and cut a large hole between the bones and meat with a knife.

Place the prepared minced meat there, sew it up, place it in a frying pan or baking sheet, sprinkle with finely chopped onion, add 3 tablespoons of water and fry in an oven preheated to 200 °C until cooked. Serve with crumbly buckwheat porridge.

Christmas recipes

It is believed that the richer the table is set for Christmas, the better and more successful the whole next year will be. To diversify your menu, we have prepared better recipes for you. Below you can choose recipes for dishes that you like.

Festive Chicken Salad with Pomegranate Seeds

A great salad to serve for Christmas dinner. Your guests will be delighted with the taste and appearance of the salad.

Ingredients:

• 3 pcs. potatoes
• 2 chicken fillets
• 50 g walnuts
• 100 g cheese
• 2 carrots or Korean carrots
• 3 eggs
• mayonnaise - to taste
• salt - to taste
• pomegranate seeds - for decoration

Cooking method:

1. Separately boil potatoes, carrots and eggs. Cool, peel and cut into cubes.
2. Boil chicken fillet in salted water. Cool then cut into the same pieces as the rest of the ingredients.
3. If desired, toast the walnuts, finely chop them or grind them in a blender. Grate the cheese.
4. Lay out all the ingredients in layers, brushing with mayonnaise: potatoes, chicken, nuts, cheese, carrots and eggs. Place in the refrigerator until serving. Garnish the finished salad with pomegranate seeds.

Classic vinaigrette

Vinaigrette is a classic of its kind. No Christmas can pass without this wonderful salad.

Ingredients:

• 2 pcs. boiled beets
• 3 pcs. boiled carrots
• 4 things. boiled potatoes
• 4 pickles
• 100 g sauerkraut
• 1 medium onion
• 4 tbsp. l. canned green peas
• 4 tbsp. l. sunflower oil
• Salt to taste

Cooking method:

1. To prepare the salad, first boil all the vegetables. Peel the boiled vegetables and then cut them into cubes of the same size.
2. Finely chop the pickled cucumbers. Peel the onion, then chop finely. Chop the sauerkraut if necessary.
3. Combine chopped beets, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, onions, cabbage and green peas in a bowl. Season with sunflower oil. Add salt. The finished salad can be served in beautiful creams.

Baked carp

In some European countries, this dish is a must for the Christmas table. Fried or baked carp is believed to bring good luck and attract wealth to the home.

Ingredients:

• Large carp – 1 pc.
• Garlic – 2 cloves
• Lemon – 1 pc.
• Sour cream 20% – 5 tbsp. l.
• Honey – ½ tsp.
• Vegetable oil
• Salt and pepper

Cooking method:

1. Gut the carp (if necessary), remove scales. Wash the fish well and dry with a napkin or paper towel. Rub the outside of the carp with a mixture of salt and pepper.
2. Mix chopped garlic with salt and juice of ½ lemon. Rub the mixture inside the abdomen.
3. Grease a baking dish with oil and place the fish in it. Make several deep cuts on one side.
4. To fill, mix sour cream with honey and finely chopped garlic. Coat the fish with the mixture. Place the dishes in the oven, preheated to 200° for 35–40 minutes.
5. Serve the dish hot. Decorate the finished fish with lemon slices, herbs, and almond petals. Mashed potatoes or baked vegetables are suitable as a side dish.

Dumplings with potatoes and cabbage “Homemade”

The simplest recipe for dumplings with potatoes and cabbage. The highlight of the recipe is the dough prepared with potato broth. There is no need to put an egg in the dough.

Ingredients:

• potato broth – 200ml;
• flour – 600g;
• vegetable oil – 1 tbsp;
• a little salt;
• potatoes – 6 pcs.;
• fresh cabbage – 200 gr.;
• onion - 2 pcs.;
• sunflower oil for frying pan.

Cooking method:

1. Boil the potatoes until fully cooked. Pour a glass of broth into a separate bowl and cool. Mash the potatoes. Chop the onion. Heat the oil thoroughly and fry the onion.
2. Mix mashed potatoes and fried onions. Finely chop the cabbage. Pour more oil into the same frying pan, add cabbage, fry for ten minutes.
3. Pour half a glass of water or broth into the frying pan, cover with a lid, reduce heat and simmer the cabbage until tender for another twenty minutes.
4. Knead the dough from potato broth, salt, and flour until it becomes elastic. Leave to rest for fifteen to twenty minutes. Roll out the dough in any way. Add the filling, form dumplings and boil.
5. Place hot dumplings with potatoes and cabbage in plates, serve with butter, store-bought or country-made sour cream, pepper and melted butter.

Stuffed cabbage rolls with mushrooms and eggs

Ingredients:

• White cabbage 150 g
• Fresh mushrooms 100 g
• Onion 15 g
• Chicken egg ½ piece
• Butter 15 g
• Sour cream 40 g
• Parsley 5 g

Cooking method:

1. Boil the cabbage; then chop the onion, fry it in oil, add chopped mushrooms and fry for another 10-12 minutes, then add chopped parsley and hard-boiled egg.
2. Make cabbage rolls from minced meat and cabbage leaves, pour sour cream over them. Bake for about 45 minutes, depending on your oven.
3. Serve the finished cabbage rolls in portioned plates along with sour cream.

Birthday cake

This delicious, rosy festive pie with chicken and champignons will bring all the guests together for Christmas with its aroma.

Ingredients:

• Yeast dough 400 g.
• Chicken fillet 2 pcs.
• Onion 1 pc.
• Frozen champignons 300 g.
• Egg 1 pc.
• Pepper to taste
• Salt to taste

Cooking method:

1. Fry finely chopped onion in vegetable oil, add thawed mushrooms and fry for 5-7 minutes. Salt
2. Divide the dough into two unequal parts 1/3 and 2/3. Leave a small piece for decoration. Roll out most of it into a circle and place it on a baking sheet or in a mold.
3. Place finely chopped chicken fillet on top of the dough in a circle. Salt and pepper. The second layer is mushrooms fried with onions. Close with a second circle rolled out from the remaining dough.
4. Seal the edges and coat well with egg yolk. The seam can be decorated with decorative cuttings of dough.
5. Bake on the middle rack in a preheated oven at 200 degrees C for 30 minutes, then another 10 minutes at 170 degrees C on the lower rack of the oven. Take out and let cool. Cut into portions and serve warm.

Jellied fish

Ingredients:

• 250 g fresh fish
• 1 small carrot
• 2 potatoes, boiled in their jackets,
• 1/2 head of onion,
• 4 cloves of garlic,
• 4 g gelatin,
• 2 g sugar,
• spices, salt.

For decoration:

• 100 g green peas
• 300 g peeled shrimp.

Cooking method:

1. We clean the fish, entrails and head - away with it! Run the fins under cold water and rinse well. Let's cook. When boiling, be sure to remove the foam. Salt, add carrots, onions, a little sugar and salt. Then cook over low heat until done.
2. Remove the finished fish with a slotted spoon, let it cool, separate from the bones, and cut into small pieces. Strain the broth in which the fish was cooked through cheesecloth, put it on low heat, and cook.
3. Soak the gelatin in cold water according to the instructions on the package. Slowly add gelatin into the boiling broth, stirring constantly, and bring to a boil again. Turn it off immediately.
4. Strain the broth a second time to remove any remaining gelatin. Pour this broth over our fish, add crushed garlic, bay leaves, and peppercorns, and let it boil again.
5. Preparing the forms. Place 2-3 mugs of boiled potatoes, green peas, and shrimp on the bottom. Let's pour it out. We beautifully place boiled cut carrots on the sides. Decorate with branches of greenery. You can also add half a boiled quail egg. It will be tasty and beautiful. We put it in the refrigerator. Usually within 2-3 hours the jellied meat is ready!

Turkey with prunes recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 large turkey,
• 700 g prunes,
• 1 tbsp. rice,
• 2 tbsp. l. sour cream,
• 2 tbsp. l. vegetable oil,
• salt to taste,
• spices to taste,
• greens for decoration.

Cooking method:

1. Wash the cleaned and gutted turkey, dry it, and rub it inside and out with salt and spices. Place soaked prunes and sew into the belly and crop.
2. The wings need to be folded towards the back and tied. Tie your legs in front. Spread the turkey with butter or sour cream and place it back down on a baking sheet greased with vegetable oil.
3. Place in an oven preheated to 220 degrees and bake, basting the turkey with the resulting juices, until the meat is tender.
4. Serve the cooked turkey hot, garnished with fresh herbs. Place separately cooked rice, herbs, and fruits, such as fresh grapes, around the turkey.

Jellied pig and rooster

Wash the knuckle and legs of the pig well and cut into pieces. Place in a saucepan, add cold water until it covers the meat by a few centimeters, boil and skim off the foam. After an hour, add the rooster carcass.

Cook the jellied meat over very low heat for 6–8 hours until the water boils to half its volume. 20 minutes before the end of cooking, add bay leaf, peppercorns and salt to taste to the broth. Remove the meat from the broth, separate from the bones and cut into pieces. Strain the broth. Sprinkle chopped garlic on the bottom of the dish, lay out the meat, pour in the broth, carefully mix with a spoon and refrigerate until set.

Dumplings for Christmas

This dish symbolizes family unity, unanimity and strong friendship. And it doesn’t matter what filling will be in the dumplings, the main thing is that all family members participate in their preparation.

You can fill dumplings with cabbage, potatoes, berries and verog. Any product in dumplings will symbolize the wealth and well-being of the family. One of the most delicious options is dumplings with cherries.

Products:

• Kefir – 200 ml;
• Eggs – 1 pc.;
• Flour – 400 gr.;
• Vegetable oil - 1 table. spoon;
• ½ teaspoon each of soda and salt;
• Cherries – 1/2 kilogram;
• Cinnamon - a pinch;
• Sugar – 4 table. spoons;
• Corn starch - a little.

How to cook:

√ Mix the egg, kefir, butter, salt, soda and, adding flour to this mass, knead the elastic dough. Wrap the dough ball in film and leave it warm for half an hour.

√ Remove the pits from the cherries, add cinnamon, sugar, and starch. Mix everything and get a delicious cherry filling.

We make dumplings and cook them in boiling water for up to seven minutes. You can serve it with butter, or you can serve it with powdered sugar.

Rye pie with fish

For the test:

• rye flour - 1 cup,
• wheat flour - 1 cup,
• milk - 1 glass,
• dry yeast - 1 tsp,
• sugar - 2 tsp,
• salt - 1 tsp,
• vegetable oil - 1 tbsp. l.

For filling:

• pike perch fillet - 500 g,
• peeled mussels - 200 g,
• onion - 1 pc.,
• carrots – 1 pc.,
• pickled cucumber brine - 500 ml,
• vegetable oil - 2 tbsp.,
• dill - 1 bunch,
• salt and white pepper to taste.

Knead the dough, for which 1 tsp. dry yeast pour 5 tsp. warm water, let stand for swelling for 10–15 minutes. Sift wheat and rye flour, pour in vegetable oil, milk at room temperature, add sugar and salt, add yeast, knead.

Leave the dough to rise in a warm place. The dough should rise twice and be kneaded twice. We divide it into 2 parts.

For the filling, boil mussels and fish in cucumber brine and drain in a colander. Peel and finely chop the onions and carrots. Fry vegetables with fish and mussels in a frying pan. Let's add salt and pepper. Turn off and add chopped dill. Form a pie in a baking tray, spread the top with egg yolk and bake for 50 minutes at 170°C.

Stuffed champignons in the oven with cheese

The mushroom is also a symbol of Christ. The stem of the mushroom signifies the earthly nature, and the cap signifies the divine principle.

Most often, marinated mushrooms, decorated with herbs, onions and seasoned with vegetable oil, are displayed on the table.

But we can offer a more refined option that will not only decorate the table, but will also delight lovers of mushroom cooking.

Products:

• Large champignons – 12 pcs.;
• Leek (white part);
• Cheese – 150 gr.;
• Breadcrumbs - 1 table. spoon;
• Pepper and salt to taste;

Preparation:

√ Separate the caps from the legs. Cut the mushroom stems along with the onion into small cubes and, seasoning, fry until fully cooked.

√ Grate the cheese and add to the mixture in the pan. We also add crackers here.

√ Fill the caps with the resulting filling, sprinkle with cheese and bake for another 15 minutes in the oven (at a temperature of 180 degrees).

Ginger Pie

• butter - 100 g + another piece for greasing,
• dark unrefined cane sugar - 100 g,
• flour with baking powder - 175 g,
• ground ginger - 4 tsp,
• light molasses - 175 g,
• ginger wine - 3 tbsp.,
• eggs of any size, can be broken - 2 pcs.,
• finely grated fresh ginger the size of a hazelnut,
• finely chopped canned ginger - 150 g,
• powdered sugar - 75 g,
• ginger root for decoration - 1 pc.

Preheat the oven to 160°C and grease a 23cm baking dish. Beat the butter and sugar with a pinch of salt until the mixture is fluffy. Sift together the flour and ground ginger.

Pour in light molasses (for convenience, use a pre-greased spoon and a silicone kitchen spatula), 1 tbsp. wine and mix everything. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then gradually add the flour.

Mix everything with fresh and canned ginger. Spoon the resulting mixture into a baking dish. Smooth the surface and bake for about 50-60 minutes until the dough sticks to the surface of a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of the cake. Leave the cake to cool in the pan. Once the cake has cooled completely, make the glaze by combining the caster sugar and remaining ginger wine and drizzle over the top of the cake. Cut the ginger root into thin pieces and decorate the pie.

Beverages

I offer recipes for unusual drinks that you can surprise your friends and family with.

Sbiten

Sbiten is an ancient East Slavic drink made from water, honey, herbs and spices. Be sure to prepare for the Christmas feast. After churning (collecting) all the ingredients, you get a warming and thirst-quenching drink. It is considered a medicinal drink. You can also make low-alcohol sbiten (4-7 degrees) if you ferment it or mix it with strong alcohol.

Ingredients:

1. Water – 1 l.
2. Honey – 150 g.
3. Sugar – 150 g.
4. Ginger - to taste.
5. Cloves - to taste.
6. Cardamom - to taste.
7. Cinnamon - to taste.

Served according to the ancient custom in large mugs, or small ones if there are no large ones. Sbiten differs from mead in that it is prepared without yeast. It can be served hot or chilled at the Christmas table.

Vzvar

We often call this ancient Russian drink dried fruit compote. There is no Christmas table without a brew. It is prepared easily and quickly, but there is one condition - the infusion must steep for 4 hours to 24 hours. Only then will the drink reach the desired condition, and the dried fruits will have time to impart their taste and aroma to the water.

Ingredients:

1. Water – 1 l.
2. Dried fruits – 600 g.
3. Honey or sugar – 300 g.

You can add cinnamon, lemon juice, orange zest and much more to the brew, although the classic version is still served at the Christmas table in a transparent decanter with a set of glasses.

Mulled wine with honey and lemon

It was always cold at Christmas in Rus', so they drank warming drinks. Today I want to offer mulled wine. Of course, this is not a Russian drink at all, but it is easy to brew and will warm you up perfectly during the Christmas cold.

Ingredients:

1. Dry red wine – 750 ml.
2. Water – 250 ml.
3. Sugar – 2 tbsp. l.
4. Cinnamon stick – 1 pc.
5. Ginger – 0.3 tsp.
6. Nutmeg – 0.3 tsp.
7. Orange – 1 pc.

We serve mulled wine in beautiful glasses with a thick bottom or in transparent mugs. Although this drink is considered hot and warming, it still cannot be heated to more than 70 degrees so that the wine does not lose its beneficial properties and bright aroma.

Bloody Mary

Bloody Mary is not a Christmas drink at all, but it is good, really good! Therefore, we will prepare it on Christmas Day and serve it as an aperitif. A tasty, bright drink with a slightly scary name will quickly lift your spirits.

Ingredients:

1. Tomato juice (thick) – 150 g.
2. Vodka – 75 g.
3. Lemon juice – 15 ml
4. Tabasco sauce – 2-3 drops.
5. Worcestershire sauce – 2-3 drops.
6. Salt - to taste.
7. Pepper - to taste.
8. Ice - to taste.

Bloody Mary is served in a highball glass with a sprig of celery and 2 straws. This cocktail is very good as an anti-hangover tonic drink. Be sure to remember him the morning after celebrating Christmas.