Europäische Weihnacht – in Vielfalt geeint - Sutter GmbH & Co. KG

600 ml grape juice (white)
50 g rock candy
2 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
150 ml brandy
300 ml red wine
Cut one orange in slices and set aside. Halve the
remaining oranges and the lemons and squeeze
out the juice from them. Carefully heat the grape
juice, rock candy, lemon and orange juice in a pot.
Add red wine and brandy. Add the clove and the
cinnamon stick, steep for a short while, then
remove the cinnamon stick and the clove and add
the cut slices of orange. Pour immediately into tea
glasses and serve while hot.
The Christmas tree decoration in Denmark can be
spotted as Danish at first sight, since little red and
white flags are an indispensable element of the decoration.
To derive from this that the Danish are particularly
nationalistic at Christmas would be a little
rash. One should rather acknowledge without envy
that the Danish national colours of the little Dannebrog
flags simply look great on a green fir tree or
spruce. The first Christmas tree was to have been
set up in Denmark at Christmas in 1808. The fairy
tales by the famous Danish writer Hans Christian
Andersen (*1805 †1875), including, for example, The
Fir Tree (1846) and The Little Match Girl (1848),
frequently refer to a Christmas tree. A concise atmospheric
description of traditional Danish Christmas
festivities is found at the beginning of the Andersen
tale The Cripple (1872):
Danish Christmas
by
HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
There was an old manor house where a young,
splendid family lived. They had riches and many
blessings; they liked to enjoy themselves, and yet
they did a lot of good. They wanted to make everybody
happy, as happy as they themselves were.
On Christmas Eve a beautifully decorated
Dänemark/Denmark
Christmas tree stood in the large old hall, where
fire burned in the fireplaces and fir branches were
hung around the old paintings. Here gathered the
family and their guests; here they sang and
danced.
The Christmas festivities had already been
well under way earlier in the evening in the servants’
quarters. Here also stood a large fir tree,
with lighted red and white candles, small Danish
flags, swans and fishing nets cut out of coloured
paper and filled with candies and other sweets.
The poor children from the parish had been invited,
and each had its mother along. The mothers
didn’t pay much attention to the Christmas tree,
but looked rather at the Christmas table, where
there lay woollen and linen cloths, for dresses and
trousers. Yes, the mothers and the older children
looked at this; only the smallest children stretched
out their hands toward the candles, the tinsel,
and the flags.
This whole gathering had come early in the
afternoon; they had been served Christmas porridge
and roasted goose with red cabbage. Then
when the Christmas tree had been looked over
and the gifts distributed, each got a small glass of
punch and apple-filled æbleskiver.
Naturally, the Christmas banquet is a highlight of
the Christmas festivities even in Denmark, and on
this occasion goose, duck or roast pork are preferred.
A speciality is sugar-glazed potatoes. And the famous
tranquiliser of the nissen, rice pudding has its firm
place as a starter named julegrød, or as a dessert with
whipped cream and hot cherries called ris à l’amande.
In one of the portions of this starter or dessert a
whole almond is hidden. The lucky finder is given
the so-called mandelgave, a large pink marzipan
pig – provided he did not eat too hastily and
accidentally crack the almond: This, on the other
hand, is a sign of bad luck and the marzipan pig is
divided among the remaining visitors of the Christmas
meal.
Once everybody is enjoying the food, the right
Christmas atmosphere has set in and the younger
family members are happy with their gifts, Danes
will consider this to be extremely hyggeligt.
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