"A Christmal Carol" Literary Dinner Party

A Christmas Carol was a wonderful seasonal buddy read for us. Short and sweet, and the perfect way to get back into our literary dinners since Rikki's baby arrived. Our reading lives have been up and down the past few months, full of too many good books to choose from, and often choosing family over everything else, as the season demands. This dinner party brought both of our families together and made for a great night of conversation, simple yet delicious fare, and warm, flavorful mulled wine.

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the past, present, and the future. - Charles Dickens, Ebenezer Scrooge, A Christmas Carol”

As with many of our dinner parties, we went with a simple meal and set-up; the goal is to enjoy ourselves, not work all night long. Using lots of candles we had on hand, a garland of greenery (Trader Joes's for the win!) and berries cut from the backyard, we laid down a base over a lace piece Rikki had. We then sprinkled in fresh citrus, apples, cinnamon sticks, and chestnuts, which were all mentioned in the novella, and stuck a candelabra in the center.

It ended up feeling SO warm and inviting! Everyone was kind of lingering near it, because it was so pretty and cozy. The place settings were just Rikki's dishes and silverware mixed with some napkins in rings that Michaela had on hand that felt Christmassy enough. Honestly, it took us ten minutes to lay down and tweak to our satisfaction, and cost about $10.

“But being thoroughly good-natured, and not much caring what they laughed at, so that they laughed at any rate, he encouraged them in their merriment, and passed the bottle joyously. - Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol”

Keeping in mind the Christmas party scene at Scrooge's nephew's house, we brought to life a scene with lots of candles, rustic, seasonal touches, and simple hearty foods. It felt really good to return to vintage Christmas staples and create a classic setting in the midst of our modern holiday.

With two roast chickens, glazed carrots, and a beloved family dressing recipe, dinner was ready to go! It fed five adults and three kids perfectly, so we were able to sit and enjoy the meal and good conversation while we sipped warm mulled wine and relaxed together.

We went with a homemade wonderfully spiced rum raisin cake for our dessert. The novella mentions a Victorian twelfth cake, which is a really similar concept; heavy on eggs, light on sugar, spiked with alcohol, and studded with fruits and nuts in a dense cake.

We toasted to the night, finished off the food and wine, and enjoyed the warm fire while visions of A Christmas Carol danced in our heads. This holiday season is often so busy, but we are so glad to have carved out time for this. It's moments like these, coming together and slowing down to appreciate a story as heartwarming as this, that made us feel like this is what the Christmas season is all about.

• What People Ate

  roast chickens, stuffing, glazed carrots

• What People Drank

  wine

• Desserts

  spiced rum cake

• Activities / Games

  book club discussion

• Rikki Rivera

  Photographer

  http://www.rikkirivera.com/