又中又英
又中又英
又中又英

white Christmas

2018/12/18 04:12:48 網誌分類: 生活
18 Dec
          Every year leading up to Christmas I reminisce about the time when I was living in the US. To reminisce means to remember the past with happiness. Christmas is so different in the US than in Hong Kong. The feel is different, especially if there is a white Christmas. A white Christmas is a Christmas with snow. I have lived in both Washington DC and Seattle. There is a greater chance of a white Christmas in Washington than in Seattle but I have experienced a white Christmas several times in Seattle. I often reminisce about the Christmas dinners I had in the US. Most Americans cook their own Christmas dinners instead of going to restaurants.

          In Britain, the main Christmas dinner dish is almost always turkey but in the US it can be turkey or ham because Americans traditionally eat turkey for Thanksgiving, which is in November. When I lived in the US, I preferred turkey for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. In addition to turkey, my former wife also made sausage rolls, mince pies, roast potatoes, gravy, and green bean casserole, a popular dish for Thanksgiving. Green bean casserole is made with green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and thinly-sliced fried onions that have been soaked in milk. We always had Christmas pudding for dessert, which is made with different types of dried fruit, spices, and sugar.

          Pairing a Christmas dinner with wine is not difficult. A white wine, such as Chardonnay, or a light red wine, such as Pinot Noir, goes perfectly with turkey, green bean casserole, and roast potatoes. The word “pairing”, as I explained before, means to choose the types of wine and food that will taste best with each other. There was always leftover turkey when I had Christmas dinners in the US. The word “leftover” means the part of the food that remains after the meal is over. We always ate leftover turkey the next day with stilton cheese and crackers and paired this with port wine. Stilton is a strong-smelling cheese with blue veins. Many people dislike the stinky smell but pairing stilton with leftover cold turkey and crackers with port wine is delicious.

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          每年將近聖誕的這段時間,我都會緬懷(reminisce)以前住在美國的日子。To reminisce就是緬懷往事,追憶往昔的歡樂時光。美國的聖誕跟香港的聖誕是不一樣的,那種感覺很不同,尤其是若那年有白色聖誕(white Christmas)的話。A white Christmas就是有下雪的聖誕。我曾居於華盛頓和西雅圖,比起西雅圖,華盛頓有較大機會有白色聖誕(white Christmas),但我也曾於西雅圖經歷過幾次的白色聖誕(white Christmas)。我不時懷緬(reminisce)在美國時的聖誕聚餐。大部份美國人都不會到餐廳,而是自己在家煮聖誕晚餐。

          在英國,聖誕大餐的主菜幾乎都是火雞,但在美國則可以是火雞或火腿,因為美國人傳統會在十一月感恩節時吃火雞。當我還在美國時,我就喜歡感恩節和聖誕節都吃火雞。除了火雞,我的前妻還會煮豬肉卷、果肉餡餅、烤薯,以及感恩節很熱門的菜式:焗烤四季豆(green bean casserole)。Green bean casserole是以牛奶浸焗四季豆、忌廉蘑菇湯及厚切炸洋葱。我們通常會以聖誕布甸(Christmas pudding)作為甜品,就是以乾果、香料和糖製成的布甸。

          聖誕大餐要配(pairing)酒並不難。白酒如莎當妮,又或是較輕的紅酒黑比諾,跟火雞、焗烤四季豆(green bean casserole)和烤薯是完美的配搭。正如我之前解釋過,pairing是指以哪一類的酒和食物最搭配,令兩者都更美味。我在美國吃聖誕大餐時,總是會有吃剩的(leftover)火雞。Leftover是指用膳後剩餘的食物。我們常常在翌日以斯蒂爾頓(stilton)芝士和薄脆餅跟那些吃剩的(leftover)火雞一起吃,再配以(paired) 波特酒。Stilton是有藍紋而有強烈氣味的芝士。許多人不喜歡那種芝士的臭味,但以斯蒂爾頓(stilton)芝士配搭(pairing)吃剩的(leftover)凍火雞、脆餅和波特酒,真是美味極了。中譯:七刻

        Michael Chugani 褚簡寧
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Pang Hoi Ling
Pang Hoi Ling 2018/12/22 13:48:13 回覆

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