December 25, 2022 Brunch - Scrambled Eggs with Black Truffles Snack - Amy and Vahl’s Christmas Party. Dinner - Posole and Tamale

December 25, 2022 Brunch - Scrambled Eggs with Black Truffles Snack - Amy and Vahl’s Christmas Party. Dinner - Posole and Tamale

Today the food was simple and delicious.

It started with brunch at 11:00.  Suzette made Scrambled eggs with slices of black truffles, truffle oil, and truffle salt.  The pungent flavor stayed with me for hours.  I can’t say I am addicted, but the idea of a new food experience was wonderful and happily can be repeated because Costco is now selling two bottles of three truffles each for $32.00.  We saw a French truffle farm of oak trees in which acorns infused with truffle were planted.  I assume the cultivation of truffles has succeeded and that which once was more costly than gold is now within the reach of even us average gourmets.

After brunch we moved to the living room where we exchanged gifts, a family tradition. I gave a chocolate orange to Luke, and when asked if it was a family tradition recalled that it was, that I had been given chocolate oranges in my youth for Chanukah and always looked forward to receiving one.

At 1:15 Luke drove us to Amy and Vahl’s.  I dozed on the way up with Luke in the Prius and back when Willy drove us in his car.

At Amy and Vahj’s I sat at the end of the sofa next to Paul, whose son Craig, recently married Vahl’s niece, Dayla.  Amazingly, Paul is a corporate lawyer like me with a finance and a law degree, who works for a large firm in Chicago, so we had lots of stories to tell each other.

When we arrived Amy made me a cup of Constant Comfort with honey, and Dayanne, Dayla’s mother, opened a bottle of Erath Oregon Pinot Gris and poured me a glass. Suzette sat next to me and after few hours made me a ham biscuit spread with lemon curd and slices of ham with a dash of Mayo and a slice of the excellent sweet potato pie made by Chef Josh at the bistro.

At 5:00 we went outside to watch Vahl’s son, Josh and his young son, Rohan, play with a toy that shoots a rocket into the air when one stomps on a bladder filled with air and Vahl’s other son throw a boomerang.

We then said goodbye and Willy drove us home in a blazing pink to red sunset.

When we returned home we watched some of Sixty Minutes and the Sunday Night Game between the Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Buccaneers.  The first three quarters were boring but in the fourth quarter Tom Brady brought the Bucs back from a 10 point deficit to tie at 16 to 16 and then go on to win in overtime. Brady, who holds the NFL record of 54 come from behind victories, added a 55th, so is a shoe in to the NFL Hall of Fame and a remarkable athlete who is still playing professionally quarterback at 45 years of age and is currently the oldest NFL player.

I also watched a MSNBC film in a new series titled Turning Point about Wendy Davis, the Texas legislator from Fort Worth, who argued a standing filibuster for 11 hours in the Texas Senate in 2013 to block the passage of House Bill 5 limiting abortions.

I ate a bowl of Posole with a tamale for dinner to which I added chopped onion, lime juice, sour cream, and dried oregano, my favorite way to eat Posole.

I count this as one of the best Christmases ever.  Good conversation, good food, reasonable prosperity, surrounded by family made it special.

There was even a Christmas Miracle.  While we were sitting watching TV Suzette found my missing cell phone in the crease of the chair by the sound of its low battery beeping.

The prospect of new hips is both frightening and exciting.  Being able to walk and exercise again is exciting. The pain of recovery is frightening.

Alas life goes on.

Bon Appetit