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Blenheim Palms Motel
Blenheim
Tis' the season to be jolly - well not quite, but why not warm up your friends and family by pretending for a night? As we all know, a winter wonderland this Christmas is out of the question in New Zealand, so a midwinter Christmas is really just a great excuse for a party - go on, make it one to remember!
Create the perfect midwinter Christmas scene
First things first - get decorating. Turning your house into a magical winter scene that will captivate your guests is easy, all you need is a little Kiwi ingenuity. If it doesn't snow where you live, compromise! Paint fake snowflakes on the windows, stretch cotton wool around the room, or get chopping with the polystyrene (although be cautious if you have young children) before sprinkling it around your house. Pull out all your Christmas decorations - that's right, the tree, table settings and boughs of holly. Set the scene for when your guests arrive by decorating the outside of the house with fairy lights, and there you go - a perfect midwinter Christmas scene.
Also right up there in order of importance is the food and drink. Although many New Zealanders aren't familiar with the joys of eggnog, now is the perfect time to get acquainted with it. Another great Christmas favourite is mulled wine - a must at any midwinter Christmas that's bound to be a hit with your guests. See the recipes below and remember, if you haven't made it before you might like to test it out before the party.
Kiwi Christmas Favourites
For the food, think dishes that will complement the festiveness of the party as well as have a winter feel. There's your typical roast, whether it's a turkey, chicken or my favourite - a pork roast served with cranberry sauce, complemented with seasonal veges, potato and kumara. Ham is also a Kiwi Christmas favourite that's easy to do. For dessert, consider baking cookies and making your own shapes, mince tarts and Christmas pudding. However, don't feel restricted to traditional foods - if you feel like surprising your guests with an unexpected dish, go for it. You can even invent your own traditional feast that will be recreated for years to come.
Finally, have a few tricks up your sleeve to keep your guests entertained. A few weeks before the party, arrange a 'Secret Santa'. Ask your guests to each pick a name out of a hat (make sure all the intended guests' names are in there), and ask them to buy a $5 present for that person, on one condition, it must be amusing. This will make for great fun on the night! Organise a few games, such as charades or 'pin the tail on Rudolph', which is easier said than done after a few eggnogs. There are tonnes of wacky games out there, just pick your favourites. Good luck!
Recipes
Mulled Wine
Ingredients: 750ml bottle red wine (merlot, shiraz or cabernet sauvignon), 1 cinnamon quill, 6 whole cloves, 3-4 slivers fresh ginger, pared rind and juice of one orange, 1/4 cup port, 1/2 tblsp honey.
Method: Put the red wine, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, orange rind and juice in a saucepan. Heat gently for around 15 minutes, but don't boil, before covering and removing from the heat. Let it stand for 30 minutes. Then reheat slowly, add port and sweeten to taste with honey. Strain and serve warm in heatproof glasses.
Eggnog
Ingredients: 300ml milk, 3 eggs (separated), 75g caster sugar, 6-8 tbs brandy, 6-8 tbs rum, 150ml cream.
Method: Heat milk gently, don't boil. Whisk egg yolks and sugar together. Slowly add brandy and rum. Beat the cream until it forms stiff peaks, then fold in the cream, and pour the mixture slowly onto the heated milk. Then whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold into the nog.
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