What is Your Christmas Dinner Tradition?

Christmas dinner.  Every family has a tradition, and most times it looks very similar to Thanksgiving.  Roast turkey, chicken or goose, beef, ham, or pork; stuffing, mashed or roast potatoes and gravy; and squash or roasted root vegetables with pumpkin pie for desert.  Around the South it probably includes coconut cake, pecan pie, and sweet potato pie.

Growing up in Michigan our family made a big pot of chili and a pot of bean soup with crackers and cheese and sandwiches and had it throughout the day instead of one big meal.

Country stars like Tim McGraw and Faith Hill and Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani have a tradition of eating pasta for Christmas dinner.  Luke Bryan's family feast on chili dogs.

In Mexico a traditional Christmas dinner is a shared event which is celebrated on Christmas Eve, or Noche Buena. With a location being set by a family, the host usually contributes the bulk of decorations, food, and dinner ware; guests are expected to contribute with a side dish, dessert, or alcoholic beverages. Traditional foods differ by region, but include tamales, atole, pozole, birria and menudo.

In Germany, the primary Christmas dishes are roast goose and roast carp, although suckling pig or duck may also be served. Typical side dishes include roast potatoes and various forms of cabbage like kale and brussels sprouts.

And in Japan a Christmas cake is traditional.  A white sponge cake covered with cream and decorated with strawberries, and Stollen cake, either imported or made locally, is widely available. There is also one other unique Christmas tradition in Japan.  A successful advertising campaign in the 1970s made eating at KFC around Christmas a national custom. Its chicken meals are so popular during the season that stores take reservations months in advance.

Check out some of these traditions around the world on Wikipedia.

So what are your Christmas dinner traditions?  Is it a big family meal?  Is it something non traditional and unique?   Let me know, and have a very Merry Christmas!