Christmas Dinner in England

[Ebony]

No: HPFGUIDX 7027

Calling all British HP4GU regulars and others:

I need help!

When I decided to change the setting of this fic from an unspecified 
summer date to Christmas, I had no idea what trouble I was in for.  
What kind of Christmas dinner doesn't include red velvet cake, baked 
macaroni and cheese, or candied yams?  ;)

The kind I have to write about, I guess.  This is what I have so far 
on the menu for this particular Weasley Christmas dinner:

Prawn Cocktail
Christmas Crackers
Pheasant or Roast Beef (unsure which)
Sage and onion stuffing
Brussels sprouts
Mashed parsnips
Mincemeat pie
Christmas pudding
Mulled Wine
Butterbeer
Pumpkin Juice
Sorrel (Jamaican Christmas drink; Angelina's contribution--what's the 
wizarding version of rum?  Butterrum?  We Muggles *do* have 
butterscotch...)

Loads of questions:

1)  Web research reveals several Brits mentioning turkey and 
cranberry sauce as a holiday tradition.  I thought these were 
American dishes... am I mistaken?

2)  Shouldn't another meat choice be offered?  In America, the usual 
thing is to have turkey on Thankgiving and ham on Christmas.  Please 
correct the entree if it's wrong... the men in our family hunt, so I 
do know a little about pheasant.  We also like to have venison on 
holidays, but again, that may be an Americanism or a Michiganism for 
all I know.

3)  Everything seems to contain alcohol.  What do the children 
drink?  (BTW, how can you *not* have egg nog?  Or mulled cider?)  Do 
they have to drink everyday pumpkin juice?  Or can they have 
something special... perhaps "sparkling" pumpkin juice?

4)  Do Brits abhor fruitcake as much as your average American?

5)  Is there a bread served, or do the Christmas crackers serve this 
purpose?

6)  Please explain the Prawn Cocktail, Christmas crackers, and 
Christmas pudding.  The description I have of Christmas crackers 
is "we pull the crackers and take turns reading the jokes and sharing 
the toys.  Throughout the meal you must wear your paper crown from 
the crackers."  This sounds very nice, but I'm still confused... 
right now the mental picture I get is of a cross between Cracker Jack 
and a Burger King kid's meal crown.  Help, please.

I understand the Christmas pudding is filled with coins and charms, 
soaked in brandy and flamed.  Is this correct?  My experience with 
flaming food is sadly only flaming cheese--we have a large Greek 
community here.  Is the concept similar?

I have no idea what a Prawn Cocktail is.  I will look it up on my 
usual recipe search engines, but it's so much nicer when someone can 
describe it in their own words.

7)  Is this a plausible Christmas dinner?  More specifically, is it 
plausible for a grown-up Weasley clan?

When would it be properly served?  Christmas Eve?  Christmas 
afternoon?  Christmas evening?  Boxing Day?

8)  Is this the correct order that food is served in?  My family 
favors a buffet-style setup, with only dessert being saved for later.

Also, I'm thinking some of the sisters-in-law, such as Hermione and 
Angelina, could help Molly out by bringing covered dishes.  Is there 
a such thing as potluck, or is this considered rude?

9)  In general, American tables *groan* on holidays.  I've heard that 
people are a bit more restrained overseas.  Should I have 2-3 
entrees, 4-6 sides, etc. like many American families do?

Thanks in advance for your help... I have several American beta-
readers (thanks Penny, Heidi, and Carole!) but it might also be nice 
to have one of our British members give the chapter a final glance-
through.  Prevention is the best medicine for "we don't do/say that 
in England" reviews.  :)

Best,

Ebony