Would my Ancestors Come for Christmas Dinner?

Over the past 15 years I've entertained 30 plus family and friends at a huge Christmas feast. I do all the cooking. I make the traditional Christmas turkey with stuffing, plus one other meat and a homemade pasta.

For my second meat dish I've made cabbage rolls, cow's tongue, ham, Cornish hens and a roast.

For my pasta dish I've made cheese ravioli, potato gnocchi, mac 'n cheese, and pierogi.

My side dishes were always mashed potatoes, candied yam, stir-fried broccoli, and Kak's cukes (hubs' grandmother's recipe for a cucumber dish). Sometimes I added carrots in a ginger orange juice sauce, asparagus wrapped in prosciutto or roasted root vegetables. And of course - gravy and cranberry sauce.

Desserts varied.  I frequently made individual pavola with raspberries. A few times I made individual trifles. Once I made  labour intensive pasteis de nata. Sometimes I made carrot cake or a simple ice cream with raspberry coulis.

I used to look at all the food put out on our buffet tables, and think about my ancestors. What kind of Christmas dinner did they enjoy? How would they feel seeing the abundance and variety of the meal at our home? Sometimes I pretended that some of my ancestors were there and I would ask them questions as they dug in to the meal.

Who's Coming to Dinner?

So who would I invite to one of our feasts? My top pick would be Joseph and Fanny (Downey) McGinnis because I'm desperate to know who their parents were, and where in Ireland they were born. I'd be enthralled hearing their story of leaving Ireland during the Famine Years and what it was like sailing over to Canada.

I'd like to hear from Cornelis Antonissen Van Slyke what it was like arriving in New Netherland (present day New York) in 1634. I want to know more about the mother of his children, Ots-Toch, the French-Mohawk woman he met in the New World. I don't think she would like to come as early records indicate she wasn't fond of Christians.

Jacob Peer would be high on my list because I want to know if he is descended from the Dutch Pier line that settled in New Netherland in the mid 17th Century. Yes it's funny we genealogists can become obsessed with one unknown fact.

But this will all have to stay in my imagination unless one day a time machine is invented. Even then my idea won't happen as I decided last year was my last time making such a huge feast. So it would have to be Chinese takeout or Pizza going back with me on that machine. I bet my ancestors would enjoy that just as much, maybe more.