20210709 Table
Our dinner table can be extended on two sides. Normally it seats four to six people and with the extensions you can seat ten or twelve when everybody squeezes in. Those extensions are quite heavy, because they are also made from solid wood and we have no storage space on the ground floor, so we have to haul them down from the top floor every time we have a large dinner. But we don't mind that, because we love to have people around and we love to have lavish dinners. My favourite dinner is the yearly family dinner we organise for my birthday. We always invite everybody in the family and over the years we have settled on a menu of cheese fondue and artichokes. That might seem a strange combination, but they are both relatively easy to make for a large crowd. We have a lovely cheese shop in our town and I always buy fresh grated cheese from different types of cheese and every year we experiment with different combinations. Artichokes are also quite easy to prepare. Just cut off the stem, wash them and cook for about forty minutes, depending on the size. We serve them with vinaigrette, but we also found out that dipping the artichoke leaves in cheese fondue is quite nice. To me, those family dinners are one of the highlights of the year. I guess I'm also lucky to have a very nice family. I have friends that shiver at the idea of having their entire family over for dinner.