Czech Mark

I promised my grandson, Grant Flindt, that I would cook him a Czech dinner, just like the ones he enjoyed in Prague during his LDS mission.  On December 23, 2018, I delivered.

 The Czech and Slovak national dish is svickova.  It is made by slowly braising beef with vegetables, including carrots, parsnips, onions, and celery root.  The vegetables are then blended with cream into a gravy, which is served atop the meat, along with dabs of whipped cream, berry jam, and a slice of lemon.  Bread dumplings are poached, sliced, and served alongside.  I need to work on my dumplings, but otherwise, Grant said the meal was authentic!

Our children have now all arrived for Christmas.  It was a treat to have the whole Flindt family with us, other than Rebecca and Michael, who were in Florida with Rebecca's parents.

 Jonny's Sam, who is 5, seems very grown up.  He even eats salad!

 Henry, at 3, is as mischievous as Jonny was at that age.

 And adorable Thomas, just six months, was passed from one loving set of arms to the next.  Spencer and Naomi Flindt, who don't have children yet, snuggled little Thomas.

 Jonny, who always has opinions about his mother's food, pronounced the svickova very good and the cherry kolaches (sweet rolls) just fine, too.

 Both sets of Bryce's and Alyssa's grandparents live in Salt Lake, so their Christmas visits are one round of parties after the next.

 We are very aware that this will be Kirsten's last Christmas with us for a while, since she leaves for an LDS mission in Missouri in February.

When he heard I would be serving svickova, Grant invited a fellow missionary from the Czech/Slovak Mission, and the missionary's girlfriend.  We always love to meet our children's and grandchildren's friends.

For dessert, I gathered all the sweets we've been given by friends and neighbors into a buffet.  For Sam, that was even better than salad!