Tropical Zone Gardening: It's the season to be jolly... so there's no... without..., 1 by goofybulb

goofybulb wrote:
A gap in presents comes for the kids. Until Christmas Eve, there's not much to do for them... well, if you don't count enjoying their new toys from Old Man Nicholas, and the playing in the snow (weather allowing) - snow fights, sleigh rides, snowman building...

But for the adults, a very busy season starts. There's lots of food to be prepared for all the Season's celebrations, and the Romanian dishes are quite time-consuming, some things can be prepared a little in advance, but for the rest one has to be sure there's no missing ingredients. Than there's the house cleaning. Some Santa shopping happens too. Carolers gather secretly to rehearse (they will really start caroling maybe on 22nd-23rd, but definitely on Christmas eve!

Oh, so much to do, in so little time! So how do they cope with it? Well, there's always boiled wine!

Let's get it straight: while I was in Romania, I only read about alcohol-dehydrogenase deficiency! Romanians appear to have nothing wrong with their ability to drink...I don't encourage anybody to binge on alcohol. But winter time and a glass of wine - a mug, for the boiled one - go together well!

Nostalgic immigrants, our friends and us, we would gather at least once in the "cold" Miami December Nights, have some boiled wine and just chat away - being in the US limits the types of food that we can prepare ourselves (can you imagine, almost my whole life, I've had home-made sausages, smoked or not? and I'm a born and raised city-girl)

Boiled wine:
I believe any Romanian will make you some. Slight variations in the making among our cheery little group. It starts always with red wine (I only once drank white boiled wine). It can be a sweet variety (not port wine), but dry will work too, because there's some sugar involved in the recipe. So, depending on the number of people, one can start with half a mug or a bottle, or more... that is placed on the stove, min-to-med strength heating.
The sugar is added to taste, keeping in mind that this is after a tiresome day and a dinner meal... because afterward, a good sleep will follow. Stir until the sugar melts, than it's not really necessary. Do not be tempted to increase the heat, while it would bring the wine to boil faster, it is not necessary. This is a relaxation therapy, not a requirement, so take your time, and while one prepares, the others stay around and the chat lights up.
Two main spices are mandatory: cinnamon and cloves. I like the whole cloves, and usually drop one or two into the wine. Cinnamon, depending on the volume, can range from a knife-tip to a teaspoon. When the wine just barely starts to simmer, turn off the stove and bring the mugs. Share it with your chatty friends. And carefully try to remove them from the kitchen, because sometimes the change in rooms leads to a change in conversation.
This is how I remember my father preparing it for us, it is my first alcoholic memory!!! And this is how I also prepare it.

My friend Luca also drops in a diced fruit (apple is his favorite for the boiled wine). It is very tasty, with the apples still crisp and wine-flavored just right.

The best thing about boiled wine is the coziness and friendship. But there are other effects as well: it warms you up almost instantly, even if you spent all day long in the freezing Boston winter. And, even better, it helps fight the common cold and un-stuffs the nose... (better not mix it with medication though)

Cheers!
Alexandra

(a mug picture would have been better, but I don't have one. somehow, we always focused on just enjoying it)