CHRISTMAS DAY

In case anyone is still thinking of how to entertain their guests, or any guest is still thinking about what to take to dinner.

By the time you read this there will be no time to do anything marvelous to the goose (certainly not to cook the legs in fat and sear-roast the breast separately) or the standing ribs of beef (except slather it with vodka, then lots of salt and pepper and let it stand for a few hours at room temperature before baking). But there will be time to think about drinks. And time to nip down to the local store to buy the necessaries for whatever nog or nogg you desire.

I can quite easily forgo any of the culinary traditions of Christmas, but I would hate not to have a bite of aged Christmas pudding with hard sauce, or to miss out on my eggnog.

Every year I pour over old cookbooks, housewives’ companions, and books of household management, as I rethink which version of eggnog I am going to make. And every year I wish Elizabeth David was still here so I could sit aroun…