(Written for the Minhall & Jones Food Blog)
When we travel, Anne-Marie and I often say very little. And when we do, it’s often in shorthand. A few words that sum up …. oh so much.
‘Kazakhstan’ for example is short for - flying half way round the world for one concert, eating chicken wings, horses bottom, and barely getting our passports back and home safe. Or to put it another way, ‘How do we get into these scrapes?’
‘Shall We?’ is often used standing outside a nice little restaurant or bar during an evening amble, which means - ‘Are you getting the Aperol Spritzers in this time or shall I?’
And then there is ‘The Big Wheel in Brussels.’
So, it was more or less this week in 2006, and we found ourselves in Brussels to soak up some of the atmosphere of a Christmas Market. For me also, a chance to go down memory lane as I’d lived and worked there or thereabouts for a year back in 1982/3.
Brussels was much changed. 30 years earlier the Belgian capital had been down at heel. Permanently facing financial crises. The streets were all dug up to put in the Semi-metro. And I was a student with no money, and too much time on my hands. I had haunts. Mainly around the Grand Place, the Atomium - which I remember served a rather dubious Spaghetti Bolognese - and any street corner where they served Frites with sauces. Oh and brussels North Station - probably not a fantastic idea as it was a red light district at the time, and I was forever being kerb crawled and wolf-whistled - yes, truly. I kid you not.
Anyhow, first evening with AMM (hunting a cash point, of which there were none) it was a wander round town, a nice restaurant meal - Brazillian food as I recall over towards the Antiques Market, we both had our first Caipirinha Cocktails, and then to mooch around the Christmas Market. Hot Gluhwein and Advocaat was beckoning… but then I said … before we do that, why don’t we go on the Big Wheel. Which was a fine idea - panormaic views over Brussels night time skyline.
Maybe not such a fine idea as one of the biggest winter storms in history (I exaggerate, a little) was barrelling in from the Atlantic. Not at its height that evening - that was still to come the next day as I dragged Anne-Marie round my university town - Leuven in a force 10 gale. Home of Stella Beer. But the wind was high enough for it to be ‘bracing.’ But hey - we’ll go round once, then hit the Gluhwein.
Only - The wheel got stuck. It stopped. And showed no signs of moving. I didn’t like to say to AMM at that moment that I thought I’d seen the little man pulling the levers heading into a hostelry on the corner. There were vague screams, especially when the wind rocked our little gondola. Not from us. We are made of sterner stuff… marginally.
After about 20 minutes, and a lot of silent contemplation and I think condemnation … neither of us swear, but AMM mutters terribly under her breath … it jerked back into life. We landed. And fled the scene like we were running from lions. Into the arms of …. Gluhwein and Advocaat - flavoured ones. Yum. And another to steady our nerves. Maybe another.
Photo © Rob Jones
Today (tonight) is Sinterklaas Eve - the Eve of St. Nicholas Day. Patron saint of children. The Dutch and Belgians wisely split their Christmas in two. The family meals happens on our Christmas Eve. The present giving St. Nicholas (Santa Claus) arrives on the 5th of December in a boat from Spain with his non-PC helpers, riding a white horse, which in Belgium is named Slecht Weer Vandaag (Bad Weather Today,)
More on him tomorrow (St. Nicholas, not the horse.).
Meanwhile - Here’s a quick Advocaat or Eggnog Recipe.
Ingredients:
5 egg yolks.
A large glass of Brandy.
150g Sugar.
Vanilla Extract.
Pinch of Cinnamon.
Pinch of Salt.
Method:
Whisk the eggs, salt, sugar, and cinnamon together till it clouds up a bit.
Whisk in the brandy gradually.
Heat up a pan of hot water.
Sit the bowl into the pan, whisking continuously till it’s a bit like a thin custard or Hollandaise sauce.
Remove from heat, and whisk in the vanilla.
Pop it into a glass container and put it into the fridge for about six hours.
It keeps for six month (yeah, like that’s going to happen.)
The tree in the Grand Place after a few Gluhweins - Photo © Rob Jones
RJ