As we get ready to tuck into Christmas dinners, it can be easy to forget that we’re a country at war. America has some 200,000 troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and probably three times that number in support personnel; that means that at least three-quarters of a million families at home are missing one or more family members.

Still Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanza should be a time to celebrate life, family and friendship, while remembering the sacrifices made on our behalf.

My English father, John Becker, counted Christmas his favorite time of year, even during World War II. During the war food was rationed, so most families suffered some form of privation. I recall, for example, that his mother made a cake called Blackout cake that didn’t include sugar. It felt like a brick going down.

When he moved to the US in the early 1950s, John continued English traditions, like serving Christmas pudding that he would set afire with a spot of brandy. Kids would dig out coins buried in the desert.

Or we would head up to Riverside Church for the Christmas Eve service and carols. A thousand congregants singing together was a beautiful thing.

So in remembering tough times and the hopes that we will get through them wiser and not too worn, here is the Christmas dinner served at RAF Station Ford in 1943—well before MREs entered our vocabulary. And since this is a farm blog focusing on local, sustainable products, I should point out that all the vegetables served were of the season. That’s just how they did things 50 years ago, wartime or not.

Tomato soup

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Roast Turkey                        Roast Pork

Forcemeat Stuffing            Sage and Onion Stuffing

Chipolata Sausage

Brussels Sprouts

Roast Potatoes            Creamed potatoes

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Xmas Pudding

Cream Sauce            Rum Sauce

Mince Pies

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Dessert  – Apples

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Beer   Minerals   Cigarettes