Generally, we don't follow Armenian tradition at home when it comes to holiday food, with a few exceptions. Dad always stocks our Christmas tins with dried fruit and nuts - never forgetting to include black walnuts, grape paper (the original fruit roll-ups), and sujukh (hardened grape-paste filled with walnuts). But the rice with raisins, the winter wheat broth, and the meat in pomegranate sauce are rarities that we usually hear about from other homes.

While at our good friends' home for dinner a few days ago, we enjoyed our traditional get-together fish dinner, but my friend's mum had also prepared something nicely traditional - raw meatballs, or 'chi-kefteh'. I do my best to stay away from raw meat, but this was a special occasion. The photo above is of my friend enjoying a moment of mirth at my expense, when in my excitement over 'chi-kefteh', I said, "Wow, I haven't had this in years!" and then proceeded to roll off a total of one meatball onto my plate.

Conclusion? The meal was every bit as delightful as the company.