It seems to happen that shortly after candles and chrysanthemums disappear from shopping shelves, they begin to be full of Christmas trees, Christmas baubles and Santas. Every year this process starts earlier. In my opinion, merchants try to make us believe that if there are only two months until Christmas, you need to hurry up. Maybe we should bake ginger bread and buy carp already?

For sure you have dishes on your home menu which are on the table only for special occasions. In my home this dish, among others, is vegetable salad. I don't know why I prepare it so rarely; mainly just for Christmas. The ingredients are simple, available all year around and preparation is not really complicated. In my family's opinion, vegetable salad is the queen among all salads. It doesn't have a spectacular appearance, unique recipe or secret ingredients, yet I don't know anybody who doesn't like it.

Everybody knows the ingredients. The secret of every housewife is proportions which mean that the net result is sweet, spicy or dry. My salad is rather sweet and made a little more spicy by adding mustard.

Ingredients:

4 carrots

3 parsley roots

1 tin of peas

8 dill pickles

10 pickled mushrooms

2 hard and sweet apples

3 eggs

half an onion

1 teaspoon of butter

5 tablespoons of mayonnaise

2 tablespoons of mustard

salt and pepper

Peal the carrots and parsley roots and boil with butter in salty water. Leve to cool down. Hard boil the eggs. Dice the carrots, parsley roots, apples, dill pickles, pickled mushrooms and onion. Mix them in with peas, mayonnaise and mustard. Spice them up with salt and pepper. It tastes the best with a fresh bread roll with butter, but you may serve it with everything,  maybe with the exception of meringue cake and plum tart

Enjoy your meal!