Mince pies anyone?

One of wonderful things about Christmas is mince pies and one of the food things that our son who lives in America really misses. The mince for the pies contains no meat but is a rich mixture of spices, dried fruit, often some alcohol and a lubricant, traditionally lard or suet, but oil can be used. Tons of mince pies are eaten over the Christmas season, and are often left by the chimney with a carrot for Santa and his reindeer. They are very sweet and great waist extenders.

The final leg of a romantic tale
Yesterday our new daughter in law flew from Belfast to Dublin to Chicago and then on to San Fransisco to start her married life with our son. We were really quite anxious, given the history of the couple and the effect Covid has had on wedding plans etc, that she would not be able to go or enter USA but fly indeed she did.