Dinner! 2004

[peppyre]

Christmas dinner this year consisted of Prime Rib and well....Prime Rib.

Started off butchering the beast (sorry Neil, I had to)

Then moved on to the Yorkshire puddings and the gravy, which was just some really good demi.

This was my first attempt at Yorkshires, and this is the end result (ignore the cray woman pointing at the dish )

The Prime Rib out of the oven

It was covered in a rub of english dry mustard, salt and brown sugar.

And of course, every Christmas dinner needs an assortment of veggies, with lots and lots of booze.

All in all it was a very good dinner.

Happy Holidays to ALL!!

[NulloModo]

Judith -

No, although I did get that recipe set. The rolls on Christmas were from a Cinnabon box that my sister made, so I just abstained ;).

[fierydrunk]

The best Chicken & Dumplings EVER...

in a slow cooker, cooked for about 5 hrs total...chicken softer than I have ever eaten.

The recipe is in The Gourmet Slow Cooker.

Much more low maintenance than Thanksgiving and almost as satisfying (esp. on a sad rainy Portland Christmas).

Oh yeah, marionberry cheescake for dessert.

[Dana]

Yesterday, we had

Freixenet sparkling wine

Shrimp Balls with Guajillo Sauce

Standing Rib Roast

Boursin Potatoes

Brussel Sprouts with walnuts

Carmelized Butternut Squash

Homemade Yeast Rolls

Vino Nobile de Montelpulciano

Creme Brulee with fresh fruit

[jess mebane]

On Christmas Eve I made the obligatory rib roast, then we went to Big Momma's hse and had a whack at two more rib roasts, then on to little Granny and Grandaddy's house on la prairie with yet another rib roast. Tonight, I believe we shall have salad.

Joyeaux Noel, y'all!

[pam claughton]

Strange combination that works. Tonight I enjoyed leftovers, had the lobster/shrimp pie Christmas Eve, yesterday with filet mignon, and tonight with one of my gifts, a Coppola Merlot, which is delicous, and actually tastes quite good with the lobster dish. It's a mix of fresh lobster meat, shrimp, ritz and royal lunch crushed crackers, cream, parsley, and butter. So good.

Pam

Oh, Dessert is a 5 Star Bar from Lake Champlain chocolates. I read about these in Steve Almonds great food book, Candy Freak. Actually, I think it was his essay in Best Food Writing 2004, from the book, that had me drooling, so when I saw these bars in my local Whole Foods I snapped them up. This one is a chunky rich mix of dark chocolate, praline, pecans and cherries.

[Daddy-A]

And of course, every Christmas dinner needs an assortment of veggies, with lots and lots of booze.

Okay, so someone's drinking G&T ... scotch ... can't quite make out what's beside the Lamb's & the Grand Marnier.

I'm amazed you were able to post today!

A.

[Jinmyo]

Boxing Day. The Sacred Day of the Blessed Box:

Salad of radicchio and Napa cabbage with olive oil packed tuna and taramasalata and clementine sections.

Salad of blanched sugar snap peas with EVOO and rice wine vinegar.

Roasted brussel sprouts with balsamico and pecorino.

Cubes of scalloped potato with parmesan reg and Fruilano surrounded with watercress.

Blanced asparagus with Normandy cultured butter.

Braised collard green strips with onion and ham cooking liquor.

Buttermilk mashed Yukon Gold potaoes with flat leaf parsley, slices of medium rare to medium well pork shank roast depending upon preferences, sauce of pureed onions roasted along with the shanks with thyme, sage, and Dijon, atop scoop of mashers and mound o' pork, strips of crackling, more thyme sprinkled over.

[hillvalley]

Kobe style beef hamburger topped with pancetta and tator tots

[Malawry]

Bee-yoo-tee-ful, HV.

Tonight:

Italian sausages from Giacomo's in Greensboro, NC

Melange of onions, mushrooms and peppers, with zinfadel

Ruby Swiss chard with balsamic reduction

[Ling]

Christmas Eve:

-this weird Asian fruit salad with SHRIMP that always shows up on special occasions(I hate fruit and mayo together)

-prime rib, turkey, roast chicken

-stuffing (it was weird...it had SHRIMP in it!)

-scalloped potatoes

-baked yams, brocolli

-pecan pie bars and a chocolate caramel cheesecake (these I made)

-strawberry mousse cake and a chestnut cake (these were bought)

-fruit salad with strawberries, pineapple, honeydew

Christmas Day:

-turkey

-sausage, artichoke, sourdough bread stuffing I made (it contained 4 lbs. of sausage--now THAT'S what I call a stuffing!)

-this mushroom dish with shiitake, enoki, and straw mushrooms

-some sort of pork dish my mom made

-2 kinds of veg, one topped with braised shiitake

-some sort of Chinese soup

-homemade cookies (gingerbread, shortbread, lemon bars, pecan tarts, custard tarts)

Today:

-leftovers

Edited December 27, 2004 by Ling (log)

[spaghetttti]

Oh Malawry, I agree -- Hillvalley, that looks fantastic! I'm in NY now and after shopping around in Chinatown hooked up some sea bass and prepared them Chinese style, with loads of ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil and cilantro. Fragrant fish!

[percyn]

Christmas Dinner at Aunt's house - Heavenly ham, Coleslaw, Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli, Turkey Gravy, Turkey, Yams, Stuffing, Brisket, Green Beans, Biscuits, Ranch style Texas Beans, Cranberry sauce, ... other stuff I am probably forgetting...did we get enough?

Here is a close-up of the brisket which I had a restaurant smoke overnight...it was yuuummmyyyy...

For Dessert we had Pecan and Apple Pies.

Lots of leftovers that turned into yesterday's dinner....

Note the ham on the salad with roasted beets (which I got at a farmers market, steamed in a pressure cooker and then roasted in the oven)

Also made some lobster stock from the leftover lobster shells we had from Christmas eve and turned it into homemade lobster bisque.

And the brisket leftovers became a brisket sandwich, topped with Tony Roma's BBQ sauce

Cheers

Percy

Edited to add - And we also had some After Dinner Drinks

Edited December 27, 2004 by percyn (log)

[reesek]

Kobe style beef hamburger topped with pancetta and tator tots

←

that's almost exactly what we had last night. we had uncured american bacon instead of pancetta...but still. eerie.

[vogelap]

We hosted my parents for Christmas eve dinner at our house. My wife, Wendy, set and decorated a beautiful table, glittering with crystal and candles, and I created the menu and prepared the food. Here's what we had:

• Apple and Chestnut Soup with Spiced Cream
  
• Spinach, Blue Cheese, and Strawberry Salad with Apple Cider Viniagrette (my mom brought this)
  
• Garlic-Stuffed Fillet of Beef over Crispy Potato 'Sandwich' with Classic Bordelaise & Maytag Sabayon
  
• Milk Chocolate Mousse Cake with Hazelnut Crunch Crust (cover recipe from a recent edition of Bon App, I think)
  

It was very nice! We had paired wines with each course, but I don't recall those at the moment. We did have a nice Moscato with the dessert...

[Chufi]

day-after-christmas party for 15:

hors d'oeuvres - tuna balls, little salmon and avocado wraps, pressed baked potatoes with garlic-parsley mayo, toasts with gorgonzola/pine nut/basil spread.

buffet - penne with butternut squash, sausage, porcini and rosemary

slowroast tomatoes with tarragon

panfried begian endive with balsamic vinegar

sauteed courgettes with basil

green salad with mustard vinaigrette

dessert: chocolate banana trifle and cranberry ginger cake.

The trifle looked very modest before I studded it with the white chocolate curls one guest brought as a gift!

Edited December 27, 2004 by Chufi (log)

[pam claughton]

We hosted my parents for Christmas eve dinner at our house. My wife, Wendy, set and decorated a beautiful table, glittering with crystal and candles, and I created the menu and prepared the food. Here's what we had:

• Apple and Chestnut Soup with Spiced Cream
  
• Spinach, Blue Cheese, and Strawberry Salad with Apple Cider Viniagrette (my mom brought this)
  
• Garlic-Stuffed Fillet of Beef over Crispy Potato 'Sandwich' with Classic Bordelaise & Maytag Sabayon
  
• Milk Chocolate Mousse Cake with Hazelnut Crunch Crust (cover recipe from a recent edition of Bon App, I think)
  

It was very nice! We had paired wines with each course, but I don't recall those at the moment. We did have a nice Moscato with the dessert...

←

This meal sounds amazing! Any chance you'd share or direct me to your recipe for the beef? Especially the maytag Sabayon?

Pam

[little ms foodie]

I'm off work all this week so I'm excited to spend a few afternoons cooking!

Tonight we started with smoked salmon on cucumber rounds with creme fraiche

Followed by Tuscan style shortribs with Balsamic Glaze, roasted garlic mashed potatoes and artichoke hearts stuffed with spinach, raisons and gruyere.

Served with an Erath Dolcetto which went perfectly!

[Luckylies]

Yay! I'm at my moms house and in a decent kitchen for the next 10 days! yipee! here are two rather boring yet unctous days.

day one:

roast chicken with rosemary potatoes and carrots and roast garlic . Chicken cracklins and mini mushroom custards (morelle and chanterelle).

day two:

I made homeade pasta for the first time.

so chicken noodle soup..with the broth made from the roast.

and

sage brown butter cappelinni (this was amazing and so simple)

I am a happy little clam.

[vogelap]

This meal sounds amazing! Any chance you'd share or direct me to your recipe for the beef? Especially the maytag Sabayon?

←

Hi Pam! Please check your PM -- I've sent it to you as you requested!

[percyn]

Steak-Frites

Yesterday I had the urge for some steak and fries. I originally wanted to buy the fries, but wanted them really fresh and crispy...so I knew what that meant...making it myself.

Also made some Asian shrimp wafers, with the residual heat left in the oil.

[chefreit]

Helena, I boiled some red potatoes about the size of eggs. Drained them, ran cold water over them. Smashed them up into pieces with the heel of my hand. Got them going in a deep skillet with extra virgin olive oil (Cletos, from the home village of one of my grocers). I seasoned them well with kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper. I flipped them several times, then turned them down to low for about 45 minutes. I brushed clean the cremini and added them during the last hour. I added some dry rosemary. Tossed everything around, added more oil. When I began deboning the roasted chicken I added baby spinach leaves and some fresh rosemary, toss, toss.

I arranged the potatoes in bowls, with a small ladle rapidly lashed a few ribbons of holandaisse over them.

That's it.

←

Had me going.................Until you said, Dried!

Edited December 28, 2004 by chefreit (log)

[peppyre]

Dinner last night was prepared by the new beau.

FIrst it was Ceasar salad with Avacados and bacon and homemade croutons (he's adding as I'm typing). After the bacon was cooked he Drizzled the Bacon Fat on the salad!!

Then marinated steaks done on the BBQ. Not really sure what was in the marinade but....White vinegar, balsamic EVOO, crushed garlic, worscestshire, black peppercorns, ketchup, HP, Rye Whiskey...It was soo good. Also did an assortment of stir fried veggies and some rice.

[lovebenton0]

Dinner last night for us and DH's buddy, can't really consider him a guest, he eats here too often for that was a bit of Christmas makeover and a bit of fresh vegs and biscuits.

Started with a cup of split pea and ham soup topped with croutes.

Then . . .

Thick slices of the rarest lamb from Christmas leg, already seasoned well so I just quickly grilled those on my stovetop grill pan in a tiny bit of butter/EVOO. Served with the pan/red wine au jus.

Steamed broccoli drizzled with garlic/lemon butter.

Biscuits made with bleu cheese/sliced scallions/parsley, spread with butter.

The guys drank beer (it was a Monday night football meal) and I had lime water.

For dessert, tangerine slices and wedges of the Christmas apricot/pear/fig-filled gingerbread-newtony thing. (I've got to come up with something to call this. ) Coffee.

[reesek]

sick so made soup last night.

bought mushroom broth and simmered it for a while with some shiitake stems i had in my freezer. sauteed garlic, onion and shallot in butter, deglazed with sherry and then added a bunch of sliced creminis. added the lot to the (strained) stock. added cream and blitzed with hand blender for a bit.

served with bread, old cheddar and apple. next time i'll cook the allium longer. it was a little sharp, but comforting and good.