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2012 Christmas Eve Dinner

January 2, 2013 / / 0 Comments

Every year since my kids were born (except for 2005, when we visited Argentina) I have made an elaborate, multi-course Christmas Eve dinner.   I start the menu planning by deciding what meat I will feature as my main dish.  I want something eye-catching that I wouldn’t normally cook.  Trouble is, after so many Christmas Eves, I’ve run out of choices.  I’ve done standing rib roasts, boneless prime ribs and regular roasts.  I’ve cooked beef Wellington and plain beef tenderloin roasts.  I’ve done turkey, goose, pork tenderloin and leg of lamb.  One year I made the most delicious rack of lamb.  Earlier in my marriage, I once even made Ethiopian food for Xmas Eve dinner.  And last year, I made short ribs.

I don’t like repeating dishes – thus my Xmas Eve dinner problem – but I was in a big conundrum this year.  My kids won’t let me cook any cute animals – so no lamb, venison, ostrich, duck – and none of us are that fond of pork, so that leaves beef (chicken is just not impressive enough for Xmas Eve dinner).  And I really didn’t want to do a roast (nor spend the money to buy top-quality beef).  I thought about making oxtails, but the kids balked and, truth be told, after a couple of experiences with really tough oxtails, I wasn’t that willing to risk it.

So I decided to go for short ribs again.  There are many ways to prepare them, after all, and they are a crowd favorite.

In all, my menu went very well, I think it may have been my most successful menu so far, as everything I served was good-to-great.  The two favorites seemed to be the shrimp salad, that accompanied the soup, and the cheese course.  It’s sort of sad that that would be the star of a meal I spent 2 days preparing, but there is little you can do to compete against good cheese.

As usual, I eliminated one dish from my planned menu: the fish.  I had originally planned to make the leek tarts as an amuse bouche, but they ended up being too big for that purpose, so I turned them into an appetizer instead (and made the eggnog the amuse bouche).  I could still have gone with the fish, but given that it needed last minute cooking – which meant more time away from the table for me – I skipped it.  I think it was a good choice, both time and flavor wise.

Here is what the meal ended up being:

– Eggnog

– Plantain and Coconut Soup with Shrimp, Tomato and Avocado Salad

– Individual Leek Tarts

– Lemon Sorbet, as a palate cleanser

– Wine-Braised Short Ribs with Cocoa and Star Anise

served with garlic & plain mashed potatoes and braised red chard

– Assorted Cheeses

– Peanut Butter Trifle

And there you go 🙂

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Plantain and Coconut Soup with Shrimp, Tomato and Avocado Salad – Recipe

January 2, 2013 / / 0 Comments

I wanted to make mushroom soup for my 2012 Christmas Eve dinner.  Mika wanted butternut squash soup.  I figured I’d compromise and find something else.  For some reason I was set on having a savory fruit-based soup, so when I came across this recipe I felt I had found gold.  It got amazing reviews, and I’d had great luck with other recipes from Emeril.

As things turned out, I was not too happy with the soup.  I felt it tasted mostly of chicken broth, with only hints of coconut and none of plantains.  If I was going to serve it, I felt I had to fix it – so I ended up adding the rest of the coconut milk from the can as well as 3 bananas and some nutmeg.  The results were much tastier than before, and Mika was pleased.

I don’t eat shrimp myself, but according to my guests and my husband, the shrimp salad was delicious – both by itself and when combined with the soup.  This is high praise coming from my husband, as he doesn’t like either tomatoes or avocados!

Plantain and Coconut Soup

Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp.  olive oil
  • 1/3 cup small diced salt pork
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
  • 1 small celery rib, finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
  • 4 tsp. curry powder
  • 4 large yellow plantains with slightly green tips and some black spots, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 2 quarts chicken stock
  • 1 can  coconut milk
  • 3 small bananas, coarsely chopped
  • salt & black pepper to taste
  • pinch of nutmeg
  • 2 Tbsp.  lime juice
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped

Instructions

Heat a soup pot over medium heat and add the oil.  When hot, add the salt pork and cook until crispy, about 6 minutes.  Add the onions, carrots and celery and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and curry powder and saute for 30 seconds.  Add the plantains and the stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the plantains are soft, about 45 minutes.

Remove from the heat and add the coconut milk and bananas.  Puree the soup, either using an immersion blender (easiest) or in batches, in a regular blender.  Return to the pot, taste and adjust seasoning.

Just before serving, reheat the soup and add the lime juice.

Place the sour cream in a small serving bowl and sprinkle the cilantro on top of it.  Serve the soup with the salad (recipe below) and sour cream on the side.  Before eating, combine the three elements.

 Shrimp, Tomato and Avocado Salad

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined and diced
  • 1  tsp. creole seasoning
  • 2 Tbsp. butter
  • 2 tsp. chopped garlic
  • 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup diced avocado
  • 1 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp. salt

Instructions

Season the shrimp with the creole seasoning and set aside.

Heat a saute pan over medium heat.  Add butter and melt.  Add garlic and saute for 1 minute.  Add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the tomatoes, avocado and cilantro and mix.  Turn heat to very low.  Season with salt and continue cooking until the shrimp is completely cooked through.

Marga’s 2012 Christmas Eve Dinner

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Eggnog Recipe

January 1, 2013 / / 0 Comments

I’m not the hugest eggnog fan in the world, but I wanted to have something to serve my Christmas Eve dinner guests when they first arrived.  For some reason eggnog came to mind.

This recipe, from Alton Brown, was fairly easy and pretty tasty – if you like eggnog.  It was a bit too nutmeggish, however, so if I made it again I’d reduce the nutmeg to half a teaspoon.  It wasn’t too sweet, which I appreciated.  I followed it pretty closely, but as I needed both an alcoholic and non-alcoholic version, I only added the Bourbon at the end.

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs, separated
  • 1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp. sugar
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
  • 3 oz bourbon

Instructions

Beat eggs with an electric mixer until they lighten in color.  Gradually add 1/3 cup sugar and mix until completely dissolved.  Mix in the milk, cream and nutmeg.

Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks.  Add the remaining sugar and continue beating until hard peaks are formed.

Mix the egg whites with the egg yolk mixture.  If you are making both alcoholic and non-alcoholic eggnog, pour into separate pitchers and add the bourbon to one.

Refrigerate until serving.

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Wine-Braised Short Ribs with Cocoa and Star Anise – Recipe

January 1, 2013 / / 0 Comments

This year – 2012 – short ribs were eatured as the main dish on my Christmas Eve dinner table.  I love short ribs and I couldn’t think of anything else to make for this dinner.  Of course, I had to try a new recipe because I wasn’t in love with any of the ones I made before, plus I always like trying new things.

I think this recipe was quite successful.  I’m not ready to say it was the best short rib recipe I’ve ever made, but it definitely was tasty and the sauce was delicious – both with the short ribs and the garlic mashed potatoes I served it with.  The sauce was definitely rich and well balanced.  The ribs, btw, were succulent and fall-off-the-bone tender.  Regardless of what recipe I use in the future, I will cook them in this manner.

I made the short ribs the day before, not only because I don’t want to be crazy cooking on Christmas Eve, but because braised short-ribs are always better the next day.

I got this recipe from Chuck Hughes of the Cooking Channel (I had never heard of either, I found it through Google) and I modified it slightly.  I used a roasting pan for this dish, as I had nothing else that was large enough for the ribs and veggies.  I placed it on the stove over two burners.

It will serve 6 people.

Ingredients

  • 8 meaty short ribs
  • coarse salt
  • flour for dredging
  • canola oil
  • 4 large onions, coarsely chopped
  • 5 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
  • 5 carrots, peeled and cut into 2″ cylinders
  • 8 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
  • 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 2 star anise
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 bottles red wine
  • 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. peppercorns
  • 2 Tbsp butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Trim excess fat from the ribs.  Season well with coarse salt.  Dredge in flour.

Coat the bottom of a roasting pan with Canola oil and place on the stove over medium-high heat.  When hot, add the short ribs and brown on all sides.  Remove and set aside.

Add the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, rosemary, thyme, star anise and cinnamon sticks to the pan.  Cook until they caramelize, stirring frequently.  Return meat to the pan and pour wine over the ribs.  If they are not completely covered, top with water.

Mix in cocoa power, brown sugar and peppercorns and bring to a boil.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil, put in the oven, and cook for 3 hours.

Carefully remove ribs, and set aside.  Strain out the braising liquid into a large cooking pot.   Discard the veggies.

Place the pot on the stove and boil over medium-high heat until the liquid is reduced by about 1/3rd.  Return the short ribs to the pot.  Cool and then refrigerate until the next day.

When ready to reheat (30 to 60 minutes before serving), place the pot on the stove over medium heat and cook uncover until the liquid starts boiling.  Stir to make sure the short ribs are moist all over.  Cover and turn the heat down to a simmer.

Five minutes before serving, remove the ribs and place on the serving platter.  Cover with a kitchen towel to keep warm.  Taste the liquid, adjust seasoning and reduce further if needed to make it more intense.  Add butter and serve with the ribs or on the side.

Marga’s 2012 Christmas Eve Dinner

Braised Red Chard – Recipe

January 1, 2013 / / 0 Comments

I got some beautiful organic red chard from someone who was going on a trip, and decided to use it to make a side dish for the short ribs I’d be serving for Christmas Eve.  This recipe from Rachel Ray got great reviews and seemed easy enough, so I figured I’d give it a try.  It was a great success!  Everyone just loved it.  The best part? I was able to make it earlier in the day and reheat it just before serving.

Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 bunch red chard, washed and coarsely chopped
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat a large frying pan over medium high heat.  Add the oil and heat.  Add the onion and saute for 2 minutes.  Add the red chard, a handful at a time, pressing down until it wilts.  Add the chicken stock and the raisins.  Season with nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste.  Reduce heat to medium low and cook until the chard is tender, about 1o to 15 minutes.

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Peanut Butter Trifle – Recipe

January 1, 2013 / / 0 Comments

One of my Facebook friends posts pictures of beautiful desserts from time to time, and some time ago I chanced upon one of peanut butter trifle.  I loved the idea and immediately decided that I would make it for Christmas.  It was  a great success.  I loved it!  Note that this is a pretty rich dessert, but not particularly sweet (or it doesn’t have to be, how much sugar you put is up to you).

For my trifle I used this recipe from the how sweet it is blog, but you can pretty much layer anything you want.

I served these trifle in 8-oz wine glasses, this recipe made 8 to 10

Ingredients for the Trifle

  • 1/2 batch brownies, cut in 1″ cubes
  • peanut butter cream (recipe below)
  • 2 cups coarsely chopped peanut butter cups
  • 3 cups chocolate pudding (you can use instant)
  • 1 cup heavy cream, whipped with 2 Tbsp. white sugar

Instructions

Place a layer of brownies at the bottom of the serving dish(es).  Then layer the peanut butter cream, peanut butter cups & chocolate pudding.  Top with whipped cream and brownie crumbs.

Refrigerate until serving.

Ingredients for the Peanut Butter Cream

  •  3/4 cup creamy unsalted natural peanut butter
  • 6 oz cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. milk
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream, whipped with 2 tsp. sugar

Instructions for the Peanut Butter Cream

Using an electric mixer, whip the peanut butter and cream cheese together until combined.  Add the sugar and mix until dissolved.  Add the milk and mix again.  Fold in the whipped cream into the mixture.

Marga’s 2012 Xmas Eve Dinner
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2012 Xmas Eve Cheese Course: Thanks Trader Joe’s!

December 27, 2012 / / 0 Comments

My oldest daughter has fallen in love with cheese, so she insisted that we have a cheese course as part of our Xmas Eve dinner this year.  I don’t think I’ve ever done one before, but boy am I glad I did.  The cheeses were wonderful, and for a couple of my guests (including my husband) the best part of the dinner.  Those guests won’t be invited back 🙂

I did my cheese shopping at Trader Joe’s, as it made it easy, so I was able to research TJ cheese recommendations before.  The day I went shopping, TJ was offering samples of one of their cheeses and it  may very well be my favorite cheese of all times – my daughter also loved it.  This is what I ended up serving, in addition to sliced french bread and sliced apples (I also had jams but they proved less popular).  Remember that the key to a good cheese course is that the cheeses be close to room temperature, cold cheeses are less flavorful cheeses.

– Le Délice de Bourgogne, a triple cream softened ripened cheese from France.  It’s similar to a brie, though even creamier than the triple cream brie they have at TJ, but with a stronger, richer flavor. It’s really delicious.

– Castello Blue, a triple cream soft blue veined cheese from Denmark.  This is a real winner, and a real competitor to TJ’s stilton.  I think we all liked it, and was one of my 10-yo’s favorites.

– Double Cream Gouda, from Holland.  Another all around winner, but not as spectacular as the other two.

– Cotswold Double Gloucester with Onion & Chives, from England.  This is the cheese that they were offering tastings of and that blew us away.  It has an intense flavor, it’s super cheesy and slightly bitter, and just delicious.

– Arla Dill Havarti, from the US.  I got this at Grocery Outlet and my daughter liked it, but it was mild and boring in comparison with the other cheeses.

Marga’s 2012 Xmas Eve Dinner

Xmas Eve 2012 Menu

December 24, 2012 / / 0 Comments

It’s that wonderful time of the year again, when I forget how I swore last year that I’ll never cook Xms Eve dinner again, and revert to doing it anyway.  It’s not that I mind cooking a huge Christmas dinner.  I do enjoy it, in particular now that Camila will help me with some of the preparations and I’ve become wise enough to chose mostly dishes that can be made in advance or require little preparation the day of the event.  But what I don’t enjoy is getting the house clean and ready for the event.

My favorite part, however, may be making and tweaking the menu, trying to make sure the dishes flow into one another and trying new recipes.  I rarely have the chance to make appetizers or soups (or even desserts) in my regular cooking, so this is fun.

Anyway, this is my planned menu, which I’ve already started cooking.  Recipes will follow and I will make a full post, with what I ended up cooking and how it turned out in a few days.

Christmas Eve 2012 Menu

Leek & Cheese Tarts, as an amuse bouche
Plantain and Coconut Soup with Shrimp, Tomato and Avocado Salad
Home made eggnog, in tiny cups as something to occupy guests with while I cook the catfish
Catfish and Asparagus a la Meuniere
Lemon sorbet, as a palate cleansar
Braised Short Ribs (new recipe) with garlic mashed potatoes and braised red chard
Cheese course
Peanut Butter Trifle

And that’s it 🙂

Now, the question, what will I end up /not making/ because I run out of town or was too exhausted?

Apple, Onion and Bacon Pie recipe

December 4, 2012 / / 0 Comments

I have to bring an appetizer to a Holiday Party for an organization I belong to, and for some reason I decided that I wanted a fruit-based savory pie.  After some online research I ended up with this flavor combination, and then I found a recipe for a galette with these ingredients which I easily adapted to make a pie.

It was great! Easy and delicious.  Actually, more like satisfying and addictive.  It tastes good warm and cold, so it’s perfect for a holiday buffet.

Apple, Onion and Bacon Pie

Ingredients

  • 8 oz bacon, coarsely chopped
  • 1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 or 3 apples, thinly sliced
  • salt & sugar to taste
  • 2 9″ pie shells

Directions

Cook bacon over medium heat in a deep frying pan until crispy.  Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon bits and set aside.  Pour out all but 1 Tbsp. grease from the pan and reserve.  Add the onion slices and cook until soft, stirring occasionally.  Add the apple slices and cook until soft.  Return the bacon to the pan and mix.  Taste and add salt and sugar as needed.  Set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 400F (or the temperature indicated by your pie shell recipe).

Put the pie shell into your pie pan and press tightly.  Add the cooled filling.  Top with the other pie shell, sealing the borders with the bottom shell. Make several cuts on the top shell and bake until golden, about 30 minutes.

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Earl Grey for Cheap: Dilmah & Taja Tea

November 29, 2012 / / 0 Comments

There are many things I love about having Grocery Outlet so near my house, and one of them is their ever changing brands of tea.  I used to pretty much only buy Twinnings tea (waiting for it to go on sale, as it’s usually $4 for 20 bags), but so many of the teas I’ve found at Grocery Outlet are comparable in flavor, that I am no longer tied to that venerable branch.

I’m usually a black-tea girl, but I do make an exception for Earl Grey, a black tea flavored with bergamot orange oil.  I’ve recently had those produced by Taja Tea and Dilmah, and they were both excellent.

Taja Tea specializes on “saffron” teas and offers five flavors.  The Earl Grey is made with black tea from Argentina, and artificial bergamot flavors (I checked).  Still, it is delicious.  Other Taja Tea flavors also get good reviews, and I may try the red rubio and the assam if I catch them at GO.

Dilmah is a Sri Lanka based, family company, established soon after Sri Lanka gained its independence.  They specialize on Ceylonese tea, as you’d expect, and their Earl Grey is very satisfying.  It’s not as flavorful as Taja’s, but it has nothing to envy Twinnings.  It uses Ceylon black tea and artificial bergamot flavoring.

They are both cheaper than Twinnings as well. I’ll check the actual prices next time I go to GO, but they’re about $1.50 to $2 per box of 20.

 

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