The “family” is coming to an early Christmas dinner a few days before Christmas. Just the five of us this year but nonetheless, we want to have a “proper” feast!
I’ve been working on the menu and of course, as usual, it’s the veggies that seem to present problems! This person doesn’t like that and someone else doesn’t like something else…you know what I mean! Luckily, pretty much everybody will eat carrots! No Brussels sprouts for us, sadly! One year I made my fabulous braised kale and of course it was an issue! What do you do when your brother only eats green beans, corn, carrots, and on a good day, peas! Exactly, you go to the market and buy imported green beans! I console myself with the knowledge that we pretty much eat only seasonal veggies the rest of the year! You gotta do what you gotta do! I like to keep things relatively simple because who wants a worn out host?
Last year was the first time I made Sticky Toffee Pudding! I can’t believe I’ve gone all this time without having tried this incredible pudding. What the heck was I thinking? Now it’s become the go-to dessert for the holidays! And, you will never guess, when we were at Costco the other day, we saw ready-made ones! WHAT…the package said they are made by an “authentic Englishman from Austin, Texas” WHAT!
Our Christmas Menu:
- Pan Roasted Bone-in Turkey Breast With Fresh Rosemary & Thyme
- Turkey Gravy Made From The Pan Drippings & Homemade Turkey Stock
- Scalloped Potatoes With Roasted Garlic & Fresh Marjoram
- Sautéed French Green Beans With Shallots & Meyer Lemon Juice
- Braised Carrots With Sage
DESSERT: Sticky Toffee Puddings With “Faux Clotted Cream”
So get the Christmas Crackers out, set a fine table, open a wonderful bottle of wine and enjoy! From our house to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays and an amazing 2014!
Buon Natale!
The lunch was wonderful! No weird vegetables (aka the famous Braised Kale)! Everything was delicious. I think I will be making the carrots for the “vegetable challenged” brother on Christmas Day, they were so good. So were the Scalloped Potatoes. Turkey breast, a first try, turned out really tasty. All in all, a wonderful meal enjoyed in excellent company. Thank you.
You are most welcome! Yes, it was excellent company and thank you for coming…can hardly wait to see what you have to say about the pizza stone!
Phyllis, what a wonderful blog. I was introduced to Oracibo by your friend Melanie. Sticky toffee pudding is a favourite and it was our dessert again this Christmas. I sometimes switch it out for English Trifle.
Look forward to following you.
~Ann
Thanks so much Ann…I really appreciate your comments. I used to make trifle all the time for special occasions! Do we ever love it! I switch out the sherry for an Raspberry eau de vie or Kirsch as we don’t much like sherry. What’s not to like about homemade custard, homemade sponge cake & whipped cream and a good quality jam! Just thinking about it makes my mouth water!
I did a quick visit to your blog as well, but need to visit longer!
Ciao, Phyllis