Food

[resonant]

You know, I vaguely remember a time when I used to write smut. Some of y'all may recall it, way back in the misty past. One day I will write smut again. This is not that day.

This is the day when I invite you to help me plan my Christmas dinner.



We need lots o' food. We have somewhere between ten and thirteen people: the three of us, the Tech Goddess and her family and both her sons' girlfriends, the spouse's elderly scientist friend, and possibly the Spaniards and their third-grade daughter. Even if the little girls sit on the floor and eat off the coffee table, some of these people are still going to have to bring their own chairs. It would be helpful if some of them could bring along an extra dining room. I don't know what i was thinking.

I'm making roast beef because, unlike turkey, it's really easy, it's acceptable at a wide range of doneness values, and there are many, many delicious things to make with the leftovers, if we could just manage to have leftovers.

I'm making mashed potatoes by popular demand. I'm making Yorkshire pudding (a sort of puffy, custardy breadlike thing, not unlike the inside of a popover, only big) because it goes with roast beef and the Tech Goddess expressed curiosity about it; I expect to spend a lot of time on the phone with my mom about it, because I've never made it before. I'm making Key lime pie because it's easy and can be made in advance and the Tech Goddess's husband makes pleasing noises when he eats it.

The Tech Goddess is bringing a broccoli and cheese casserole.

Now. I need some vegetables. I want them to be more fresh and less heavy, since we've already got heavy in that casserole, but on the other hand, they need to be able to be made while other things are cooking, not boiled up quickly at the last minute, because I need the last minute for gravy. And I need another dessert, because one pie won't feed thirteen, even with the addition of the piles of Christmas cookies that will undoubtedly be lying around.

Here's the lineup:

roast beef
gravy
cranberry chutney with garlic
possibly I might ask someone to bring some horseradish sauce; I don't eat it, but others might

mashed potatoes
Yorkshire pudding

broccoli-cheese casserole
__________________

Key lime pie
__________________




[Poll #1105510]

Comments

[darthfox.livejournal.com]

I'd have voted for the pecan pie if you hadn't proposed cluttering it up with maple.

If you can't find asparagus, I vote for the carrots.

Yorkshire pudding (exactly like the inside and outside of a popover; in fact, my mother's cookbook has one recipe for both, and just calls for different tins) is really very easy. It will collapse like a ruined souffle when you take it out of the oven. Don't worry about it. It's supposed to do that.

Oh, yum. I shouldn't have read this so near lunch time (eastern), but it's okay, because there will be roast beef and Yorkshire pudding at my parents' house on Christmas Eve. :-)

[ecaterin.livejournal.com]

I agree with the Yorkshire pud - brain dead easy :) You know the best way to make it is in a pan under your roast beef so that the beef drippings drip down onto the pudding? Mmmmmm :D

I voted for pecan pie because it's brain dead easy too. Throw the ingredients into a bowl, stir, dump into pie crust, bake. ;)

[reginagiraffe]

I voted for the carrots since you already have one green vegetable dish and a little color variety would be nice.

[andeincascade.livejournal.com]

Res, if you can't find decent asparagus roasted green beans are great. This is recipe is easy, elegant to serve and addictingly good

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_34660,00.html

[fer-de-lance.livejournal.com]

Oooh, yes! I agree with this. :D Asparagus if possible, this alternative if not.

[jenna-thorn.livejournal.com]

Not so much a better idea as a different one for the dessert. Since you have cookies and a pie, why not a cake? Rich and dense to balance the light/fresh of the pie, cake for those who aren't fond of pies. And the nice thing about cakes is they get made and frosted and then set aside and don't require any work at all on the day itself, unlike creme brulee and the sort.

Can I come to your house? I like your menu much more than the one I'm contributing to.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Sure, come on over, but you have to bring your own chair and your own meat knife. (The Tech Goddess was so excited when I told her I didn't have enough meat knives. "It's a party where everybody comes armed!" she said.)

I'm hesitating to do cake because I know I'll have to do another one in two weeks for the kidlet's birthday. This year she wants an igloo-shaped ice cream cake with marzipan penguins. (http://www.marthastewart.com/favorite-igloo-cake?autonomy_kw=igloo%20cake&rsc=header_2) I knew I shouldn't have let her read Martha Stewart Living.

[myalexandria.livejournal.com]

I think yorkshire pudding is pretty easy, actually.

Here is a fabulous recipe for a beautifully dense pound cake which is great if made in advance. (If you don't own a bundt pan, you can probably bake for less time in two loaf pans.) I use vanilla instead of lemon extract, and I think it's great.

Preheat oven to 325
Grease bundt pan

3 sticks butter
3 c. sugar
5 eggs
3 c. all purpose flour
2 tsp. lemon extract (optional)
3/4 c. 7-Up (or you can use lemon-lime seltzer, etc.)

Cream butter and sugar.
Add eggs, one at a time, and continue beating.
Add flour slowly; mix in extract.
Fold in 7-Up.
Pour into bundt pan and bake 60-75 minutes (test for done-ness with a
toothpick or knife).
Cool for about 30 minutes.
Loosen edges and invert on plate.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Hm, pound cake. I'll present that as a possibility and see what the troops think. I usually put lemon glaze on pound cake, which would lead to an unfortunate citrus theme ...

[nudaydreamer.livejournal.com]

Yorkshire pudding is so awesome!!! I'm always sad that more people haven't heard of it.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

When I moved from North Carolina to Illinois, I discovered that there was something unusual about having roast beef with Yorkshire pudding one night and black-eyed peas with collard greens the next. It just seemed normal to me!

[sage]

I voted for the carrots (yum!), but my first thought was fresh green beans, steamed whole, with a butter sauce (or else with a cornstarch gravy made of cornstarch, water, and a splash of sesame oil). Maybe both carrots and green beans, assuming the produce section has any that look good? (In Texas we have fresh produce year-round, so I don't know if this is possible for where you are.)

Are you doing a salad? If you need a fast one (to delegate to someone else to make :P): combine a bag of baby spinach, a large handful of walnut pieces, a chopped apple or two, and some shredded or cubed cheese. Grape/cherub/cherry tomatoes are optional, but avoid sliced tomato bc the juice fights with the apple.

It sounds like a great feast! :D

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

See, I love green beans, but if I do them steamed/boiled, then either I have to make them ahead and serve them cold, or I have to make them at the last minute -- and I need the last minute for gravy!

I've never done salad with Christmas dinner for some reason, but yours sounds beautiful and delicious; maybe we'll have it tonight!

[teneagles.livejournal.com]

I voted for carrots, since they're fairly universally liked, and all the other options have a good chance of offending at least one picky eater. Another nice choice might be some haricots verts, roasted with olive oil and garlic.

Yorkshire pudding is dead easy. Don't be alarmed when they collapse; they're supposed to do that.

For dessert, why not a plum pudding? A nice plum pudding, soaked in brandy, with a hard sauce: very Christmasy. Plus, something a little more substantial to offset the key-lime pie might be nice.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

The problem is that I don't like plum pudding, though I do like the moment when the brandy goes up in flames.

[sciwitch.livejournal.com]

Cheesecakes are easy and can be made in advance and frozen until needed. Visit my blog and click on the cheesecake tag for some recipes. Feel free to brows the cakes, and cookies, and any other recipes that catch your attention. For our Xmas dinner, I made a White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake and stuck it in the freezer last night (I'll be posting the recipe tonight).

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

I do love cheesecake -- but it's very similar to Key lime pie in both texture and tartness. Unless I made a chocolate one. Hm.

[janet-carter.livejournal.com]

My aunt started making Yorkshire pudding a couple of years ago - yummy and easy.

And I second green beans as an option - you can also make something like this (http://www.elais.gr/exports/recipes/beans.html) in advance (the version I've had is better if it sits for a day), served cold but still more like a vegetable than a salad.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Oh, that sounds delicious. Makes my mouth water. Though I'm quite certain that the photograph is of something else.

[celandineb.livejournal.com]

Pumpkin pie is really very easy. The only even moderately tricky part is the crust. I have a recipe for it posted here (http://community.livejournal.com/cook_with_cel/10759.html), both filling and crust, but obviously you can use any crust recipe you like.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

I have a recipe from Gourmet for a pumpkin pie with sour cream (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/231014) which I find intriguing. In my house I'm the only person who likes pumpkin pie, but I don't know about our guests.

[catmoran.livejournal.com]

I don't have a specific desert to recommend, just that it be something cake-like instead of another pie. Pumpkin cake is yummy and easy to make.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

The kidlet is lobbying for banana bread, which I have to admit would be extremely easy and a welcome break from the hard stuff.

[bravecows.livejournal.com]

I'm making Yorkshire pudding (a sort of puffy, custardy breadlike thing, not unlike the inside of a popover, only big)

I didn't know Americans didn't do Yorkshire pudding! I find it interesting that you have to explain what Yorkshire pudding is, whereas it's the popover I'm having trouble with.

[darthfox.livejournal.com]

Individual-sized Yorkshire pudding, probably cooked a shade longer because it's a shade drier. Eaten with butter (although the butter is not strictly necessary if the popover is hot), like a bread roll. :-)

[starfishchick]

For the second dessert, is there something you HAVE made before that you know you can do without stress? Like cake or cookies?

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

We'll have cookies lying around all over the place; at Christmas I bake as though I had a really big family, or possibly some farm workers to feed. And I don't want to make a cake because the kidlet's birthday is two weeks away. But someone suggested pound cake, and someone else suggested banana bread -- both easy and familiar -- so I'll think about that.

[florahart]

I vote a dessert that certainly even kids like. I mean. I dunno how old the sons and girlfriends are and whatnot, but I think I think key lime pie, while very yummy, may cause children and nonadventurous teen-to-college+ types to go ...mmmmno, that's scary. Especially if you are already alarming them with broccoli and asparagus, heh (okay, this is a broad generalization; both my boys are good with broccoli, and one thinks asparagus is the Best Idea Ever).

Anyway. I mean, I know, there are always the mountains of cookies, so that probably covers the unadventurous anyway, but it's not hard to make something like apple crisp or cobbler of some sort or ...something, you know?

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Ooh, apple crisp! I never even thought of that; it's so easy it hardly even qualifies as cooking, in my mind, but it could go in when the beef comes out, and be nice and hot when we're ready for dessert, and on a special occasion like this I could buy ice cream. (I usually avoid it because my brain thinks "Mm, ice cream! Serving size = package size!")

[she-obstipui.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty much a lurker, but I can't resist...you've got a lot of the traditional British roast dinner going on. Why not further the theme with trifle or custard? They're insanely easy, and they're a change from pie. Also, kids love them. And adults. At least those who share my genetic makeup.
No matter what you do, though, this sounds like it'll be grand.

[darthfox.livejournal.com]

[thinks sticky toffee pudding][falls down and dies]

[taselby.livejournal.com]

For the other dessert I'd make something in chocolate -- a cake or another pie. Chocolate pie goes well with Key lime, even. We took a Key lime and a sour cream dark chocolate pie to Thanksgiving this year.

Veggies... carrots AND asparagus?? Kids like carrots better, but I'm a big veggie fan and would make both because I have no sense of restraint in these matters. *g*

[zebra363.livejournal.com]

Seconding the chocolate suggestion. If it's not chocolate, it's not a dessert! :)

[schemingreader.livejournal.com]

I just copied a dozen recipes out of the Kosher by Design series, and I'm going to share some that looked pretty for vegetables:

This one I'm making for Shabbat, so I can post about whether it's good after the weekend:

Cauliflower Popcorn

Kosher by Design Entertains p.225

2 heads cauliflower, cut into medium florets (don't use too much of the stems)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
6-8 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 450. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and coat cauliflower. Place in a single layer on sheet. Roast 30-35 minutes, until largest pieces can be pierced with a fork. 8 servings.

This one had a gorgeous photo:

Cherry Tomato Crisp

Kosher by Design Short on Time p. 206

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 pints cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Coat shallow baking dish with olive oil. Arrange tomatoes in a single layer. Combine everything else and spread over tomatoes. Roast for 20-25 minutes until crumbs are browned and serve hot.

I found panko crumbs at Whole Foods. Kikoman makes them, among others.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Ooh, those both sound delicious. If I don't make them at Christmas, I'll definitely make them another time. The cherry tomato crisp would be good with oven-roasted meats, which I make a lot of this time of year.

[shayheyred.livejournal.com]

Why not go in a totally different direction for dessert and make single-serving things, like brownies (which can be a la mode). Or perhaps an apple or raspberry crumble or cobbler, just to shake things up a bit?

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

The spouse wants brownies, and someone above recommended apple crisp, and they both have the advantage of being familiar and dead-easy. (I could make brownies the day before, and apple crisp could go in the oven when the meat comes out and then be nice and hot at dessert time.) Hm!

Times like this, I really miss the old stove we used to have in our old house. It was a 1958 GE -- like, only the second electric model GE made -- and it had two ovens, so you could be roasting vegetables at 425 while you also cooked meat at 350. (Plus one of the burners had a deep well underneath it that could be used as a third oven -- as it said in the owner's manual (which was a triumph of 1950s domestic art), "if you're cooking baked potatoes for baby and you." If I ever get rich I'm going to find another one of those stoves and retrofit it for gas burners. And maybe get it re-enameled in cobalt blue. [dreams]

[elbomac.livejournal.com]

I love brussels sprouts, as does my entire family. Roasted is awesome, but I also like sauteed with chicken stock, white wine and thyme.

Dessert - do you have something you've made already?

Your dinner sounds yummy!

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

I love brussels sprouts, too, and the spouse tolerates them, but I think the rest of the guests are pretty much indifferent to them.

I'm pondering brownies or banana bread or apple crisp for dessert -- all familiar and easy -- but I have to admit I want to show off a bit; I can make those anytime!

[100wordspermin.livejournal.com]

My family celebrates almost every occasion with my grandmother's excellent, amazing pound cake. I'd be glad to share the recipe--just let me know if you'd like it.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Sure! I'd love to have it! I've got a reasonably good pound cake recipe, but this one sounds better.

[tovalentin.livejournal.com]

If you have some sherry, glaze the carrots with sherry and honey instead of the lemon. So very yummy! And maybe nuke some frozen peaches 'n' cream niblets for a third. Picky kids generally like corn when they don't like any other veg. Plus, colourful.

How about an apple pie? Not as rich after a lovely, filling dinner, and you can offer vanilla ice cream or cheddar cheese with it. Kids will probably go for the ice cream with Christmas cookies anyway. Will you do a coffee/tea and dessert buffet rather than continuing to sit at the table? If you've got a good bakery nearby you could buy some mince tarts and maybe a small cheesecake as well. People can help themselves when they've had time to digest. Plus, all can admire your lovely table for a second time.

In conclusion: Yorkshire pud= \o/!! (Make sure the oil is really hot before you pour in the batter.)

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Corn would be very easy, wouldn't it? And almost everybody likes it.

The only apple pie I ever made was a recipe from Cook's Illustrated, and it felt like it took all day long. I don't make pie very often. It made me think bitter thoughts about the saying "easy as pie."

A dessert buffet is a good idea. I'll have to think about the logistics. Dinner ... put coffee on ... get the spouse and the teenage boys to clear the table and wash the small plates and forks so we can use them again, while I drag out the tarot cards and do fortunes for the new year ... coffee on the bookshelf-turned-sideboard, desserts on the dining room table, maybe actually take the folding table down to make more room for mingling ... hm. This is the only time of year when I wish we had a bigger house.

[schemingreader.livejournal.com]

This is smut for me, you know. Here is another recipe I have collected but not made yet, for candied lime sweet potatoes (http://veganyumyum.com/2007/11/candied-lime-sweet-potatoes/). My tested roasted cauliflower is this one (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/238089). My son is also a fan of plain steamed cauliflower with lemon juice--if you make the purple cauliflower you get a bright neon pink color. (I'm thinking about how the food is going to look on the table, obviously.)

[schemingreader.livejournal.com]

One more recipe, just in case it's helpful:

Purple Cabbage Salad

Kosher by Design p. 79

Salad:

16 oz shredded purple cabbage
1/3 cup chopped scallion
1/3 cup pine nuts
3 carrots, julienned
1 11 oz. can mandarin oranges, reserving juice
1-2 handfuls dried cranberries

dressing:
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon teas. salt
4 tablespoons wine vinegar
1 tablespoon reserved mandarin orange liquid
1/2 cup oil
1 soup cube or powdered instant soup
garlic powder

Mix salad ingredients. In a jar, mix all the dressing ingredients and shake.

pour over salad and refrigerate to let flavors mix for at least 1 hour.

My aunt made this for us last weekend, and it was very pretty--the purple of the cabbage and the oranges on top. But maybe your family doesn't like salads.

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

I'm having trouble imagining how this would taste -- is it sort of in the slaw family tree? Sweet and sour and oniony?

[anatsuno.livejournal.com]

I voted asparagus but the carrots are tempting. I hate brussels sprout with the fire of a thousand legendary dragons and can hardly bring myself to type their name, though. Other possibilities are intriguing (what's your recipe for marinated mushrooms, omg? want), and my first idea was another mash, but a green one - in here I can buy really, really good readymade frozen green mashed stuff (usually spinach and zuccini for example) which I make lovelier by fluffing them with lemon juice and olive oil and fresh herbs.

Desert wise I voted maple pecan but mmm, punkin pie also gets a thumbs up!

And here is the link (http://neverbashfulwithbutter.blogspot.com/2007/12/experiments-in-deliciousness-bacon.html) for the bacon-chocolate chip cookies, which I WILL try for Xmas even though it'll be hard to find proper bacon around here. Because YAY!

[resonant8.livejournal.com]

Oh, I adore brussels sprouts. Not boiled, though; cabbagey things can't handle being boiled. They're good halved and roasted, or thinly sliced and sauteed.

Mashed spinach and zucchini? With potatoes too, or just mashed as they are? I love both those vegetables, but I can't imagine them mashed. Oh, is it like a souffle? I can get good frozen spinach souffle.

That blogger is totally wrong about bacon and peaches; I think roasted or grilled bacon-wrapped peaches would be fabulous. But I have my doubts about the bacon-cookie combo. It might be like tomato ice cream -- would probably taste just fine, but your brain will stop you from putting it in your mouth.