So, it’s my turn to cook the holiday dinner, since the boyfriend did Thanksgiving. I don’t want to do turkey, and I’m sort of meh about the traditional ham.
What are my other options? I could do cornish hens, I suppose, stuffed with something yummy. The more exotic meats would be difficult to get my hands on with such short notice, so I’m looking more for your basic beef-poultry-fish-pork. The BF doesn’t like lamb, else I’d do a nice leg with mint jelly. I have all sorts of cooking appliances (electric pan, pressure cooker, crock pots, one of those awesome round convection ‘ovens’, etc) in addition to the stove/microwave/massive toaster oven, so I can cook pretty much anything. I admit I’m sort of looking forward to trying out my new Granite Ware lidded roasting pan.
Feel free to share main and side dishes… I’m totally open to anything!
For Christmas starters, I usually make Oysters Rockefeller, clam chowder or oyster stew, and shrimp cocktail in tomato/horseradish and curry/mayonnaise sauces (the only time of the year I do).
I also do a lot of baking, mostly chocolate and butterscotch chip cookies and pound cake (some of the latter usually ends up in an English trifle). This year, I want to do mince pie.
A standing rib roast of beef – two or three ribs worth – is a great tradition, but you’ll need four or five other people to share with you. Very easy to prepare, and real motherfuckin’ festive.
As an alternative, get a beef tenderloin for roasting…cut off as much as you want to feed whoever’s there and freeze the rest.
If it’s just the two of you, a 2-inch thick Porterhouse steak, rubbed with a paste of olive oil, anchovies, garlic, and black pepper. Grilled or broiled.
Cornish game hens are fun, but how about a roast duck or goose? Or that above-mentioned beef roast with some Yorkshire pudding and Cumberland sauce. Yum. Beef Wellington is nice, too, but more complicated than I usually want to make.
I like the suggestions above, especially those leaning toward a British Christmas dinner or a standing rib roast. In the interest of adding ideas, though, I once did a seven-course Moroccan thing. Unfortunately because I cooked much of it myself and don’t know THAT much about Moroccan food, it didn’t turn out that great. Which is why I recommend roasts.
I’m not a fan of goose, for the same reason I don’t like deer- too fatty. There may come a day when I have one or the other prepared by someone who knows what they’re doing and I may love it, but that day will not be Christmas.
I’ve decided to do hens for Christmas Eve, and individual beef wellingtons for Christmas Day. I found what appears to be a fairly easy recipe, and since I don’t have Gordon Ramsey standing over me screaming, I have high hopes that I can pull it off. There are a number of suggestions for side dishes- anyone have any go-to/traditional sides for a Wellington?
