If there was a good Chinese restaurant nearby, we’d go there. And we’re Catholic.
It’s just my husband, son and me, but my son is, at 15, turning into something of a foodie (and is taking his third year of French in high school). So we are having Julia Child’s Filet de Boeuf en Croute, and my son said he’d make the brioche dough.
Not sure about the sides at this point. I’m leaning toward creamed spinach and a salad. For dessert, caramel mousse napoleons.
Turkey again, sadly. We were going to do prime rib and Yorkshire pudding, but got invited elsewhere. Well, there’s always New Year’s Day.
As usual, my father’s recipe for lasagna, plus hot sausages cooked in wine. Not sure about the tortellini soup this year, but maybe.
Thinking about making my German recipe for great rumballs again, but they are a mess to make and take some time - again, will see how motivated I am by Wednesday or Thursday.
Christmas Eve is the German simple fare tradition of basic sausages (sort of like fancy hot dogs, but much, much better) with potato salad as a side. This was always the tradition in many homes there, as the parents would be putting up the tree that day, and the housewife didn’t have time to cook (the Christmas goose was for the 25th). (Germans traditionally will put up their Christmas trees on Christmas Eve and only when it is finished, and the candles on the tree are lit, do the kids get to see it and the presents under the tree…a magical experience, especially for little kids but even for adults.)
Just about the only part of the Jewish culture that sticks with me.
Dec. 25th is my sister’s birthday…this year she’s asked for brisket. So we’re having brisket for dinner.
But I’m meeting a friend for lunch, and it’ll probably be at a Chinese restaurant.
I was at that restaurant yesterday, and they were playing Christmas music. I wonder if they’ll be playing it next week as well…or if they realize that most of their clients that day are not celebrating the holiday…?
-D/a
us too. in my family thanksgiving and christmas have exactly the same meals described above, except for the addition of my spinach casserole, mashed potatoes, and my BIL’s oyster stuffing, which none of the rest of us will touch. :eek:
sis and i also have our fair share of Chateau Saint Michelle Gewürztraminer, which is a much sweeter white than i normally drink, but it is AWESOME with turkey. last month we pounded down three bottles of the stuff (i brought four :D) spread out over a ten hour period. we do like our wine.
It’s just us and my parents for Christmas dinner, and we voted that we’d like something a little different… so I am going to do a Moroccan dinner. Cold salads (baba ghanoush, hummus etc) with warm flatbread for starters, then b’stilla, roast pulled lamb with pomegranate and mint, and saffron pilaf with roasted vegetables. For dessert, syllabub and pastries and dried fruit.
Goose, turkey, ham; sage & onion, chestnut and sausagemeat stuffing; roast and mashed potatoes; sprouts with bacon; carrots and peas; cranberry sauce, horseradish sauce, bread sauce. Gravy obviously. Trifle, Christmas pudding, mince pies, brandy butter, whipped cream. Cheese, nuts, clementines and grapes. Later in the day: Christmas cake and tea. Much later: Turkey, goose, ham or (if there’s any left from the night before) fillet of beef sandwiches.
It’s shameful really.
Christmas eve, I’m cooking a prime rib roast.
Christmas day, I’m cooking a turkey.
Plenty-o-leftovers for the ensuing week off.
Christmas Day is my mom’s traditional dinner: stuffed beef tenderloin (stuffed with bleu cheese, mushrooms & spinach), savory mushroom bread pudding, mashed potatoes, peas/some kind of vegetable, popovers and dessert (usually ice cream and cake). My mom agonizes over how much work it is to cook. She wrings her hands and gets all stressed. Then my sister and I cook all the food and she’s still stressed for some reason, but takes credit for it when complimented. Then my sister and I clear our throats really pointedly and she admits that we “helped.” Oh, well - it’s tradition!
On Christmas Eve we generally go to my mom’s country club for the Christmas Eve buffet. We go ridiculously early out of habit (reservation is at 5 p.m.) because we used to go to church afterward.
Roast turkey and a roast beef in the same pan, cider gravy, roast parsnips, sprouts, and carrots, creamed corn, mashed potatoes, possibly creamed onions, plum pudding with butterscotch sauce and fruitcake with cheddar. Salad. Cranberry sauce if I remember. Lots of wine at the party at our friends’ house the next day- my parents don’t drink.
It’s me and Mr. Lissar and our kidlets, my parents, a family friend, and possibly my BiL.
Smoking a turkey on the Big Green Egg with all of the families favorite side dishes including my famous homemade cranberry sauce (I’ll make enough for the kids to take to their dads for the following day and for son’s girlfriend to take to her parents as requested)
Cranberry pudding and pumpkin pie for dessert.
This year dinner is Christmas eve so I can get all three kids. Son and girlfriend are at her parents Christmas day with a quick stop at my ex’s and daughter is spending the entire day at his house. I suspect this will not end well but gotta love them for still trying.
At my parent’s my mom will make a standing rib roast (I guess not technically prime rib since it’s really hard to get prime beef around here…), twice baked potatoes, oyster stew (which I won’t eat, not a fan of most seafood,) and probably some rolls and other whatnot.
If I also manage to make it to my girlfriend’s parent’s house for their dinner (my parent’s will eat early, like 2-ish, and hers will eat later, like 6-ish, so it’s doable,) I’ll have MORE standing rib roast, mushroom risotto, and lobster (again, I won’t eat that, aside from the small taste I do every year to confirm that yup…I still hate lobster.)
Until about 24 hours ago I was hosting my sister and her boyfriend, who were flying in from PA, and the plan was standing rib roast, roast potatos, carrots and parsnips, baked onions done according to a killer family recipe, and (probably) cole slaw.
Now, however, due to a sudden medical issue on sister’s part, I might be going there instead (not life-threatening, just serious enough to make traveling unadvisable). Not sure what we’ll have if that’s the case.
Chicken Cacciatorre (or however you spell it).
I’m trying to stick to my ‘no red meat’ thing, and turkey is too much of a hassle with everything else going on. My mom makes a killer Chix Catch, so it’s the one thing all the grownups and kids can agree on.
I’m not going to start a pit thread, so just:
My mother-in-law -----------------> me ---------------------> crazy.
We’re feeding the crowd, so…duck, pork tenderloin, mango chutney, apple-jalapeno stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, candied carrots, this broccoli recipe, olives, cranberry sauce…
We’ll also set out some sausage and cheese for appetizers. Dessert has not been discussed, but if anyone asks what they can bring, I will pounce! There will also be much wine consumed, at least by some of us.
We’ll start cooking Friday.
Are you willing to share that recipe? Because I would LOVE to have it!
Ditto. And we’re Baptist.
As for dinner… I don’t know! I got a good turkey from work, but roast and spaghetti have also been mentioned.
We spent Thanksgiving in the tropics, so Christmas is roast turkey, stuffing, mashed 'taters, whatever vegetable someone brings. Chipotle cranberry sauce. Pumpkin pie and a flourless chocolate cake (for the gluten-free and gluttonous).
I think for our quiet Christmas Eve, we’ll have Dungeness crab.