Christmas

I'm even later to post about Christmas than I was about Thanksgiving: January has sped by in a haze of mostly being too sick to want to think much about food. Or do much of anything really; I didn't take down my tree until yesterday.

I liked most of the recipes I tried, but regretted trying so many different things. Often I skip making desserts at Christmastime because there's usually a box of candy around, but this year I had fun making candy and cookies late into the night on the 23rd, was thrilled with how they were turning out, and took lots of pictures. In the back of the picture on the left are Polish Apricot-Filled Cookies except that instead of golden raisins I used more apricots. The cookies were not very sweet, which is to my taste but not always to other peoples', so I was pleasantly surprised by their general popularity. In the foreground are Fleur de Sel Caramels. They were easy, though cutting wax paper and wrapping them was time-consuming. I thought they were delicious, but when taken to a warmer house than mine, they were soft and sticky; perhaps it was because they stuck to their wrappers that there were still some left at the end of the holidays, or perhaps other people didn't think them as delicious as I did.











Caramel-Dark-Chocolate Truffles with Fleur de Sel disappeared the fastest, but perhaps that was because there were fewer of them. They were beautiful and delicious, but no one could taste the caramel in them at all. In the picture on the left you can see them at various stages, first rolled in cocoa powder, then dipped in melted chocolate. The one thing I would do differently is ignore the instruction to chill the mixture before rolling it into balls. It was so hard it was impossible to roll until it warmed up a little.

On the 24th, making Christmas Eve dinner was so time-consuming that I forgot to take pictures until after we'd eaten. Here are the remains of a first course of Spanish Garlic Shrimp from Cook's Illustrated and Roasted Mushrooms with Garlic and Parsley that I thought I'd copied off Epicurious but now can't find there (they have a recipe that's close, but that includes bread cubes). With them I served Moro Bread. My intent was to have a crusty bread for sopping up the flavorful oil from the roasted shrimp and mushrooms and Moro bread has never failed me...until now,  coming out damp and chewy instead. But still good. I also served a green salad with red onions, clementines, and almonds, dressed with a vinaigrette of Spanish olive oil, sherry vinegar, shallots, honey, and clementine juice.

The main course was Salmon Cannelloni with Lemon Cream Sauce. It's perfect to serve to guests as it's assembled beforehand and bakes while you eat your first course or greet your guests (and we all liked it).  With it I served Wild Rice with Butternut Squash, Leeks, and Corn. It was nothing special (though good), but looked pretty, which was important because the Salmon Cannelloni were a not-terribly-attractive beige-and-greenish.

I baked Pandoro (rising, or trying to, in star pan in above picture) for Christmas Day, using the King Arthur recipe as always. I was worried because it never really rose, but in the end it was the best it's ever been, partly because I bought dried tart cherries especially for it rather than using dried fruit that had hardened from sitting around too long.

We returned to prime rib for Christmas dinner and I vowed never to try other things again. It is the perfect Christmas dinner: all you have to do is season it and put it in the oven and it smells wonderful cooking, tastes delicious, and feels special (because it's too expensive to eat on a regular basis). I made the Irish Whiskey Gravy and Horseradish Cream from this recipe in advance. Next time I wouldn't bother with the gravy; it was extremely peppery and it seemed a waste to cover the flavor of the meat. The horseradish cream was good, but so is every random combination of sour cream, horseradish, and flavorings I've made up over the years.

Caramelized-Shallot Mashed Potatoes (or baked potatoes for people with dairy allergies), Yorkshire Pudding from How to Eat, and Green Beans with Lemon Butter from Feast rounded out the meal. We meant to have salad, but my mom forgot to make it. We loved the potatoes and the Yorkshire pudding was everything Yorkshire pudding should be, but I wouldn't make the green beans again.