Friday, December 25, 2009

Favorite Holiday Food?


Merry Christmas!

Do you have a favorite treat you love to eat (or make) over the holidays?

I'm a "food memory" person, so although I'm sure this is of no interest to anyone but me, I'm going to jot down this year's Christmas indulgences.


Our Noche Buena Menu:
Baked brie en croûte with brown sugar, apricots, and walnuts
Black-pepper-crusted rib roast with balsamic-glazed roasted red onions and a side of rice
Baked ham with honey glaze
Salsa monja (a green olive relish my family in the Philippines really enjoys)
Baby spinach salad with bacon, mushrooms, candied pecans, and warm vinaigrette
Philippine lumpia shanghai (spring rolls) with garlic-vinegar dipping sauce
Queso de bola and other assorted cheeses
Frozen mango-and-cream bars from Trader Joe's - we were too full to eat anything bigger!
Light Christmas Day Brunch:
Prosciutto with melon
Crimini mushroom pseudo-soufflé
Calamansi juice
Buko Pandan (a Philippine dessert), though I didn't exactly have buko...
This year's memorable sweet treats:
Pistachio-cranberry Icebox Cookies
Buttery sugar cookies (or sugary butter cookies?)
Chocolate-covered peanut butter balls
Candied spiced pecans and almonds
Now for some New Year's resolutions - less butter, more working out, right? :)
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10 comments:

  1. BrianDecember 25, 2009 at 6:48 PM

    Right!! I've recently started a brief exercise regime with Hindu pushups and squats every morning. I'll show you if you like...

    ReplyDelete
  2. JoDecember 26, 2009 at 2:40 AM

    Ooooh - any chance for the baked brie recipe?

    Our Christmas this year was a bit odd, food-wise - being in a new country and a new hemisphere (and out of work!) meant that our dinner was two courses - "Turkey" (in inverted commas deliberately - it was a reconstituted sausage of a thing which was a whole 75% turkey...) and roast veg (potatoes, kumera, parsnips, carrots and chinese radish, all with a caramelised glaze (drizzle honey over the veg for the last 10 mins or so of roasting, while the meat is resting, and turn the oven up high), with a rosemary, lemon and onion stuffing. Dessert was chocolate tart...

    I did miss the big Christmas feasts that I had with my parents on previous years (the type where you start eating at 1, and don't stop till about midnight, getting down from the table between courses, then coming back when you have a bit more room), and then next (late) morning having bubble and squeak with the leftovers (my mum always made double the amount of sprouts and parsnips to make sure there was enough for the next day!)

    I hope you had an excellent Christmas, and that the working weekend isn't too stressful!

    ReplyDelete
  3. dipteshDecember 26, 2009 at 3:08 AM

    happy holidays...don't you need to go to hospital during festivals?...don't you get calls...anyways,happy christmas n happy new year.

    ReplyDelete
  4. T.December 26, 2009 at 11:31 AM

    Jo - I must confess, my baked brie was store-bought! I did find recipes online through my favorite food site, foodgawker.com:

    Try

    http://www.barefootkitchenwitch.com/the_barefoot_kitchen_witc/2008/12/brie-revisited.html

    or

    http://www.ezrapoundcake.com/archives/4972

    or

    http://northwestnoshings.com/2008/07/07/oozing-with-cheesy-goodness/

    or

    http://www.shewearsmanyhats.com/2009/10/another-brie-recipe-baked-brie/.

    Diptesh - thanks, and sometimes, and yes.

    Must, must work off the butter now...

    ReplyDelete
  5. dmDecember 26, 2009 at 1:58 PM

    My folks always make lamb biryani on Christmas Eve -- I love coming home after going to the annual candlelight Christmas Eve service at our home church and feasting on a whole table of Indian dishes. Yum!

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  6. T.December 26, 2009 at 2:01 PM

    dm - YUM!!! For dessert do you get to eat gulab jamun, kheer, and my favorite, ras malai?! My mouth's watering just thinking about it...

    ReplyDelete
  7. dmDecember 26, 2009 at 2:55 PM

    Sadly, T., there was no ras malai on the menu yesterday. However, there was all-you-can-eat mango ice cream topped with fresh mint, accompanied with piping hot gulab jamun! Both dishes went *very* well together, and looked quite festive on the table! =)

    ReplyDelete
  8. JoDecember 26, 2009 at 5:04 PM

    Thanks for the links! :-D
    mmmm - cheesy goodness...!

    ReplyDelete
  9. T.December 26, 2009 at 5:14 PM

    dm - I am a mango FIEND and I could eat a whole bucket of piping hot gulab jamun right now! That sounds DELICIOUS! What a fantasticallyl scrumptious combinatino.

    Jo - you're quite welcome!

    ReplyDelete
  10. T.December 26, 2009 at 5:16 PM

    Oops, that's "combination," not "combinatino." Though I kind of like the sound of that... :)

    ReplyDelete