Wednesday 17 December 14

Bill from Houston Pt II. Christmas minus seven (7) days.

That’s right we have moved into the one (1) week window for the Christmas Holiday observance. Tonight plans are being made here for the traditional Christmas eve supper.

WHAT MIGHT THAT BE ?

Emma from Oz !! ALWAYS so good the hear from you. The Christmas Eve feast is traditonal dishes passed down & is meatless which means fish, potatoes in some form or multiple formats, winter seasonal vegetables but let me get into the dishes & courses for the full effect & the other new reader/subscriber/follower.

The first course is a mushroom soup. First Born (FB) knows this & I am both proud & pleased that she & S2 are humoring me this time carrying on with the Christmas Eve meal even if it is a week early. It will mean so much more in a few years when FBNextGen gets a little older & can appreciate things besides gifts.

We shopped earlier this morning and would be doing the prep work NOW but the power went off. I got a good start slicing, chopping & doing the dirty sous chef duties and things are at a stand still.

She is upstairs getting FBNG down for a nap & I cannot find the box grader (aka shredder ?) to slice up the cabbage for the slaw. There are TWO (2) HUGE problems with this at the moment. First is I do not know which cupboard or cabinet this lowest-tech food processing device is stored which would be bad enough HOWEVER all these low cabinets are ‘kid proof’ which translates into mild ‘deteriant’ for Grandpa. That is to say there are magnets hidden inside that are released buy another handheld magnetic thing on the outside that must be positioned PRECISELY to release the hidden latch inside & open the cabinet. This just to LOOK for the stupid thing. So I gave up to write this entry at least until she returns downstairs so I don’t end up cursing & throwing utensils around the kitchen.

The first course is a mushroom soup. Start with a large can of whatever commercially available crème of is available for starters/stock. We went K/row-jaying & Ma Campbell’s fit the bill. It was a good size for our dinner party. You may need a second can depending on the size of your group.

Anyway, sautee some finely chopped cabbage in olive oil & some butter for flavor on the lowest heat setting rendering it down to

nearly crispy & add sliced mushrooms & some fresh rosemary. The house herb jardin here had an abundance of red peppers that unlike the same jardin in McK were NOT flaming hot but on the sweeter side. These reds were chopped fine & added late to the sautee for color in the mushroom soup & another additional layer of flavor. When this mixture slows cooks & reduces sufficiently, add it to the can of mushroom soup. Another ‘trick’ is to not use the recommended volume of water to ‘re-up’. In our case here this day, apple cider, a seasonal favorite, is subsitituted half with the water for a better flavor profile. Heat the mess once again on the lowest heat for as long as possible & serve when the guests DEMAND something to eat. This way they will be sure to be hungry enough & ANYTHING will taste good to them or much better anyway. This is a PROVEN method for having meals enthusiastically accepted & critically acclaimed by quests.

The salad is the cole slaw formulation used on just about every celebratory occasion be it summer, Thanksgiving or now with a Holiday twist to lift it up a notch.

Added again were slightly longer cut ‘strips’ of the bright red sweet peppers from the house herb jardin. Coupled with red onions, carrots & the greener outer leaves of cabbage head, the finished dish even looks happy & festive. (photo included) It’s got me in the spirit for sure.

WHAT ?

You heard me. The presentation puts the crowd in the ‘mood’. Work it, USE IT or lose it.

WHAT ELSE ?

FB is going to bread & bake some fresh cod filets procurred from the local fishmonger up the street. Not my problem. I can’t do EVERYTHING … I MEAN I could. But WHY ?

I guess the remaining item is the pierogis. Delicious little potato dumplings in bygone days made by Moms but now made in a Chicago factory under the watchful eye of Polish management by Hispanic & Asian American workers bought locally from a Polish market specifically for the occasion in a box according to the exotic flavor & stuffing blend. It is nice but a step down in a sense from what it was but again it is what it is.

We have spinach & mushroom cabbage this year on top of the main potato filing. Killer fried lightly in butter with onions topped with a dollop of sour cream (lite) or yogurt.

The wine is white, a gallon jug of chablis from my good bud Carl Ross. I think I dropped off some vowels. Room temperature to the absolute delight of the entire dinner party that now prefer & DEMAND the wine be at room temp. I am proud having contributed to creating the next generation of wine snobs.

That’s it for now. Multiple photos should be included.

More tomorrow so check back to see if anyone got sick. Always a key point of interest.

Film at 11:00.

Aloha again from Paradise South.