Monday, December 27, 2010

Christmas Dinner 2010 (Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta, Mushroom-Leek Stuffing Muffins, Parker House Rolls, Cranberry Sauce, and Pumpkin Maple Pie)

Christmas 2010 will not be forgotten... I bought my first fresh turkey from Wolff's Apple House. I found a wonderful recipe for it. I brined it with the tried-and-true Alton Brown's Good Eats recipe. I didn't make a mess while getting the turkey ready, like I have in the past. I was organized and ready to go. The turkey went into the oven. I used the neck and giblets to start a gravy base that smelled amazing. I had the veggies pre-chopped for the sides. The rolls had been set up ahead of time and frozen. I had a timeline up on my dry-erase board in the kitchen. I had the serving platters set out on my beautifully set table. I had all of my utensils and other preparation accouterments ready. I was on top of everything...

And then...

The electricity went out.

And stayed out.

The turkey was almost 2 hours from being done. And the gravy base was only halfway done. And I had a ton of stuff in my fridge, for the meal as well as stocked up for the week. The electric company's automated system said that we weren't due to have our electricity back on until at least 3 hours after it had shut off.

Needless to say, I was really upset. I was far more disappointed about it than they were, but I was sad to disappoint my guests. Especially my unofficially-adopted brother-in-law from Austria, who, since he isn't able to be here for Thanksgivings, had been looking forward to a traditional American holiday meal.

I had been really excited about preparing this meal. And, as I mentioned, I was feeling very organized and ready. I had spent quite a bit of money on the whole thing. And even though it was far from being done, the turkey was gorgeous. It ended up being thrown in the woods, where Jonathan said he heard very large footsteps. So presumably, we made a very nice Christmas turkey for some happy deer, while we dined on Wawa take-out.

Since our fridge/freezer supplies survived (thank goodness), I ended up making the planned sides the following evening. And I have to say that I was actually a bit disappointed in some of them. (A silver lining in this Christmas dinner disaster story? I'm certainly choosing to look at it that way.) The Brussels sprouts were not as crispy as I wanted them to be and lacked some flavor. And the stuffing muffins, while a pretty good idea, were very difficult to actually dig out of the muffin cups. I have a whole load as leftovers, so I'm interested to see if they're like other muffins and are easier to get out of the cups once they've cooled. I also wasn't happy with how mushy they were. I did end up baking off some of the stuffing mixture in a pan in order to compare texture, so I'm anxious to see if it tastes better when prepared in the more "traditional" manner.

The rolls, however, were wonderful. And the cranberry sauce was delightful. And the two together? Well, that's a recipe for a delicious post-holiday breakfast and/or snack, which I will be taking advantage of as long as the leftovers last.

I made two kinds of pumpkin pie, the apple butter pumpkin pie I made before and a pumpkin maple one. I was very excited to "pass around the coffee and the pumpkin pie", but instead, the morning after our Christmas dinner disaster, I had them for breakfast. While both are delightful, the maple one was my favorite. The maple flavor really kind of sneaks up on you and gives the pie such a warm and full flavor.

So there's Christmas Dinner 2010. It's one for our family history book. I'm not quite ready to laugh about it yet, but I'm sure some day I will be.

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta
A variation on this recipe from Cooking Light


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2 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 cup chopped pancetta (about 4 ounces)
1 shallot, diced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon cider vinegar


Preheat oven to 450°F.

Cook Brussels sprouts and 1 tablespoon salt in boiling water 6 minutes or until almost tender. Drain and plunge into ice water; drain well.

Cook pancetta in a large skillet over medium-low heat until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove pancetta from pan, reserving drippings.

Cut Brussels sprouts in half lengthwise; place on a baking sheet. Add reserved drippings, shallots, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper; toss to coat. Bake for 15 minutes or until browned, stirring after 10 minutes. Combine Brussels sprouts, pancetta, and vinegar in a large bowl; toss well.


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Mushroom-Leek Stuffing Muffins
Courtesy of Food Network Magazine


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1 stick unsalted butter
3 cups leeks, chopped
2 cups celery, diced
1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon rosemary, minced
1 tablespoon thyme, minced
Salt
Black pepper
3 cups turkey or chicken broth
2 eggs
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
16 cups white bread, cubed and stale


Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add leeks, celery, mushrooms, rosemary, and thyme; add salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes. Add broth and bring to a simmer. Beat eggs with parsley in a large bowl; add bread, then pour in the vegetable-broth mixture and toss.

Line muffin cups with paper liners and fill with stuffing. Bake, uncovered, at 375°F until golden, about 45 minutes.

(If you would like to make "traditional" stuffing, transfer stuffing mixture to a buttered baking dish and dot with butter. Cover and bake 30 minutes at 375 degrees F; uncover and bake until golden, 30 more minutes.)

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Parker House Rolls
Courtesy of Alex Guarnaschelli


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1 1/4-ounce packet active dry yeast
1/2 cup sugar
7 1/2 to 8 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus softened butter for brushing
2 cups whole milk, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling


Bloom the yeast: Measure out 1/2 cup warm water and check the temperature: It should be between 110°F and 120°F (comfortable bathwater temperature). Sprinkle the yeast into a large bowl, add the warm water and whisk in the sugar. Let sit 1 minute (it should bubble and froth slightly), then gently stir in 1 cup flour. Set aside near the stove while you prepare the dough.

Make the dough: Mix the melted butter and milk in a mixer with the hook attachment on low speed. Add the eggs and mix until blended. Scrape in the yeast mixture and mix until incorporated. Add 6 1/2 cups flour and 1 tablespoon salt; mix until the dough forms a ball, 2 to 3 minutes, adding up to 1/2 cup more flour if the dough is too wet and sticky.

Let it rise: Brush a large bowl with softened butter. Transfer the dough to the bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place, 2 hours to 2 hours, 30 minutes. The dough should double in volume.

Shape the dough: Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dust a clean flat surface with flour and turn the dough out onto it. Flour your hands; gently press the dough into a 16-by-8-inch rectangle, about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick (don't use a rolling pin).

Cut the dough: With the short side in front of you, cut the dough in half lengthwise with a floured knife. Then slice crosswise into 12 strips.

Shape the dough: One at a time, fold each strip of dough unevenly in half so the top part slightly overlaps the bottom half, then tuck the overhang underneath. Place the rolls seam-side down on the prepared baking sheet in 3 tightly packed rows. (If making in advance, wrap the baking sheet tightly in plastic wrap and freeze up to 3 weeks.)

Bake the rolls: Bake until the rolls are bursting at the seams and golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. (If frozen, bake 25 minutes at 325°F, then 10 minutes at 375°F.) Remove from the oven and brush with softened butter. Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately.

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Cranberry Sauce
Courtesy of Alex Guarnaschelli


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1 pound fresh cranberries, washed and dried
2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 orange, zested and juiced


In a medium pot, combine the cranberries, sugar and water. Stir to blend. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer and add the cinnamon stick, allspice and nutmeg. Stir to blend and simmer for an additional 5 to 7 minutes. Some of the cranberries will burst and some will remain whole. Add the orange juice and zest, stir and allow to cool before serving.

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Pumpkin Maple Pie Supreme
Courtesy of AllRecipes.com


1 small sugar pumpkin
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup real maple syrup
1 1/4 cups half-and-half cream
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell


Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

Cut up pumpkin, and remove seeds. Place in large baking pan, and cover with foil or lid. Bake for 1 hour, or until very tender. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (175°C).

Scrape pumpkin into a food processor; puree until smooth. Measure 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and salt. Stir in maple syrup, half-and-half, and flour. Mix in eggs one at a time. Pour filling into unbaked pie shell.

Bake for 1 hour, or until center is set.

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