What are You Doing for Christmas?

We were feasted on Christmas Eve by a Canadian and two Brit friends, at which time I got my first ever taste of Christmas pudding. This batch had been going a loooong time and had hard sauce. Definitely an acquired taste, but not bad at all. Enough brandy involved to ruin any teetotaler. Beautiful roast beast, fresh turkey and all that any happy gluttons could wish for.

Next year, it will probably be my turn.......OMIGOD. Can't even come close to the above, but if the world actually ends on Dec. 21st, I won't have to worry about it, will I? Or not.

Real old-fashioned smoked bacon and ham is not "bad for you." Chemically cured and flavored ham and bacon are probably not especially good for you. But a little now and then likely doesn't pose a big risk. BTW, Tony's meat market has superb real bacon.

gringal wrote:We were feasted on Christmas Eve by a Canadian and two Brit friends, at which time I got my first ever taste of Christmas pudding. This batch had been going a loooong time and had hard sauce. Definitely an acquired taste, but not bad at all. Enough brandy involved to ruin any teetotaler. Beautiful roast beast, fresh turkey and all that any happy gluttons could wish for.

Next year, it will probably be my turn.......OMIGOD. Can't even come close to the above, but if the world actually ends on Dec. 21st, I won't have to worry about it, will I? Or not.

Gringal, yes that "official christmas pudding" is a definite acquired taste. One which I'm not particularly fond of, so I managed to adapt another recipe, which was not soaked in booze, and did not have candied citron, or any of the other less than pleasant ingredients. Hard sauce on the other hand is just wonderful. Sadly, it's not very good for the waistline, however if we're all going to peg out anyway, who cares.

My New Years resolution, live every day as if this year was really the last. Not that I actually believe that, however if the world doesn't end on December 21st 2012, it will have been a very good year indeed.

Gringal, a special note just for you, if Dec 21st comes and goes without incident, send me a P.M. and I'll give you all the tips necessary to produce a Brit feast worthy of mention for years to come. The Brits and Canucks will be gobsmacked. 43 years in total spent with two Brit husbands did have some benefits. ;-)

A cautionary note: After doing all this, recovery for the host and hostess takes about three days. Forewarned is forearmed.

A cautionary note: After doing all this, recovery for the host and hostess takes about three days. Forewarned is forearmed.

raqueteer 

Ah hah, is this why day 2 i lay in bed and still every little thing hurts??? Every muscle, joint, feet, skin, even my eyeballs?

I just know how to make the discusting American sidedishes and commonplace turkey. I'd like to step it up maybe but only if it tastes good. We're not big on pudding or even flan. Anything else? The primerib sounds good, i don't think i've made that yet.

Regarding the ham. It was in inquiry as to if anyone knew why the thing was $1000? If possible, i'm sure it's still there, i will take a pic w/price tag and post it. It was indeed an aged ham, perhaps from Spain but i thought it was the US and we aren't knowledgeable about that kind of ham.

MyHomeSweetHome wrote:

A cautionary note: After doing all this, recovery for the host and hostess takes about three days. Forewarned is forearmed.

raqueteer 

Ah hah, is this why day 2 i lay in bed and still every little thing hurts??? Every muscle, joint, feet, skin, even my eyeballs?

I just know how to make the discusting American sidedishes and commonplace turkey. I'd like to step it up maybe but only if it tastes good. We're not big on pudding or even flan. Anything else? The primerib sounds good, i don't think i've made that yet.

Regarding the ham. It was in inquiry as to if anyone knew why the thing was $1000? If possible, i'm sure it's still there, i will take a pic w/price tag and post it. It was indeed an aged ham, perhaps from Spain but i thought it was the US and we aren't knowledgeable about that kind of ham.

I think your'e talking about the serrano ham from Spain at costco,overated,way too salty and way too pricey,2000 to 3000pesos.
Chris

I'm thinking that (assuming the world hasn't ended) it's going to be an Italo-Mex feast next Christmas Eve. Lots of pasta, salad, sinful sauces, garlic bread, poblano chicken and anything else I can think of. Prime rib is always a welcome addition.........then three days of recovery....at least. Whew.

Just a little culinary question for all you good cooks out there: Has anyone found or have the Mexican descriptive term for the "chateaubriand" cut of meat: IMO, that perfect thick, tender and flavorful one that you NEVER see in the meat markets and must order ahead most times? My suspicion is that this is the slab the butcher takes home for HISSELF.

Chateaubriand is simiply a large piece from the center of the tenderloin. You can buy a whole tenderloin at Costco and cut your own.

Agreed David! However, there exists an opposing theory that it isn't a cut of meat but rather a recipe.

@Gringal, it's Filet, a large one, and if you want to be totally assured of a really tender cut, you're stuck with Costco, sorry, that's just the way it is. We've had good Mexican filet, and bad filet. For a special dinner you don't really want to take a chance. We learned the hard way. I see that David has already stepped up to the plate here, and so has Neil.

@MyHomeSweetHome, Chris is right, that was a serrano ham, it's only really good if you have an absolutely top notch meat slicer that cuts paper thin.

Yes, my eyeballs still hurt too, but I know why, and it wasn't from staring at a recipe book.

Kicking things up a notch.
Sausage rolls
Brandy sauce
Mince pies
Gravlax for starters
Yorkshire pudding
You'd like my pudding, guaranteed.

Good grief John,....could you can the grinch act at least for the holidays?

johninajijic wrote:My HomeSweetHome - Why are you dissing me about a Costco Ham when viajero bought the same ham? Why not dis him too? $ 1,000. for a Ham!!! More like $ 26 and a good buy considering what you get out of it. What kind of drugs are you on??? And ham is not good for you! Why is that and who the f&!k cares.

And you had a commonplace Turkey dinner. How was that lousy turkey you get here in Mexico, probably frozen and imported from Chile. And you had sweet potatoes with marshmellows on top. How frigging disgusting looking and tasting is that. We had that at the resort we went to over Thanksgiving week. Isn't that how the Mexicans do sweet potatoes?

Here's the story from About.Com:

The story goes that back in the days of Napoleon, Chef Montmireil created a special dish for author and statesman, Francois Chateaubriand. He took a cut of beef from the tenderloin, just down from the filet mignon, coated it in butter, seasoned it with black pepper and grilled it. This cut, now synonymous with the recipe, is a thick steak, large enough to serve at least two people.

To finish off this dish, the meat is sliced into thin strips, topped with a melted butter and parsley mixture and served with Bearnaise sauce. The traditional side dish is chateau potatoes. These small potatoes are roasted in a heavy pan, covered in butter. Not a recipe for the dieter, but well worth the extra calories.

Of course the beef tenderloin steak is one of the more expensive cuts, but if you want to make a meal that is sure to impress, this is a good one to choose. Remember that I said that Chateaubriand is a recipe and not a cut of meat. This recipe has been adapted by a great number of cooks to use almost anything from fish to artichokes. A quick search of the Internet will find you dozens of variations.

And there you have it. The problem is trying to get your hands on that cut without having to buy the whole chunk. But then........it's worth it.
I'm getting hungry.

Use the rest of the chunk to make a great beef stew!

Why not just cut the remainder of the tenderloin into filets and use any trim meat for Beef Stroganoff, Beef Fondue or some other recipe which calls for a good tender cut? IMO, Beef Stew would be a waste!

Now you know why my wife won't let me in her kitchen. You're absolutely right, of course.

CheenaGringo wrote:Why not just cut the remainder of the tenderloin into filets and use any trim meat for Beef Stroganoff, Beef Fondue or some other recipe which calls for a good tender cut? IMO, Beef Stew would be a waste!

It depends on how much one likes beef stew, No?

In a few words: Love Stroganoff; hate beef stew. Beef burgundy....fine.

But don't worry, nothing edible goes to waste in this kitchen.

CheenaGringo wrote:Why not just cut the remainder of the tenderloin into filets and use any trim meat for Beef Stroganoff, Beef Fondue or some other recipe which calls for a good tender cut? IMO, Beef Stew would be a waste!

Agree, and I just happen to have gotten some new fondue forks for Christmas. There are few things more satisfying than a good beef fondue, with the possible exception of a nice charbonnade done on a raclette grill.

That sounds tasty. Ah, but that's NEXT Christmas. Back to a long, long book and my feet up till after new Years.

Beef Fondue is on our menu for this or next week. Not sure which night. I am currently defrosting a Prime Rib Roast for New Years Eve. I use a DO NOT OPEN OVEN METHOD similar to the following:
http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1927,154160-242207,00.html
But I do use a more elaborate concoction of salt, three color pepper, rosemary, garlic and coarse stone ground German mustard to coat the meat.

I exaggerated, it wasn't $1000 USA but $3,499 pesos. Anyone want to buy me one? I'm willing to taste it.

fondue... beef or any other kind.... all I can say is.... before you go out to a fondue.... stop and get something to eat!

fondue sure as hell, ain't a hungry man dinner... artsy fartsy kinda stuff.... better... with lots of wine, or brandy, or scotch....

I'll take a good beef stew an a beer over that hoity toity sh*t any day....

just say'n is all...

David wrote:Chateaubriand is simiply a large piece from the center of the tenderloin. You can buy a whole tenderloin at Costco and cut your own.

You are right, in France a Chateaubriand is a cut of meat not a recipe. It is the very best part of the filet cut very thick. It can be served sauteed with butter and pepper or with a shallert sauce ,or any other type of sauce like Bearnaise, Hollandaise and so on. It is usually seared on the outside and almost cold in the middle for the people who like it rare or "blue".
I have a funny feeling that a Chateaubriand is a recipe in the Sates but I am not 100% sure of it.