christmas recap

This Christmas was packed with food...so much food, so little time to fit it all in. All week we have had a crackling fire glowing away in the background of all of our activities.

We opened an early gift of rum my parents picked up from Barbados (as they don't export this type & it was engraved as a gift)...

 

 ...before making some festive Christmas tree cookies...lots and lots of cookies...

 

...followed by a taste testing of champagne.

 

 

 

 

We settled in for a movie before Christmas eve dinner of steak au poivre and lots of Alaskan King crab legs (my favorite food in the wholeeee world).

 

 

 

 

Christmas morning we skipped down the stairs to our full tree, and opened our presents while the paparazzi followed Erin.

 

 

 

Christmas dinner fell in my hands as everyone watched sports on TV (no thanks). I made a Christmas turkey stuffed with butter and herbs to retain the moisture, ham, green beans with toasted pine nuts and shallots, cornbread stuffing & scalloped potatoes served with the necessary crescent rolls, olives, cranberry sauce & meim's gravy.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a huge Christmas dinner we took a break, watching a Christmas movie by the fire before....chocolate soufflés for dessert of course! I added a touch of salt and a pinch of cream of tartar to the recipe for some extra depth & topped them with Toscanini's french vanilla ice cream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The day after I'm still recovering from all of the food...but definitely looking forward to some leftover "Thanksgiving" sandwiches for dinner!!

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pork tenderloin & scalloped potatoes

It turns out that pork tenderloin is one of the easiest & tastiest meals to make.  It tastes even better when paired with a deliciously creamy portion of scalloped potatoes. Scalloped potatoes made from scratch taste thousands of times better than boxed potatoes, but they take more time and require more love to be put into them...but in the end they pay off! Note: only make these scalloped potatoes for someone that deserves them, as they are delicious but require a bit of detailing and planning when it comes to laying the pieces out one by one.

 

Ingredients:
For pork tenderloin:
2 lb pork tenderloin
3 cloves garlic
1 tbs dried rosemary
Salt & pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup white wine

For scalloped potatoes:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 tbp dried thyme (or 1 spring fresh thyme)
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 lbs potatoes of choice
Salt & pepper
3/4 cup shredded parmesan


Directions:
1. Place 3 cloves garlic, 1 tbs dried rosemary, pinch of salt, pinch of pepper, and 1/4 cup of olive oil in food processor. Process until paste-like. Rub tenderloin in paste and marinate in refrigerator for 2 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove tenderloin from refrigerator, cut slits & push paste into slits to ensure a flavorful roast. Pour 1/2 cup white wine in bottom of baking pan, place tenderloin on wine, cover, and place in oven. Set timer for an hour and a half.

3.  In a small saucepan, heat up the heavy cream with the thyme, garlic, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, salt & pepper. Lightly butter a small pan.

 

4. Meanwhile, using a mandoline, cut potato into slices about 1/8". Place a potato slices to layer the bottom of the pan. Pour 1/4 cup of cream mixture over potatoes, top with a pinch of shredded parmesan. Place another layer of potatoes and repeat process: potatoes, cream, cheese, potatoes, cream, cheese. Continue until pieces run out and top with cheese. Pop in oven with pork.
 

 

5. When the timer buzzes, remove the pork from the oven, uncover, make sure the inside temp is 145 degrees, and slice if it is!
 

 

 

6. Remove potatoes when browned, crispy, and bubbly all at once. Serve and enjoy!
 

 

 

 

 

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simple weekend recap: edition 8

This weekend was apparently filled with food...looking back I guess a LOT of food! Friday on my run out of the house to the car, I stopped to smell the roses...
 

 

and had a nice surprise at work when I heard that the Nutella breakfast tour had their first stop down the street...

 

and to start the weekend on the right foot, I made some banana greek yogurt chocolate chip mini muffins with a hint of peanut butter.

 

 

For Saturday night dinner I made a pork tenderloin with scalloped potatoes (my favorite way to enjoy a potato--recipe for both of these this week!).

 

 

 

When T fell asleep early from a food coma, I decided to make some chai meringues.

 

 

 

Sunday, while Moose enjoyed his outside time, we headed over to Carver Hill Orchard to celebrate the second day of fall.

 

 

 

 Sunday night was taco night...and fresh apple tart night (recipe this week)!

 

 

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