12.08.2008

A Trip... + A Question For You


speaking of food -- feast by the girls at lines & shapes...another item on my christmas wish list.

So in the spirit of finding out your holiday traditions, I'm wondering what you make for your Christmas day lunch (or dinner?) I posed this question to Bryan's cousins at Thanksgiving this year, and it seems we all sort of recreate Thanksgiving dinner...

What do you make? I'd like to do something special (but not overly complicated) this year, as my family is coming for Christmas, so throw your ideas my way.

p.s. -- I'm headed to Mexico this week for a work trip, which makes me sad for all sorts of obvious reasons... I hate to leave Bryan and the girls in December. Not sure how much I'll be able to post while I'm away, but I'll give it my best!

p.p.s -- Thanks for all the lovely birthday wishes! I had a great day.

Happy Monday.

21 comments:

Kate said...

This year we are recreating Thanksgiving, because we were with my husband's side of the family. Last year we did stone crab claws and beef tenderloin on Christmas Eve and Soup night on Christmas night.

Elizabeth said...

We always have oyster stew on Christmas Eve, and then on Christmas Day we have country ham and a bunch of random sides.

Blair Friedeman said...

We traditionally have herb crusted beef tenderloin and my brother always makes a to die for chocolate mint mousse! And that book looks lovely.

Miss | A said...

we always go to my In-laws for teh big meal. Way Southern...way not my style of eating...very greasy, very fatty, very very good. Ham, meatloaf too, mashed potatoes, cheese grits,cornbread, canned green beans(yuk), and lots of pies!!!

Rachel said...

We used to always just recreate Thanksgiving, but this year we are starting a new family tradition. We'll choose a different "theme" every year and cook a big meal together. This year we're doing a Greek meal, so the big main dish will be spanikopita, and we'll have lots of other Greek foods and desserts.

Thea said...

We have Prime Rib and Yorkshire Pudding. mmmmm. Delish.

Me said...

We always do a big Mexican-style meal, with lots of posole, enchiladas, tamales, taquitas . . . and then some apple pie! :) Can't get away from the Thanksgiving-style desserts!

Rita Finn said...

We usually have honey-glazed ham instead of turkey, and my sister makes her wonderful butternut squash soup. And a little something extra: we always have one girls' night with magazines, facials and manicures.

Unknown said...

This year we're by ourselves (in the extended family sense) so we're going to have a big potluck with several other good friends. Our host is making prime rib... I've been thinking about a good old-fashioned scandinavian trifle. And the traditional completely unhealthy but so delicious rolls that my mom always made (primary ingredients: yeast, flour, shortening, sugar).

have fun in mexico!

AggieGirl said...

We always have a feast -- thanks to my mom -- that includes ham, smoked turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top, and cranberry salad to name a few. For dessert, we have pound cake along side or to dip in boiled custard (my great-great grandmother's recipe).

Hasta luego, chica!

lisa said...

good question. I like to make a meal that reminds me of growing up in california. we're in virginia now, where hams are very popular. we'll either grill a tri-tip or cook mexican (unsually enchiladas or tamales).

Anonymous said...

The past couple of years we've had beef tenderloin for Christmas dinner, along with the Thanksgiving-like sides. It was great!

CMN said...

I'm going with Christmas fettucini... it was a HUGE hit last year! If you're interested, I'll share my super-delicious and suprisingly simple sauce recipe...

Lisl said...

I like to have a nice Christmas Eve dinner, but on Christmas day none of us wants to be bothered to make a huge meal. The last couple years we've have Raclette. It's a French/Swiss meal that you cook and eat at the table. It consists of a two-tier Raclette grill on the table; on the bottom level you place little holders where you melt cheese, and on the top you place slices of pre-cooked potatoes, veggies, and meats. When the food is warm you scoop the melted cheese on top. We like to serve mini sweet pickles and pickled onions with it. It is super delicious, and since you cook the meat/potatoes/veggies ahead of time, there's no work that day.

Here's a recipe and more info:
http://www.jill.net/recipes/recipes/raclette.html

Enjoy!
Lisl

Mary said...

We used to recreate Thanksgiving, and I hated it. Turkey is for Thanksgiving, in my opinion. Lately we've been doing a horseradish and mustard-encrusted beef tenderloin that is super easy and so so yummy! And then we experiment with side dishes - a couple we've done before and a couple new ideas. I love the idea of picking a different theme each year, though.

Kim said...

We're hosting Christmas here for the first time, so I am pulling out my mom's simple-and-scrumptious recipe for baked chicken with rice. She makes it regularly when hosting a large dinner party and everyone raves. (My mom, incidentally, cooks Thanksgiving dinner on Christmas because we all love it so much.)

Becca said...

We've eaten roast beef and Yorkshire pudding for as long as I can remember.

Anonymous said...

we seem just to recreate thanksgiving too! every year we say we'll do something different, then the big day rolls around and there we are eating turkey again. the trouble is, if i didn't make my celebrated stuffing i think i would have a mutiny on my hands...and what can you stuff other than a turkey? duck and goose are notoriously difficult to prepare well, and a chicken is too ordinary. so we always go back to turkey. sigh.

MA said...

We have a brunch Christmas morning. Most is prepared the night before...and just need to go into the oven. My favorite...bun breakfast...aka monkey bread. Delicious!! This way we have the evening off to relax after a long day of unwrapping!

Michelle said...

Oh Mexico, don't get sick :( We make standing rib roast, it is super good, and EASY, just buy it, rub it down with whatever (mustard is a good choice) give it some gentle words of encouragement and shove her in the oven, when the temp is about 15 degrees lower than your goal, take her out, wrap her in foil and chill out with some red wine and your feet up and watch your family come in with side dishes...(kind of like the beef version of those old Rice Crispy Treat adds....ehehehhe)

Joanna Goddard said...

delicious.