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[jdmessner]

I know Thanksgiving is not here yet, but there is a good amount of snow in the yard with more on the way. So, I guess it is a good time to stay inside and start thinking about the annual Christmas party my wife and I host each year for friends and people we work with. Last year we waited until the 12th day after Christmas and had an Epiphany party. It featured a traditional English dinner. This year the party will be earlier, on December 14. There is not a set theme for the menu. We are just hoping for good food and fellowship as we celebrate the season.

Over the last several years I sure have appreciated the help and support I have received from folks on this forum with ideas, advice, and recipes for the party. Sometimes I wonder if I should keep posting about it each year, I don’t want to wear out my welcome!  However, if you will indulge me, I will share the plans so far this years menu. This is a first draft, so it is a work in progress and subject to change. As always, your comments and input are appreciated.

Appetizers
•   Italian Beef Pinwheels with gravy – I made these for my mom’s 90th birthday and they were a big hit. I only baked off about half of what I prepped for the birthday party. I think I have enough in the freezer, so it should just be heat and serve. This is a no brainer.
•   Citrus Pecan Kale Salad with apple, dried cherries, feta cheese, and smoked pecans in a maple syrup and brown sugar glaze.
•   Artichoke dip
•   Stuffed Mushroom Caps

Main Dish
•   Turketta with Bacon Apple Gravy – My daughter works for a local grocery place that is similar to Aldi’s. They ran a special on Shady Brook Farms marinated bacon wrapped turkey breasts. They are supposed to be great on the grill. The plan is to serve it with a gravy (actually it looks like more of a sauce), with nice chunks of apple and bacon in it.
•   Stuffed Pork Loin – with porchetta, bleu cheese and cherries.

Sides
•   Cheesy Garlic Potato Gratin - Yukon gold potatoes thinly sliced, green onion, garlic, shredded Swiss or provolone cheese, and whipping cream
•   Steamed Broccoli
•   Dinner Roll with butter

Desserts
My wife will be covering the desserts. It sounds like a couple of chocolate fountains may be in play. I would also be willing to bet some figgy pudding may also be in the mix.

[Kristin Meredith]

Sounds like a great menu and I love stuffed mushrooms!

I will make one fun suggestion for appetizers -- pigs in a blanket wreath!!!  Looks like a bit of work, but probably a conversation starter.

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[Bar-B-Lew]

Great looking menu.

What do you think about brick cheese in the au gratin?

Also, I heard that lettuce is VERY expensive now for some reason.  I was at a local pizza shop yesterday and they had signs up about side salads with meal are no longer included in price and would be $3 extra.  I overheard them talking to someone who said a head of lettuce at the grocery store was $6.  Pizza guy said he used to pay $20 for a case of lettuce and it is now over $100 just within the last month or so.

[urnmor]

I have only one suggestion and it is not food.  as you know we are all friends on this forum so I would not publish your address as just might all show up as your menu is out of this world.  Have a great Thanksgiving and stay safe and warm with all of your snow.

[jdmessner]

Thanks for the replies.

Kristin - The Pigs in a blanket are a real possibility. I have several sheets of puff pastry leftover from the pinwheels. I was wondering what to do with them.

Lew - Brick cheese is an excellent idea. I think there is a place not too far from me that carries it. I will keep an eye on lettuce prices. If the cost of greens is too high, it would probably be an easy cut from the menu. I don't think most people would notice or care.

Urnmor - Come on up! I will be glad to send the address if anyone is interested (just bring your favorite dishrag)! Actually, this isn't a bad area to visit in the winter. We are at a hub for several Northern Michigan snowmobile trails and there are many opportunities for ice fishing. When I went out ice fishing last year I caught a nice 5 lb. block. The only problem was that when I got back to my car, the new snow tires I just put on had melted!

[jdmessner]

I decided to try out a turkey breast. The grill was set at 240* and it took around 3 1/2 hours. The breast was very juicy and had a good flavor. I thought it was a little salty. However, I have pretty much stopped adding salt to my diet, so a lot of things now taste saltier to me (I never thought I would hear myself say that)! I think it should work well for the dinner. I hope to do a small test batch of the gravy next week.

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[jdmessner]

The testing and fine tuning has begun.

The other day I did a test run of the stuffed pork loin with porchetta, bleu cheese and cherries. It was OK, but I think a few adjustments are in order. I tried making it ahead of time and reheating it the next day. Fresh is best. I will cook it the day of.   I also didn't get a lot of the cherry flavor. I am thinking of using a mild cherry BBQ sauce as a glaze. Over the last couple of years I have gotten to know a guy who makes a great cherry BBQ sauce. He is from Africa and it has a unique blend of flavors that I think will be great with the pork loin.

I am probably going to take the salad off the menu. I don't think greens will be missed.

I was looking at different recipes and came across "Fondant Potatoes". It was new to me, but from what I can tell it is an old French dish. The potatoes are peeled and the ends are trimmed so the potato can standup on-end. It is then cut in half (making kind of a potato cylinder). The ends are browned in a skillet. The potatoes are then basted in butter, garlic, and fresh rosemary or thyme. Chicken stock is added and the potato cylinders are baked in an oven until they are done. It sounds like they would be something different, taste good, and maybe take less prep time than the other potatoes I was thinking of. Please let me know if you have tried them or made them. I hope to do a test batch later in the week.

[Bar-B-Lew]

curious to hear more about those potatoes as what you described sounds delicious

[jdmessner]

curious to hear more about those potatoes as what you described sounds delicious

I am looking forward to trying them. Here is a little more info on them from The Spruce Eats website.

The word "fondant" means "melting" in French, and therein lies the clue to the effect this technique has on your potatoes. After searing the tubers in hot oil, you braise them in a bath of butter, garlic, thyme, and chicken (or vegetable) stock. Is it any wonder they taste almost like they've actually melted?

Fondant potatoes are loved by chefs because once they're cooked, they keep really well until they are served. This means they can be made in advance, though they should still be eaten by the end of the day since they will start to go stale after that.

Always use soft, starchy potatoes for fondant potatoes; Idaho and Russets are sure-fire bets as they will soak up all the melted butter and stock.

[jdmessner]

I made the fondant potatoes today and I'm sold. They came off as advertised.

Ends browned with chicken stock, butter and rosemary added. Ready to go in the oven.
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[urnmor]

How long did te hod process take?  They certainly look impressive

[jdmessner]

How long did te hod process take?  They certainly look impressive

I think the most time consuming part is peeling the potatoes. I found a lot of recipes, but they all were very similar. This one is from the Allrecipies website. I used dried rosemary and garlic instead of thyme. I will use fresh for the dinner.

Ingredients
3 large whole russet potatoes
2 tablespoons high-heat-resistant vegetable oil
salt and ground black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons butter
4 sprigs thyme, plus more for garnish
½ cup chicken broth, or more as needed

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

Cut off ends of russet potatoes. Stand potatoes on end, and peel them from top to bottom with a sharp knife to make each potato into a uniform cylinder. Cut each cylinder in half crosswise to make 6 potato cylinders about 2 inches long.

Place potatoes into a bowl of cold water for about 5 minutes to remove starch from the outsides; pat dry with paper towels.

Heat vegetable oil in a heavy oven-proof skillet over high heat until it shimmers slightly.

Place potato cylinders with the best-looking ends into the hot oil. Reduce heat to medium-high, and pan-fry potatoes until well-browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.

Flip potatoes and repeat on the other ends. As they cook, use a paper towel held with tongs to carefully blot out the oil from the skillet. Add butter and thyme sprigs to the skillet.

Pick up a thyme sprig with tongs and use it to paint butter over the top of the potatoes. Cook until butter foams and foam turns from white to a pale tan color. Season with more salt and pepper. Pour chicken stock into skillet.

Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and cook until potatoes are tender and creamy inside, about 30 minutes. If potatoes aren't tender, add 1/4 cup more stock and cook for 10 more minutes. (It was probably closer to an hour for me)

Place potatoes on a serving platter. Spoon thyme-scented butter remaining in skillet over potatoes. Garnish with thyme sprigs. Let cool about 5 minutes before serving.

[jdmessner]

Time to start getting serious about the party. Monday is shopping, Tuesday is prep, and Wednesday is when it all needs to come together!

When I did a trial run for the stuffed rolled pork loin, I thought it was kind of dry and not as much flavor as I had hoped for. Nobody else seemed to think it was a problem. Since it was family, I am fairly sure they were not just being polite.

One solution I came up with, would be to baste and glaze them to add some flavor and help retain the juices. I don't usually do a lot of glazing, but I am  wondering if it might be helpful in this case. My other idea was to brine the loins for 8-10 hours before preping them.

Any pros or cons to either glazing or brining?

[Kristin Meredith]

I like a glaze on pork, especially if it is fruit based -- apricot, peach, cherries.

[jdmessner]

I like a glaze on pork, especially if it is fruit based -- apricot, peach, cherries.

Thanks for the encouragement! I will give it a try. I am looking at a few recipes. Any suggestions? I will be stuffing with cherries and Bleu Cheese.

Also, if I do brine would it make sense to do it after I butterfly the loin? It would cover more surface area and probably take less time. On the other hand, I am afraid it might make the meat too salty.