The Write Ingredients

A Great Christmas Menu, Part 2

So, after all of that good food, Husband and I drove north for another 24 hours of good eats. We started that evening with wine, and salmon and those beautiful truffles I wrote about a couple weeks ago. We tried the Key Lime, HOT Chocolate and the Chai Tea. My favorite was the HOT chocolate, which did have a kick, but wasn't overpowering (Mother-in-law might disagree).

But the real food started the next day. After a breakfast of bloody mary's and a quick snowshoe outing, we started the real meal.

Our theme was "A Tour of Europe" and although we spent a lot of time in France, we did make our way to other countries. The main dish was a herbed roasted beef tenderloin. Which was essentially a large tenderloin rubbed in a herbed pesto, and served with a shallot sauce. I tend to be rather picky about what kind of beef I eat, but tenderloin is a cut of meat I accept with open arms. Low in fat and that nasty gristle, you can often cut it with a fork. Its just pricier than most other cuts, but the holidays are for celebrating, so we went for it. And this recipe couldn't be easier. We made the sauce a couple days ahead, and put the pesto together first thing in the morning so it could marinate for 6+ hours. Then just roast it in the oven. The recipe said 35 minutes, it was more like 50, but it was perfect.

To go with the beef we made a beautiful mushroom risotto. I think a lot of people find risotto intimidating to make, but its really quite simple and even easier if you have a guy floating around who can sit and stir the darn stuff. That's the problem with it, it needs to be stirred constantly for about 20 minutes, and where there are other dishes to be made, well, it's hard to lose a hand to stirring.

This dish turned out to be the hit of the evening. And I have to admit, it was darn good. Rich, but not too fattening, the truffle oil accentuated the mushrooms and worked very well with the beef and shallot sauce.

Also on the side were roasted vegetables. A beautiful combination of peppers, eggplant, onions, squash and potatoes, they also matched the cozy theme of the meal, yet fancy enough on their own. Of course there was bread and good butter, and a lively apple salad with gorgonzola that we somehow found room for.

And then came dessert. Snow had started falling again, and it was beautiful out there. But we still had to drive the hour home, so there was little time to waste before cutting into this beautiful torte. Officially called Sachertorte, it is a traditional Austrian dessert. Its comprised of a not-too-sweet chocolate cake with a apricot jam and a boiled chocolate frosting coating it. It sure is beautiful, and served with a large dollap of whipped cream, it sure was tasty. Even after that full meal, the torte wasn't too sweet, we were able to handle it. I still have some in the fridge and think it might be for dinner.


It was a beautiful Christmas, with lots of good food, family and snow. I just love the snow, don't you?