What are you going to eat for Christmas dinner? Is it too early to talk about? Not as far as I’m concerned. We usually do a beef rib roast, but they have gotten so expensive lately. We like to go all out on Christmas though. I remember one year we bought rib-eyes for everyone at Costco and dad grilled them. That’s a nice memory. A nice pot roast would also be good. Mom makes a good one with what we call “black gravy.” It just looks black because there is a lot of Worcestershire sauce in it. She always makes hash out of any leftovers which is also delicious.
At any rate, let’s talk about sides for whatever you cook for Christmas dinner. Creamed spinach is always a good side for beef.
Creamed Spinach
1 pound frozen chopped spinach or 2 pounds fresh (see notes below) 2 tbsp butter 1/2 med ium on ion chopped 2 cloves garlic minced 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream 4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 block Philly) softened 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese Pinch nutmeg Salt and pepper to taste Frozen spinach: Thaw the spinach, then squeeze out as much of the excess water as you can. Fresh spinach: Boil a pot of water. Add the spinach and cook for about 1 minute. Drain it and rinse it under cool water. Squeeze out excess water. Chop if desired.
In a pot, sauté the butter and onion over medium heat until it’s lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes).
Reduce heat. Stir in the garlic, followed by the heavy cream, cream cheese, Parmesan, and nutmeg. It will take a few minutes for the cream cheese to melt in. Break it up with a spoon/ stir it continuously. The sauce should thicken up as it cooks.
Stir in the spinach and let it heat through. If you want more liquid, add in a splash more cream. If there’s too much liquid, you may need to cook the spinach for a few more minutes to reduce the sauce to your liking.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. —kwc— Here is Julia Child’s recipe for potatoes au gratin which is also called Potatoes Dauphinoise.
Potatoes Dauphinoise 1-1/2 cups full-fat cream 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted 2-1/2 pounds starchy potatoes, such as Russet, peeled and sliced to 1/8-inch thickness 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 2-1/4 cups Gruyere cheese, freshly grated 2 tsp thyme leaves, optional, plus more for topping Preheat the oven to 350.
In a bowl, combine the cream, the garlic, and the butter.
Layer 1/3 of the potato slices in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
Pour 1/3 of the cream mixture over the potato slices in the baking dish.
Sprinkle the cream layer with 1/3 of the salt, 1/3 of the pepper, and 1/3 of the thyme.
Sprinkle with 3/4 cup of the cheese.
Repeat the layers twice, but do not add the final layer of cheese yet.
Cover the baking dish with foil or a lid and bake until the potatoes in the middle are soft, about 1 hour 15 minutes.
Remove the foil or lid and top with the remaining cheese.
Bake until the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 10-15 minutes.
Let stand for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with the thyme and serve.
—kwc— We have two creamy and cheesy recipes. Here’s a simple to make cabbage recipe that doesn’t take long at all. At first it will seem like all the cabbage won’t fit in the pan, but it’ll cook down.
Sauteed Cabbage
2 pounds white cabbage, core removed and shredded (10 cups) 1-1/2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 1 tbsp garlic, minced Pinch crushed red pepper flakes 1/2 tsp fine sea salt or more to taste Half of a lemon, cut into wedges Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the cabbage, garlic, red pepper flakes, and the salt. It might seem like too much cabbage for the pan, but as it cooks, the cabbage will wilt down.
Cook, stirring occasionally until the cabbage is tender and some of the cabbage begins to turn a light brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
Squeeze the juice from 2 lemon wedges over the cabbage. Taste then adjust with more salt, pepper, and lemon juice as needed.
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