Holiday Dinner Party

This menu came about one year when I decided to throw a "Homeless Holiday". You know, for all of us who *thankfully* didn't have to go to our family's annual soiree. I wanted something different, something to remember. Don't get me wrong, there is something GREAT about Turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy. . . we all know that. And, we've all done it—over and over. But, if you are going to go to the trouble of hosting a holiday dinner, I think it should be memorable. Take my word for it—if you throw this holiday party, you're guests WILL remember, especially when they sit down to next year's usual fare! So, let's get to it. How ‘bout a main attraction of succulent, tender herb crusted roasted rack of lamb?? Side lined with roasted fennel and brussel sprouts and the potato and leek au'gratin. Then, for the happy finish--a pumpkin chiffon pie accompanied with dark rum whipped cream and chopped pecans. I wanna put it in my mouth right now! The best part is that most all of the menu can be prepared a day or two in advance. This is a perfect, minimal stress menu.

You will want to start off cooking the potatoes. They need to rest for at lest 30 minutes before serving. Then, turn the oven up a notch and throw the baked cheese in. When you are ready, crank up the heat and put the lamb in. When it's done, it needs to rest for 10 – 15 minutes, so you throw the brussel sprouts and fennel in. And, dessert (the happy finish) is all ready to go in the fridge. Perfect.

To get your Holiday Dinner party started right, offer your guests a mug of your home made hot apple cider. Perfect for the season, especially with that yummy Tuaca Italian liqueur in it!! Then, get their palates going with a tasty and flaky, baked cheese appetizer accompanied with fresh apples, pears and mixed nuts. Now it's time for the REAL surprise that they will thank YOU for giving--your rack of lamb feast, finished off with that sweet chocolate pecan pie. Mmmmmm. . . . . put it in your mouth.

Homemade Hot Apple Cider

64 oz. (8 cups) jug of fresh apple juice
4 cinnamon sticks
1 ½ C orange juice
2 lemons, juiced, about ½ cup juice
15 whole cloves
Tuaca liqueur

Heat all ingredients, except the Tuaca, in a large pot over medium high heat, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or more with the lid on. To serve, put 1 -2 oz. Tuaca in a mug and fill with cider. Garnish with a cinnamon stick if you like. Mmmmm. . . .warm and toasty.

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Baked Cheese

This is my Mother's recipe. My Mother is all about EASY. She made this up one year. She made it with gouda and was horrified when she realized that she didn't take the wax off the cheese before she put the little guy in the oven. She made me swear not to tell any of the guests. It had a pink tinge to it but everyone ate it up nonetheless (except my mother and I)! There was some questioning about the color, Mom and I just changed the subject.

1 can crescent roll dough
8 oz block pepper jack cheese, room temp
8 oz round of gouda cheese, room temp
1 large crisp apple (granny smith, fuji, etc)
1 pear

Preheat oven to 375°F. Unroll crescent roll dough and divide in half, place both halves on a cookie sheet. Using your finger, press together the perforations in the dough to make it seamless. Place the pepper jack on one half of the dough and fold sides over to completely cover the cheese. Do the same with the gouda. Bake at 375°F for 12 -15 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool for about 5 – 10 minutes. Slice it up and serve with fresh pear and apple slices. Keep that bowl of mixed nut near by—it's a good combo. Put it in your mouth. . . .

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Herb Crusted Roasted Rack of Lamb

This is totally out of this World. I need to state a little disclaimer here. If you are going to pay the price for rack of lamb, make sure you do it right. By this I mean that you get a quality piece of meat and really watch it, pull it right from the oven when it's ready. I recommend rare. If you are afraid, medium rare is really as far as you should go. It is meant to be served this way, that's why it is so damn expensive.

3 full racks of lamb (8 ribs each), approx 1 ½ lbs. each, frenched
6 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6 Cloves peeled garlic
1/2 C mint leaves, loosely packed
¼ C rosemary leaves
¼ C Italian parsley leaves
½ C fine breadcrumbs
½ Tbsp. fresh ground black pepper
6 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 450°F. Take lamb racks, season with salt and pepper on all sides (you can do this a day or two ahead of time, for a little added flavor). In a large skillet (preferably cast iron) heat olive oil over medium high heat until very hot (almost at smoke point). Brown the racks of lamb an all sides, about 2 minutes per side. You might have to do this in batches depending on how big your skillet is. Once browned, place lamb, meat side up on a roasting pan and let cool, about 30 minutes. Combine garlic, mint, rosemary, parsley and black pepper in food processor. Blend until completely chopped, about 10 –15 seconds. Add breadcrumbs to remaining mixture and blend in food processor for a few seconds, just long enough to combine. If you do not have a food processor, you can finely chop all of the herbs and combine with breadcrumbs. Once the lamb has cooled, rub each rack with the Dijon mustard, 2T per rack. Split the breadcrumb/herb mixture into 3 equal portions and coat each of the lamb racks with mixture. Roast lamb until meat thermometer inserted into center of lamb registers 130°F for medium-rare, about 20 minutes. If you like it a bit more rare, take it out at 125°F. Transfer lamb to a serving platter, cover with foil and let rest for 10 -15 minutes before carving into chops (2 ribs each). Now it's time to put the fennel and sprouts in the oven (see recipe below).

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Roasted Fennel and Brussel Sprouts.

This is EASY BREEZY. You can assemble everything the day before your fabulous T-day gathering and then just dump it out on the cookie sheet and throw it in the oven after that awesome lamb is done

1.5 lb. brussel sprouts, washed and ends trimmed
1.5 lb. fennel bulbs (about 2 bulbs), washed with tops removed, cut length wise into ¼ inch strips
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
3 Tbps Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 450°F (which is already done, since you just pulled the lamb out, silly). Place brussel sprouts in a large mixing bowl and toss with 1 ½ Tbsp. Olive oil, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper to coat vegetables with oil, salt and pepper. Transfer to a rimmed cookie sheet. Roast in oven for 8 minutes (they take a little longer than the fennel). Meanwhile, place the fennel strips in the bowl you used for the sprouts and do the exact same thing you did with the sprouts—season with the remaining salt, pepper and olive oil. Once the sprouts have roasted for 8 minutes, remove from oven, give the pan a quick shake to turn the sprouts and then add the fennel. Return to oven and roast for an additional 10 – 12 minutes, until tender. Transfer to serving dish and put it in your mouth.

Potato Leek Au'Gratin

This is just plain awesome. Never a complaint when this is on the menu! Ms. Cherese, a good friend of mine, turned me onto this one and it is always a showstopper!! And the best part, as always, is that you can make it a day ahead of time and just pop it in the oven. Love it.

2 Tbps Butter
3 Tbps Olive Oil
2 Tbps Minced Garlic
4-6 Leeks thinly sliced (white and pale green parts only)
1 Pint Whipping Cream
1/4 cup Dry Vermouth (or dry white wine)
3-4 Lbs. Russet potatoes (peeled and thinly sliced into rounds)
10 oz Gruyere Cheese, grated
Cracked black pepper to taste (about 1 tsp.)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a 9x13 Baking Dish. Melt butter and olive oil in large skillet over medium-medium high heat. Add leeks and sauté until soft and add garlic. Sauté until golden. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together vermouth and cream.

Cover loosely with foil and let rest for at least 30 minutes before serving.

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Chocolate Pecan Pie

This is my brother’s favorite dessert. My mom makes it every year at both Christmas and Thanksgiving for that very reason. It is a chocolaty version of the classic pecan pie and is great served with fresh whipped cream and a nice cup of coffee.

1 Cooked and cooled 9” piecrust
4 T butter
3 oz. Semi sweet chocolate chips
1 cup light corn syrup
½ c sugar
1 ½ t. vanilla
¼ t. salt
3 eggs
1 ½ c pecan halves

Melt butter and chocolate, preferably in a double boiler just until melted. Remove from heat and stir in corn syrup, sugar, salt and vanilla until well mixed. Add eggs, one at a time mixing well after each. Do not over mix or beat—this will add air and make the pie shitty. Place pecans evenly in bottom of piecrust. Pour chocolate mixture over pecans and bake at 350°F for 1 hour, until a knife inserted 1” from the edge of the crust come out clean. Serve with dark rum whipped cream and garnish with pecans. Mmmmmm. . . put it in your mouth!

Dark Rum Whipped Cream

1 C heavy whipping cream
1 tsp real vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. Dark rum

In a chilled metal bowl, combine all ingredients and beat with a hand mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Keep chilled before serving.

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