Christmas Menu

Christmas Menu...

It's so nice to have a quiet Christmas at home!  Of course this leaves the cooking and hosting up to us, but we don't mind a bit!  My parents come over late in the morning and stay for an early dinner.  The girls enjoy relaxing while playing with all of their new toys.  It's a great day that I want to be a part of and not observe over my shoulder from the stove and kitchen counter.  Here is how we prep ahead our Christmas menu allowing us to enjoy the day together!  Many of the links in this post direct you back to previous posts, but several of the links direct you to other recipe and/or gourmet food resources we have been using for years!  I hope you find some of the recipes useful and time saving during this holiday season! Merry Christmas!

Breakfast...

We have a huge breakfast on Christmas morning.  I set it up like a buffet for snacking and grazing at our leisure. I do all of the work a day or two before and have everything ready for baking that morning. The menu consist of cinnamon buns (a Christmas morning staple), cheese cloud or baked eggs all served with fresh fruit and oven bacon.

Cheese cloud (shown above) or baked eggs are easy, prep ahead 

breakfast menu options for Christmas morning!

Lunch...

I have to admit, after our ginormous breakfast, we are not left with much room for lunch.  We order a tray of shrimp cocktail from our local seafood market and serve it alongside a crock pot full  of New England clam chowder.   The chowder link will take you to my slow cooker recipe BUT because we travel on Christmas Eve to enjoy the holiday with Mike's family, I admit, I order our chowder each year from a phenomenal local wholesale/retail seafood market called Blount Foods.   Throw in some crudites with balsamic dip and we are full until dinner! 

Dinner..

*photo from Uxmoor Publishing

I swear, we wait all year for this dinner.  It's not something we serve on a typical weekday. It's the kind of thing we enjoy on special occasions, such as Christmas. We order a fresh, 6 pound beef tenderloin from our local market and make  beef tenderloin with a yummy shallot sauce.  I season the meat and prepare the shallots the night before.  I'm left with only the shallot sauce to prepare on Christmas day! Also on the table is a prep ahead, homemade artisan bread boulle served with rosemary infused olive oil, prep ahead Pioneer Woman creamy mashed potatoes, roasted asparagus and a salad with both caesar dressing and basil vinaigrette dressing.  I can't wait!!!

roasted asparagus

basil vinaigrette 

Dessert..

Uh..it's so hard to think about dessert after all of that food, but we manage.  My mom usually brings some brownies for the girls and we pool our Christmas cookies to serve on a large platter.  This simple recipe for warm apple pie with a few scoops of ice cream is the perfect ending to a perfect day!

I hope you find a few of these recipes useful in planning and enjoying a Christmas feast, the majority of which can be prepared ahead of time!  Happy holidays!