Anonymous wrote:We have a small family so do filet mignon although this year my son requested beef Wellington. We then usually do homemade spaetzlw sautéed in butter with shredded sharp cheese, and caprese salad. We often travel after Christmas so I am not lookkkg for leftovers. Dessert we’ve done a buche de Noel or individual trifles in fancy glasses (easy to avoid leftovers), or I also have a recipe for an almost flourless chocolate tort with chocolate glaze that is super easy. I’ve decorated the top with mini frosted cookies that look llle holly leaves, or fondant or chocolate leaves if I have time and we didn’t do frosted cookies.

One year for Christmas Eve we did 7 fishes….i did pasta with garlic shrimp and scallops for dinner, and apps were oven broiled calamari, salon ceviche, an antipasto tray that had meat but also smoked oysters and Italian tuna, and also had out crab dip.

But we’ve also done appetizers for dinner which is fun.

Do you make this or buy it? I'm thinking of making one and I like the recipe on Sally's Baking Addiction, seems pretty easy to follow, but if you have a fave recipe I'd love to hear about it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

That’s such a weird take since basically any food can be appetizers if you make it small enough. When we do this, we often do scallops, mini crab cakes, beef skewers, arincini balls, deviled eggs, bruschetta, caprese, etc.
My criticism of apps as dinner is that if often ends up being more work as I’m making more stuff or even just taking more stuff out, chopping, etc.

Would you do a main course of crab cakes with sides of beef skewers, arancini, and deviled eggs, maybe some carrot sticks and ranch?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

And because people tend to think like you, apps are usually far more caloric when eaten as a meal than an actual normal meal.

It's Christmas. People don't eat like that daily any more than they eat a full Thanksgiving spread every day either. If you can't control yourself or figure out how to eat, stay home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do cinnamon rolls and/or crossaints and/or bagels + fruit (berries, oranges, grapefruit, pomegranate) + bacon + hash brown casserole Christmas morning towards the end of presents. Coffee, hot chocolate, mimosas if people want them but we are not morning drinkers usually.

Tons of cookies, candies, cheeses, and dips around so if anyone wants afternoon food they graze.

For dinner we tend to do mexican or pizza because it's so easily conducive to red and green. If mexican, chicken enchiladas (red, green), rice, beans, lots of guacamole, pico, all the toppings. If pizza, lots of red green toppings like pepperoni, green and red pepper, olives, basil, etc... and a big salad. Dessert is cookies and candies, or perhaps a special cake if a bigger deal kind of year (yule log, regular cake decorated for Christmas).

Wut?

And what is a "bigger deal kind of year"? Isn't Christmas the same holiday every year?

Sorry, let me spell it out: for us, it's fun and festive to have red and green foods on christmas. It's more about festivity for us since we are not religious. We eat a lot of fresh food so cilantro, peppers, tomatoes, red and green sauce, avocado, etc... fit the bill.

Your mileage varies? Cool. What's your tradition?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do cinnamon rolls and/or crossaints and/or bagels + fruit (berries, oranges, grapefruit, pomegranate) + bacon + hash brown casserole Christmas morning towards the end of presents. Coffee, hot chocolate, mimosas if people want them but we are not morning drinkers usually.

Tons of cookies, candies, cheeses, and dips around so if anyone wants afternoon food they graze.

For dinner we tend to do mexican or pizza because it's so easily conducive to red and green. If mexican, chicken enchiladas (red, green), rice, beans, lots of guacamole, pico, all the toppings. If pizza, lots of red green toppings like pepperoni, green and red pepper, olives, basil, etc... and a big salad. Dessert is cookies and candies, or perhaps a special cake if a bigger deal kind of year (yule log, regular cake decorated for Christmas).

Wut?

And what is a "bigger deal kind of year"? Isn't Christmas the same holiday every year?

More formal.

I do a stuffed pork loin (it's an apple sage stuffing). Rolling it to make it look pretty in slices is a bit of a trick, but I've done it a few times now and it isn't that hard.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

That’s such a weird take since basically any food can be appetizers if you make it small enough. When we do this, we often do scallops, mini crab cakes, beef skewers, arincini balls, deviled eggs, bruschetta, caprese, etc.
My criticism of apps as dinner is that if often ends up being more work as I’m making more stuff or even just taking more stuff out, chopping, etc.

None of these go together. It's just a random assortment of foods, typically fat and protein heavy. Gross.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

And because people tend to think like you, apps are usually far more caloric when eaten as a meal than an actual normal meal.

Anonymous wrote:I do my sacrosanct beef Wellington, and a variety of sides and a fruit mousse cake, ie, my favorite foods.

What recipe do you use? I’m the PP whose son requested beef Wellington after eating it on a cruise last year. I’ve never made it before although I think I’ve seen Gordon Ramsay make it on TV!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

That’s such a weird take since basically any food can be appetizers if you make it small enough. When we do this, we often do scallops, mini crab cakes, beef skewers, arincini balls, deviled eggs, bruschetta, caprese, etc.
My criticism of apps as dinner is that if often ends up being more work as I’m making more stuff or even just taking more stuff out, chopping, etc.

I do my sacrosanct beef Wellington, and a variety of sides and a fruit mousse cake, ie, my favorite foods.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a small family so do filet mignon although this year my son requested beef Wellington. We then usually do homemade spaetzlw sautéed in butter with shredded sharp cheese, and caprese salad. We often travel after Christmas so I am not lookkkg for leftovers. Dessert we’ve done a buche de Noel or individual trifles in fancy glasses (easy to avoid leftovers), or I also have a recipe for an almost flourless chocolate tort with chocolate glaze that is super easy. I’ve decorated the top with mini frosted cookies that look llle holly leaves, or fondant or chocolate leaves if I have time and we didn’t do frosted cookies.

One year for Christmas Eve we did 7 fishes….i did pasta with garlic shrimp and scallops for dinner, and apps were oven broiled calamari, salon ceviche, an antipasto tray that had meat but also smoked oysters and Italian tuna, and also had out crab dip.

But we’ve also done appetizers for dinner which is fun.

Recipe please!

4 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
6 T butter
3 T flour
3 eggs separated
1/4 c sugar

Grease and flour 8 inch cake pan. Melt chocolate, stir in butter until it’s melted. Stir in flour. Beat in egg yolks with whisk. Beat egg whites until stiff, add sugar and beat. Then fold in chocolate mixture. Pour into pan. Bake at 350 for 20 min.

Glaze —
4 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate melted with 3 T water or cream
Site in 3 T butter until melted.

Cook partly and Pour over cake

You can do crushed nuts on the sides or top with berries, serve with whipped cream. Basically whatever. Small slices as it’s very rich. Basically everyone loves it. It’s very fishy. It’s very flat so does look a little better if you can put a decoration in the middle and put on a pretty plate. Even a sprig of holly would look nice. Travels well too because it’s so flat — if you need to bring something for a relatives house.

Anonymous wrote:We do cinnamon rolls and/or crossaints and/or bagels + fruit (berries, oranges, grapefruit, pomegranate) + bacon + hash brown casserole Christmas morning towards the end of presents. Coffee, hot chocolate, mimosas if people want them but we are not morning drinkers usually.

Tons of cookies, candies, cheeses, and dips around so if anyone wants afternoon food they graze.

For dinner we tend to do mexican or pizza because it's so easily conducive to red and green. If mexican, chicken enchiladas (red, green), rice, beans, lots of guacamole, pico, all the toppings. If pizza, lots of red green toppings like pepperoni, green and red pepper, olives, basil, etc... and a big salad. Dessert is cookies and candies, or perhaps a special cake if a bigger deal kind of year (yule log, regular cake decorated for Christmas).

Wut?

And what is a "bigger deal kind of year"? Isn't Christmas the same holiday every year?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

Same. Appetizers as a meal are gross and unsatisfying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do a heavy spread of fancy appetizers and cookies and graze all night.

I need real food.

We include things like bacon wrapped filet on toothpick, stuffed giant shell pasta, smoked salmon pesto rolls, and other hearty appetizers along with lighter finger foods, cheeses and vegetables.

It is very filling, even for my teen athlete sons.