Christmas Feast

Dear Bloggers,
      The prep for this meal started yesterday. I wanted to have a mixture of countries incorporated into this years feast. It really wasn't quite as extravagant as I had hoped, although my departure for Florida on Friday morning was the primary cause. I combined my boyfriend's Russian heritage, with my Italian heritage, and our favorite cuisine, Middle Eastern to create a multicultural meal.

      Breakfast was a treat for dear sweetheart, blini. These are very similar to crepes, however once they are stuffed, they are grilled to perfection. Simply start by combining 3 eggs, with 2 cups of milk, and 3/4 cup flour. Whisk until smooth. Add in 1/4 cup vegetable oil. If necessary add more flour, or water if mixture is too thick. Heat a shallow pan to medium high and pour the battery to completely cover the pan with a thin layer. Turn then pancake once its edges look dry. Butter each one. Then, choose a filling. I used the spinach artichoke dip I made and closed them up and grilled them for about 3-4 minutes each side. Serve them with caviar or sour cream if desired. These can also be made sweet with chocolate, any fresh fruit or simply whipped cream.

      I started the meal by preparing the two dips. A spinach artichoke dip that had garlic, dill, parsley, and Pecorino Romano, served cold. I also served a Turksih carrot salad that had greek yogurt, garlic, paprika, and cumin. Each were accompanied by freshly heated pita bread.

      Next was Belyash. Belyash is a small fried pastry filled with any combination of ingredients, however, traditionally, it is made with ground beef. To prepare these, I combined 1/2 tsp yeast, with 1/4 cup of heated water (between 105-115 degrees Fahrenheit), 1 tsp of sugar, and a dash of salt. Once foamy, I combined 1 cup of warm milk (same temperature), with 2 tablespoons of melted butter. I incorporated 3 cups of flour, no more, or the dough won't be as fluffy. I drizzled in some olive oil into the stand mixture to bring the mixture into a ball. I then covered it and put it in a warm place to raise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. I then formed the dough, by oiling my hands into gold sized balls, covered them with a tea towel and let them rise for another hour. The mixture is simply sautéed onions, with 1 green bell pepper. Pulse these in the food processor until they are a fine chop. Add them to a sautée pan and cooked until tender. Drain them over a strainer to release all the liquid. Then add the ground beef to the same pan and cook until lightly pink. It is important not to overcook this mixture. Add it to the onion and pepper mixture. Form small disks about 4-6 inches in shape, add a thin layer of beef and fold in an envelope style. Pan fry them in oil heated to 375 degrees for about 3-4 minutes per side, or until dark golden brown. They go best with sour cream.

       Moving forward was a Cooking With Frogs recipe, The Lindsay Roast with Apple Cider. It was stupendous. One that will be added to our menu as a specialty item. Although I couldn't afford to buy prime beef roast, I opted for the cheaper buy (shameful and sad, but my only option) a chuck eye round roast. Nonetheless, I dry rubbed it with 2 parts pepper to one part salt and let it sit overnight in the fridge. I then added it to my pyrex dish and chose cipollini onions and garlic as the complimentary vegetables. I cooked it at 300 for about 1 1/2 hours to an internal temperature of 150 degrees and it was superb. Absolutely perfect! Thank you Kay Lindsay, this recipe is outstanding.

   


 I also served some delicious struffoli. My Italian heritage took over me and decided, yes, it is Natale, and yes, I must serve struffoli. I followed yet again the recipe from Cooking With Frogs and out came these beauts.  Although they came out a little larger than intended, they still yielded that wonderful crunchy, soft, sweet texture I remember from the past Christmas' spent in Napoli. Four recipes down, 21 to go. Until next time readers, have a Merry Christmas, enjoy family, but most importantly, stay healthy and happy cooking!