A Late Christmas Update

I hope everyone had a super Christmas and a good time with your family, friends and loved ones. Mine was wonderful in the presence of close friends. I missed home and wished I could have spent the holidays with my family instead. But I’m thankful to have made some beautiful friendships abroad. I have friends here who will laugh and cry with me, age with me, motivate me to be a better person, and cradle me like a family. I could not ask for more. So thank you :)

Let see, our dinner was hastily put together at the last minute as we weren’t sure how many friends can make it and which day should we had it on – the eve (we wanted to watch the Seahawks vs. Colts game while feasting, but the game was at 1 o’clock afternoon, so scratch that) or the day. We finally settled on Xmas day itself. I must say it turned out great and I’m really glad we went through with it. Dinner was held at K’s and the company we had was fantabulous. A total of 10 people around the table.

As it was confirmed only 2 days prior that we’re hosting a dinner, I didn’t have much time to prepare on what to make, but manage to come up with a few dishes that are festive.


Overnight Dinner Rolls


Cute little things they are. I had fun making these, especially shaping them. Instead of regular round rolls, I made them into fun eyeglasses shapes. Nothing beats the aroma of fresh baked bread. I was quite pleased with the texture as well, but that’s as far as my taste bud would agree. The rolls tasted a little too yeasty for me; maybe I let it sat for too long before baking. I might add a lil more sugar next time and reduce the standing time.

Baby Back Ribs


I know this is not your usual Christmas dinner entrée, and I don’t think we’re ready for another turkey, of course there is the choice of crown roast of pork, but I was craving and wanted to recreate Nancy’s mouth-watering ribs! I rubbed the ribs with paprika mix and brushed them with honey + bbq sauce. Keep basting them every 15 minutes or so until it’s done. Taste wise? It’s similar to hers but a little dry, and mine also suffered minor burn at the last 20 minutes. Must be K’s oven temperature that I’m not familiar with :D

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Just for the sake of having good ol mashed potatoes.

Chocolate-Cranberry Torte


This is the only dish that I’ve calculated and prepared long before for the dinner plan was conceived. I got the inspiration to make this rich sinful torte from Epicurious’s holiday email. I just knew I have to make it (I get lotsa those moments). It’s not everyday I have the luxury to try out this type of indulgence. I dare not speak of them without special occasion, they’re too dark, they’re evil, they go straight to my waistline.

But no matter how dark and wicked, they’re always a joy to make. The torte was simple, just a little time consuming. As if the minor burn injury on my baby back ribs wasn't enough, my torte suffered the same fate. It was slightly overdone. I should have heeded the advice from Cook’s Illustrated - once you smell the chocolate, it’s time to turn off the heat. I also wished I had an icing spatula to get that sleek and neat glazing, but I was limited to K’s butter knife. How I wished also to have made the cake one day ahead as it tasted better the next day (so much for pre-calculation). *sigh* Oh well, watchu gonna do? It’s still a lovely torte.

Cranberry Waldorf


I have about half bag of cranberries left from the torte, so I decided to put in into good use by making a fruit salad. I made this salad on Thanksgiving dinner as well. This time though I know to leave out the granny smith apples as they’re too sour and ruin the delicate taste of yogurt and cinnamon. I added pear and used almond instead of walnuts. It’s colorful and a great healthy addition to the table full of calories packed food. Delish!

That's about all. Have a magical 2006 everyone!