Just a few ideas and variations on traditional vegetable and potatoes for you Christmas dinner if you have the time, space and the equipment to hand without having to go a spend unnecessary money on the equipment.
When it comes to Christmas Day Lunch the vegetables that are usually on offer are carrots, sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, new potatoes, boiled potatoes, and roast potatoes. There is nothing wrong with these choices because the easy to prepare, they are in season and they provide colour, texture and are pleasing to most people. There are plenty of other options but I am willing to bet that at least 4 or more of the above will be found on virtually every ones table
If you have the time and and space in your kitchen you can make the usual choices just a little bit more special and maybe get someone at your table eating something they do not normally eat.
Love them or hate them they will always be around at this time of year. If cooked right they are full of nutrients and can taste nice. Besides the obvious after affects of eating sprouts on some people many have come to hate them because they were fed them when they were children and they were boiled to death and were vile to taste.
Why not try serving them different and see if the 'no takers' will have a try. If you are using fresh or frozen sprouts try not to overcook them. Yellow, watery slush is not my idea of a tasty vegetable and I can remember being served sprouts like that at school and there was no way that I was going to eat them and I like sprouts.
If they are fresh sprouts clean off any loose and unwanted sprout leaves, cut a cross in the bottom to allow the heat to penetrate the sprout quickly, then blanch them in salted hot water with a drop of lemon juice in until 'Al Dente' (commonly referred to pasta but also the same for vegetables where the food is still crisp to bite but cooked).
Refresh them rapidly with cold water and drain thoroughly. A good tip would be to have a separate container with cold water all ready in it instead of putting the pan with the hot sprouts under the cold tap. It saves water and cools the sprouts down quicker. If you have spare ice then put it into the cold water before adding the sprouts.
When it come to serving them try pan frying them in hot butter with a hint of oil/olive oil with chestnuts and cooked bacon pieces and sprinkle with flaked almonds and chopped parsley/herbs if you have got them. The same can be done for frozen sprouts. Just defrost them and drain of any excess water before hand. If you do not have any nuts or there is a guest that has a nut allergy you can add cooked shallots instead.
Stir frying finely sliced sprouts with lemon, butter, and nutmeg is another way of presenting sprouts. Cut raw sprouts in half and cut out the middle section like you would do on a cabbage. cut in half again and finely slice. When ready to serve heat a little butter in a pan and add the sprouts, stir quickly and add salt pepper and grated nutmeg and finish with a little lemon. You could if you want add some cream to the stir fried sprouts and dust with paprika for colour.
Flaked almonds and or walnut pieces added at the last minute will add a crunchy texture to the sprouts. Toasting the almond flakes before hand is a good idea but be careful when toasting the almonds. In the blink of an eye they will go from just browning to burnt black. As the saying goes "When it's brown it's cooked when it's ......... expensive bin material".
Another idea for serving sprouts is to deep fry them in a curry flavoured batter. Adding chili sauce or Tabasco adds a little bit of fire. I used to use a curry flavoured batter for serving cauliflower florets instead of cheese sauce or plain boiled. The sprouts must be blanched as described above and well drained. Make a simple batter with flour, water, eggs, seasoning, lemon juice or lime, and curry powder/paste. flavour with any other spices you like. Dip the sprouts in to the batter mix, shake off any excess batter and place into hot oil to fry. Once golden brown and crisp lift out of oil and place on some kitchen towel to drain of excess oil. Dust with paprika and fresh chopped herbs and serve.
When Christmas Day lunch is finished any left over sprouts can always be used up along with any other vegetables that you have in a tasty soup. With the price of food going up and up it is good kitchen management to reuse any bits and pieces you have left over. For a simple way of using up left overs and making an easy Home made vegetable soup. visit our Creuse gite blog spot.
Bye for now.
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