Mmm Mmm Good

Last night I made my annual Family Dinner. 

I  look forward to this every year, and this has become one of my family's favorite holiday events, too.  It's a combination of my parents, my sister and her husband, my ex in-laws, (no, D.F. was not invited), along with my children and me.  I enjoy this day, because my Mom keeps the kids for the day, while I go to my ex in-laws house to spend the day cooking.  Everyone shows up in the evening for a big meal, and a small gift exchange. 

The traditional centerpiece for this meal is a stuffed Standing Crown Pork Roast. I generally have my butcher prepare a 10 pound roast, that requires about 5 hours of cooking time.  While that is in the oven, I have time to prepare all of the other dishes that are on the menu for the evening.  I'm not going to give recipes here, since I rarely use recipes.  For anyone wanting to know how I prepare something, I  will be happy to send you an informative email. 

Last night's menu~

Appetizer

Plate of assorted cheeses and fruit

Nuts

Baked bagel slices

Champagne

 

Main Course

Crown Roast of Pork, stuffed with apples, mushrooms, waterchestnuts, bacon, celery, onion, and bread cubes.

Mashed Potatoes~ my Mom's recipe. These are the world's best!

Cream Sauce/Gravy~ Made with the roast drippings and heavy cream

Artichokes~ steamed with lemon.  Served with lemon-pepper mayonnaise

Salad of Red and Green Lettuce, watercress, cucumber, celery, pears, toasted walnuts, and Dubliner cheese with a creamy lemon poppyseed dressing.

Fresh Baguette~ and butter

White and Red Wine

 

Dessert

Molten chocolate cakes with vanilla bean ice cream

Coffee

 

And the best part is that I've got 4 rib chops left over with some mashed potatoes and gravy~ I'll serve this to Lonny tomorrow for a New Year's Day feast!