Daily Cookie

HO HO HO and YUM YUM YUM!

This year my commander and chef and I put out quite the Italian spread for our guests.  We started our day with some delicious salumi and cheese from our favorite shop Salumeria Italiana in the North End.

Our primi course was Fusili Lunghi  Con Pomodorini al Forno compliments of  Lidia Bastianich. Translated this is long fusili with roasted tomatoes.  This pasta dish requires a lot of prep work and time, but it is absolutely scrumptuous.  Simple ingredients (panko crumbs, chopped capers, freshly grated pecorino romano, fresh basil and garlic, dried oregano and EVOO) that make every bite unbelievable. You roast the tomatoes first topped with the bread crumb mixture and then set them aside to cool, slice into quarters and later add to the cooked pasta.  The only sauce for the pasta is a garlic infused EVOO that you do yourself earlier in the day. The little grooves and spirals in the long fusili capture it all when mixed – truly genius. We feasted on this for lunch the next day too.

Our second course was a slow roasted tenderloin that can be found in Barbara Lynch’s new book Stir.  Cooking classes and this book were two gifts to Mike. Key ingredients here are thyme and time – you need a lot of both to properly cook.   We ordered 8.25 pounds of meat from Sulmona – a little butcher shop in the North End.  It was by far the biggest and best piece of meat we have ever had. Oh and they only take cash.

With the tenderloin we served  sautéed green beans with tomatoes and basil and a butternut squash gratin with pesto – both recipes from one of our favorites to watch and try, Giada de Laurentiis.

An Italian caesar salad (its made with sun-dried tomatoes and toasted pine nuts) finished our meal.

We served a champagne punch made with champagne (hence the name), pomegranate juice, simple syrup, white rum and garnished with lemons, cranberries and mint.  And then with dinner some Veuve for our holiday toast and two delicious wines – a Forman Cabernet and of course a 2005 Barbaresco.

Tradition in our home calls for a huge dessert buffet that is devoured by our ten and then many more family and friends.  This year’s highlights were home-made cookies – my Moms charmelles and pizelles and Ms. Lynch’s assorted chocolate and sea salt, shortbread and sugar cookies, my favorite bow ties and macaroons from Jube’s little hot spot and a few cakes and pies. And much more champagne punch and wine.  I think I blew out the candles and cleaned the last glass at around 11:30PM. We started at 2. . .great effort.

Mom, Dad, Jubes, Jodi, Hal, Emery, Lila, Henri, Tom and June – thanks for coming and sharing our full day and to everyone else, hope you too enjoyed a feast like ours.

p.s. – today I went back to pilates and completed day 2 of my cleanse. LOL.

I can’t comment on how great the meal was because I helped cook it but it was fantastic sharing a kitchen with my beautiful bride. xxx

Comment by Mike December 30, 2009 @ 2:09 pm

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Thank YOU for including us at YOUR family Christmas dinner. It has become one of the highlights of our year…

Comment by jodi January 2, 2010 @ 12:29 am

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Your family is part of our family.

Comment by Mike January 9, 2010 @ 3:18 pm

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