Other than a failed batch of dinner rolls (due to decrepit yeast), this year’s meal came together pretty well.
Main course:
- Brined 18 lb. turkey
- Mashed potatoes
- Roasted organic Japanese sweet potatoes
- Bacon-braised brussel sprouts
- Twice-baked potatoes
- Gorgonzola and pomegranate spinach salad
- Andronico’s stuffing
- White wine turkey gravy
Beverages:
- KLWM (Domaine Dupeuble) Beaujolais Nouveau
- 21st Amendment El Sully
- Martinelli’s Sparkling Blood Orange
Dessert:
- Ginger cake with rum sauce and pumpkin ice-cream
- Safeway pumpkin and apple pies
- Jessie’s Pecan Pie
- Dreyer’s vanilla bean ice-cream
- Dark Chocolate and Salted Caramel Coconut Bliss
Notes:
- The spinach salad was dressed with pomegranate vinaigrette, tossed with the crumbled gorgonzola, then topped with pecans and pomegranate seeds. The champagne vinegar called for in the vinaigrette recipe really seemed to make a difference, so it was worth the extra scratch:
- 5T of pomegranate juice
- 3T of champagne vinegar
- 1T shallot, finely minced
- 1T honey
- 5T extra virgin olive oil
- salt and fresh pepper to taste
- The brussel sprouts were braised in a large cast-iron frying pan and came out great.
- Twice-baked potatoes can be prepped the night before, are easy to send home with guests, and are better as leftovers than mashed potatoes. The only reason mashed potatoes were on the menu was to keep the traditionalists happy.
- Ginger cake and pumpkin was a fondly-remembered dessert at Park Chow in San Francisco’s Inner Sunset (now closed). This version was topped with rum sauce, which was a delicious surprise, and showcased the Kirk & Sweeney 12-year Dominican Rum flavors beautifully:
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup whipping cream
- ¼ cup butter
- 1t vanilla
- ¼ cup rum
- Directions: in a small sauce pan bring the brown sugar, whipping cream and butter to a boil and keep it at a boil for three minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the rum and vanilla. Cool slightly and pour over warm cake