Merry Christmas Eve!

Roasted Chestnuts and wine by the glow of the Christmas tree (and football game)

It's Christmas Eve!!!! It's my favorite day of the year! Christmas Eve still brings the anticipation that we had as kids - "Santa's coming tonight, there are going to be presents under the tree in the morning." And Christmas Eve has always been more of a party night in my family, we nosh on appetizers, have festive cocktails, and play cards. It's a day filled with anticipation and cheer.

This year I'm serving up a Mustard and Bourbon glazed ham, gougeres, artichoke dip, clam dip (a tradition in our family), Meat Pie (another family tradition) and a winter citrus punch! The curve ball is that it's 60 degrees out today. Not very Christmasy. But I'm a firm believer in making the best of a situation and nothing gets me down on Christmas Eve. So I'm dressing in a skirt and a tank top, leaving the front door open and welcoming guests with a cold drink and a smile.

Later this week when the weather reverts to it's normal frigid temps I'm going to serve up a couple of hearty, comforting dishes, (the recipes are below). I've made both recipes this fall and they were very well received and worthy of making again and again. I hope you enjoy them and have the merriest of holidays! See ya'll in 2016!

Best Ever Chili

Serves 8-10

Ingredients                                                 

Spice Mix:

1/4 cup chili powder, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 2 bay leaves,

1 Tablespoon each whole cumin seeds, fennel seed, & ground corriander,

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons dried Mexican or regular oregano, and 2 teaspoons brown sugar

4 lbs steak, cut into cubes (can also use stew meat)

Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper

3 Tablesoons vegetable oil

4 cups chopped onions (3 medium or 2 large)

1 1/2 cups chopped celery (about 4 ribs)

6 cloves garlic, chopped

2 jalapeno chiles, seeded and roughly chopped

1 1/2 cups stock (beef, chicken, or vegetable will do)

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

1 ounce semisweet chocolate chips

3 Tablespoons masa harina (corn flour, or substitute cornmeal)

2 cups water

1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Grated cheddar, chopped green onions, fresh lime, diced avocado, and sour cream for garnish

Preparation 

1. Combine spice mix ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Add the beef to a large bowl and season with salt and pepper.

2. Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet (preferably cast iron) over high heat. Brown the beef in batches, then transfer the meat to the crock of a 6-quart slow cooker. Add more oil between batches, if necessary.

3. When you’re finished with the beef, add the onion, celery, and 1 Tablespoon of the remaining salt to the skillet and cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Add garlic, jalapenos, and spice mixture and cook for another minute. Pour in the stock, tomato paste, and crushed tomatoes and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in the chocolate, masa harina, and another couple large pinches of salt and cook for another minute. Transfer this mixture to the slow cooker with the beef. Add the water.

4. Cover and cook on high for 6 hours, stirring only once or twice, until the beef is very tender. Add beans and stir to heat through. Remove the bay leaves and stir in the cilantro. Serve the chili with garnishes.

Wild Mushroom and Barley Salad

Serves 4 as a main dish or 8-10 as a side dish

Ingredients

2 cups pearled barley (5 cups cooked)

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 pounds mixed mushrooms, stemmed and cut into bite-size pieces

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

zest of 1 lemon

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Kosher salt

Pepper

Shaved Parmesan cheese, about ½ cup

Preparation

1. In a medium saucepan of boiling water, cook the barley until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.

2. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add one-third of the mushrooms and cook over high heat, stirring, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the large bowl. Repeat in 2 more batches with 4 tablespoons of the oil and the remaining mushrooms. Add the thyme, parsley, lemon zest and juice and the remaining 1/4 cup of oil to the bowl; season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Finish with Parmesan cheese shavings.