We're serving up Christmas dinner, the club is open

pjscooby

And this week we're sharing Christmas dinner dishes.  Main courses and sides only.  I've had a few people ask for ideas for what to serve with Christmas dinner, so I said hey, let's turn to our Cookies and get even more ideas!

This week's Featured Cookie has already strutted her stuff.  Check out her menu here: Featured Recipes

12/23 - Robin
12/30 - Michele
1/6 - Erica
1/13 - Lindsay
1/20 - Erin
1/27 - Amanda (LoveOfMyLife)
2/3 - Kreepy  

cyko21

Two years ago when I was pg w/ Charlotte, I made PW's Beef Tenderloin. SWOOON! It was heavenly

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/07/roasted_beef_te/

Roasted Beef TenderloinPrep Time: 25 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 25 Minutes  |  Difficulty: Intermediate  |  Servings: 8Print Recipe3"x5" Cards4"x6" CardsFull PageIngredients1 whole (4 To 5 Lbs.) Beef Tenderloin (butt)4 Tablespoons Salted Butter, or more to taste? cups Whole Peppercorns (More Or Less, To Taste)Lawry's Seasoned Salt (Or Your Favorite Salt Blend)Lemon Pepper SeasoningOlive OilPreparation InstructionsPreheat oven to 475 degrees.Rinse meat well. Trim away some of the fat to remove the silvery cartilage underneath. With a very sharp knife, begin taking the fat off the top, revealing the silver cartilage underneath. You definitely don?t want to take every last bit of fat off?not at all. As with any cut of meat, a little bit of fat adds to the flavor. (Hint: you can also ask the butcher to do this trimming for you if the process seems intimidating.)Sprinkle meat generously with Lawry?s. You can much more liberally season a tenderloin, because you?re having to pack more of a punch in order for the seasoning to make an impact. Start with Lawry?s Seasoned Salt. Rub it in with your fingers. Sprinkle both sides generously with lemon & pepper seasoning. (There are no measurements because it depends on your taste, but be sure to season liberally.)Place the peppercorns in a Ziploc bag, and with a mallet or a hammer or a large, heavy can, begin smashing the peppercorns to break them up a bit. Set aside.Heat some olive oil in a heavy skillet. When the oil is to the smoking point, place the tenderloin in the very hot pan to sear it. Throw a couple of tablespoons of butter into the skillet to give it a nice little butter injection before going in the oven. A minute or two later, when one side is starting to turn nice and brown, flip and repeat.Place the tenderloin on an oven pan with a rack. Sprinkle the pummeled peppercorns all over the meat. Press the pepper onto the surface of the meat. Put several tablespoons of butter all over the meat. Stick the long needle of the thermometer lengthwise into the meat. Place it in a 475-degree oven until the temperature reaches just under 140 degrees, about fifteen to twenty minutes. Stay near the oven and keep checking the meat thermometer to make sure it doesn?t overcook.Let meat stand ten minutes or so before slicing, so the meat will have a chance to relax a bit.

To serve, you can spoon the olive oil/butter juices from the skillet onto the top of the meat for a little extra flavor. 

cyko21

And I can't imagine that this wouldn't be great. 

Dry-Aged Standing Rib Roast with Sage JusRecipe courtesy Alton BrownPrep Time:35 minInactive Prep Time:3 minCook Time:4 hr 0 minLevel:EasyServes:10 servingsIngredients1 (4-bone-in) standing rib roast, preferably from the loin endCanola oil, to coat roastKosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to cover entire roast1 cup water1 cup red wine4 fresh sage leavesDirectionsRemove any plastic wrapping or butcher's paper from the roast. Place the standing rib roast upright onto a half sheet pan fitted with a rack. The rack is essential for drainage. Place dry towels loosely on top of the roast. This will help to draw moisture away from the meat. Place into a refrigerator at approximately 50 to 60 percent humidity and between 34 and 38 degrees F. You can measure both with a refrigerator thermometer. Change the towels daily for 3 days.Place a 16-inch round azalea terra cotta planter into a cold oven. Invert the planter to become a lid over a pizza stone or the bottom of the planter. The oven should be cold to start, to avoid any cracking in the terra cotta pieces. Turn the oven to 250 degrees F.Remove the roast from the refrigerator and rub with canola oil. Remember to rub the bones with oil, as well. Once the roast is completely coated with oil cover the roast with kosher salt, about half a teaspoon per bone. Next, rub with freshly ground pepper to coat the surface. Place the roast over a glass bake-ware dish slightly smaller than the length of the roast. This will catch the drippings needed for the sauce. Finally, place a probe thermometer into the center of the roast and set for 118 degrees. Put the roast and the bake-ware dish onto the pizza stone, cover with the terra cotta pot, and return to the oven. Turn the oven down to 200 degrees F and roast until internal temperature is achieved.Remove the roast and turn oven up to 500 degrees F. Remove the terra cotta lid and recover with heavy-duty foil. Allow the roast to rest until an internal temperature of 130 degrees F. is reached. Place the roast back into the preheated 500 degree F oven for about 10 minutes or until you've achieved your desired crust. Remove and transfer roast to a cutting board. Keep covered with foil until ready to serve.

Degrease the juices in the glass pan. Place the pan over low heat and deglaze with 1 cup of water. Add the wine and reduce by half. Roll the sage leaves in between your fingers to release the flavors andaroma. Add to the sauce and cook for 1 minute. Strain and serve on the side. 

cyko21

And I think this are a must have side dish for any type of roast. So good!

Recipe: Creamy Herbed PotatoesPrep Time: 15 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 1 Hour  |  Difficulty: Easy  |  Servings: 10Print Recipe3"x5" Cards4"x6" CardsFull PageIngredients4 To 5 Whole Russet Potatoes1 stick Butter1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese? cups Heavy Cream1 cup Whole Milk (Half-and-Half Works, Too)1 teaspoon Finely Chopped Rosemary1 teaspoon Finely Chopped Parsley1 teaspoon Finely Chopped Chives? teaspoons Finely Chopped SagePreparation InstructionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees.Slice potatoes very thinly.Add butter to a large skillet over medium low heat. When melted, add diced onion. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.Add cream cheese to the pan and stir to melt. Pour in cream and milk, stirring to combine.
Season with plenty of salt and pepper, then add chopped herbs.Place potatoes in a buttered baking dish. Pour contents of skillet over the top. Top with Parmesan cheese and bake for 45 minutes, or until bubbly.Allow potatoes to sit 15 minutes before serving.

 

cyko21

I've even made this for Christmas dinner before!

Sauteed Braised Pork Tenderloin with Herb Pan Sauce 

ditribal

These sound like they could easily be my new pie favorites (adapted from Martha Stewart):

Upside-Down Pecan Pie

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
1/2 cup honey
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 cups pecan halves
3/4 cup light cream
1/2 Pie Dough

In a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat, combine butter, honey, and sugars. Bring to a boil; let boil for 4 minutes. Add pecans and light cream, and boil 3 minutes more. Remove from heat, and set aside. Let stand about 30 minutes to cool. Using a wooden spoon, gently mound pecans and caramel slightly in center of skillet, leaving a gap between pecans and edge of skillet.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, with rack in the top third. On a clean, lightly floured work surface, roll out one disk of prepared chilled pie dough to approximately a 7/8-inch-thick, 13-inch-diameter circle. Place the pastry over the skillet, carefully tucking the dough down against the edge of the skillet and around the edges of the mound of pecans. Trim the excess dough.

Place a rimmed baking sheet underneath the skillet to catch any drips while the pie bakes and to provide insulation for the caramel. Place skillet in the oven, and bake pie until the dough is just turning golden brown, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and continue baking until the pastry is cooked through and the caramel is bubbling up around the edges of the skillet, about 30 minutes more.

Remove the pie from the oven, and let cool about 20 minutes. Carefully invert the pie onto a parchment-lined tray or baking sheet (the pie is easy to transfer to serving plate once it has been inverted). Be careful inverting pie; the caramel is very hot. If the pie does not release easily from skillet, heat the skillet over medium heat for about 30 seconds. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

 

Mini Cranberry Meringue Pie

1 Pie Crust
3 1/4 cups fresh cranberries, (12 ounces)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped blood orange zest
1/4 Cup blood orange juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cloves
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 large egg whites
Pinch of cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8 inch thick. Cut out 4 1/8-inch fluted rounds, and fit into cups of a standard 12-cup muffin tin (not nonstick). Pierce bottoms with tines of a fork. Freeze 15 minutes.

Line each shell with parchment paper, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 15 minutes. Remove weights and parchment. Return to oven; bake until bottoms are just turning golden, 5 minutes more. Transfer to wire racks; let cool 5 minutes. Remove shells from tin; let cool completely.

Bring 2 cups cranberries, 1 cup sugar, and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat, and simmer mixture, stirring occasionally, until cranberries have burst, about 5 minutes. Pour through seive and discard solids (You should have about 1 3/4 cups of liquid; if less, add water).

Bring strained cranberry juice, 1/4 cup sugar, the zests, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and remaining 1 1/4 cups cranberries to a boil in a medium saucepan, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat; simmer, stirring occasionally, until cranberries are soft but have not burst, about 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir cornstarch, blood orange juice, and 1/4 cup water in a bowl; whisk into cranberry mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook, stirring, until translucent, about 1 minute. Divide among prepared shells. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour (up to overnight).

Preheat broiler. Place egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup sugar into a heatproof electric mixer bowl.  Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk ingredients by hand until sugar has dissolved and mixture is hot to the touch. Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on medium speed until foamy. Raise speed to high. Add cream of tartar; beat until medium, glossy peaks form. Divide the meringue evenly among pies.

Set pies under broiler until tops are browned, 30 seconds to 1 minute.

ditribal

*sigh*  I obviously didn't read the challenge topic carefully.  Does it count that dessert might as well be the main course at our family Christmas dinner?