My husband and I wanted to create a tradition all our own with our children for Christmas Eve. Since my family celebrates a big Italian Christmas Eve a week before(plus we see them on Christmas Day) and Mike's family all lives out of state, we decided that we would have a quiet Christmas Eve at home tradition. We want it to be a night of attending Christmas Eve mass and also relaxing at home with our kids. We also wanted to come up with a Christmas Eve dinner tradition as well. A menu that is not complicated and also a bit lighter since we will be eating huge at my parents the next day. We also wanted to stick with the Italian-Christmas Eve seafood theme as well. I have attached my "Quiet Christmas Eve At Home Dinner" in this post for you to view. You will find that it is simple and yet elegant!
TWO HEARTS SALAD
- 2 TB. Fresh lemon juice
- 2 ½ tsp. Dijon Mustard
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 6 TB. Olive oil
- 1 (14 oz.) can hearts of palm, drained and sliced into round
- 1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, quartered
- 1 head butter lettuce
- 12 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2. Add hearts of palm and artichoke hearts. Let marinate at room temp. at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours, tossing occasionally.
3. Line 6 plates with lettuce leaves. Using slotted spoon, divide hearts of palm and artichoke hearts among the 6 plates.
4. Add tomatoes to top of salad, Spoon remaining dressing over top and serve immediately.
Serves 6
Recipe Courtesy of Bon Appetite
CORN & LOBSTER CHOWDER
*To cut down on prep time, use cooked lobster meat, available in some fish markets and supermarkets, or follow the directions below for cooking frozen lobster tails
- 2 (10 oz) frozen uncooked lobster tails, thawed, or 1 lb. freshly cooked lobster meat cut into bite-size pieces
- 8 cups frozen yellow corn kernels (about 2 1/4 pounds), thawed
- 3 cups low-salt chicken broth
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 8 bacon slices, chopped
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 3/4 cup peeled finely diced carrots
- 2/3 cup finely diced celery
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp. tarragon
- 3 cups bottled clam juice
- 1 1/2 cups whipping cream
- 6 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Purée 4 cups corn with 1 1/4 cups broth in processor until almost smooth.
Sauté bacon in large pot over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer bacon to paper towels. Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons drippings from pot. Add onions to pot; sauté until light golden, about 5 minutes. Add remaining 4 cups corn; sauté 3 minutes. Add carrots, celery, and cayenne; sauté until vegetables soften slightly, about 5 minutes. Add clam juice and 1 3/4 cups broth; simmer 10 minutes. Stir in corn puré and whipping cream; simmer 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. (Lobster, bacon, and soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill lobster and bacon separately. Cool soup slightly; chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled. Bring bacon to room temperature and bring soup to simmer before continuing.) Remove soup from heat; stir in sour cream.
Melt butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add lobster meat and sauté just until heated through, about 2 minutes. Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish each serving with lobster pieces, bacon, and chives and serve.
**I added most of the lobster meat to the soup and let it cook in the soup for 20 minutes. I also added most of the bacon to the soup as well as I thought the lobster and bacon added flavor to the cooking of the soup. I then added the extra lobster meat, bacon and chives as garnish to the soup when ready to serve.
*Recipe Adapted From Bon Appetite & Photo Courtesy of Bon Appetite
STORE BOUGHT CRESCENT ROLLS
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