Christmas Afterglow

Well, it's December the 26th, time to go back to work.

It was a pretty good holiday. I got to spend it the way that I like best; preparing overly-complicated meals that require hours of careful planning in order to come together all at once at mealtime.

It began on Sunday, when I made dough for the fresh breads, and took the turkey breast out of the freezer to thaw. Monday morning, I crept downstairs before my wife awoke, to shape the bread dough into clover-leaf dinner rolls, and the family-specialty cinnamon rolls, and set them in a warm spot to rise. I had just enough time to make the batter for the waffles when she awoke and came downstairs.

The Iron Chef secret ingredient this Christmas was: Pecans.

Breakfast consisted of pecan waffles, link sausages, juice and coffee. Since we waited until after the opening of presents, and it was almost 11:00 when we ate, we decided to skip lunch and have dinner around 5:00. So, I spent most of the afternoon in the liesurely application of a couple of unusual holiday recipes.

I took the turkey breast, brushed it with some olive oil, garlic and salt, and roasted it for about an hour. Then, I glazed it with orange marmalade, and coated it with a mixture of chopped pecans, ground coriander, and cinnamon. Back in the oven for another 45 minutes.

On the side was a three-chesse mac and cheese with sharp cheddar, monterey jack and fresh grated parmesan. There was lots of fresh garlic in the cheese sauce, and a few dashes of habanero pepper sauce. The topping consisted of a mixure of chopped pecans (again), fresh breadcrumbs and more grated parmesan. I buttered the baking dish, and then coated the butter with a thin layer of the topping. The rest of the topping went on top (where it belongs).

The non-pecan elements were freshly made cranberry sauce with ginger, and a little turkey gravy. The dinner rolls were ready to go into the oven when the turkey and macaroni came out. There is nothing like breaking open a dinner roll at the beginning of a holiday meal that was in the oven just a minute earlier.

Dessert consisted of little molten chocolate cakes; crispy on the outside, and liquid chocolate on the inside. Small but rich. Just a little dusting of powdered sugar is all they needed.

The cinnamon rolls went into the oven at about 8:00, for a little evening snack with tea.

That should be just about the last of the holiday indulgences. Back to my signature "big salads" for dinner in January.