Posted on 12/05/2019 4:41:20 PM PST by Jamestown1630
Not being a great meat-eater, I’ve always been intrigued by the Italian-American tradition of the ‘Feast of the Seven Fishes’ - the Christmas Eve dinner consisting of seven different fish dishes.
I like seafood very much, but have had a hard time coming up with my ‘dream meal of seven’. One thing I’ve always wanted to try are Portuguese Codfish Balls (Bolinhos de Bacalhau), which I believe I first saw in an episode of the ‘Two Fat Ladies’.
These seem to be usually made from rehydrated salt cod (the dried cod can be found in ethnic stores as well as many American supermarkets), but they can be made from fresh fish, as well. They are balls of the flaked fish, held together with mashed potatoes and egg, and deep fried.
Here, from 'Spruce Eats', is a recipe using fresh fish:
https://www.thespruceeats.com/portuguese-codfish-balls-2743408
And from ‘The Portuguese American Mom’, one using the dried fish:
http://www.theportugueseamericanmom.com/codfish-cakes-bolinhos-de-bacalhau/
Another fish dish is something that I’ve recently found at Lidl – they have several prepared/frozen ‘convenience’ items that I think are very good, and I really liked a salmon with a spinach stuffing, wrapped in puff pastry: I went looking for a from-scratch recipe, and found one at ‘Home Made Italian Cooking’:
https://www.homemadeitaliancooking.com/salmon-in-puff-pastry/
Please post your favorite family Christmas food traditions - or your favorite seafood recipe!
(The painting at the top is 'Adoration of the Shepherds', by the Spanish Baroque painter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo.)
-JT
Funny graphic. It was the opposite at my house growing up. Dad did virtually all the cooking and the leftovers he took into work at the steel mill in a quart canning jar, he’d set it near the furnace so when it was lunchtime it was nice and warm.
That quote was from Trillin’s food book, “American Fried” ....... get it at the library.
An unusual book subject from a recognized intellectual.
Last night, Husband wanted me to watch one of the Christmas movies that he grew up watching: ‘Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey’.
It’s great if you have kids or grand-kids, to teach them kindness, compassion, and courage in endeavors:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nestor,_the_Long%E2%80%93Eared_Christmas_Donkey
And, if you want to educate your little ones as to the dangers of dictatorship, the 1970 ‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town’ is good:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus_Is_Comin’_to_Town_(film)
Husband also likes ‘The Night the Animals Talked’ for object lessons for kids:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Night_the_Animals_Talked
The last several years, I’ve been making mock mincemeat from scratch (butter replaces the suet). But it’s useless to take it to Christmas dinner -— only my husband and I like mincemeat. (The rest of the family is obviously crazy).
Harris Teeter in Raleigh has Crosse and Blackwell mincemeat. I saw it yesterday.
I like mincemeat in little English tarts, not in a big pie.
:)
Yum!!!!!
Could you post a link or the recipe for the mock mincemeat please? It sounds interesting! Thanks.
I cook it by taste, but I’ll give it a go:
Makes enough for 1 9” pie.
3 cups chopped, peeled pie apples (ones with a lot of flavor)
1 cup chopped raisins
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries (may omit if desired)
Zest of one lemon or orange
1 tsp of ground d cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Ground Cloves
1/4 tsp. Allspice
Dash of powdered ginger
Salt to taste (start with 1/4 tsp.)
1 cup of water (may add more if needed)
1/2 stick of butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
Combine all ingredients into a large saucepan, and cook over low heat until apples are soft, stirring occasionally.
Add brown sugar, mixing it in well.
Continue cooking until sugar is completely cooked in.
At this point, check the mincemeat for flavor. If you don’t think it’s seasoned enough, add more spices or sugar to taste. When it tastes right, mix in a little slurry of cornstarch and water to thicken. 1 teaspoon of each should be enough.
I don’t put in liquor in my mincemeat, but if you like it, go ahead and add a little. (I’m not experienced with cooking with liquor, so I don’t know if it needs to be cooked in, or added last)
Looking online at recipes, mine has more apples, but this is the way we like it. If you don’t like your mincemeat too sweet, you may want to dial back the brown sugar a little. As I said, it’s all to taste.
my father and mother would make traditional plum puddings in coffee cans steamed in a big pot and sell that at Christmas......not a big fan of plum pudding but I still have his Navy recipe..
all of my husbands family LOVE fruitcake, I don’t but I make a pretty good one they tell me.
Thank you!
You’re welcome!
I use the one on the lid of the candied fruit box - it comes out like the fruitcake my aunt used to make every year:
https://www.paradisefruitco.com/recipe/festive-holiday-fruitcake-recipe/
I always like a double dessert. That Plumb Pudding with Hard Sauce and Ice Cream with jarred Mincemeat on top.
I never thought of ice cream and mince meat - that sounds very good!
Any idea of how you make “fired roasted tomatoes”?
I’ve been going to the same local vegie stand for the past 20 years. The owner saves me the weekly bruised tomatoes for pick up of Fridays. One day I got 4 cases of tomatoes! Will never use canned tomatoes again.
But how do you fire roast them??? Does it matter?
CREAMY SPICED TEA
Add 14 oz can Sweet/Cond/Milk to combined 3/4 c plain instant tea powder,
tsp ea orange zest, cinnamon, 2 tea grnd cloves, 1/4 tea nutmeg. Stir in 6 1/3 c
water. Heat thru; do not boil.
SERVE in a glass mug w/ a lemon rind spiral on the rim.
CAN DO AHEAD Fridges 5 days. Mix; reheat before serving.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.