Christmas Eve Supper

My family has had a traditional Christmas Eve dinner for many years. It was originated by my mother Barbara as a late night supper and drink for parents after the children were in bed and presents were under the tree. My sisters Lis, Rachel and I have kept the tradition alive when we get together annually for Christmas. The menu is as follows:

Smoked turkey. My mother used to order one from a catalog, some years we just buy one at the supermarket, this year Rachel had one smoked at a local barbecue place. The idea, of course, is that it can be served at room termperature without any preparation.

A baked macaroni. I don't really know exactly how my mother did this. This year I prepared two pounds of multicolor rotini. I heated two cups of whole milk in the microwave with four ounces of butter, and added half a cup of bread crumbs. (I made these in a blender from some supermarket Italian bread we had around. You could also do this the tradtional way, making a Bechamel from milk, butter and flower. I didn't have any flour in the vacation house.) Anyway, I added an eight ounce container of one of those spreadable herb and garlic cheeses, like Boursin but that isn't what it was.... I guess I should add that this whole thing was accomplished in a rented vacation condo, so it involved some improvisation. Poured the milk and cheese over the noodles in a nine by 13 baking pan, put some shredded mozzarella on top, and baked it at 350 for about 40 minutes.

Steamed asparagus, room temperature, drizzled with olive oil. Had I been doing this at home I would have topped it with roasted red peppers and shaved parmesan, but I was keeping it simple.

This year I added a Virginia country ham. I had the shank end of a half ham. I soaked it in two changes of water overnight, then put it in a slow (300) oven in a roasting pan with ten cups of water, covered with foil, for about three hours. I took it out and carved off the thick layer of fat all around. I made a glaze of a mixture of prepared mustard and wine, but it didn't really work. I suspect it needed something a little more sugary. Anyway, I put the ham back in the oven just to melt the glaze. The recipes you see at the ham companies encourage you to skip the whole glazing step, as it just dries things out.

Finally, I made black eyed peas. I soaked the beans overnight, then simmered them for an hour or so with plenty of water. When they were done I drained off all enough water to barely cover them, added a quarter cup of ketchup, salt and pepper, a bunch of green onions chopped, and a bunch of parlsey chopped and simmered for another half hour while it thickened.