Christmas Meal Traditions

LeeB · December 25, 2011, 08:06:27 AM

Not really a tradition, well I guess it could of been. I do seem to have to work most Christmases. SOme pics of the side table the galley crew put together. Look close at the carved veggies. Artwork.

OK.I'll try again. Must learn to be patient and wait for the pic to upload. :

Well maybe I won't. The pics are in my gallery but don't upload with an image. Maybe later.

(Lee, I don't want to spoil Christmas, but these images are PNG format and take about 1500 kbyte each to render. These will have to be jpg format. For one they take up way too much space that a 50 kb jpg can show equally as well. And those of us on dial-up would be shut right out of the forum with pages loaded with huge photos (kilobytes wise). I rendered them inert with the code function. - SwampDonkey)

Magicman · December 25, 2011, 10:39:23 AM

Good looking vittles Lee.

Our main dish may seem at bit "non tradition". Crawfish and shrimp Etufee'. There will also be smoked Boston Butt and the usual sides. MMMmmmm.

Roxie · December 25, 2011, 10:43:54 AM

That food is too beautiful to eat, LeeB! That is one happy looking galley crew!

WH_Conley · December 25, 2011, 11:00:58 AM

The usual Christmas breakfast. Biscuits, gravy, fried apples, bacon, fried ham, sausage, fried potatoes with a few Jalapeno's on the side.

Burlkraft · December 25, 2011, 12:55:32 PM

DanG Lee!! 8) 8) 8)

That almost makes me wish I was out there with ya..... :D :D :D

Ain't nuthin' like suckling pig..... digin_2

Them gizzards are lookin' mighty tastey right now too ;D

Patty · December 25, 2011, 01:05:44 PM

WOW Lee that is am amazing display of food!! Imagine the patience and atwork that went into each item, truly magnificent.

Quite a kitchen as well! Your crew look like they are all having a nice time. Merry Christmas Lee!

Jeff · December 25, 2011, 03:51:37 PM

Part of that problem was me. I never disallowed PNG images on the setup of the new gallery. The forum software can not manipulate them, so it can't make thumbnails, or reduce. The only way I could fix it, because I can't upload to someone else's gallery even though you'd think I could, I saved all of the photos, converted them to jpg, re-uploaded to my gallery, then posted them from there.

Sorry about the mix up.

LeeB · December 25, 2011, 04:37:38 PM

Thanks Jeff. I thought it was just my connection out here. Sometimes I can see photos and utube links and the like and somedays I can't. A lot of the time I have to wait till I get home to see parts of posts with vidoe and such.

Quote from: Roxie on December 25, 2011, 10:43:54 AM
That food is too beautiful to eat, LeeB! That is one happy looking galley crew!

It really was too good to eat. That table was mostly just for display. The sweets got eaten, but not too much of the rest of it. I was going to take some more pics after the evening meal, but the guys had already taken it down by the time I got back to the galley.

Jeff · December 25, 2011, 04:44:52 PM

Lee, if your camera is taking png format, you should see if you can switch it to jpg.

LeeB · December 25, 2011, 04:47:16 PM

They were taken by a co-worker. I didn't notice what format they were until you mentioned it. I will try to be more careful in the future.

SwampDonkey · December 25, 2011, 05:23:26 PM

That was a fine looking Christmas spread, fit for kings.

LeeB · December 25, 2011, 05:27:24 PM

I would trade it for a bowl of beans at home but I guess somebody has to keep the lights on and the wheels turning.

SwampDonkey · December 25, 2011, 05:37:31 PM

Funny you mention the beans, as that was a choice here tonight. Home made baked beans warmed up or a chicken sandwich. I'm about to sit down to the sandwich. ;)

Troublermaker · December 25, 2011, 06:34:37 PM

Have anyone got a good Eggnog Recipe? I like to try a difference recipe than the one that I use.

Dan_Shade · December 25, 2011, 07:22:16 PM

when I had chickens, I mixed eggs, milk, sugar, and rum or bourbon together until it tasted good.

some recipes have you sepate the yolks from the whites. and then recombine after they are mixed up.

Magicman · December 25, 2011, 10:41:18 PM

The only thing left in the Crawfish/Shrimp Etufee' pot was a memory.

LeeB · December 26, 2011, 08:02:04 AM

The cooks made lobster gumbo out of the leftover lobsters tonight. Not like real coonass gumbo, but pretty good for this side of the world.

sawguy21 · December 26, 2011, 01:46:21 PM

We had a light breakfast this morning, didn't really feel like eating after last night. Karen brined an 18 lb turkey with coarse salt, demerara sugar, bay leaves,orange peel and poultry seasoning (that had been cooked down in two gallons of water) for a full twenty four hours. She then rinsed and dried it thoroughly before putting it in the oven.
We were concerned it might be too salty but that was the best turkey we have ever had and the gravy was to kill for. Add dressing, sweet potato balls, mashed spuds and green bean casserole 8) Oh, and home made cranberry sauce, gotta have that.We couldn't even think about desert.

SwampDonkey · December 26, 2011, 03:08:02 PM

Reminds me I have some cranberries that need cooking in the morning. I eat them as a desert. ;D

Jim_Rogers · December 26, 2011, 05:54:39 PM

Because we have turkey at thanksgiving and ham at easter, my wife usually makes something with Beef at Christmas.

We've had tender loin and she has put some type of stuffing in it for several years. It was good but very expensive to buy enough for the whole gang.

Well this year she asked "me" what I wanted for beef for Christmas dinner.
I know she usually does "too much" and get exhausted over it.

I told her not to do anything fancy. We don't need to spend $70 for one cut of beef.

I told her that she makes a really nice pot roast and to just get two and put them into the big pan with the potatoes and carrots like she makes in the slow cooker and it would be fine. Every time she does it in the slow cooker the meat just falls apart and is very easy to cut/break up and eat. And it isn't hard on her.

She when to Sam's club and got some beef but never told me or anyone what it was.

I heard her tell her daughter that to eat by 1pm the meat had to go into the oven by 10 am. So she wanted her to get done with making the cinnamon rolls for our breakfast snack, by then.

Ok, so 1pm rolls around and the meat isn't done. I had an appointment to bring my sister, who doesn't drive, over to my mother's house for them to visit. I wanted to leave by 3:30 and pick up my sister at 4pm.

They keep checking the meat thermometer and it wasn't where they wanted it.

2 pm came and went, 3 pm came and went. 4 pm I called my sister and told her I was going to be at least an hour late.

Finally the meat thermometer read 135 or 140 degrees for medium well, and they said it was done, and they had to warm up the twice baked potatoes for 10 minutes or so.

I walked into the kitchen and here was the huge rectangular pan with a side of beef in it like I had never seen before. She bought prime rib, with bone in. For all of us.
She said it was cheaper then tender loin.

Well, I was very surprised and mostly by the fact that she had set the table with "plastic forks and knives".
I really didn't see how we were going to eat prime rib with a "plastic knife" and fork.

I know from experience to not comment on the menu but I suggested that we might need "regular" knives to cut the meat.

Well you would have thought I said she was "fat" or something. I about got a new one chewed out of me for sure.

I got out some "steak knives" from the box in the tall cabinet for everyone to have.
Some used them, some didn't.

I do have to tell you that this "prime rib" was one of the best I have ever had and it was well worth the wait.

My daughter, who can be a fussy eater, had three slices off mine and well as one of her sister's.
It was the best.

I cut off one to take to my mother's and she and my sister didn't even put a dent in it. I gave the leftover to my sister to take home to her apartment for another meal.

I'm hoping that there will be some, at home, tonight for seconds.

And no plastic forks and knives......

I don't know what got into her for setting the table like that, they were colorful as the forks were red and the knives were green (for Christmas)......

Jim Rogers

caveman · December 26, 2011, 10:48:37 PM

I got up early Christmas morning and smoked a 20 lb. turkey and a ham on black cherry. This is becoming a tradition as the inlaws send a turkey home with my wife a day or two before Christmas. It was the hottest Christmas day I can remember--mid 80's, swarms of mosquitoes, and running the air conditioner. We ate a lot of good stuff that was prepared inside as well. Caveman

Todd · December 27, 2011, 07:53:38 AM

I'm still stuffed from this weekend and never want to eat again...but all these dishes (sans chicken parts...sorry Jeff) are making me really want some leftovers! Couple of years ago my wife wanted to have family from out of town over for Christmas Eve..it snowballed to the point we had to go buy 2 8 ft banquet tables and set up in the dinning room and living room of our place this year. Everyone came and of course settled in the kitchen (which is too small for 2 to work in) Tenderloins were cold by the time we ate, diito with the rolls, twice-baked potato casserole was warm in the middle...once we got the wife to relax and enjoy the fact that everyone was having a good time and didn't care it was the best Christmas eve dinner yet!