Festive Savoury Meals enjoyed over the last few days....

As we're still in the Holiday period over here in England. we are celebrating Boxing Day..I am offering you a pictorial blog posting of all the savoury courses of the meals we've enjoyed over the last three days. I start with the dishes served at the Friends' Christmas Gathering..then the Christmas Dinner that My Love and I enjoyed..in between these formal dinners we lived on various leftovers..no hardship at all. lol. And we do realise how fortunate we are to have this lovely food filling our cupboards and fridge. Tomorrow I will do a similar post with the desserts that we served. I will post up the recipes of the ones you haven't seen before but some of them you will recognise from recent postings. And if you want to try a dish before I post the recipe then feel free to email/message me and I'll provide you with the recipe straight away...

And please note that these aren't my best photographic work..lol...most of them were taken in seconds...on my kitchen work surface before some helpful person took them to the table to serve..ah well. It's the thought that counts right..so please ignore shadows etc..lol 

Hoping the holidays have been kind to you and you are all safe and well.. ~R~ 

D's Battered Tofu slice with Maple/Vinegar Drizzle served on Thai Rice with a Cabbage & Parsley Salad. 

This starter was created and made by my pal D..it was visually beautiful and tasted even better. I have never eaten tofu cooked this way and was completely won over and shall be trying it myself very soon. I will be posting the entire recipe with extra photos soon. Thank you D for getting the Friends' Christmas Meal off to a very good start. 

Susan V''s Thanksgiving Loaf with Roast Potatoes and Parsnips

Believe me...there is a loaf buried under the potato and parsnip mountain..somewhere. I have made this loaf a few times now and it's always greatly received and enjoyed. I always roast plenty of potatoes and parsnips for the pals as they are devoured! lol. This was one of two choices for the main meal during this meal. 

Rose's Christmas Galette ~ Goodness me..shadowstastic! lol

This was the second option on the table. This galette is a simple wholewheat crust that has a filling of sprouts, carrots, leeks, shallots, cox apple and cashew nuts which are cooked then mixed with a 'blue cheeze' style sauce. Then put into the cooked shell and baked until hot. It's really very tasty. I think everyone had a piece of each option...lol. 

The table is also filled with an abundance of steamed veggies...sprouts, green beans and I think carrots. I also served up a large dish of Festive Red Cabbage which is another of Rose's recipes. Slow casseroled red cabbage cooked in red wine and garlic until tender. Another popular dish. I also had a bowl of homemade Cranberry Sauce and a boat of veggie gravy. 

We had a great night and although it was a smaller gathering this year it was just as enjoyable and I'm already looking forward to next year's. And it would be remiss of me to not show you one the main highlights of the night...A's fantastic Christmas Hat that she made herself and looked splendid. 

The stars around the band flashed constantly and the rim and top were covered in christmas cake decorations...it really was a sight to see..lol

So that was the savoury part of the meal...now onto the Christmas Eve Little Ones' party. I have no photos but we did serve them Cheezy Pasta with Garlic Bread with a Pepper and Tomato Salad..all which was devoured. They had Christmas Orange Jelly with Mandarin Oranges set in it for dessert and then we baked Christmas Cookies but the photos for that come tomorrow. 

Christmas Day dinner was a quiet affair after all the formal dining. We ate comfortably on our laps watching the Christmas Top of the Pops Show...because we could! lol 

Rose's Cashew Nut Loaf with Parsley Stuffing filling.

We had a Cashew Nut Roast with Parsley Stuffing filling with Hassleback Roast Potatoes, Roast Parsnip, Festive Red Cabbage, Sprouts, Carrots and Broccoli.

Christmas Dinner 2011

Today we have a friend F joining us for dinner and we shall be having the traditional Boxing Day dinner of leftovers with pickles and other various treats. Gotta love leftovers...lol. 

So that's the savoury update and remember if you want the recipes just get in touch. Tomorrow I'll post the dessert part of this blog...so be warned for the drool factor..lol. 

Happy Holidays...
~R~