The (second) Open House saw many visitors who were not able to make it to the first one because of the inclement weather. Tuesday evening was mild, warmer and dry. Some who made it the first time came again since there was the opportunity to visit with our son, who arrived home on Monday evening. Most of the leftovers were consumed, and that was our hope.
The rest of the week flew by and now it’s Christmas Eve. I started working on a coffee cake last night because the dough needed to be refrigerated overnight. The recipe comes from the Junior League of Rockford. It used dried apricots, but I substituted mixed fruit instead. Here is the recipe with that substitution. This recipe makes 2 10-inch coffeecakes. We are going to have one on Christmas morning and freeze the second one (unglazed) for another day.
Christmas Coffeecake
Dough:
1 cup butter, melted and cooled
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk, heated to 110 degrees F.
2 pkgs. yeast
5 cups flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. salt
Filling:
1-7 oz. pkg. dried mixed fruit (pears, prunes, apricots)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
melted butter, about 4 tbsps.
1 cup chopped pecans, more for garnish if desired.
Glaze:
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2-3 tbsps. hot milk
In a stand mixer using the dough hook, beat together melted butter, eggs and sour cream. Heat the milk to 110 degrees F. I used the probe on my microwave to heat the milk in a glass measuring cup to the correct temperature. Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk and add to the egg mixture. Sift the flour, sugar and salt into a large bowl and blend in yeast mixture. Mix well. The dough will be sticky, but will be easier to handle when it’s chilled. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
To make filling, simmer the dried fruit with 1 cup sugar and water, for about 15 minutes until tender. Set aside to cool. When cooled, place in blender with brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Blend until smooth. Spray two 10-inch pans with no-stick spray with flour and set aside.
Remove dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface, divide dough into 2 balls. Roll each ball into a 20 x 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with melted butter and spread with the filling mixture. An offset spatula works well. Sprinkle with chopped pecans. Starting from the long edge, roll like a jelly roll into a cylinder. Coil into the prepared pan like a snail shell. Repeat with the second ball of dough. Cover with a clean towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes until browned. Remove from the pans and cool completely on wire racks. When cooled, combine the glaze ingredients and drizzle evenly over the two cakes. Sprinkle additional chopped pecans over the tops for garnish if desired. These freeze well.
The menu for tonight:
Lobster Bisque
Caesar Salad
Roasted Prime Rib
Mashed Potatoes
Broccoli
Peas
Popovers
Eggnog Pie
I did the prep for the roast first and put it back in the refrigerator to chill. The recipe was posted by a friend on Facebook and it looks delicious so I thought I’d give it a try.
Prime Rib with Garlic Herb Butter
Serves 7-9
1 cup butter, softened
7 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon pepper
5-7 pounds boneless ribeye roast, trimmed
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups beef stock
1. Preheat oven to 500°F/260°C.
2. Mix together the butter, garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper in a bowl until evenly combined.
3. Rub the herb butter all over the rib roast, then place on a roasting tray with a rack.
4. Bake for 5 minutes per pound of meat — so a 5-pound roast would bake for 25 minutes and a 7-pound roast would bake for 35 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and let the rib roast sit in the oven for 2 hours, making sure you do not open the oven door or else the residual heat will escape.
6. Once the 2 hours are up, remove the roast from the pan and pour the pan drippings into a saucepan over medium heat.
7. Add the flour, whisking until there are no lumps, then add the beef stock, stirring and bringing the sauce to a boil.
8. Remove from heat and strain the sauce into a gravy dish.
9. Carve the prime rib into ¾-inch slices, serve sauce on the side
I followed the directions and it’s so tempting to open the door, but i’m restraining myself. Here’s what it looked like before it went in the oven.
Early this morning I baked the Eggnog Pie. I love the custard and what can be more Christmasy than Eggnog?
Only half of us like peas, so we’re having two vegetables. The broccoli and peas are going to be simply prepared; the broccoli steamed and seasoned with salt, pepper and butter and the peas boiled and seasoned the same. I’m going to do basic mashed potatoes, but will add a couple of ounces of Philadelphia Cream Cheese and heavy cream to make them more rich to pair with the pan dripping gravy. I’ve posted the Caesar salad dressing and Lobster bisque before, but we are having popovers tonight instead of dinner rolls or other bread. We saw an episode of Nancy Fuller’s Farmhouse Rules where she prepared her family Christmas meal and added these because my husband thought they looked very appetizing. She used a muffing tin to bake hers, but I do have a popover pan so we’ll use it tonight.
The roast has less than hour left standing in the oven so it’s time to start making the bisque. My husband set the dining room with the Christmas china while I’ve been cooking today. The table is ready for this special meal to be served with our family celebrating together for the first time since 2012..
Merry Christmas Eve to all!