Scenes from Christmas

Christmas went without a hitch this year. No disasters to speak of, I’m sorry to report. St. Nick managed to cram himself down our tiny chimney right on schedule to deliver the goods to the children. He took some liberties with the fudge, I noticed, making short work of what we left for him on the mantle and then dipping into my secret stash in the refrigerator (he really is always watching, isn’t he?). You can imagine my reaction when I found the empty pans strewn about in the snow, reindeer footprints all around. I’m willing to let it slide, however, in the spirit of Christmas.

Husband and I kept our gifts to each other to a minimum. We didn’t want to end up in a Gift of the Magi-type situation wherein I relinquish my most precious asset, my gorgeous, flowing hair, only to find out that the measly ¾-inch growth I've accumulated will barely get you enough loose change to buy one and a half fishing lures to replace the dozens that have gotten caught in various trees over the years, not by Husband. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, he would have pawned off his fishing pole to buy me a truckload of barrettes or whatever you call those things that keep your hair out of your eyes. To which I would respond, in language befitting an O. Henry character, “WTF? You know I’m physically incapable of accessorizing.”

My in-laws came over Christmas morning bearing Hole-in-One doughnuts and other goodies. I didn’t knock myself out too much with the meal this year. Just a laid-back brunch with bacon from Chestnut Farms, fresh fruit, and a goat cheese-artichoke strata. Oh, and grapefruit mimosas, but that’s for another post. No spiral hams taking forever to cook or ducks to be trussed or husbands to make vomit. Nope, just a casserole made the night before and shoved into the oven amidst a flurry of wrapping paper (made only slightly more challenging by hastily deployed Lego minefields everywhere). Later on, once food coma set in and everyone cleared out, I took a three-and-a-half-hour nap. That was my Christmas present to myself. I thought baby Jesus would approve.

And that, my friends, was Christmas. How about you?

Goat Cheese-Artichoke Strata
This one’s for my mother-in-law. It’s a good use of leftover cheese from the cheese plate you might have served on Christmas Eve.

1 1-lb. loaf sourdough bread, crusts removed if thick
3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
18 oz. marinated artichoke hearts, drained, 3 Tbsp. of marinade reserved
2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
¾ lb. goat cheese, crumbled
¾ lb. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
8 large eggs
2½ cups half-and-half or milk
1 tsp. salt
¾ tsp. black pepper
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter a deep 9- to 10-inch baking dish.

Cut bread into 1-inch cubes. Transfer cubes to a baking sheet, along with cloves of garlic, and toast for about 25 minutes, stirring once or twice, until bread is golden brown and lightly crisp. (Or you could use stale bread and toast the garlic separately.) Peel the garlic, smash the cloves, and add to a medium bowl. Slice the artichoke hearts about ½-inch thick and add to the bowl. Mix in the thyme.

In the baking dish, arrange half of the bread, artichoke mixture, and cheeses, then finish with another layer of each. Whisk the eggs with the half-and-half, salt, pepper, and reserved artichoke marinade. Pour custard over the strata. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. In my case, I did this Christmas Eve so I could just pop it in the oven Christmas morning.

Remove the strata from the fridge a half hour before you plan to bake it. Preheat oven to 350°F. Drizzle olive oil over strata and bake for 50-55 minutes, until golden brown, puffed, and lightly set in the center. Serve hot.

Source: Adapted from A Real American Breakfast by the Jamisons.

Comments

[Dad]

Sounds pretty nice actually. Sorry I missed it.

[Robert]

Sounds like a perfect meal to meal--it's not how much trussing you do or how many hours it takes to prepare. As long as it induces at least two hours of afternoon coma I consider it a success.

Now, do tell about those grapefruit mimosas . . .

[melch]

Any day with a three hour nap sounds like a great day. Right now, I'm browsing the web, waiting for my caramels to cool. I already licked the pot clean...

[Julia]

Your strata looks delightful!! Though, I'm most admiring of your fireplace fire... oh the things you could cook in there.

[geek+nerd]

NOM - that strata looks good! Unfortunately my Christmas was more like your previous Christmases this year. Illness and mishaps abounded! It must've been karma balancing the universe out after all of my stellar Christmases past. Fucking karma. Glad (jealous and bitter) your Christmas was Merry and Bright! Cheers!

[vanessa]

Funny, I'm making a spinach/artichoke strata with pepper jack cheese and grapefruit mimosas for my annual New Year's Morning "jammie party"!! We call the mimosas "pinkerbells"! Vanessa

[Sis]

Wish I could have been there. Of course then you'd have the whole vomit thing to deal with again this year...

[Seaweed Snacks]

We made strata too! Gruyere and spinach...
When I read your posts I keep thinking how great of an author you would be...btw. I am still new enough to your blog to not know if you have published, but I have really enjoyed your blog!

[Amy]

Great Gift of the Magi analogy. That made me laugh, bringing back memories of a television movie made YEARS ago, based on this premise, staring Marie Osmond? I must have been 8 or 9 at the time.

More importantly - Goat Cheese and Artichoke Strata? Hello. Drool..drool. (But alas, two of Paul's least favorite ingredients. Damn him.)

[Medical Treatment]

Your strata looks mouth watering interesting dish and this is the first time saw this thanks any ways.

[Tammy]

Medical Treatment: No, thank YOU.

Amy: I missed that TV movie. Bummer. It would have gone nicely with my Donnie and Marie vanity set that got so much use!

Seaweed Snacks: So nice of you to say. I've written for magazines and newspapers, but book publishers have proven to be harder to trick!

Sis: May next year be vomit-free for both of us!

vanessa: You know what they say about great minds...that they love them some pinkerbells!

geek+nerd: Stupid karma. Don't worry, karma is going to get what's coming to it eventually. Hope your New Year's Eve is much better.

Julia: I've often thought that...hanging a pot in the fireplace and cooking something, Pilgrim-style. It would have to be a really small pot, though.

melch: Don't keep me in suspense. How did they come out?

Robert: Yes, grapefruit mimosa recipe coming right up. In the meantime, don't throw away any leftover New Year's champagne (as if).

Dad: Tonight was just as nice! Hope you liked the fudge and caramels.

[melch]

Well, the first success was that I didn't burn the house down, burn any skin off of myself, and didn't ruin any pots.

I heated to somewhere between 136 and 138 and they didn't seem to set. Since I know that if fudge doesn't turn out, you can reheat and re-boil, I just now reheated the caramel 156. Since I've never done this before, I tried what I've seen in TV and dropped a little bit into some cold water until the consistency was more like putty than ... (I just can't figure out a better analogy than snot). If the stuff I'm licking off the spoon is any indicator, I may have something that will actually keep its shape once cool. If not, I guess I'll just have to spoon it all for myself.

I'm at sea level and the winters aren't too dry so I guess that could explain the temperature difference.

I'm also crossing my fingers because I accidentally got wax paper instead of parchment paper so I hope things don't taste like bees. We'll see in a couple of hours (or tomorrow if I fall asleep early).

[adele]

Artichoke and goat cheese strata? I (and the huge quantity of stale bread in my freezer) like this idea a lot.