Christmas Brunch and Christmas Day

I often mention that on Christmas morning we have sliced ham with Colman’s mustard and champagne cocktails. We always have Colman’s mustard in the house, but if you don’t, it can be obtained from Amazon.com. When you buy a ham, (Costco’s do a good one) check it is already cooked and then serve it cold, do not cook it again, if it isn’t a spiral sliced ham, get a really sharp knife and carve it very thinly and then just add a small amount of mustard as you eat it. The mustard is very spicy (hot to the tongue) and you really don’t need much, but it improves the taste tremendously. I gave the recipe for Champagne Cocktails on October 6, 2011, but just in case, here it is again :

In a glass put:
1/2 shot of brandy
1 cube or 1 tsp sugar
Twist of orange peel (no pith) and a couple of drops of Angostura Bitters. 
Fill up with champagne.

 
Drink with caution. They are pretty lethal. Of course there a dozens of recipes for champagne cocktails but this is what we always serve on Christmas morning for brunch. My family tradition was always just champagne, but Matt is not that keen on straight champagne so he changed the tradition to cocktails.

If you are cooking a turkey that day, I suggest you have everything well in hand before you start sipping on these. As we are going out for Christmas Dinner to a local restaurant, I won’t have to worry although I will miss a few traditional items that they don’t serve, bread sauce and chestnut stuffing being a couple of them. I have to buy some chestnuts, I have had a craving for a week or two now they are so delicious roasted even if not made into turkey stuffing.

I bowled pretty well yesterday so figure you must all have had your fingers crossed for me, thanks. Our second game was “I beat my average” for which we get a small prize at the end of the year, I didn’t beat it I smashed it, LOL.

The following recipe we served as a Starter on Saturday night and it was enjoyed by all concerned, it is so easy to do and very tasty to say the least. There was enough left for us to have some on Sunday as well.

Artichoke Bruschetta

By An American in Spain on November 02, 2004

Photo by erinj

Yield: 8 tapa servings

About This Recipe

"A really great tapa that will get you many compliments. Really simple to make. The original recipe was by Roxanne. I have served this at many of my "Wine and Tapa" parties and was always pleased by the response."

Ingredients

1 (6 1/2 ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 medium tomato, seeds removed and diced

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese or 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

2 garlic cloves, crushed

5 tablespoons mayonnaise (the real thing please)

1 French baguettes, cut into 1/3 inch thick slices

Directions

1. Preheat the broiler.
2. Place the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast lightly under the broiler.
3. In a medium bowl, mix marinated artichoke hearts, Romano or Parmesan cheese, red onion, crushed garlic, diced tomato and mayonnaise.
4. Top the lightly toasted French baguette slices with equal amounts of the artichoke heart mixture being careful to spread the mixture over the entire surface.
5. The edges of the bread will tend to burn if not covered by the artichoke mixture.
6. Arrange slices in a single layer on the baking sheet.
7. Broil in the preheated oven 2 minutes, or until toppings are bubbly and lightly browned.

Have a great day