The baking is done. The gifts are wrapped. The stockings are stuffed. The house is clean and fully decorated. Now it is NOT time to start a cooking marathon for dinner! We just did that for Thanksgiving -- and it was worth all the effort. But for Christmas, we can have a
beautiful, elegant meal without much fuss at all.
It starts with local foods. And it starts with a
beautiful roast. Here is our menu and some ideas for alternatives that should make your day a bit easier.
Breakfast
This is made the night before. Use your favorite recipe for
Breakfast Strata -- which is sort of a puffy egg and cheese and bread dish. It has to "soak" for several hours -- so prepare it on Christmas Eve and refrigerate. It will be ready to pop in the oven in the morning. We have plenty of
farm fresh eggs and bacon to add to this dish. Add some cheese from one of our fine
local cheese makers (my favorites are Robinson's, Smith's Country Cheese, Westfield farm). And of course it would be worth your while to seek out
Zion Roasters in Gardner to get some of the best
coffee around (grab a few extras for hostess gifts if you need them)!
Dinner:
Roast
A nice local, farm raised
roast is as good as it gets. Some suggestions are
Prime Rib Roast (my personal favorite and oh, so easy),
Encrusted Eye of the Round,
Rubbed Brisket (we have one customer that is making two of these for her dinner),
Sirloin Strip Roast,
Top Round -- your very traditional roast beef! Or, how about a
brined fresh ham?? Stop by or arrange a time to pick up your Christmas Roast. We have what you need!
Local Vegetables
Seek these out where you can. At this time of year, some local farmers are selling only to their long-term customers but you can browse
Mass Local Food to see where some of these producers are located. Winter Squash, Brussels Sprout, Potato, Creamed Onions. Keep it simple. Let the flavors of the foods come through!d
Local Wine and Beer
There are now many
local wineries in Massachusetts. Talk to
Joe at the Westminster Pharmacy -- he will not steer you wrong -- he is very knowledgeable and should have whatever you are looking for (just in case you can't drive to the wineries yourself). For your beer, it is worth the trip to
Wachusett Brewing Company to fill up your growler! Store hours for Christmas Eve from 9:00 until 3:00 with free tastings.
Dessert
And of course,
dessert from
Honeybee Baking Company. Robin is one of our most
talented local bakers and ANYTHING you get from her will become your new favorite. She is located in Princeton and takes orders on
Mass Local Food -- and can be found at the
Westminster Farmers' Market during the summer. But for now, give her a call and see what she has. If you contact her for your dessert, I would recommend that you also try the ginger scones for a light meal or a compliment to your delicious (easy) breakfast (we really only need breakfast and dinner on Christmas day -- so the scones would be a nice tea at some point in the day).
Have a Great Christmas Day and Eat Local!
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