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Christmas Dinner #1 in Pictures

Two days without my Internets.  While I was at the in-laws.  It was rough.

The in-laws let me be in charge of menus for the Saturday and Sunday night dinners, and I had two very willing sous chefs at my disposal (my brother#1-in-law and his wife).  The challenge was to class it up a little, but keep the foods recognizable for my father and mother and brother#3-in-law.

Enjoy.

A Triple-Pork Pork Loin... pork stuffed with ground pork, spinach, apples, and mushrooms, and then wrapped in prosciutto.

Standard Au Gratin potatoes (I was heavy-handed on the cayenne.  I won't apologize for it.)

The Chocolate Silk Tart.  As you can see, I scored out eight slices.  I should have done 16.  Very rich. 

Finished pork loin with its unsightly marks from its time in bondage.

You can tell here that I didn't quite butterfly my loin right...the bottom is too thick.  But still...tasted delicious and not dry at all.





All this above made up Saturday's dinner, which consisted of 17 people.  I also prepared a simple green salad with cranberries, pecans, and blue cheese.  Oh, and a quick green bean sauteed with bacon and onions rounded out the meal.


Sunday's dinner was simpler: an Antipasto Platter, Fettuccine with Bolognese, Garlic Naan (not Italian, but hey!), and a Caesar salad.

Also, between the bottles of wine we brought and the wine my brother and sister-in-law brought...we had nearly a case.  I don't think we drank them all, but we were close.

Next up: an appetizer lunch with some friends tomorrow and the Tiny Tim Christmas Day Dinner!

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