I get smoked turkeys from Honeybaked Ham, and I get two because they are about 11 pounds each. Another reason I get those specific turkeys - stress-reducing tip #1 - is that they are already seasoned to perfection and completely cooked. They are frozen, so you do have to let them thaw in the refrigerator for a few days, but instead of worrying about how my turkeys are going to taste (either concocting a brine or rubbing excessive seasonings all over them and crossing my fingers), all I have to do is get them warm. I don't have to worry about serving undercooked turkeys to my guests, and I know they will be delicious.
I only get one ham because much of the family doesn't eat ham, but I love it and so do those meat-loving guys I mentioned before. Save the bone for soup!
Why so many tamales? One dozen each of the corn and beef tamales goes home with the grandparents, and another dozen of each goes home with one of the uncles, leaving 5 dozen beef and 5 dozen corn tamales to serve and possibly have some left over for ourselves.
Wondering where I cook two turkeys, a ham and tamales at the same time? One kind of meat (usually the ham) goes on the grill in a disposable roasting pan and is covered with foil for a makeshift aluminum oven. The other meat goes into the oven, and tamales get steamed on the stove top a few minutes before dinnertime. Disposable roasting pans are my stress-reducing tip #2. The meat gets transferred to a serving platter anyway, so who cares about the roasting pan! As we eat I start consolidating meats into one dish and just crumple up the used pans and toss them in the trash.
Several days before Christmas I have to make room for all of this Holiday food, but I still need to provide dinner for the family. The answer to all of this is what I call "Christmas Soup," and stress-reducing tip #3. The days just before Christmas are crazy-busy for me. I do an extreme amount of baking to create gift sets of baked goods for each family member instead of purchased gifts, and I also operate a daycare in my home so I don't particularly have the freedom to cook and bake all day. About 15 minutes of chopping creates this soup that will feed everyone for at least two days, freeing up valuable prep-time for me.
Everyone has heard of refrigerator soup or something similar. Christmas Soup is basically that, but if I were to say "cook all of the vegetables you have in your fridge," who knows what would happen. So, here is what I put in my soup today to clear out the crisper drawers. I highly recommend this combination.. it is quite tasty! I pureed some of it for an 8 month old baby who gobbled it up until she just couldn't eat anymore.
Ingredients:
1/2 lb
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kale
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1/2
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onion
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2
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cloves garlic
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3
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bell peppers
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5
|
ribs celery
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5
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carrots
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3
|
potatoes
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1
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bunch parsley
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1/2 lb
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cabbage
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broth or water
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salt and pepper to taste
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This is what I had on hand today. I buy the big 1 lb bags of washed kale pieces to make kale chips, and I buy 1 lb ready-made coleslaw shreds (shredded cabbage and carrots) for my fruit and vegetable (shredded apple, cabbage and lettuce tossed with seasoned rice vinegar) nori rolls.
Peel and/or clean everything, and chop into small pieces. Warm a small amount of butter in the bottom of a soup pot so that the vegetable don't stick while you saute them.
Put everything into the pot and cook on low heat. My stove works in 1/2 increments between "low" and 9, with 5 being medium. I cooked the vegetables on 2. Put the lid on the pot and let the vegetables cook until they have all softened, stirring periodically to help achieve even heating. When everything is tender, add broth and/or water to cover, and then more depending on how much soup you want. I used two 14-oz cans of vegetable broth and 4 cans of water (56 oz).
Simmer the soup for a couple of hours to let the flavors develop. When you think it's almost done, add salt and pepper to taste. I had this without any added seasonings and it was delicious.
I intentionally left out tomatoes. Tomatoes are acidic, and in combination with the effects of cabbage on some our guts, I thought it best to keep the soup mild.
The finished soup is easy to adapt to my family's individual flavor preferences with garnishes. My husband likes hot sauce, cheese and bacon on his, and one of the boys
*For a comfort-food texture, use an immersion blender on its lowest speed (after the soup has cooled!!!) to puree the mixture just a bit.
*Instead of potatoes, add 1/4-1/2 cup lentils as a thickener and a protein contribution.
*Milk, condensed milk, or coconut milk added toward the end of the cooking time will add extra richness.
*Diced green onions or cooked and crumbled bacon made gorgeous and tasty garnishes, and shredded cheese on top of a serving adds another layer of heartiness.
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