Last night we ordered in, thinking the snowy nor’easter meant our local restaurants would be in even worse shape than usual. The poor deliveryman got lost—riding a moped, not in a car—and by the time he arrived, we’d spoken on the phone so many times he felt like an old friend. Both he and the bags holding our food were caked in melting snow. Can you imagine, riding around a snow-deluged city, exposed to the elements in 50mph winds? I wanted to pull him into our apartment and warm him up with a mug of cocoa. Instead we gave him a 50% tip and sent him back out into the storm. This world is very unfair.
It’s also not fair that the holidays this year look nothing like normal. Last-minute shopping means paying for overnight shipping or settling for whatever gift-like thing you can find locally, without spending too much time indoors. Pretty hard to be light-hearted these days. I know, I know… Here I go again. I will never not be angry at what we’re being forced to live through.
For next week’s menu, I tried to balance what those of us who celebrate Christmas might want with the needs of everyone else. I included several meals with flexible ingredients, and two options for the Big Christmas Dinner—even if you’re not a Christmas person, I think you’ll have fun cooking from-scratch manicotti.
Here’s the menu:
SUNDAY: Make a double-batch of the crepes from Thursday’s manicotti recipe (make the sauce too, if you like). Cool the crepes completely, then wrap each batch tightly in plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate. If you fear they’ll stick together, separate the crepes with layers of wax paper or parchment.
MONDAY: DIY Savory Crepes with a salad. No recipe tonight, folks. This is a super-flexible meal using one batch of those crepes: Cook some vegetables like sliced mushrooms, spinach, and bell pepper, maybe an onion. Crisp up a bit of bacon, ham, or sausage if you like. Lay the crepes out and place some melty or creamy cheese plus vegetables and optional meat down the center of each. Roll and place in a baking dish, and bake at 350 until heated through. Got picky kids? You can’t go wrong with fruit and Nutella or jam. (Those won’t need baking—just reheat the crepes briefly in a skillet, fill, and serve.)
TUESDAY:
Easy Vegetable Lo Mein from Simply Recipes. This recipe is written with kids in mind, so you know it’s flexible. Consider the vegetables to be suggestions—you can use almost anything that appeals to you.
WEDNESDAY: Quick Mushroom-Barley Soup from MyRecipes with bread. Just the thing for a wintry weeknight—a soup that eats like a meal. I always add some diced rutabaga to my mushroom-barley soup, so I’ve included it in the ingredients list. If you’d like to have soup for lunches, make a double-batch.
CHRISTMAS EVE:
Manicotti from Epicurious with a salad. You’ve already got the crepes and maybe the sauce, too, so tonight you just fill and bake. If you simply must have meat for Christmas, go with a Roasted Pork with Sage, Rosemary, and Garlic, and roast some potatoes and carrots at the same time. (NOTE: I’m not including the pork or roasted vegetables in the shopping list, so adjust if you’re opting for this over the manicotti.)
CHRISTMAS DAY: Christmas Strata from Three Many Cooks with either vegetable or fruit salad. A strata is like a savory bread pudding, so it’s perfect for brunch after opening gifts or serving for dinner if that’s not your jam. This recipe is intended to feed the kind of Christmas crowd you’d normally expect—so you’ll either have plenty of leftovers for lunches, or you can freeze enough for a meal on a night when you just. can’t. cook.
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Here’s the shopping list:
Produce
Vegetables for crepe filling, such as mushrooms, baby spinach, bell pepper, cherry tomatoes (M)
Salad fixings for 2 or 3 salads (M, Th, F)
18-24 oz. cremini mushrooms (M, T, W)
1 red bell pepper (T)
3 carrots (T, W)
1 small head napa cabbage (T)
1 bunch scallions (T, F)
2 medium onions (W, Th)
3 cloves garlic (Th)
1 bunch basil (Th)
1 bunch parsley (Th)
Fruit for crepe filling, optional (M)
Fruit for fruit salad, optional (F)
Pantry
Olive oil (M, T, W, Th)
Vinegar, for salad dressing (M, Th)
Nutella or jam, optional (M)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (M, Th)
Sugar (Th)
Sesame seeds, optional (T)
Dried oregano (W)
Dried thyme (W)
1/4 cup soy sauce (T)
Hoisin sauce (T)
Sesame oil (T)
10 oz. lo mein noodles OR spaghetti or other strand pasta (T)
1 cup pearl barley (W)
24 oz. low-sodium chicken OR vegetable broth (W)
2 (28-oz.) cans Italian tomatoes in juice (Th)
1 jar roasted red peppers (F)
1 (4.5-oz.) can diced green chiles (F)
Meat Counter
Bacon, ham, or sausage, optional (M, F)
Dairy
20 large eggs (M, Th)
Unsalted butter (M, Th)
Melty or creamy cheese for crepe filling, such as gruyere, fontina, mozzarella, goat, even cream cheese (M)
2 lb. ricotta (Th)
1 oz. Parmesan (Th)
8 oz. fresh mozzarella (Th)
12 oz. pepper jack cheese (F)
1 quart half-and-half (F)
Bakery
Crusty bread (W)
1 baguette (F)
Freezer Case
Shelled edamame, optional (T)
On Saturday, paying subscribers will get the details on how it all comes together.
Stay safe, be kind, wash your hands, and wear a mask.
Debbie