Christmas in a ski condo. Please help me cook.
December 19, 2013 7:08 PM Subscribe
Spending Xmas at a shared ski condo, and not sure how to plan. Apparently folks share the (poorly equipped) kitchen, so I can't monopolize it for hours on end, and people don't usually share meals.
We're driving up, so I can bring anything. My knives are a given. I've got an amazing corn chowder that I'll make here and take with ... what else would be good for the holidays? Want to keep things simple but everything SEEMS simple in my own kitchen and I do want a certain amount of festivity.
Besides the chowder, what I'm planning so far is bread dough (easy to bake there), possibly cinnamon rolls for Xmas morning, eggs for easy omelets and some pork rillette because it's already in the freezer. I thought maybe a ham for Xmas dinner and to nosh on. There are naturally (expensive) grocery stores and of course restaurants in the area, but I'd like to not spend a fortune unnecessarily. We're there five days... suggestions?
We're driving up, so I can bring anything. My knives are a given. I've got an amazing corn chowder that I'll make here and take with ... what else would be good for the holidays? Want to keep things simple but everything SEEMS simple in my own kitchen and I do want a certain amount of festivity.
Besides the chowder, what I'm planning so far is bread dough (easy to bake there), possibly cinnamon rolls for Xmas morning, eggs for easy omelets and some pork rillette because it's already in the freezer. I thought maybe a ham for Xmas dinner and to nosh on. There are naturally (expensive) grocery stores and of course restaurants in the area, but I'd like to not spend a fortune unnecessarily. We're there five days... suggestions?
Do a simple spaghetti sauce. Make it ahead and freeze it in Ziploc bags.
posted by xingcat at 7:34 PM on December 19, 2013
posted by xingcat at 7:34 PM on December 19, 2013
Do you like seafood? Bring a bag of cooked, frozen cocktail shrimp. Maybe some nice salmon fillets.
Or--a traditional meal in skiing cultures--fondue! If you don't have a fondue set, you can get an inexpensive one (there may even be one at the cabin) and some cans of Sterno. Swiss fondue consists of Swiss cheese (use supermarket shredded or splurge on Emmenthaler and a little Gruyere) with white wine or Kirsch and a little cornstarch and nutmeg, and dip bread and boiled potato cubes and apple slices in it with long forks. There are also recipes that involve cooking raw meat in simmering broth, and my mother used to make one with tomato sauce, cheese, and chianti.
posted by tully_monster at 9:49 PM on December 19, 2013
Or--a traditional meal in skiing cultures--fondue! If you don't have a fondue set, you can get an inexpensive one (there may even be one at the cabin) and some cans of Sterno. Swiss fondue consists of Swiss cheese (use supermarket shredded or splurge on Emmenthaler and a little Gruyere) with white wine or Kirsch and a little cornstarch and nutmeg, and dip bread and boiled potato cubes and apple slices in it with long forks. There are also recipes that involve cooking raw meat in simmering broth, and my mother used to make one with tomato sauce, cheese, and chianti.
posted by tully_monster at 9:49 PM on December 19, 2013
take your own compact dish drainer/rack so your knives aren't appropriated as community property.
posted by tilde at 11:25 PM on December 19, 2013
posted by tilde at 11:25 PM on December 19, 2013
Chili, absolutely. It's extremely easy to tailor to dietary restrictions (already gluten free, can be vegan without any real loss of taste or quality, heat level can be easily adjusted to the audience), it takes one pot, and the ingredients are cheap.
Plus almost everyone loves some chili and cornbread. Can't really go wrong unless there's a constellation of really difficult dietary restrictions. Twenty minutes of prep and you can just leave it bubbling on a burner while filling the whole place with lovely smells.
(Pro chef here. Chili is one of my favourite things ever, and is what I am making for my birthday dinner in a couple of weeks).
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 1:39 AM on December 20, 2013
Plus almost everyone loves some chili and cornbread. Can't really go wrong unless there's a constellation of really difficult dietary restrictions. Twenty minutes of prep and you can just leave it bubbling on a burner while filling the whole place with lovely smells.
(Pro chef here. Chili is one of my favourite things ever, and is what I am making for my birthday dinner in a couple of weeks).
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 1:39 AM on December 20, 2013
Second chilli...it is a staple on my ski trips. Lasagna is also a good idea.
And this may be a derail but you really should attempt to cook group meals at least for some of the dinners. We usually take turns cooking for the whole crowd. If you don't do this I find you end up with tons of leftovers.
posted by mmascolino at 9:01 PM on December 21, 2013
And this may be a derail but you really should attempt to cook group meals at least for some of the dinners. We usually take turns cooking for the whole crowd. If you don't do this I find you end up with tons of leftovers.
posted by mmascolino at 9:01 PM on December 21, 2013
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posted by fingersandtoes at 7:26 PM on December 19, 2013