50+ Lifestyles

Entertaining for the Holidays

By Chef David
Ridgecrest Village

Meal preparation during the holidays, whether it be for a festive family dinner, or a small gathering of friends to celebrate the season, can be full of fun and creativity, while at the same time perhaps a stressful burden on the host. The goal of any gathering is to enjoy the time with guests. This enjoyment can deteriorate if the hosts feel they are spending too much time tending to meal preparation. Some hosts become overburdened with the worry of meal timing and when to put things in and out of the oven, and the concern over the mounting pile of pots and pans in the kitchen sink which leave a post gathering cleanup no one wants to deal with. The goal of the following recipes is to provide an economical meal solution, with most preparations completed hours before guest arrival so that there is minimal attention required during the hour just preceding the meal, and the least amount of cleanup afterwards. Sounds almost as ideal as having someone else do the cooking and cleaning for you!

For a complete meal, we have arranged two vegetable options, a festive pecan and cranberry sweet potato dish, and a rosemary pork roast full of holiday aroma, without the high cost and worry of beef – whether it is rare or well done enough to each guests’ individual tastes. Each recipe should prepare enough for 8 guests, and are all items which could be prepared the morning of the gathering and ready to put in the oven in stages during the time before the meal. For ease of cooking, all items can be cooked in a 375 degree oven, so as to reduce the time management worry of when to raise or lower the oven temperature. The below recipes are ordered by the length of cooking time (longest first).

Roast pork with Rosemary
prep time 20 minutes, cooking time 2 – 2.5 hours
4 lb. Pork Roast
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic (minced)
¼ cup fresh rosemary
1 tsp salt,
½ tsp black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Rub the roast OR tenderloin liberally with olive oil, then spread the garlic over it. Place it in a 10×15 inch roasting pan, season with salt & pepper and sprinkle with the rosemary.
3. Bake at 375° F (190° C) for 2 hours, or until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 145° F (63° C). Let rest 15 minutes before carving.
Pecan and cranberry sweet potatoes
prep time 25 minutes, cooking time 30 minutes – place in oven after pork has been cooking 1 hour 45 minutes.
3 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced (approximately 5)
1 cup dried cranberries (craisins)
½ tsp salt
½ cup pecans,
½ cup brown sugar,
1 tbsp cinnamon,
½ cup butter
1. Peel and slice sweet potatoes 1/2 inch thick. Bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch the potato slices for approximately 10 minutes – tender but not mushy soft.
2. Drain potatoes and toss with butter to melt. Stir in brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and mix thoroughly. Mix in dried cranberries and pecans, and arrange in dutch oven baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for 15 more minutes or until tender.

Lemon buttered asparagus
prep time 10 minutes, cooking time 15 minutes – place in oven when pork is removed from oven to rest
3 lb. asparagus – remove the bottom 2 inches, or the purple
woody part of the aspraragus stem;
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp lemon juice
4 tbsp butter
1. Melt butter, mix with lemon juice, salt, and olive oil
2. Mix seasoned oil and butter with asparagus, arrange asparagus in 10X13 baking pan and roast for approximately 15 minutes

Roasted mushrooms
prep time 15 minutes, cooking time 15 minutes – start sauté pan on the stove 10 minutes before removing pork from oven
3 lb. whole button mushrooms
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme
¼ cup cooking sherry or white wine
1. Wash and drain mushrooms thoroughly.
2. Heat olive oil in sauté pan on high heat. Add mushrooms and stir. Add salt & thyme, sauté for approximately 5 minutes. Add sherry or white wine and stir mushrooms. Continue cooking on high heat for approximately 3 minutes. Pour into serving piece.

To try some of Chef Dave’s cooking and tour Ridgecrest Village, contact Mary, Diana or Bob at (563) 388-3215. We here at Ridgecrest wish you and yours the best December has to offer and a blessed New Year.