Christmas 2014 and Broiled Tomatoes

We just had a great Christmas. I finally made the Turkey Gumbo Christmas Eve. Mom made the Potato Salad; and we gathered at Mom and Dad to enjoy the meal, exchange gifts and sleep over. Everyone ate light for some reason? We had lots of leftovers. Maybe they were saving room for the baked goodies I made. I fancied up some boxed dark chocolate brownies with white chocolate and candy canes. I also made Eggnog Cheesecake Muffins. Both were very easy and went over very well. More on that soon.

Christmas day we had another brunch because dear sister went in to work about noon. We made great recipes from Cuisine at Home and Foodista. Mom made her Broiled Tomatoes too. It was a delicious brunch!

The Eggs Benedict Breakfast Bread Pudding was from the November/December 2014 issue of Cuisine at home. It was so pretty, fluffy and light. It really did taste light eggs benedict. I had my doubts because the recipe called for spinach, but you really didn't taste the spinach and it added so much color to the dish. The only adjustments we made was to eliminate added salt and the wine it called for in the hollandaise sauce. We did not miss either, the ham and Parmesan had plenty of salt to season the dish. Using water in the hollandaise instead of wine worked out fine too. It called for both vinegar and lemon juice. I think the sauce would have been too acidic had we used the wine. I would definitely make this casserole again but I would try to cut the recipe in half. It made a ton!

The Winter Fruit Salad from Foodista was so pretty! It looked so "Christmasy". The mint and pomegranates almost looked like holly. The citrus dressing was delicious with the pears and apples. Just a delicious combination. We did take a short cut and used a jar of mandarin orange instead of supreming oranges. We also peeled the pears because their skin was a little over ripe and not a pretty light green as in the Foodista photo. It was still a very pretty salad. I would make this again too. I told Mom it would make a great pot luck dish for a Christmas party. We are going to enjoy having this recipe in our recipe box.

Mom's Broiled Tomatoes are so easy. She has been making them or some variation for years. I think it was dear sister's favorite. Mom said she makes them basically two ways; sliced like she did for brunch or as halves. Either way they are delicious. We used Swiss cheese this time because it is lower in sodium than other cheeses, but you can use mozzarella too. I need to make these more often. They make a great side for a variety of dishes.

Broiled Tomatoes
Serves 4

Ingredients

4 ripe tomatoes, sliced
6 oz. Swiss or Mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 slices pre-cooked bacon, chopped

Directions

Slice off both ends of the each tomato, then slice each tomato into 3 slices. Place tomato slices on a baking sheet. Top each tomato slice with cheese and chopped bacon. Turn on the broiler. Place baking sheet under broiler and broil until cheese is melted, bubbling and beginning to brown. Watch closely it happens really fast. Serve hot. Also delicious at room temperature.

Christmas evening we had planned to make a beef roast for sandwiches but like I said we had so many leftovers. We decided to wait until the weekend so we could really enjoy it. Instead we made an appetizer and had more Turkey Gumbo. The appetizer was from Holly Clegg's Trim and Terrific Cookbook. Her Shrimp, Artichoke and Avocado Dip was so different. When Mom had suggested the recipe I thought whoa that is a lot going on. It had two bunches of green onion, grainy mustard, ketchup, artichokes, avocado and shrimp. I was a little worried about the onions and mustard overpowering everything. But I was so wrong. It is delicious. Very well balanced. It made a great appetizer. It would also make a great addition to a salad plate. Another great new recipe for this family.

See I told you we had a great Christmas! I hope you and yours did too. Wishing you a great New Year as well.

Linking to:
Ms. enPlace: See Ya in the Gumbo