It is! Sous vide turkey boobies all the way for me in the future.
The skin will never be like the bonafide roast method, but close.
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Yes… Sunshine really enjoyed her duck last year. I got it at Walmart, they usually have them around the holiday season, but not during the rest of the year.
This year Thanksgiving was postponed (for health reasons). We are going to have the Turkey breast, stuffing, etc. on Christmas.
Edited to add picture (last year’s duck – roasted)
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If you want to try your hand at homemade gravlax, it’s quite simple and very hands-off for the most part – 5-10 mins set up, and then the time at the end to slice (which is expedited by a very sharp knife).
I was inspired to try by @Scubadoo97 a few years ago, and it’s been a regular thing since because it’s so easy and fun to play with.
Most recent batch was a return to basics, but the beet-tinged spree of last year was very pretty!
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You’re very welcome. That 5hr duck came out absolutely perfect.
Oh, and here’s a plate of gravlax I made for a potluck a few years ago.
The slicing is the biggest PITA if you don’t have a razor-sharp knife (I’m dropping mine off today for its annual tuneup 
), but I prefer very delicate slices over thicker ones.
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We’ve moved our family feast to the weekend after Christmas due to the scattering of the fam this year, plus there is a big birthday happening that weekend, so we can tie it all together.
Xmas eve (day) used to be treks to SF: Fisherman’s Wharf, FAO Schwarz, Union Square and then to Spenger’s on the way home to pick up quarts of clam chowder and those incredible sour dough loaves of those days. Also a pound or two of salad shrimp was picked up for shrimp & avocado salad for the next day.
In recent years, we’ve been having a nice and calm cioppino dinner (with all those great seafood goodies I put away the last few months). It may be just us two for Christmas eve, or just me and les chats (the roomate is on the road some holidays). The cioppino WILL be made. Les chats don’t care for seafood…more for the humans! Christmas dinner for one or two will most likely be l.o. cioppino and gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches or swiss cheese toasties. Then 3 days later…
The the big feast…KISS this year. I’m too old and tired to go all out, as I have in the past, and the darlings don’t contribute, like we used to do when we were going to the in and outlaws, for holiday meals. Our two adult offspring are great cooks, one is even a former chef, but they BUY all their their meals and get take out because they are too tired and too involved to spend the time to produce a sit down meal. One will bring a six pack of something to share with dad, the other will do the dishes, so I guess it works out.
Christmas dinner in the late afternoon will be à la grandma at the grandparents’ home, (which can hold a crowd, plus we have a nice slope for sledding or sauce-ring). A purchased mega pan of frozen lasagne (cooked, of course) tossed greens in a salad with lots of add ins (artichoke hearts, carrot curls, I guess no cukes this year, yellow bell pepper slices, some more veg of color), maybe some ‘cado. Homemade garlic bread (from homemade extra-risen pizza dough) and coconut snowball cupcakes for dessert. Kid’s champagne (sparkling ciders and non alcoholic bubblies) and hot mocoa with dessert. ‘Wild Mushroom’ brie en croute and crax for a starter. That’s the plan and I’m stickin’ with it. For now. We’ll see. No pressure, it is after the holiday.
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I work in neonatal intensive care, so it’s generally fairly busy. But the department does its best to ensure babies and staff have a good day. A couple of my colleagues who aren’t working will dress up as ‘Santa’ and his ‘elf’ and distribute small gifts to the babies and staff. The babies obviously haven’t a clue but their parents usually appreciate it. A charity called Sophie’s Legacy provides a sit-down Christmas lunch for the staff. A couple of years ago we were just sitting down to eat our Christmas lunch at work when there was a crash call to the operating theatre for an extremely premature delivery, so that was that. But the matron does a collection from senior staff in early December and uses the funds to provide a massive supply of snacky food and drink which is laid out on tables in one of the training rooms from December 24th to January 1st. It also includes gifts of refreshments from families and sometimes gifts from other hospitals whose babies we’ve looked after (eg. fudge made from Jersey cream sent from the hospital in St Helier). So if we’re feeling peckish we can nip into the ‘Room of Food’ and find a sweet or savoury snack and a hot or cold drink.
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Thanks for the ideas and resources relating to preparing duck as well as gravlax. I’ve never made gravlax but it looks quite doable and when I showed my son your photos in the thread above he was very interested in giving it a go. Let’s see if I can find some salmon nice enough for this project - might have to look in Waitrose.
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Shredded, it makes a fab addition to risotto or braised cabbage.
As a non-pork eater, I’d love to try this.
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Love cioppino as a Christmas or a company meal. I like prepping the broth base ahead of time and refrigerating, then cooking the seafood in the reheated broth just before serving.
I hope you post yours when you make it, yum.
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Great idea. And best wishes for a non-eventful Xmas Day. And have a great Boxing Day.
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I guess Dungeness crab will not be in my cioppino for xmas eve😥
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Came upon this holiday baking travel tip while brushing up on TSA. Fun how they included names and airports.
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Did you mean to post this here?
Well, sure. If you’re holiday baking and traveling with baked goods, these TSA tips come in handy. K.
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I asked since there’s so many other threads specifically related to holiday baking, holiday treats, shipping holiday foods, traveling with foods, etc. that might be better suited… whereas this thread is specifically about menu planning for xmas 
Here’s how the menus are shaping up so far. Need to consult with DH to make sure his favorites are covered:
Christmas Eve
Brie en croute with TJ’s sour cherry jam possibly just using crescent roll dough w/baguette crostini
Seared steak
Steamed broccoli
Earl Grey-glazed pear frangipane tart (prepared TJ’s crust) – some variation on https://www.marcuswareing.com/recipes/apricot-almond-and-earl-grey-tart and the glaze from https://pin.it/4asi4tOev w/vanilla ice cream
Bubbly, Napa cab
Christmas
Dirty martini dip [half recipe] w/ crackers and crudites
Relish tray (olives, pickled okra, gardiniera, spicy cornichons)
Shrimp cocktail w/spicy cocktail sauce
Dr. Pepper glazed spiral-cut ham
Peg’s yeast rolls
Duchesse potatoes in a baking dish
Green bean casserole w/crispy shallots
Sauteed shredded Brussels sprouts w/lemon oo
cranberry sauce
Lemon chiffon pie w/Biscoff-ginger crust
Bûche de noël (purchased)
Bubbly, French GSM
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Adventurous!
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My husband: “Sounds delicious but like a lot. We may need to pare it down.” I think it’s doable if I start now.
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The salmon filet (just under 2 lbs) has been purchased from our local fishmonger & will start its curing process today. I need to find the “recipe” I’ve used a few times before, and I still need to buy a few bushels of dill 
Black Tiger shrimp at Aldi have also been bought for the big-ass shrimp cocktail — unless I think of a fancier way to serve them — suggestions welcome.
Nueske’s smoked duck breasts have arrived, DiBruno’s cheese trio are waiting patiently in the fridge, and we got a couple of bottles of Prosecco (one of them rosé).
My sweets will be making pistachio ice cream for either xmas eve or xmas day at our friends’ house, and whichever day we choose will leave the Italian xmas cookies from Isgro’s for dessert.
Still have to pick up a ciabatta, but that’s probably a last minute run. Might grab a paté or truffle mousse to round it all out.
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Shrimp/prawn cocktail is a classic for a reason. Stick with it.
That was also our plan for the Xmas Day starter. However there’s a late change of plan. Mrs H, and her 3 siblings who will be here for lunch, have an aunt who lives in New Zealand. She usually send a crate of wine, ordered from Fortnum & Mason in London, to be shared out amongst everyone but, this year, she’s sent mixed goodies, including a big pack of smoked salmon. So, that’s now the starter, with soda bread which we had in, lemon wedges and a scattering of capers. The frozen prawns we’d already bought will get used in due course - I see South Asian in my cooking future.
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