Christmas Classics

The single item I crave all year long?

CHRISTMAS GOOSE

You need:

1 fresh goose (a 20 pounder is enough for 8 adults)
salt to taste
4 cups wild rice, cooked in advance
2/3 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
2 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and chopped
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons ground savory
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups water

How it gets done:

Mix together the cooked rice, nuts, apples, onion, and herbs. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Remove the neck, heart, and gizzard from the goose. Wash the bird inside and out. Pat dry then fill the cavity of the goose with the stuffing. Use skewers to close the cavity, and lace string around the skewers then truss the bird.

Roast on a roasting rack in a deep roasting pan at 325 degree F, breast side down for 1 1/2 hours. Draw off the fat as it accumulates. Turn, and roast another 1 1/2 hours. When done, the juices should run clear when the bird is pricked where the thigh attaches to the body. Remove trussing strings and skewers and allow to rest on a platter for 15 minutes before carving.

While the goose is roasting, place the neck, heart, and gizzard in a saucepan with water. Simmer gently, partially covered for two hours or until reduced to slightly less than 2 cups of liquid. Season the broth to taste with salt.

Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the roasting pan. Sprinkle a little flour over the bottom of the roasting pan, 1 to 2 tablespoons, depending on how thick you like your gravy. Set the pan over low heat. Stir for 2 minutes, scraping up all the browned bits. Add the reserved goose broth to the pan, and whisk until smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve in a gravy boat alongside the bird.

There are always a couple of folks in the crowd who "don't eat goose" so I have to make something else to go along side of it (instead of putting them in a head lock and forcing a chunk of goose meat into their mouths). Just about everyone who has eaten a goose I made loves it but why belabor the point? Besides, it means there will be more goose for those of us who love it! So go get a ham and some root beer and make...

ROOT BEER GLAZED HAM

What you need for the glaze:

6 bottles root beer, the good stuff. Tommy Knockers, IBC, or other high quality root beer.
1 red apple, seeded and cubed
1 green apple, seeded and cubed
1 cup red seedless grapes
1/2 orange, peeled and sliced
1/2 tsp ground cloves
cracked black pepper to taste
1 tsp ground sassafras (File' for those from down South)

Git'r Dun:

Put the apples, grapes, orange and cloves in a large heavy-bottom pot. Add root beer and dust with cracked black pepper and ground sassafras. Bring to a rolling boil and reduce to simmer for approximately 1 hour or until root beer is reduced to a thick syrup. Some folks fish out the chunks of fruit, I use a stick blender and mix them into the glaze before it gets too thick. Remove glaze from heat and set aside.

Next do this using:

Ham, shank or butt, not spiral cut, Smithfield if you can get it. I get an 8-ish pound ham to ensure there will be leftovers!
1/2 cup root beer glaze
1 cup Creole or whole grain mustard
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Steen's Cane syrup
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup cracked black pepper
pinch of ground cinnamon
pinch of ground nutmeg
pinch of ground allspice
pinch of ground clove

Finish the job:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, combine all of the above ingredients except the ham. Using a wire whisk, blend all spices into the mustard mixture until well incorporated. Place ham in center of a roasting pan and coat completely with the sweet mustard mixture. Bake uncovered for 1 hour. Got left over glaze? Find a mason jar and hold on to that for later, great on pork chops too!

Make sure to have a nice assortment of bread and cheese on hand to help dispatch the left over ham. Also killer as a ham steak with hash browns and eggs for breakfast or brunch!

The goose and the ham have been served and everyone has slept off their early supper and they have started raiding the kitchen for left overs. Need an over the top appetizer or heavy horse-doover? Here's one that is super rich, not too hard to make, and the taste is out of this world!

STUFFED MUSHROOMS NEPTUNE

What you need:

15-20 Large fresh mushrooms, I use large Oyster mushrooms
1 (8 ounce) pkg cream cheese, softened
1 (6 oz) can tiny shrimp
1 (6 oz) can crab meat
1/2 cup grated sharp Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 clove garlic, crushed
green onion, finely chopped
ground black pepper

How you do it:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Clean mushrooms and remove stems (but make sure you use the stems in something else, why let em go to waste?) and set aside.

Drain the shrimp and crab then combine all ingredients for the stuffing in a bowl using a spoon or spatula. Fill each mushroom cap with the stuffing. Bake at 375F on a baking sheet for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Makes about 15 to 20 depending on the size of the mushrooms. If you are like me you will try to eat most of them on your own, go easy on these! Three or four is enough.