baby rambutan

annual cookie gifts from good friends…these are so detailed and delicious(gingerbread cookies)!

i doubled the recipe for the kids’ beloved schwarzwalder torte, which i made with almonds again this time…this was meant to be a 4 layer torte but. i got too distracted and didn’t realize the lowest third rack was too near the bottom. result: burnt charred black disc. tossed. but i got an impromptu kiss from daughter when she saw the cake. :)
beef wellington is one of those dishes on my “to do wish list.” i had a bite of this fancy beef en croute and it was such an unforgettable taste that i knew i had to try and make it someday. i finally did it today from a recipe from waitrose.com, which i followed to the last tidbit.

trim a 3& 1/2 lb. beef tenderloin (or get one already trimmed…it’s going to cost a lot more though!), roll and truss to keep it shapely, then brown.

prepare duxelles (finely chopped mushrooms and shallots sauteed and then seasoned with salt and pepper, and heavy cream); drape with prepared crepes and wrap in puff pastry.

glaze with egg wash and decorate if you wish with cut out shapes from the left over pastry.

bake in preheated 400F oven for 35 minutes. (meat thermometer should register at least 140F for medium rare).

photography is yukky. i was in a tizzy by this time, the party was all abuzz around me and trying to sneak a photo was tricky. but the beef turned out tender and juicy, husband said no need for steak knives even–it was that tender.
the only thing i’d change for the next time (which will be soon because there is none left and daughter regrets she didn’t get to try–too busy hanging out with cousins!) is to dry the mushrooms more and i think i’ll do away with the crepes– they didn’t really enhance the dish and got a bit soggy.
i even forgot to take a photo of the corn chive pudding–a delectable side dish i made in place of potatoes (you see a portion of it to the right of the beef in photo above).

it was a warm and cozy celebration, with our annual family “yankee swap“ which we left up to #2 son who scored a boxed set of cute reindeer mugs with a “lucky money” envelope inside.

thank you to all my sweet and kind blogger friends who left me messages and emails. it has been such a treat …i wish you all a peaceful new year and many more fond blogging adventures ahead…

This entry was posted on Monday, December 26th, 2005 at 8:32 am and is filed under doodles, mammals, sweets for my sweets. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.