Holiday Herb Blogging - Recap

It's appropriate that for an event that celebrates the holiday season, we have entries to suit just about every course.


Starters:

Roasted Tomato, Basil and Goat Cheese Holiday Spread


Weekend Herb Blogging's CEO Kalyn from Kalyn's Kitchen provides us with a great way to start our Holiday gatherings. It may well be winter but Kalyn's clever planning has insured she can still enjoy the taste of summer. Not only is this spread made from roasted tomatoes, basil and goat cheese, it even has Christmas colours!


Mains:

Mediterranean Angus Beef Steak


From Manilla, Ning from Heart and Hearth finds inspiration from the Mediterranean. To complement special Angus Beef Steaks, Ning creates a tangy topping of olives, capers, garlic and onion.


Biriyani


In India, Sra from When My Soup Came Alive offers up a curry leaf infused Biriyani. In this dish, you'll find Chicken, cinnamon and coriander as well as coconut milk - a perfect dish for sharing.


Potato Mussakà

Tatiana from Florence offers up a quick dish of Potato Mussakà for which you could easily adapt to use that Christmas Turkey or Chicken.


Brined Quail with Agresto Sauce


My own offering for those that are cooking for the few rather than the masses. Quails are soaked in a herb infused brine for a few hours and then roasted until golden. To finish they are tossed through Agresto Sauce, a pesto-like sauce that dates from the middle ages.


Salads:

Psares (Ψαρές)


In Crete we find Maria from Organically Cooked and she shares with us a local ingredient called Psares. A member of the pea family, Psares is traditionally eaten during the 40 day fasting period before Christmas. Check out Maria's post to find out more.


Vegetables:

Gailan (Chinie Broccoli) in Oyster Sauce, Two Ways


TS and JS from [eating club] vancouver serve up, not one but two ways to enjoy Gailan (Chinese Broccoli). The one you see here uses a sasagaki cutting method and unbelievable only 3 ingredients. For the second way, you'll have to read their post!


Cauliflower au Gratin


Moving over to Toronto, Elizabeth from Blog from Our Kitchen discovers that you can actually improve cauliflower au gratin - there are two special ingredients one of which is the Bay Laurel, the other, well, I don't want to spoil the surprise.


Dessert:

Apricot Summer Soup


Anna from Morsels and Musings in Sydney creates an intriguing Apricot Summer soup - made from a mix of semi-dried apricots and amardine. As it is rich, Anna recommends serving it in small portions - it makes an ideal pre-dessert.


Low-Fat Cranberry Creme Brulee


Yasmeen from Health Nut proves you can have your brulee and eat it too with this delectable low fat version of a sinful delight. I think we can now justify having two!


Kumquat and Rice Cake


Marija from Palachinka offers up a creamy flan for our festive table. Milk is infused with clementine peel, cloves and cinnamon and this flavoured milk is used to cook the rice. Diced clementines are added to the rice mix which is then topped with sliced kumquats and baked. I can just imagine how wonderful this must taste and how wonderful your house must smell while it's baking.

Beverages:

Glögg or Glüwien



The lovely Brii from Briiblog from the equally lovely Lake Garda in Italy provides us with a classic holiday beverage - Glögg or Glüwien. If it's cold and miserable where you are, then this will surely warm you up. Brii shares with us three delightful versions - White and Red Glögg and Glüwien and even gives us some gift ideas.


Liquore Centerbe


Cinzia from Cindystar is also from Lake Garda offers one of my favourite digestives - Liquore Centerbe (which translates to Liqueur of a hundred herbs). This home made liqueur does take some time to make, so start in summer and by Christmas it will be ready. Cinzia uses a mix of herbs that include basil, laurel, mint, camomile and liquorice root just to name a few.


Sweet Treats:

Chocolate Covered Pomegranate Seeds


I think we can all heartily agree with Cheryl from Gluten Free Goodness that everything tastes better covered in chocolate! Even though Cheryl hasn't been feeling the best she still manages to whip up some treats for our holiday feast.


Thank you to all who took part, we have a truly scrumptious table in which to feast.

Thank you to the hosts that generously give of their time and thank you to everyone that has taken part throughout the year. For seeking out those different ingredients or finding new ways to cook old favourites, thank you for your continued inspiration. Thanks must also go to Kalyn for creating this wonderful event.

Weekend Herb Blogging has a one week break and resumes December 29th - there has been a change of hosts due to illness, so I will fill in for Maybelle's Mom, please keep her in your thoughts for a speedy recovery - you can find out the hosting details here.