Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas Eve to all. We spent the day delivering gifts to friends both human and canine. Tonight we had our version of the feast of the seven fishes, with one fish. But we started with a special drink and pate we bought at Fauchon’s in France, a cheddar and Saga Blue from Wegmans. I found this drink in the Washington Post. I told Jim I would love to have a special drink if I didn’t have to make it. Jim agreed to make it. It took him longer to make this drink than it took to get the hors de horves ready and cook the main course. It is the equivalent of hanging pictures. The man is going to hang the pictures and he gets on the ladder. “Bring me the hammer.” Bring me the nail”, etc.
Bitter French, 1 serving
Ingredients:
Ice
1 oz gin
½ oz. Simple syrup (have ready)
½ oz freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (have ready)
¼ oz Campari
Chilled sparkling wine, preferably champagne
Twist of grapefruit peel, for garnish
Steps:
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add the gin, simple syrup, grapefruit juice and Campari. Shake will, and then strain into a champagne flute. Flute must hold 6 oz.
2. Top with about 3 oz of sparkling wine. Garnish with the twist.
Perfect color for Christmas; also it went very well with pate and cheese.

I love the feast of the seven fishes on Christmas Eve, but with only two of us, I substituted Seared Scallops with Cauliflower, Brown Butter and Basil from Fine Cooking, December. This was a dream dish; easy to prepare and delicious
Serves 4
Ingredients:
3 T EVOO
1 small head of cauliflower (1#) trimmed and cut into bite-sized florets
1# sea scallop
2 T unsalted butter
1 large shallot, minced
½ C vermouth
Salt and pepper
8 large fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
Directions:
1. Heat 1 T EVOO in a 12” non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering hot. Add the cauliflower and cook. Stirring often, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
2. Add the remaining 2 T oil to the skillet. When shimmering hot, add the scallops in a single layer. (Have a wire mesh cover between you and the pan and use long pinchers to put the scallops in the pan and later turn. ) Cook until golden brown about 2 minutes. Turn and cook an additional 2 minutes. Don’t worry they are done. Cook too much and you will have rubber bands.
3. Swirl butter into the skillet, add the shallot and cook, stirring often until the shallot softens and butter begins to brown. Only about a minute.
4. Add the vermouth and bring to a boil. (This is instant) Return the cauliflower to the pan and scrape the brown off the bottom with a wooden spoon. Cover and cook, stirring often for 6 minutes. (Recipe says to add salt and pepper now. I added when I first browned the cauliflower. I believe in early seasoning, or do it on your plate)
5. Return scallops to the pan and toss to heat through, about 1 minute. Remove to a platter or plates and sprinkle with the basil.
I want to like cauliflower, but mostly I am disappointed. This scallops and cauliflower combination was fabulous. The cauliflower tasted sweet against the scallops. Recipe rating is 4 stars.
It is Christmas Eve; we had a Domaine Dublere, Chablis Les Preuses, Grand Cru, 2007 from Bourgongne. French Chablis is a favorite and they don’t come any better than this. Locally it is carried by Schneider’s of Capitol Hill.
Dessert is cookies from yesterday and ice cream.