Cooking for crowds is a practice in self-restraint

I realise that if you outsource half of the food for a Christmas party (or any other party, for that matter), you can still have fresh, home-prepared food on the table and with minimum hassle. Traditionally, out of sheer laziness, my parents order turkeys and assorted roasts, usually lamb and beef, from Cold Storage- they arrive cold, and we simply heat them up in the oven. Opposed as I am to reheating cooked roast, and the usually inferior quality of such preparations, laziness works, because no one, I've realised, actually gives a damn about lamb being medium-rare and turkey being moist and tender by the time they survey the spread of food. Singaporean buffet instincts take over and it's quantity over quality anytime. Even if the meat were to be impeccably prepared, I wager people would just ho-hum and offer some compliments in a very non life-changing way. So for a couple of ho-hums and compliments (more likely, nobody will notice), one would have to go through at least a week's hoary preparation and countless hours of mad worrying (is the turkey DONE, is the lamb undercooked?) and, on top of that, negotiate oven and fridge space between large, irritatingly septic cuts of meat. So yes, I happen to think that ordering roasts is a perfectly noble thing to do when catering Christmas dinner for a crowd. 

It saves the host crazymad work, freeing up time to walk around and make everyone feel comfy, serve drinks (alcohol, I think, is often more important than perfect food at large parties) and generally get into a state of mind that isn't, for lack of a better word, militant. It also leaves the host-cook lots of time to do other interesting things in the kitchen- apart from meats, sure winners and requisites at any decent buffet are soups, salads, casseroles and dessert. My family has come to a consensus about this- there is no point focusing energy on anything other than some fantabulous accoutrements, all of which we have become mini-specialists in- mushroom soup, potato salad, vegetable casserole, some random dessert, raw vegetables with dips; cushy, easy, pseudo-gourmet and reliable. No frills, no stress.

Last year, I tried my hand at making all sorts of fabulous gravies and sauces to go with the meal- I turned out a wonderful bread-sauce, made cranberry-orange sauce, a caramelised onion relish, parsley sauce and cheese sauce, most of which were untouched at the end of dinner, not because they weren't tasty (I spent several hours on Christmas afternoon making sure they were), but because no one bothers with sauces. So this year, I've decided not to bother. Except for a caramelised onion gravy, which itself is a by-product of the mushroom soup, I'm really not bothering much about over-furnishing the table. It has saved us all a great deal of money, time and energy. As my mum intones, put in more effort for smaller groups, big groups don't notice small details. 

As and when I do host an intimate gathering of friends around the table, no more than 6, I have the following menu in mind-

Appetiser

1. Bread basket with assorted cheeses, olives and patê

The bread, of course, will be a medley of my favourite beer bread and a 10-grain laof, both spectacular with sliced parmesan, or gorgonzola or bresse de bleu; certainly olive oil will not be out of the question (I have a bottle of Olio Bello kalamata olive oil, it is excellent), though I am very partial to bread and (unsalted) butter. 

2. Cocktails

Entree

1. Mesclun salad with red wine and walnut vinaigrette, dressed with a mollet egg and bacon

or 

2. Salad of prosciutto and baby rocket with honey and balsamic vinaigrette 

or

3. French Onion Soup or Cream of Mushroom

Main

1. A roast, likely leg of lamb, served with creamed potatoes and dressed with its juices in a red wine reduction. Maybe fish, probably salmon, but I had a very bad experience with fish for dinner once, so it's not one of my favourite things to cook. 

or

2. Risotto- I love risotto and how versatile it is, perhaps my personal favourite is mentaiko and parmesan risotto, it is really GAH wonderful. 

 

or 

3. Pasta- probably carbonara because it is such a reliable dish, though I really do wish to serve spaghetti puttanesca, that intensely flavoured sauce of tomato, capers, anchovies and kalamata olives. 

or

4. If it's a very, very intimate bunch of friends, I will make beef stew, perfumed with orange and allspice, throw in a couple of home-made sausage by the side and serve it all atop mash or apricot-studded rice. My favourite meal in the world for a bunch of my favourite people, why not?

Dessert

Depending on what goes before, it might be anything from a couple of macarons to chocolate cake or pudding, or simply some sorbet or ice cream, cut fruit etc, but dessert will always be tasty and the perfect way to collapse into a satisfied heap on the couch. 

Anyway, to the few people who read this blog, I hope you get great food and drinks this Christmas, I know I will!

Joyeux Noël à tous et avez-vous une bonne nouvelle anée!