When planning a Holiday meal, you want to give yourself time to enjoy the day with Family and Friends too. If you plan on too many dishes you may cause unwanted pressure on yourself, I like to keep it simple, Holiday Meals are about memories and fun, not stress. This side dish will happily accompany Mashed or Roasted Potatoes, Stuffing and Roast Turkey and can be quite elegant when you serve it up.
HINT:
Keep it Simple!
Another little hint for the Holidays, serve family style on platters or in containers and let your guests serve up their own portions. It's easier to make a little extra of everything and let the guests choose their preferences rather than serve finished plates. You can control the temperatures of the food better this way too. Mashed Potatoes and Stuffing will hold their heat for quiet some time if covered with a lid. Turkey can be kept warming in the oven using Chicken Stock (see the link below to Roasted Turkey Tips).
A quick note on portion sizes is listed below as well. Over Thanksgiving I gave my neighbour the very same tips as he was cooking a meal for 20 people and wasn't sure how much food to make. The recipe I am giving you easily serves 4 people.
Carrots and Asparagus in White Wine2 Large or 4 Medium sized Carrots
10 Small (thin) Asparagus Spears1/2 TSP Dill
1/8 TSP Nutmeg
1/2 TSP White Sugar
1 Large Clove Garlic, finely diced
2/3 Cup Dry White Wine
1/4 to 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock (Water as a substitute)**
1 1/2 TBSPS ButterReserve extra Chicken Stock as you may need to add more liquid. You can add water if needed. **
Preparation:
Combine the Wine, Butter and 1/2 of the Chicken stock in a deep Pan and bring to a boil. Cook until the alcohol has evaporated."Snap" the lower portions of the Asparagus off. If Asparagus is Fresh the lower "woody" part should snap away easily.
Peel then Slice the the carrots to roughly the same length and width of your Asparagus Spears.
The Carrots will still take a little longer to cook then the spears, add them to the reduced Sauce first.*Finely Dice your Garlic Clove add to the simmering liquid.
Add more liquid if needed, enough to cover the carrots.
Add your spices then Carrot.
Cook Carrots 1 minute, Stir.Add Asparagus, cook one minute more and stir.
Remove from heat and check for doneness with a fork.
The Carrots should be soft but not too soft, the asparagus should be the same.
Cover with a lid until ready to plate.Serve with a smattering of the wine sauce dressed over top or on the side.
A very simple side dish but full of flavour.
Notes on Vegetable Portion Sizes:
1 Medium Carrot per Person
1 Medium Sized Potato per Person
3 Large or 5 small Asparagus Spears per Person
3 Large or 5 small Brussel's Sprouts per Person
To make sure you have enough, I also add one extra Spear of Asparagus per person when making large meals over the holidays. Potatoes and Carrots, I'll add one extra per 4 people. I KNOW some of us...well...actually ALL of us like to indulge more when having Christmas Dinner. A little extra is better then not enough and there are loads of different ideas for making use of Holiday leftovers.
Roasted Turkey Tips and Tricks
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