For the last several days, I’ve snubbed Christmas menu preparations for earthier delights: shopping, reading, listening, and posting in my less kosher blog Caput Lupinum (closed to the public). But alas, the time for dalliance is at an end. Christmas is just two weeks away, and if I’m going to execute a Devious, Masterful Plan, The Plan must be given form!

Christmas and New Years are perhaps my favorite "food holidays" because there are less stringent expectations concerning what ought to be served. Thanksgiving is a straight-jacket for the creative menu. Iconic dishes, like roast turkey, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, etc, limit how far one can deviate and experiment. Serve something aside from the usual staples and you’re likely to hear uproar. But is there a classic winter menu? Well, for one, nobody can agree on the main; is it ham, beef wellington, a rib roast, or deep fried Jewish latkes? This year in foodie publication, I’ve seen all of the above and more, including lamb, duck, cornish hens, and, yes, roast turkey. The confusion is a blessing, if you ask me. My husband has only one request of the Christmas menu: cookies, and lots of them. We’ll revisit that subject later.

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In recent weeks, Creative Comestibles has featured the heavier, classic sauces and stocks of French-influenced cuisine. But today I mutinied and embarked in a new—or should I say old?—culinary direction. So-called "modern" sauces are popular, mainly because they are considered lighter, healthier, and less preparation intensive. The apricot-port sauce featured here generally fits these characteristics; the sauce can be assembled in minutes, is devoid of fat, and in appropriate quantities accents (not overrides) the savory with an aspect of sweet. I pair the sauce with marinated pork cooked to juicy perfection and sliced into medallions. Pork pairs very well with apricot and, as a tenderloin, is just as easy to finish as the sauce itself.

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I was browsing Gourmet Magazine online when I saw this recipe for haroseth.  Not being Jewish, I have never tasted haroseth, but the ingredients set my mind wandering—what could I create with fruit and nuts?

To say I love fruit is a massive understatement.  Earnest devotee would be a more accurate description, as would obsessed addict.  This summer I absolutely went wild over the fresh peaches, nectarines, and cherries; for the latter, we actually took a 145 mile round-trip to Leona Valley to hand-pick a few buckets of fruit.  There were no leftovers.

But because I love my fruits so well and because my nutritional needs must be balanced, I am extremely picky about how I consume fruit and what kind of fruit I consume. 

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I left for Pennsylvania with the notion of having a kitchen-free “vacation.” But when I arrived at the McHenry residence, I could hardly help myself; bordering the back of the house was a patch of elderberry bushes loaded with ripe fruit—and it was all going to rot if I didn’t do something! Sacrilege! I’d never cooked with or tasted elderberries, so preparing this fresh hand-picked fruit was also a rare opportunity and adventure.

Harvesting the berries was simple enough with a little maneuvering and the right equipment. I wore long jeans, my trusty ol’ jogging shoes, a hat, and a fitted long-sleeve jacket to protect me from the surrounding brush and its creepy-crawly inhabitants. Sharp clippers did the snipping, and a rake brought the taller bunches down to eye-level. No comments from the peanut gallery about short Asian people, please.

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Il Grano’s very intriguing white peach gazpacho caught my eye in this article from the Squid Ink. Thusly inspired I set out to make my own creation.

The Base:
1 medium-small white peach
1.25 medium-small heirloom tomatoes*
1 shallot
2.5 tsps of sherry vinegar
salt
a bare hint of cinnamon

The Emulsion:
tarragon, the leaves of several stalks
2 small chile peppers, mystery variety**
olive oil

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