Christmas Eve Dinner

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my readers!

Kitchen Day
Yesterday I spent about 7 hours in the kitchen. I made and jarred spaghetti sauce, cooked lentils then made a lentil loaf for dinner, roasted up acorn squash, baked bread, and put together treat bags (to get rid of leftover treats made for the brunch party). It was worth it of course, but man my feet were tired. Oh and my walls were covered with spaghetti sauce along with stove, counter, floor, me... You know you're Italian when...

Christmas Eve Dinner
Since Jason and I won't be home until late tomorrow and would definitely be too stuffed to eat a Christmas dinner at home, I made a Christmas Eve meal for us instead. I made a Chipotle Lentil Loaf topped with my Chipotle Cranberry Relish, roasted sweet potatoes seasoned with rosemary, thyme, salt & pepper, and sauteed kale with cranberries.

Chipotle Lentil Loaf
Ingredients:
2 cups dried lentils
6 cups water
1 not-beef bouillon cube
Dehydrated white onions (a few tablespoons)
To taste: parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, chipotle flakes (or use chipotle in adobo)
1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp hot water)
Oatmeal flour (just grind oats in coffee grinder, approximately 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
Chipotle Cranberry Relish

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In large pot, cook lentils in water with bouillon cube until lentils are soft and water is gone. Turn off heat but leave on stove to absorb any extra moisture. Add in remaining ingredients (minus relish), adding additional flour if needed for thickness.

Prepare a loaf pan and transfer mixture into pan and press it down. Bake for approximately 30 minutes then spread on the Chipotle Cranberry Relish and bake another 20-30 minutes.

Christmas Day
Today we will be in our home town pretty much the entire day. We're having lunch at my sister's house with my mom. That meant more time in the kitchen this morning. I made Red Quinoa and Acorn Squash and roasted new potatoes to take over there. Then we're making a stop by Jason's parents' house to drop off gifts before heading to my dad's for dinner. Thanksgiving is always spaghetti and Christmas is manicotti. I brought along the same dish I made for Thanksgiving though: green beans sauteed with red bell peppers, garlic, and almonds.

Red Quinoa and Acorn Squash
Ingredients:
1 medium acorn squash, cubed
1 cup red quinoa cooked per package directions
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp garlic
White wine (just enough to help steam the kale)
Small bunch of kale, chopped
Handful dried cranberries, (optional)
To taste: salt, pepper, parsley, agave (optional)

Directions:
Roast squash for approximately 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

In large skillet, saute onion, garlic, cranberries, and kale in the white wine until soft. Add in the quinoa, and acorn squash. Re-season if needed.

I will be sure to post pictures tomorrow as we'll be in late tonight. I'm sure there will be loads of fun pictures of my niece and nephew. I truly hope that everyone has a wonderful day whether you are celebrating Christmas or not.

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