Karla's Perfect Christmas Dinner: MOVE OVER, MOM!

MILLIE: One thing with Karla and me, I allow her do as she pleases. I never impose on her nor compel her to do something she does not like. I let her have her way (most of the time! Ha-ha-ha!). I want her to enjoy what she does, make her own decisions and, in the process, learn from her mistakes.

This Christmas, I asked her to plan our traditional noche buena the Karla way.

KARLA: For the past many years, I always remember my mom being busy on Christmas Eve. Usually, while I entertain the family and have dinner with everyone else, she would be on the road checking up on caterings, or monitoring from the office. Once she gets home, she still has to deal with the Christmas Eve catering for the family that lasts until the next day. The past three years, I have been busy working for the family business. And yes, I was still studying when I started managing The Plaza Premium Baked Ham. I’d spend my Christmas break in our store at the SM Megamall, checking caterings or doing paper work for our projections. So when mom decided to put me in charge of the Christmas noche buena, I thought it was about time it stopped being her responsibility for once. So, move over, Mom! This year it’ll be a bit different.

Preparing for the family is not as easy as it looks. I thought preparing all my favorites would be pretty much sufficient. But when my mom double-checked the draft menu I made, boy, was I wrong! Our family has a wide variety of preferences. I realized that quite a few of my family members are vegetarians. I have an uncle who’s allergic to shrimp and crabs, an aunt who is lactose intolerant, and cousins who are carnivores. Balancing our favorites and food preferences will be the challenge. Lucky for me, I don’t have to work within a tight budget. The sky’s the limit — it’s Christmas, after all. And I guess that’s one of the perks of working in the food industry: knowing how to balance your menu according to your budget. You can conserve your budget for other things, like décor, etc, but always have enough budget allocation for the food.

So here’s what I’ve come up with.

For starters, I want to have an assortment of nibblers, which my Mom would normally call hors d’oeuvres riche: Shot glass shrimp cocktail on ice, prosciutto roll-ups, salami bites on star-shaped crostini, bite-sized caviar pie, smoked salmon pinwheels, homemade pâté in mini pots.

I will gladly prepare Lolo Joe’s broccoli crème soup, freshly prepared with celery, potato and broccoli.

The main entree is a family favorite: Seared Wagyu steak. This year, my Tito Gerry will provide the Wagyu beef, which he sells at his stall in Salcedo Market every Saturday. Seasoned with only salt and pepper to bring out its real flavor, the best accompaniment is mashed or mousseline potatoes served with red wine gravy and Caesar’s salad with chunky bacon bits. I could also do it with potato au gratin and creamed spinach, which the entire family simply adores.

I am excited to have the family sample my concoction called Karla’s Carbonara, a classic dish prepared with porcini and morille mushrooms, and asparagus tips cooked in cream sauce and sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. I have a case of Chez Samantha, young but very good French red wine (Mom’s find, actually) on standby, to get everyone in a merry mood.

And for a sweet ending, a chocolate crème brulee!

MILLIE: It’s perfect! But please don’t forget the Food for the Gods from the Lorenzos. Christmas won’t be Christmas without it.

KARLA: Wait, Mom! You didn’t think that was it, did you? Of course, there will always be a cheese platter. Our family lives on food and can’t party without wine and cheese. For us, dessert isn’t the end of the meal, there always has to be cheese. Raclette, cave-aged Gruyere and Tête de Moine are a few of our favorites. This year, in addition Mom introduced me to pecorino and brie de meaux. Plus, I brought home three cans of cougar cheese from Washington State, which apparently, to my Lolo’s delight, can last for decades if kept refrigerated with the can.

The Christmas dinner table will be adorned with fresh fruits, including my baby ponkalets, roasted Mandarin chestnuts, and individual boxes of delightful hazelnut and espresso pralines coated in dark, milk and white chocolate that I personally prepared.

The past years, it has been tradition that at around midnight, the family gathers in our sala for the reveal of the secret Santa or Kris Kringle. This is also about the time that I will bring out a leg of The Plaza Premium Baked Ham with tiny, bite-sized pandesal to munch on during the mini program and opening of gifts.

MILLIE: Christmas Eve is the busiest time for me because a lot of household are relying on me to churn out their dinner on time, but with Karla helping out this year, it’s certainly going to be a breeze and, for once, I will get to sit back, relax and enjoy the true meaning of Christmas!

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Food for the Gods orders are available at Lorenzo’s Kitchen. Call 852-7798.

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Send e-mail to milliereyes.foodforthought@gmail.com and karla@swizzlemobilebar.com.