Stay in or go out? I have been in both camps before–dress up and party like its 1999 or stay home with my dogs in bed by 10 PM. I enjoy both. When we lived in CO we had very fun neighbor friends who loved to entertain and their annual NYE party was our thing for a while– great food, funny people, live music, drunk dancing, the best parties.
But this year Momma is too tired for a party. And oh yeah the whole global pandemic is a buzz kill fo sho. On September 13th the hubs got an offer to come to Jacksonville, FL for a new role and it was off to the races. Sold a home in record time, packed off the hubs and beagle to Florida, quit my job, boxed up and loaded the contents of our home in the desert into a big truck, drove 2,000 miles across the Southern U.S. behind a snowstorm and a hurricane with a teenage girl and a large puppy, closed on a new home, purchased new furniture, donated old furniture, hosted our Grace for a long overdue visit, celebrated 2 birthdays, cooked Thanksgiving dinner, said goodbye to our dear old friend Beau, purchased and wrapped holiday gifts for everyone, made a million pans of hello dollys, celebrated Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and several Sunday dinners.
Its amazing how much can happen in a few months, a season. But we are still the Caudills, the same family we were before because wherever you go, there you are. And even though we have a new address we are still us and food is still at the center of our life. Let’s face it, I am not working professionally right now so I am going to spend a lot of time with food I think. So for tonight’s cozy New Year’s Eve dinner at home we are dining on:
- Coconut shrimp–prep 3 dishes with 2 beaten eggs, shredded or shaved coconut mixed with panko bread crumbs and flour. I’m using good ol’ Florida shrimp peeled and deveined and probably caught within 25 miles of our house. Dip shrimp in flour, then the eggs then finally the crumbs/coconut. In keeping with the spirit of Christmas we will be using our Power XL Air Fryer (see previous post). Layer the shrimp in a single layer in the fry basket sprinkle with extra EVOO and set fryer to recommended temp and setting. Fry for 5 minutes turning once and frying for another 5 minutes. For dipping our little shrimps I bought a bottle of sweet chili sauce that I am going to fuss up with some fresh lime juice and shaved ginger. Maybe a drop or 2 of hot sauce? Yes definitely. You can keep the shrimp on a warm platter in a low oven for convenience.
- Filet of beef tenderloins–I am using 2- 4 ounce choice filets that I will prep with kosher salt and cracked pepper. I let that sweat at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before grilling. Get the grill good and hot, we just had our grill professionally cleaned and I must recommend that investment if you have a worthy grill–the summer kitchen in the new house is sweet–more to come on that I predict. When you remove the beef from the grill add a T of butter to the top and tent with foil for 5 minutes.
- Spinach salad–toss spinach leaves with a handful of berries tossed in a pinch of sugar, some green onions finely diced, some feta/goat/parmesan, chopped nuts and toss with a vinaigrette–our is a classic French style with heavy salt and pepper.
Plate the salad on a dinner plate in the center and arrange 2-3 shrimp alongside the salad on one side of the plate and the sliced beef tenderloin on the other side. Skip the potatoes, the bread. This dinner has delicious local flavors, a lot of protein, some savory and some sweet elements. We will be pairing our meal with a La Crema Pinot Noir.
If you still have room after a meal like this and need a bit of a sweet fix I will offer that my brother gifted us with a cooler full of Graeter’s ice cream for Christmas. This is serious good shit ice cream. We open 2-3 different pints and pass it around after dinner. The trick is to limit yourself to just a few bites.
Before we do sit down to our dinner, however, we will toast to a better 2021 with a fun pink Brut from Chandon but I have to ask–better for whom? Not for the Caudills, we really have nothing to complain about. We had some hiccups in 2020 but nothing compared to some folks and we consider ourselves immensely blessed and privileged to be where we are. But we do want 2021 to be better for our fellow humans, we do see how random and indiscriminate something like a virus can be and we are so grateful for our good fortune.
Happy New Year to our friends and family everywhere, we look forward to welcoming you to the beach very soon.
The Casa Kitchen 