“Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.” Except, if you celebrate Christmas, by Christmas Eve you are probably exhausted…and may still have toys to put together, gifts to wrap, trees to trim, and holiday meals to prepare for. You deserve an easy and delicious nosh and a warming drink while you take care of last-minute holiday requirements, or just relax and decompress.
The nosh: Preheat your oven to 300 or 350, depending on how “hot” it cooks. Pop your corn, ending up with 10 cups or so (I recommend an air popper). Put it in a big bowl, either one with a cover or one that you can tightly seal with cling wrap.
Put a 1/4 cup of fresh rosemary leaves, taken off the stem, on a cookie sheet. If you are @Butcher, you probably still have some growing somewhere. I use the “fresh” that comes in a little plastic box from the produce section of the supermarket. Bake the leaves for 10 minutes or so, until they dry out and get crispy. This step will make your kitchen smell wonderful! Grind up the rosemary with a mortar and pestle. You can use a heavy spoon against a bowl or put them in a baggy and scrunch them with a rolling pin if you do not have a mortar and pestle.
Melt a 1/4 cup of butter and drizzle it over the popcorn.
Grab a 1/4 cup of finely dusted Parmesan cheese and sprinkle it over the popcorn. (Do not use the stuff in the green can; your market should have a better quality “sprinkle” Parm in a baggie in the cheese case.)
Sprinkle the pulverized rosemary, salt to taste, and black pepper to taste over the popcorn. Put the lid on the bowl or cover it with cling wrap, and shake, shake, shake it all around to evenly distribute the toppings. And done!
The drink: You do not need one more thing to do, but this is also easy. Grab a mug, pour in three fingers of bourbon, top it off with apple cider, and add an orange slice or two, a pinch of powdered cloves and a pinch of cinnamon. Microwave it until it is hot, but not too hot to drink. There is no shame in omitting all the ingredients, omitting the heating, and adding an ice cube to your glass of bourbon. You can also make this drink without the bourbon, and just go for the aromatic sensation of warm cider.
Should you make this? Yes! You deserve a nosh and drink!!!
oh…. my daughter will love this one
i’ll show it to her later
I believe Cousin Matt also has a rosemary plant, if I interpreted his allusion to having access to fresh rosemary correct in his Rosemary and Garlic Pork Loin FYCE.
Rosemary is a pretty maintenance-free plant, so even bona-fide plant killers can usually do well with one. As long as you don’t over water it and the pot drains well, it’ll be fine. It’s native to rocky soils and deserts so too much water will kill it dead.
I’m not sure about the over water thing, we have it year round even when it is raining every day for months. It does drain well where it is though, even snow doesn’t seem to slow it down unless it gets so heavy it breaks branches. We always use tons of rosemary on our turkey….yum!
Sorry, I meant for a potted rosemary plant to be sure not to water it too much. Outdoors they are more robust, unless they’re in a spot that doesn’t drain well. Even then a regular amount of rain throughout the summer will put a hurt on them.
We put some large rocks in the bottom of our pot, so it’s really only about 1/2 filled with soil.
You are correct! My building has a communal garden (not so communal lo these past past several months) so thanks to my neighbors we have among other things a variety of herbs, including rosemary. The thing is the building is aging so it’s losing its “communal” feel, it’s become more transient, it’s become a lot more expensive, it’s becoming more like a typical NYC building where people go their own way. People are friendly and all, but the herb garden, while as productive as ever, is less patronized, so more rosemary for we who even know of its existence.
This is absolutely perfect for other occasions I can think of. If we’re ever allowed to have people over again this would be really good for a chilly night when you have a small group over to play cards/board games* or for a movie night, where the presumption is everyone’s already had dinner before arrival. And who am I kidding: the way 2020 went if things open up again and Life’s Helpmeet resumes his doable work-travel schedule this would make for a perfectly delicious midweek “brunch” for me (bourbon and all) while he’s on the road. The Loyal Hound can have leftovers; he never seems to mind.
* If you have watched “The Crown” as obsessively as I did you’re remember that Margaret Thatcher and her husband Denis visit the royal family at Balmoral and they engage in an after-dinner game of Ibble-Dibble. I have put this on my list of “Must Dos in 2021”:
https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/how-to-play-ibble-dibble-drinking-game-the-crown-season-4
(This explanation is a little over-wordy. I hope the writer got paid by the word.)
Hey, no Crown spoilers. I got Mrs. Butcher seasons 2 and 3 for Christmas and we don’t have Netflix.
Oh no, I reread the link and I realize it has (minor) spoilers. SORRY TO ALL! But the PMs do, normally, interact with the Royal Family in somewhat social settings. Sorry again!
Ooh love this. I am a huge rosemary fan! I am totally making both of these recipes in tree next few days.
Rosemary is one of the best herbs!
Rosemary? I’m in! Thanks, @Elliecoo.