Make-ahead Vegetables for Christmas Dinner

One of the difficult things about a complex meal like Christmas dinner is getting everything cooked and on the table at the same time. The key is to make things ahead and simply re-heat them at the last minute. Here are some vegetable recipes from an LCBO "HOLIDAY" brochure that you could consider.

Green Beans and Prosciutto

Ingredients:

- 1 and 1/2 pounds of green beans
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 oz ( 60 grams ) prosciutto, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste

Blanch the green beans in a pot of boiling , salted water until 'tender-crisp' (about 2-3 minutes). Drain the beans and run cold water over them until they are cool. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the prosciutto and garlic until the garlic is cooked (about 2 minutes). Do not brown the garlic. Add the green beans and lemon juice and toss the ingredients together. Refrigerate until close to the time that you are ready to eat. Reheat the mixture in a skillet for 5 minutes and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Glazed Onions and Mushrooms

Ingredients:

- 1 litre/quart of baby/pearl onions (If you can find a package of frozen pearl onions this is ideal, otherwise you will have to briefly boil baby onions in their skins, drain, rinse in cold water and remove the skins yourself...very tedious.)
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon of dried tarragon
- 1 and a 1/2 pounds of small button mushrooms
- 1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet on medium low heat. Add the onions and sugar to the skillet and cook (briefly) until golden brown and tender. Reserve to a bowl and add the balsamic vinegar. In the same skillet heat the remaining oil, add the garlic, tarragon and mushrooms. Sauté on a medium high heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the mushroom mixture to the onions along with the parsley, salt and pepper. Place in an ovenproof serving dish and refrigerate until close to dinnertime at which point you can heat the dish at 375 degrees F. for about 15-20 minutes (after the turkey has come out of the oven).