Ninth Day of Christmas

Anne's 12 Days of Christmas Recipes

 On the ninth day of Christmas, for myself, I cooked...

~ Nine Ladies Dancing ~

 Anne presents...

Eggs Flamenco,
Ladyfingers doing the Salsa,
& Tennessee Waltz Drink

  

When I first began conceptualizing Nine Ladies Dancing, I knew I wanted to do something relating to dance, salsa being the first and most obvious thought.  I started mentally thinking about other dance types, and I considered doing a play on meringue/merengue, but when I typed "flamenco recipe" into google...viola!  Eggs Flamenco, or Huevos Flamencos, is a very old and traditional Spanish dish.  Perfect!  I stayed very true to the recipe and it tasted great.  Not too spicy.  You can't tell from the picture, but the entire underside of the egg and chorizo slices was all vegetable-based.  I then made homemade ladyfingers and made a fruit salsa to pair with it using strawberries, raspberries, and kiwi fruit.  My ladyfingers turned out quite nicely!  And lastly, I found the Tennessee Waltz Drink, which was perfect because I still had some Peach Schnapps left from my Muppet party.  It was yummy.

Anne's Fun Facts:

Cost of 9 Ladies Dancing (2010 Christmas Price Index) =$6,273.00 

(The most expensive item in 2010.  Must be high-quality dancers.) 

Flamenco is a style of music and dance that originated in regions of southern Spain, perhaps in the late 18th century or earlier. The flamenco dance is known for its emotional intensity, expressive use of the arms, and rhythmic stamping of the feet.  It is characterized by a proud, upright carriage - for the women, the back is often held in a marked back bend. 

Salsa is a syncretic dance form with origins in Cuba in the 1920's as the original American meeting point of European and African cultures. The current method of Salsa dancing contains movement elements from a variety of dance genres including traditional  mambo, guaguanco, swing, and hustle. 

The Waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in 3/4 time, performed primarily in closed position.  "The Tennessee Waltz" is a country music song.  It was first recorded by Cowboy Copas in 1947 then later popularized by Patti Page and by Les Paul and Mary Ford in 1950.  The popularity of this song also made it the fourth official song of the state of Tennessee in 1965.

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Recipes:

Eggs Flamenco

2 servings

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

4-5 oz Spanish chorizo sausage (2 links), sliced 1/2"-thick

1/2 medium onion, diced

1 garlic cloved, minced

1/2 red pepper, seeded and diced

1/2 green pepper, seeded and diced

1/2 can (4 oz) tomato sauce

1 tablespoon Spanish sweet smoked paprika

2 tablespoons dry sherry

2-4 large eggs

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon chopped chives

Directions:

 Heat oil in a large skillet and fry the sausage.  Remove sausage and set aside.   In the same pan, saute the onions, garlic, and peppers.  Add the tomato sauce, paprika, and sherry; simmer and let reduce.

Divide the tomato-pepper mixture between two cazuelas or two 6" diameter flat clay or ceramic oven-proof dishes.  Arrange the pieces of chorizo on top.  Break one or two eggs on top of each dish.  Bake in 350º oven about 10-15 minutes or so, until egg whites are cooked.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle with parmesan and chives.

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Ladyfingers with Fruit Salsa

Makes ~24 ladyfingers;  25 calories each (without salsa)

Ingredients:

2 eggs, separated

1/3 cup white granulated sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Fruit salsa:
strawberries, raspberries, kiwi, orange juice, combined in food processor

Directions:

Place egg whites in bowl and beat on high until soft peaks start to form.  Slowly add 2 tablespoons of the sugar and continue beating until stiff and glossy.  In another bowl, beat egg yolks, almond extract, and remaining sugar.  Whip until thick and very pale in color.  Fold half the egg whites unto the egg yolk mixture.  Sift flour and baking powder together and fold into yolk-white mixture.  Fold in the remaining egg whites.  Transfer mixture to a pastry bag and pipe out onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheets.  Bake at 400º for 8 minutes.   Serve with fruit salsa if desired.

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Tennessee Waltz Drink

Ingredients:
2 oz. Pineapple Juice
4 oz. Vanilla Ice Cream
1 &1/4 oz. Peach Schnapps
1 oz. Passion Fruit Juice
Whipped cream (optional)
Strawberry (optional)

Directions: 

Blend ingredients until smooth, pour into parfait glass, and garnish with whipped cream and a strawberry.

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Anne's 12 Days of Christmas Recipes  
(I will be posting one per day from Dec 26 thru Jan 6th, 2010).  Feel free to comment!

1st Day: Partridge in Pear Tree             7th Day: Seven Swans a-Swimming
2nd Day: Two Turtledoves                    8th Day: Eight Maids a-Milking
3rd Day: Three French Hens                 9th Day: Nine Ladies Dancing
4th Day: Four Calling Birds                  10th Day: Ten Lords a-Leaping
5th Day: Five Gold Rings                     11th Day: Eleven Pipers Piping
6th Day: Six Geese a-Laying                12th Day: Twelve Drummers Drumming