Menu for a Winter Party with Grown-ups and Kids

We had my son's three best friends and their families over for dinner tonight. It was a pretty-healthy comfort food night to suit both 10-year-old palates and those of an assortment of parents, some of whom are vegetarian. Here's what we served:

spiced hot apple cider (plus wine for the big kids)

cut veggies (red pepper strips, carrots, celery, fennel, radishes) and pita chips with guacamole

Thomas Keller's tomato soup (click for recipe)

Mini gruyere grilled cheese sandwiches

Roast turkey (I used the basic recipe from Sam Sifton's book Thanksgiving: How to Cook it Well, which I reviewed recently for People.) apples, onion, rosemary, sage and celery in the cavity. Butter on the outside.

truffle-cream mashed potatoes

tangerines

salted fudge brownies, from Kate Krader, one of my pals at Food & Wine, where she is the restaurant editor. These are so good I made sure to send guests home with the leftovers so as not to keep half a pan in the house.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

p.s. After your end-of-year splurges, get "Smart Chefs Stay Slim" in paperback starting 12/31.

Marc Murphy's broccoli breakfast frittata

The March, 2012 issue of Food & Wine magazine featured "Smart Chefs" and a recipe for the breakfast frittata that Marc Murphy makes for his kids. Here's the a link and their tested recipe:

1. 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
2. 2 tablespoons olive oil
3. 3 1/2 cups broccoli florets
4. 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
5. Salt
6. Black Pepper
7. 8 large eggs
8. 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (1 1/2 ounces)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. In a 10-inch ovenproof nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook over moderately high heat for 30 seconds. Add the broccoli and crushed red pepper and cook for 1 minute. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water, season with salt and pepper and cover. Cook over moderate heat until the broccoli is crisp-tender, 2 minutes; let cool.
2. In a bowl, whisk the eggs with 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and black pepper. Stir in the broccoli. Return the skillet to the stovetop and heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Pour in the eggs and cook over moderately low heat until set around the edge, 3 minutes. Sprinkle the frittata with the cheese. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake the frittata until the center is just set, about 12 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.