Native American holiday feast

Sunset, Dec, 1997 by Linda Lau Anusasananan

An Indian heritage and a love of good food inspire this special dinner

* "Sometimes I feel I'm at war with myself. I'm half Pilgrim and half Indian," says Loretta Barrett Oden. Her mother is a daughter of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation in Oklahoma. And her father is part Irish with Mayflower connections. The mix is complex.

* Oden's riveting blue-green eyes and high cheekbones give evidence of her heritage, but her cooking is one-sided. As owner of Santa Fe's Corn Dance Care, Oden says, "I offer a taste of Native America for today's palate."

* And for this holiday dinner, she weaves together the rich bounty of foods native to the Americas including some of the dishes she serves at the Corn Dance. The indigenous Plains and Southwest ingredients - buffalo, chilies, corn, juniper berries, pine nuts, sage, and squash - work with other New World foods like chocolate and quinoa. It all makes for a most memorable feast.

Native American Christmas feast for 10 to 12

Potawatomi Popcorn Chenin Blanc Field Greens with Sage-Pinon Vinaigrette Crusted Tenderloin with Chipotle Onions Oven-roasted Roots Quinoa and Wild Rice Stuffed Squash Mushroom and Sunchoke Saute Cabernet Sauvignon Simply A'Maize'ing Corn Ice Cream Chocolate Sorbet Raspberry Sauce Sparkling Wine

Potawatomi Popcorn

Prep and cook time: About 6 minutes

Notes: Poultry seasoning may not sound native, but its principal ingredient is sage - which grows wild in the Southwest.

Makes: 10 to 12 servings

3 quarts popped popcorn

3 tablespoons melted butter or margarine

1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon cayenne

Salt

In a large bag or bowl, mix popcorn, melted butter, poultry seasoning, cayenne, and salt to taste.

Per serving: 57 cal., 51% (29 cal.) from fat; 1 g protein; 3.2 g fat (1.8 g sat.); 6.4 g carbo (1.2 g fiber); 30 mg sodium; 7.8 mg chol.

Field Greens with Sage-Pinon Vinaigrette

Prep and cook time: About 7 minutes

Notes: Up to 1 day ahead, toast nuts and store airtight. Make dressing and hold at room temperature. Also rinse salad leaves, wrap in towels, enclose in a plastic bag, and chill.

Makes: 10 to 12 servings

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves or 1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

3 quarts (about 10 oz.) mixed tender salad leaves, rinsed and crisped

Salt and pepper

1. In a 6- to 8-inch frying pan over medium heat, stir nuts until golden, about 4 minutes. Pour from pan and coarsely chop half the nuts.

2. In a blender, whirl chopped nuts, oil, sage, vinegar, and garlic until smooth.

3. In a large bowl, gently mix salad leaves with dressing to coat well, then add remaining nuts. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Per serving: 61 cal., 90% (55 cal.) from fat; 1.1 g protein; 6.1 g fat (0.8 g sat.); 1.4 g carbo (0.6 g fiber); 5.7 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

Crusted Tenderloin with Chipotle Onions

Prep and cook time: About 1 hour

Notes: Oden uses buffalo tenderloin, but it's costly (see box, page 91). Beef tenderloin is a good option. Both roasts take about the same time to cook. However, if buffalo is cooked beyond rare, the meat becomes dry

Makes: 10 to 12 servings

1 tablespoon juniper berries

1 tablespoon coriander seed

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 1/2 teaspoons black peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

5 whole allspice

2 whole cloves

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped pecans

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 beef or buffalo tenderloin (4 to 5 lb.), fat trimmed, rolled, and tied

1 canned chipotle chili

1 onion (1/2 lb.), thinly sliced

1 tablespoon salad oil

2 cups beef broth

Salt and pepper

1. In a blender, finely grind juniper berries, coriander, oregano, peppercorns, kosher salt, allspice, cloves, and pecans. Add the garlic and whirl to form a paste.

2. Rub seasoning paste all over tenderloin. Set meat on a rack in a 12- by 17-inch roasting pan. Roast in a 425 [degrees] oven for 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, rinse canned chipotle chili, discard the seeds and veins, and mince the chili.

4. Mix onion slices with oil and put in roasting pan around meat (not on rack). Continue to cook until a thermometer inserted in center of the thickest part of meat registers 130 [degrees] for rare, 30 to 40 minutes longer.

5. Transfer roast to a platter and let rest in a warm place 10 to 15 minutes (to allow juices to settle and meat to firm slightly for neater slicing).

6. Skim and discard any fat from drippings in roasting pan. Add minced chipotle and broth to onions in pan. Set pan over high heat and scrape browned bits free, stirring until mixture boils vigorously. Pour into a bowl.

7. Slice meat and offer chipotle-onion sauce to spoon over portions. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Per serving: 273 cal., 46% (126 cal.) from fat; 33 g protein; 14 g fat (4.6 g sat.); 2.8 g carbo (0.6 g fiber); 174 mg sodium; 94 mg chol.

Oven-roasted Roots

Prep and cook time: About 1 1/4 hours

Notes: Other root vegetables (baby turnips, parsnips, chunks of leeks) can be used; vegetable weight should total about 4 1/2 pounds. Up to 4 hours ahead, roast vegetables; let stand at room temperature. To warm, set roasting pan over medium heat, add remaining ingredients, and stir until steaming. Garnish with rosemary sprigs or roasted garlic.