I feel like Winnie the Pooh these days.
I'm definitely stuffed with far too much holiday fluff. And my nose keeps leading me to more sweet stuff.
I'll probably get stuck in my doorway fairly soon.
On Sunday, a bunch of friends gathered for a paella night. It was spectacular. I broke in the massive (42 cm) pan I had purchased a few months ago. $15 totally well spent.
Although I did much of the directing, the group participated in much of the chopping, mixing, and cooking. They were quite proud of themselves. A few were even recording the steps so they could replicate at home. Awesome!
We adapted my recipe for the larger pan, then added seafood.
There was mousse for dessert. This mousse.
Alton Brown is my favorite TV chef. He's brilliant, and I've never had a recipe of his turn out poorly.
My team at work went to San Pedro Square Market, in downtown San Jose for our holiday feast on Monday.
We ordered an amazing amount of food. I'm fairly certain I waddled out.
And tomorrow we fly down to Houston to see my folks! Stay tuned for update from Texas.
We're also taking a mini vacation down to Mexico City after the holidays. We've already booked a Taco Tour from Eat Mexico. You guys are gonna be jealous! I promise photos - and perhaps a few recipes if I can sweet talk my way in.
Let the holiday fluff continue!
I'll admit it.
I impulse-bought a bag of cranberries.
Back in November.
Before Thanksgiving.
And as of a few days ago, there they sat. Languishing in my fridge. Taunting me whenever I opened the door.
They were so pretty, and I know they taste delightful. They can be used for so many things. But I could never decide, cause I wanted them to stay pretty and not wind up a large sloppy red mess.
(I had a wee bit too much cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving, methinks. Note for next year.)
The jewel quality of the cranberries needed to be maintained in whatever I made. It needed to be special, yet homey. Tasty, of course. And preferably something simple....
When I stumbled upon an iteration of this bread over on Martha's website, I knew I had a winner.
I might have to go buy more cranberries for a second loaf!
Start with a bag of beautiful cranberries. Rinse and pick through them to make sure they are all good. Set aside.
And a good amount of chopped walnuts.
Mix all the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar (I was out of brown sugar so I used white sugar and some molasses) in a large bowl.
Whisk together the wets (milk, egg, melted butter, and vanilla).
Pour the wets into the dry, and quickly combine.
Add in the walnuts and cranberries.
Pour in a well-greased loaf pan.
Slice and serve with delight!
Cranberry Walnut Bread
Makes 1 loaf
Adapted from Martha Stewart
2 c. flour
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 egg
3/4 c. milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp butter, melted
1 bag (12 ounces) fresh cranberries
1/2 - 3/4 c. chopped walnuts (depending on how much you like nuts)
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease (or spray) a loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a different bowl, combine the milk, egg, vanilla, and butter. Quickly whisk the wet into the dry. Lumps are ok. Stir in the cranberries and walnuts.
Pour into the greased loaf pan and bake for 75 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Flip out of the pan and slice with a serrated knife, so you can go cleanly through the berries.
We've all seen the gingerbread houses. The ones that look a bit more like cardboard than anything resembling an edible delight.
How did we go so wrong?
In it's infancy, gingerbread was a delicious cake-like thing. Something that more resembled a British plum pudding. Heavily spiced, and full of butter and sugar.
Something to slice and serve with a spot of tea. Or that 2 pm cup of coffee. Or a glass of sherry after dinner...
Let's get back to the good old days, shall we?
Start off with butter, molasses, honey, brown sugar, and water. Melt it all together.
Once it's melted, pour into a large bowl to cool.
In another bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt.
Then, when the molasses mix is cool, whisk in eggs - one at a time. Then whisk in the milk and vanilla.
Dump the dry ingredients in and whisk quickly. It's ok if there's some lumps.
Now stir in the fresh grated ginger.
Bake for 45-55 minutes, until it springs back when you poke it.
Let rest for 10 minutes. Cover in a glaze of powdered sugar and milk (or booze), or serve with a spoonful of whipped cream (with booze).
Gingerbread Cake
Makes 1 9x13 cake
Barely adapted from 101 Cookbooks
1 c. (2 sticks) butter
1/2 c. water
3/4 c. molasses
3/4 c. real honey
1 c. tightly packed brown sugar
3 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 packed tbsp grated fresh ginger root
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. In a medium saucepan, melt together the butter, molasses, honey, brown sugar and water. Once the butter is melted, pour the mixture into a large bowl to cool.
Get out a 9x13. Butter (spray) and line with parchment. You can also serve this right out of the pan - and in that case you can skip the parchment. I chose a bunt pan. And sprayed the heck out of it. It still stuck like the dickens and had to be repaired with a powdered sugar glaze. It's up to you.
In another bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and nutmeg.
Once the butter/molasses mixture cools to room temperature, beat in the eggs - one at a time. Then beat in the milk and vanilla. Dump in the dry ingredients and quickly stir them in. Lumps are ok. Stir in the grated fresh ginger.
Pour into your prepared pan and bake for 45-55 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes. Lift from the pan (if not serving in it) and allow to cool.
Slice and serve with a powdered sugar glaze or a spoonful of whipped cream. If you want to add a drop of booze to either - that's completely acceptable.
There's something about the Christmas season that makes folks lean back into traditions.
At least, that's the way it is in our house. I have extremely clear memories of exactly what happened when it was Christmas time. And, by golly, that's the way it's going to be this year.
Pay no attention to the fact that our apartment's living room is the size of a postage stamp. Or that I have about 4 feet of counter space in my kitchen (counting the stove top). Or that I don't have a "bonus fridge" to hold all the holiday goodies out in my non-existent garage. Or that I am technically closer to 30 years old than to 10.
For some reason, it's just not Christmas without my ornaments on our tiny tree, stockings hung above the fireplace, a wreath on the door - and a massive amount of candy in the fridge. Boxed up and ready to give to our nearest and dearest.
I know my mom wouldn't disown me if I didn't hand out thousands of pounds of sweet treats to friends and co-workers. I do. Really. However - that's not gonna slow me down.
Commence Candy Operation 2012!
First up - Bourbon Balls. The signature Miller family candy. From my mom's great grandmother. Who lived in Kentucky. So you know she knew what she was doing.
Lest you think I'm betraying the family secrets here, I promise I'm not. Mom hands this recipe out freely - knowing that it's time consuming enough that very few will choose to make them. But perseverance brings deliciousness!
Start with nuts - pecans and cashews. Chop them up nicely in a food processor.
Combine them in a really big bowl with 2 sticks of butter.
Add in 2 lbs of powdered sugar.
Then 6 tbsp of bourbon.
Remove all jewelery from your hands and wrists and get in there. Mix it all together with your hands. This is an incredibly important step.
Roll the dough into little balls, about the size of a small walnut. Place on a cookie sheet lined in wax paper.
Refrigerate for 4 hours, or over night. Until firm.
In a double boiler, melt chocolate and grated parafin wax.
Yes - wax. It comes in bar form. Grate it on your cheese grater. The wax help keep the chocolate hard.
Using thin metal sticks (we use the ones that come in the turkey lacing kit, which really should be called Bourbon Ball Dippers in my opinion), pierce the ball and dip into the chocolate.
Tap off the excess (you don't want a large chocolate puddle around the ball).
Place back on the waxed paper.
Use a spoon full of chocolate to top off the balls and cover the spot you poked them with the metal stick.
Chill until firm - over night.
Store in a large tin until ready to distribute!
Bourbon Balls
Makes around 100 - 130
1 c. chopped cashew
1 c. chopped pecans
2 stick butter, softened
2 lbs powdered suger
6 tbsp Kentucky Bourbon (mom uses Jim Beam. I used Bulleit this year - hopefully I don't get disowned)
24 oz Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips (we've tried other brands, this is best)
6 tbsp parafin wax, grated
In a very large bowl, combine the nuts, butter, powdered sugar, and bourbon. Mix well with your hands, until fully incorporated.
Roll into balls the size of small walnuts. Place on a wax paper lined cookie sheet. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until firm.
In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and wax. Dip the balls into the chocolate, tapping to remove the excess. Place back on the wax paper. Use a spoon to dot the tops of the covered balls with extra chocolate, capping them.
Refrigerate until hard, over night.
It's that time of year! Everyone and their mother is cranking out holiday sweets by the truckload.
But there are people out there that don't like sweets.
Pick your jaw up off the floor. They exist!! I know one.
His name is Izzy. And he's married to one of the sweetest people in the universe, Miss Josie. I met Josie back when they were dating. Josie's got one heck of a sweet tooth - like most of us - and was shocked at Izzy's indifference to holiday treats. But she really liked him. It was his only flaw.
She and I and two other amazing women were all living in the same house at the time, and were planning an amazing holiday shindig. We all wanted to have some sort of "dessert" for him at our big Christmas party. So he could feel included, while everyone else was shoving their faces full of sugar cookies and bourbon balls.
Then - miracle! I remembered this recipe my mom had for cheese wafers. They totally looked like cookies, but were savory. Thus, they were perfect for Izzy! He could partake in the "cookies" of the season, but still enjoy them. It was a perfect fit.
And - the name "Izzy Cookies" stuck. It stuck good.
Izzy also happens to be an astoundingly smart guy, who I'm certain will be counted as one of the more incredible people I will have had the pleasure to meet.
So, here are his namesake cookies.
Start with butter, flour, salt, cayenne, and smoked paprika.
Beat it all up and add in the cheddar cheese.
Then the rice krispies.
Mix it all up.
Roll up into balls, about the size of a pecan.
Flatten them with a fork.
Bake until golden.
Try to not eat all of them before the party....
Izzy Cookies
Makes 3-4 dozen
Adapted from my Mamma's Cheese Wafer recipe
2 sticks butter, softened
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
8 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 c. rice krispies
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix butter, flour, salt, cayenne, and smoked paprika with an electric beater. Stir in the cheese. Then stir in the rice krispies. Roll into balls the size of a pecan. Flatten with a fork. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until golden.
This Thanksgiving, we spent the holiday with part of Mr. S's side of the family. There aren't very many of us Stevens on this side of the Mississippi, so it was an intimate soiree.
Mr. S's cousin Aimee, her hubby Joe, and their incredibly adorable daughter Nell, invited us over to their tiny little San Fran house, to share dinner with them and Aimee's parents (in town from the East Coast).
We offered to bring several dishes - among them a variation on this salad. It was met with joy (from Aimee) and a great amount of skepticism (from Aunt Peg).
One of the best parts about this salad is that it needs to sit. And it did. On the counter. For many, many hours.
And then - it was delicious!!!
In fact, when we made it later, we had it for dinner. Then let it sit all night and day in the refrigerator. And I like it better on day two.
You MUST make this salad for your holiday table. It will make your life so much better.
Start at least 8-10 hours ahead of time. Chop up kale.
Mix up the dressing by combining all these ingredients:
Whisk it up good.
Pour over kale and massage in with your fingers. Allow to sit for 8-10 hours.
Right before you serve, toss in pepitas and pomegranate.
Enjoy!
Holiday Kale Salad
Serves 4-6
1 bunch of kale
3 tbs olive oil
3 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 shallot, finely diced
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tbsp dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 a pomegranate
1/2 c. pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
Cut the kale into bite-sized pieces and put in a large bowl. To make the dressing, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, diced shallot, lemon juice, mustard, and salt & pepper in a small bowl. Pour dressing over kale. Allow to sit for at least a 6 hours, up to a day. Before serving, add in the pomegranate and pepitas. Mix well.
Once you convince your picky cousin to try a bite, you'll find that half the bowl is already gone!
