A Simple Celebration

 It's New Year's Eve and many are either celebrating solo or with just one other. Not to worry . You can create a variety of good dishes for one or for two.

i went for a vegan variation of croque monsieur. This is one of my favorites , easy to make but packed with flavor and charm.

it was simple. I also gave a nod to the classic ham and cheese on rye. It's buttering slices of rye (I bought a fresh made loaf from the Acme) and layering the sliced vegan ham from Christmas with GO Veggie American cheese slices. This worked well because the vegan cheese is exactly like the real one and the taste blended in perfectly with the ham. It was then frying in Melt plant butter . This is a fun way  to celebrate with New Year.It also works well as a weekend dinner too.

If you;re a meat eat eater then a great celebratory dish for one is a French dip sandwich. This is just a roas tbeef and sometimes Provolone topped hero dipped in au jus.. Chicken a la king on brioche toast is another indulgent meal , perfect for one , excellent for two. The chicken dish can be bought canned,You could also make turkey a la king with any Christmas leftovers and a package of peas and carrots. A fun salad which can be well stretched into the weekend is also a nice way to welcome in 2022. Add crab and shrimp to a simple package of mixed spring greens. Chopped celery and grape tomatoes finish it with crunch and color. If you want to get a jump start on healthy eating  a salad Nicoise is your way to go.Make it decadent with the addition of hard boiled eggs and seasoned bread crumbs. Go the good for you route with adding salmon, rich in omega 3's and freshly steamed green beans. A simple vinaigrette is all both variations need. Add warmed, crusty French bread and a good wine to finish it off.

Even a part of one - or two - can have a tasty New Year's Eve meal. make it. simple, elegant and delicious. It's easy and fun , a perfect way to party at home tonight.

Ancient New Year's Customs To America

 Food and the New year are always entwined.  There are so many customs and legends. Many of our Black American food customs have originated from them and they are a delicious way to ring in a new year.

Kayla Stewart an award winning food writer and part of the Bittman Project, an online food journal write this informative piece in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Every New Year's Black Americans have some combination of green veggies and cow peas, namely collards and Hopping John. Why these foods?The choice of greens, usually cooked with pork for flavor symbolize paper moneys. collards do resemble folded dollars. The peas promise good luck,health and abundance according to Adrian Miller a food scholar and author. Yet African countries never had any food related New Year's customs. This is a messy marriage of using european based ingredients such as collards, a derivation of colewort or a non heading cabbage and African cooking methods, namely a long, low and slow simmer. West Africans did cook black eyed peas but these were for deities who had a fondness for the legume. Geography also played a strong part in the way the dishes are prepared. Lousiana has a surprisingly strong German influence so cabbage instead of collards. Black and Southern traditions became inextricable. The foods were the same. 

There are distinctions though. Amethyst  Ganaway, a Lowcountry chef and writer have noted that people interchange  black eyed peas and rice with Hopping John. . The last is a one pot meal of rice and field peas.It's also lighter , redder and creamier in look and texture than the other.. How people celebrate will factor in, it means sharing good will along with hope  from a marginalized and suppressed sector of society. It,s not just greens and beans either for welcoming another year. Other foods have also been included in the New Year's canon is seafood gumbo. It came from the Carolinas Low Country J.J. Johnson the and owner  chef of New York's Fieldtrip believes his grandmother's philosophy of if you eat good and healthy in the new year, you'll be good and healthy in the new year.Ms. Stewart includes recipes for all these dishes.There is one for collard greens plus cornmeal dumplings which are an easy blend of cornmeal, flour, baking powder and butter. The collards are flavored with green onions and garlic.  There is an easy black eyed pea  recipe made with salt pork or bacon. The gumbo is a bit more elaborate but worth it. You do have to create a gumbo spice mix first. The gumbo is a tasty mix of lobster , crab and scallops.

The traditions are a messy marriage of European and African yet it works. These recipes symbolize hope and happiness for the new year. It speaks to the aspirations in all of us.

What Will You Be Eating In 2022

 Predictions always come with the new year. What will be the latest trends? Who will be the latest stars?  What will we eat is so important. What spice will be the spice to use? Or what veggie or meat will be the darling of social media?

That the question that regular contributor Kim Severson posed today in New York Times Food section. There is a lot of uncertainty thanks to the Omnicron variant  which is adding to economic uncertainty. There are also social justice concerns along with pressure from a fast changing climate.Yet there are some fun and interesting trends out there.The environment is always on people's and restaurant owner's mind. Cups, plates and bowls along with utensils are going to be edible. That means no waste to wind up in landfills.Another trend that's good for the environment is faux meats. Consumers have literally gobbled up everything from Gardein to Moringstar Farms. Mushrooms which are the another good source of protein are going to be one of the top foods of the new year.There's an interest in psychedelics (!) along with ones that can stand in for scallops. They will also be used in packaging with their fibers filling in for cardboard.Seaweed is also going to be one of the biggest natural trends.It too is good for the environment as it reduces carbon dioxide.

Some of the more fun trends will be a return to those ultra boozy , ultra tasty drinks that defined the Eighties. See an uptick in orders for Long Island Ice Tea, Blue Lagoons and Tequila Sunsets. These will be different from the originals in the sense that there will be more fresh juices and a better sort of alcohol.Another drink that will be popular with be the Vietnamese coffee Robusta. It may be bitter tasting and heavily caffeinated but it's less expensive than Arabica and better to cultivate. Candy from China and Korea will also find its' way into American mouth, thanks to a show like Squid Games. Korea also brings us the fusion word swicy - a combination of sweet and spicy  along with swalty  - sweet and salty , This marries savory with sweet or spicy with sweet. Indian food is also going to be very popular, especially dishes from such regions as Kashmir and Kerala, along with from Tamil. Food history will make foodies dive into Wikipedia and old cookbooks. Rudeness will be out as patience takes over.. Other trends include high tea, olives , Taiwanese breakfast dishes and the strange potato milk!

The New Year is going to be an interesting one. We'll be exploring and clamoring for Asian foods along with good for us and good for the environment foods. We'll practice kinds as we revive old cocktails and explore new flavor fusions like swalty and swicy. Here's to the future!

Your Own Charcuterie

 Charcuterie used to mean just a plate of sliced cold cuts, some cheese and a host of bread and crackers .now it['s a board filled with everything from seafood to candy. Anything you can pull together makes for an interesting buffet for the New Year.

Charcuterie boards of any type are easy to make up and fun to nibble from. You don't have to have a traditional wooden board that's typically used for cheeses. any flat surface will do. You can use a platter or a large enough cutting board. Even baking sheets will do in a pinch. Should you line it with aluminum foil? You can.it guarantees an easy  clean up however you can also use large , pretty napkins too. paper ones can work as well. Traditional charcuterie platters originated in France and featured mostly pork  based cold cuts like Jambon de Bayonne and Jambon de Paris, the last can be bought in Whole Foods.  Thickly sliced ham and thickly sliced salame are the basis of an American charcuterie board. You can also include prosciutto and sopprasutta as well. Cheeses are a must. Brie would be a good choice along with Gruyere and a soft cheese like Edam. If you want include goat cheese as well. some add cornichons,  along with green and black olives.Both bread and crackers should be included. Thinly sliced French and Italian bread are perfect for this but sourdough and even rye or pumpernickel can be used. Any kind of cracker is perfect. Vary them, from  buttery Ritz to Japanese rice ones.

The definition has expanded to include other foods. Vegans can delight in a meat free board. Tofurky and Light life have a good selection of cold cuts. You can get ham , turkey and pepperoni and even bologna. Cheeses aren't a problem either. Miyoko's  Creamery has an excellent array of them, from mozzarella to  creamy Road house.  You could even serve the company's plant based  butter on warmed, crusty slices of sourdough bread. Violife also has some tasty dairy free fromages like Provolone and feta. You can still serve cornichons along with  some other veggies such as artichoke hearts  and fresh veggies with a vinaigrette dip. Seafood is taking its' turn at the charcuterie board. Shrimp cocktail is a must, Make sure you have little cups or ramekins of shrimp sauce with it.Crab legs can also be included along with lobster tails. These can be served warm or cold, with either individual lemon slices or melted butter. If you're ambitious enough you could also make California or dragon rolls too with it. Lox can also be served if you want too along with gravlax. Keep the veggies to a minimum and mix the cheese. Try a small sampling of carrots , celery or broccoli with a simple olive oil and lemon or vinegar dressing.

There's nothing like a charcuterie board. Go with the traditional or try a variation. either way is a great fun feast.

Vegan Reheat

 What can you do with a vegan holiday dinner? Reheat it and serve it up in a tastier manner.Vegan ham from tofurky can lend itself to a variety of different recipes from ham salad to treating it  like Taylor ham. Try the latter for a quick, tasty repurposing.

That's exactly what I did. I sliced my holiday loaf from Christmas Day dinner into medium thick  slices,

Some pieces were easier to carve than other bu they produced smaller bits that yielded crunchy morsels when fried.

I decided to fry them up on my griddle using my leftover vegan butter Melt that was also used in my holiday cookies. It was a generous knob.

It was then cooking and flipping the slices as if they were Taylor ham. The edges should flip up like a sombrero's . This usually takes anywhere from five to ten minutes.

Some pieces will cook up faster than others. Let them. This provides crisp pieces sort of like bacon.

I had mine with leftover string bean salad but the slices would also be good in a vegan Eggs Benedict  using Just Eggs or an omelet using the egg sub in.I also made a sandwich of one on rye bread. It would be delicious in savory vegetarian cheese egg strata for brunch too.

The possibilities are endless with leftover Tofurky ham loaf.  You can slice it, cube it, mince it.It's tasty fried, but you can air fry it too. Be creative with your vegan holiday leftovers. It's amazing what you can make with it.

Merriest of Christmases

To my readers around the world., enjoy this Christmas with favorite foods and family members.🎄🎄🎄

A Homemade Christmas

 A Good Christmas to all my readers worldwide. I had a very Aldi Christmas Eve with making their Priano Mushroom Risotto which was delicious. Here are their sugar cookies, which were supposed to be drizzle ones. They look more like what came out of the reindeer after a bad stomach ache.

It was melting Nestle's chips and drizzling them over the cookies. However there was too much chocolate. still they tasted pretty good.

Enjoy your cookies, whether homemade or not !!!!

The Oysters And Their Merroir

 If you think oysters are just oysters, think again. They are as complex as wine, and even mirror the drinks' many different flavors and subtleties. These are not just bivalves. They're much more.

 Regular contributor Melissa Clark explored  this in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Oysters are actually filters, cleansing up to three thousand gallons of both salt and fresh water daily. Yet for centuries they have been considered both a staple as with the Indigenous Americans and a luxury as with the Europeans who settled the continent. However they're not that simple. They are a complex animal, now mostly farmed in controlled conditions, not unlike grapes meant for wine.Unlike wines there are only five kinds of them in the United States. There is the East Coast one, found in the Atlantic while the Pacific Ocean has the west Coast oyster. yet the varieties or varietels are just like wine. An oyster raised in the warm waters off Louisiana is going to taste entirely different from one harvested from Maine's icy ocean. This is called a merroir,  a play on the french terroir, from land. Mer is from the french word for 'sea". It's the interaction of aquaculture techniques and the local merroir that creates the taste. even though the oysters from the Glidden Point Oyster farm is only one thousand feet from the Mook sea Farm, their tastes are vastly different. The Glidden Farms ones are sweet , dense and stony  while the Mook Sea Farm have a clean flavor and a rounded shell.

Sometimes the land itself can have a direct impact on the oysters flavor. At Hama Hama Company in Lilliwaup Washington,  the Pacific oysters are raised in the Hood Canal. This is nestled in an area where there are Douglas firs which drop their needles into the water. This definitely affects their taste, along with the algae and phytoplankton. Oysters aren't the only ones with a merroir. Scallops are also affected by their environment too. They also have a distinct flavors and textures.They run the gamut from soft and mild  from Cobscook Bay to funky, firmer and saltier adductors from Little Macchias Bay. This is a recent thing and it may be shortly applied to shrimp, crab and lobster too,If you plan on eating oysters for the holidays, keep in mind that they're not really good with champagne as most make them out to be. Ms. Clark  feels that raw oysters gives the bubbly a metallic taste unless they're Oysters Rockefellar.. Instead try a modestly sweet German Resiling. You can also try Sancerre, Muscadet or Chablis.

Oysters are not just oysters anymore. The same idea with scallops. They're as complex as a good wine with different flavors and sub notes. Like a good wine, they should be savored and appreciated for those unique tastes too.

A Trucker's CHristmas

 We don't give enough credit to our truckers. They have been our saviors during this pandemic and shortages. Funny enough these heroes prefer to be on the road at Christmas, celebrating and even cooking from their cabs.

Priya Krishna , a regular contributor and cookbook author interviewed this chefs of the road for today's New York Times Food section. The cab kitchens are actually well equipped despite their small size.Trucker Dina McKinney's kitchen is really like everyone else's. There are spices neatly organized in jars, a butcher block counter and a prettily tiled backsplash. there are even Santa towels. She is cooking for herself but what a meal!. There will be Brie in puff pastry and a thyme and rosemary rubbed turkey leg to be roasted on her rotisserie. It's dripping will go to   season a turkey breast. Brussels sprouts with bacon will be sauteed on her butane stove. Not every trucker has her elaborate system. Yet many of the three million something truckers out there are cooking from their cabs. They are either looking for much healthier foods than what's in truck stops or out of necessity. Most places nationwide have closed due to the pandemic. Then there's the life of a trucker.Many are working long overtime hours for the money  along with helping to lessen the supply chain issue, especially now around the holidays.

Yet they persist and find ways to celebrate with home cooked meals. Trucker Margie Gillis from Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin is making her Christmas meal with leg of lamb and eggplant casserole which she will share with other truckers. Her Thanksgiving was great with stuffed roasted duck,  green bean casserole and cheese mashed potatoes. and cranberry sauce. However it does have its' setbacks, She will only wipe her dishes clean and then thoroughly wash them when she takes her shower at a truck stop. Traditional cookies are out. She just can't handle mixing and baking them, with flour all over the place and trying to clean beaters.  New Year's also gets special food in the cabs.Tamra Fakhoorian plans a tasty First Night with a big charcuterie board chock full of cured meat, olives, and cheeses. There will be lights around her bed and she will record her goals for the New Year. Cooking can also alleviate any depression or loneliness that comes with the job. James Willis of Tacoma Washington will make himself a  lush meal of  steak cooked in a George Forman grill with instant mashed potatoes and gravy. Some truckers like couple Melissa Cheshire and Vincent Louque enjoy eating out . They get to sample local specialties like gumbo and shrimp in Lousiana. Another , Sunny Grewal from Fresno.  celebrates Diwali with take out naan and shahi paneer.  Rafique Smioth from Philadelphia observes Eid on the road too.

Truckers do have hard lives but they manage to make do. This includes having the best holidays they can. It even involves a  home cooked meal with all the trimmings.

Otea Teas A New Kind Of Comfort

 if you're looking for a new tea to sip this winter look no further than Oteas. This brand has some unusual blends as well as comforting versions of what we all love. It's the perfect hot drink for sitting in a comfy chair and enjoying a warm cup/

The company is located in Revelstoke, British Columbia and has a healthy good for the planet pacific Northwest vibe about it. They have a variety of teas, both in bags and loose leaf with tea leaves coming from allover the world. There are  spicy chais' and  good for you  creamy matcha  teas , great for a relaxing sip. The company also sells accessories such as mgs, a glass tea pot and jars for storing the loose leaf. There are also  Stainless steel tea infuser and a wooden spoon for pouring in the leaves

I have so many favorites with this brand. One of my favorites is the chocolate chai  made with cacao bean peels and blackberry leaves.Their Organic Rejunvenate Tea is the perfect cup for waking up in the morning.It's made with organic ginger  lemon grass and yerba mate   . Another favorite and right for these hectic days is Serenitea, a tasty blend of lemongrass, orange peel and sunflower  and lime tree blossoms. the strawberries and cream is a delicious drink hot or cold.It's a mix of strawberry and apple pieces along with  hibiscus and rose hip peels. My night time tea is their Organic Sleepwell  with a mix of green rooibos tea , granulated ginger, organic peppermint and chamomile  to soothe and relax.

Discover Oteas Teas for a hot sip on a cold night. ANy flavor is perfect . Brew a cup, sit back and enjoy their  rich flavor

Holiday KItchen Hacks

 Christmas cooking and baking can be stressful. Home chefs and bakers may not have the time or the skill. Not to worry . There are hacks to use that can get anyone through this kitchen craziness.

First of all rethink that holiday roast. You don't have to cook an entire roast if there's only a few people. An easier version of roast turkey is turkey breast. It only takes about an hour or two to cook which means you don't have to wake up and start pepping it right away. A canned ham can do just fine if you don;t want to roast a fresh one.Another easy main course is rounds of filet mignon that can even be cooked up in the air fryer.Simplify sides as well. Frozen broccoli and green beans can be microwaved , chilled Christmas Eve and turned into tasty salads half an hour before the meal is served. Go for a simple vinaigrette instead of a fancy , more laborious dressing. Stovetop Stuffing is just as tasty as the more work intensive one where you have to tear bread and chop celery for. Instant mashed potatoes can be used and jazzed up with chopped garlic or minced scallions. Another easy side is microwaved sweet potatoes or yams. These only takes five minutes to cook per potato. Serve with melted butter.

What about those Christmas desserts? One super easy hack is going to your local bakery and buying a platter of cookies or a prettily decorated cake.  Some bakeries and stores such as Acme and Stop and Shop even sell in store  already baked and decorated Yule Logs or Buche de Noel. If you do feel like baking , remember there are Pillsbury Slice and Bakes. These are easy to prep and bake. Another plus is that you can go to their website and get decorating ideas.There is one where you can decorate cookies to look like Santa's bellies or Christmas ornaments. A yummy treat are sandwich cookies  with an easy buttercream filling.A two layer cake is always a lovely way to end a holiday meal. You can go with any of the Duncan Hines ones and canned icing. A tasty one is a butter cake with a rich cocoa frosting. What about a chocolate sheet cakes with mint icing? You can dust it with silver sanding sugar for a frosty snow effect. You could also bake cupcakes which are always a crowd pleaser and easy to bake and frost. Even easier is a trifle made with store bought pound cake, rum , fruit and Cool Whip. Layer and then pop overnight in the fridge.

Don;t stress over Christmas cooking and baking.There are some easy hacks to make everything a cinch. Try them for some relief in the kitchen.

Last Minute Kitchen Gifts

 Christmas is a week away and it's crunch time. Think anything kitchen , from cookbooks to gadgets. These are great presents that will keep on giving. They can be fun. They can be handy. They can be perfect.

A cookbook is always the most interesting gift to open.It not only gives recipes but the stories behind them as well as great tips. International cuisine ones are  also  travelogues with amazing pictures of the food, country and people. The New York Times Food section had an extensive list of them this past Wednesday.There are fourteen choices, from Mina Stone's Greek influenced Lemon,Love and Olive Oil  (Harper Collins) to Michael Twitty's  Rice  A Savor The South Cookbook 0 Noirth Carolina Press). There are cookbooks that revolve around baking like Cookies: The New Classics A Baking Book (Clarkson Potter) by Jesse Szewcyck and  Sheet Cake Easy One Pan Recipes For Every Day and Every Occasion  (Clarkson Potter) by Abigal Johnson Didge. There are cookbooks about Middle eastern sweets and Korean vegetarianism too,. If you do buy a cookbook, get extra little gifts that tie into the book. This can be a sushi mat or a pretty set of measuring cups and spoons. You could even arrange a fun basket full of the ingredients too.

Anyone loves a gadget. They're so much fun to receive and try out,An air fryer is a definite must give for any home chef. They can cook up anything from chicken nuggets to even cinnamon rolls. They will definitely be much appreciated and will be used for months to come. Another fun and necessary gift is an immersion blender. These can easily whip up smoothies but they're also great for creaming and blending soups and sauces. They're also very easy to handle as well as to clean. Bakers will appreciate fun baking gifts like cookie presses. A plus is that they're easily attainable. Everyone from Target to Walmart has them.Throw in a variety pack of sprinkles for decorating. For those non-bakers who still want a holiday treat think about giving a gingerbread kit. These are fun and also perfect for the budget. Five Below is selling them for around five dollars. Target and Walgreens also have them for as low as $2.99. There are also have sleds and trains too that already come with icing and candies to decorate.

Yes, Christmas is coming. There's no need to go frantic over what to give any home chef or baker. The list is endless , from cookbooks and gadgets to gingerbread house kits. Have fun picking out the right gift.

How To Starve Cancer The Perfect Gift of A Book

 Talking about any dreaded disease is not fun, especially during the holidays. yet what if you could stop a host of diseases just by giving a gift of one very important book. You can. Jane McClelland's part how to , part memoir How To Starve Cancer (Agenor Books 2021) is the book to give this Christmas along with being a book that should be in every home library.

Ms. McClelland herself is a powerhouse , able to starve her own Stage 4 cervical cancer that metastasized to her  one lung. if she had gone the traditional route of chemo and radiation she would have been dead after six weeks of the initial diagnosis. She fought back. The first three hundred and eight pages are dedicated to her life with the disease. Despite it she married a brilliant and cute man and created her own line of all natural bath products with an appearance on the British version of Shark Tank, Dragon's Den.  She never gave up her beloved sailing  which took her to the South Coast of England and her beloved isle of Guernsey. She did not give up on her boat racing or being a mom . She had two sons through surrogacy (the eldest even had a talking role on the international hit Call The Midwife!!!). what is amazing about Ms. McClelland is that she will not give up on herself while battling the snooty patriarchal attitude of the NHS. It's not as kind as it's portrayed as on movies and TV. She had to dig and research, even acting as a guinea pig for treatments established medicine scoffed at.

The second part of the book is geared to how to kill cancer and reboot the immune system.  The book ends with the description of the Ferroptopsis Protocol which is using iron to starve and kill cancer. There are no recipes in the book to help the diet along. Ms. McClelland a licensed  Chartered physiotherapiust, in the UK,only gives suggestions about what to eat and what to avoid. Hopefully there will be a future book of recipes that families can use. Glucose which definitely feeds cancer cells is off the table. If you think you can replace those sweet treats with fruit, think again. She nixes grapes and pineapple, fruits that are pure sugar. Berries such as strawberries and antioxidant rich blueberries are allowed and encouraged but only in small quantities. Even veggies like asparagus are  off the table along with any grain products like bread and white rice. Opt for whole wheat loaves and brown rice instead. She also recommends being on a mostly  pescatarian diet , rich in Omega 3. Think salmon dishes. Also drink a lot of green tea and bottled water. There are also supplements that help in starving and killing cancer. She is a huge believer in intermittent fasting which is a big boost to eradicating the disease. 

How To Starve Cancer is a must give book. It can help with nor only snuffing out cancer but also lower diabetes and heart disease. It is a gift that keeps on giving.

A Holiday Treat Buneulos

 If you're tired of baking Christmas cookies then think about frying up buneulos. These are a great alternative to them along with being  for body. and different . Best of all they are delicious, perfect on Christmas morning with a coffee and tea.

Christina Morales ,a regular contributor to the New York Food section  wrote about these tasty treats in yesterday's issue. They are a Mexican,  Latin American and Spanish Caribbean sweet originating in Spain. Many countries have their own version  and also different names.  Originally Spain's  first created the,mSephardic Jews during the Arab invasion. The use of anise in the original recipe is a telltale sign.  They may have born in Turkey and the recipe carried from there with the Sephardim tribes.There are different versions of buneulos made with slightly different ingredients. Cubans use the widely available root vegetable yucca which gives the fried buneulo a puffy  doughnut look. The shapes are different too., Some home bakers make figure eights . Some fry them in disc form so they look like Native American flatbreads. Syrup is uslaly drizzled on them and again that varies. The Mexicans usually make one that has piloncillo or Mexican brown sugar, clove and anise, Columbians  turn them into balls and fill them with cheese for a savory sweet treat. Cubans steep them in a syrup flavored with citrusl,anise and cinnamon

The Times give two recipes for them. One is  the Cuban with the anise syrup. The batter is a mix of succulewnts such as yucca but also boniato or sweet potato, malanga, taro and name  (pronounced nom -may a cross between a potato and sweet potato) Flour is also added for body a sis pumpkin, winter squash or calabazas. The way to prepare them is like preparing gnocchi, with the starches being hsnd mixed with the flour and three eggs. Squares are formed and then deep fried in a skillet full of bubbling hot canola oil.The syrup is an easy mix of granulated sugar, star anise, cinnamon, lime and lime peel.It's cooked over a low heat for fifteen to twenty minutes. You could also try the Mexican ones that are more cookie like  with just flour, eggs, baking powder and melted unsalted butter. The syrup is again a simple cooked mix of piloncillo (bought at a Mexican grocery) along with guavas, cinnamon, orange peel and anise seeds.

Buneulos are a different kind of holiday treat. Make them for Christmas for a nice ending. They are simple to make and just as easy to eat.

The Rich Vegan Legacy Of Africa

Many of america's foods come from  West Africa from yams to rice. What many don;t know is that the area also has a rich vegetarian history that can be easily incorporated into our diets. The dishes are not just good for you. They are also delicious too , with many interesting spices  to liven up the veggies.

Yewande Komolafe ,a  recipe developer  and regular contributor to the New York Times Food section wrote about this bountiful cuisine. Ms. Komolafe herself is from Lagos, Nigeria where there is a wealth of meat free recipes. She is not new to the idea of a plant based diet as is the chefs she interviews. Also a plus is West African cooks are passionate about adaptations to their recipes. Many will balk at a new method of cooking a dish however replacing meat with plant based ingredients will provide new paths to familiar pathways. Afia Amoako ,a Canadian grad student, believes that there is no standard recipe, only standard methods for layering and building flavor. Mushrooms can easily be subbed in for chicken or beef. Chef Fatmata Binta explores the plant based recipes of her F ulani tribe , based in Ghana for her project The Fulani Kitchen. Many ingredients can be foraged along with being easily transported. The foods also have to be non perishable and preserved, usually sun dried.One chef, Salimatu Amabebe feels a connection to his father and grandparents by cooking a plant based Nigerian diet.

There are also recipes that any chef can make for the holidays and beyond. One is the very interesting roasted mushrooms in a sauce called Ata Din Din. This is roasting a host of mushrooms , from shiitake to oysters with thyme on a sheet pan. At the same time the Ata Din Din sauce is created, a fiery blend of  red  pepper ginger and habanero chiles topped with a pickle of onions, salt and vinegar.  For another blood warming dish try the moin moin or steamed filled bean cakes from Nigeria.It's a mix of  dried honey beans or black eyed peas cooked with habanero peppers along with red peppers and red onions, Mushrooms or the Ata Din Din can be used as the stuffing. They're formed by filling rolled cone shaped banana leaves. Dessert is coconut lemongrass tapioca with caramelized citrus. It's made with small pearl tapioca and ginger along witht eh lemongrass  and topped with caramelized citrus slices such as blood oranges, grapefruits and tangerines. Lemongrass infused coconut milk is then ladled onto this.

West Africa has a rich culinary history. It's made even richer with plant based recipes. There may be no meat but there is a  lot of flavor.

Is Peach Melba The One

Peach Melba is an elegant dessert first made at London's Savoy Hotel by the great chef Auguste Escoffier in 1892 for the Australian opera singer Nellie Melba. It;s a lovely blend of a raspberry coulis with peaches and vanilla ice cream.

I decided to give it a try today in my search for the perfect holiday dessert. 

It starts with twelve ounces of raspberries. I used Driscoll's fresh ones but you could use the frozen ones instead.

Then there was the sugar factor. Most recipes call for a cup of refined granulated sugar. I didn't like this idea so I added a more natural source  - a quarter cup of lite maple syrup (you could also add honey too , especially the ones made from lavender or wild flowers).

I liked Stop & Shop's Lite maple syrup but again you can add any of your choosing. A quick squeeze of lemon is also needed.

I used about five tablespoons of water too. I first cooked it on the stove.

The gas went off and I then had to use the microwave which I was reluctant to use. There's this Internet rumor that raspberries spark when heated in one. I put mine in for two minutes and crossed my fingers that they would come out OK They did.

It was then blitzing them with my immersion blender. The coulis should have been strained through a muslin cloth but I like it with a thicker, seedier mouth feel.

The dish itself is just scoops of vanilla ice cream arranged with peaches (usually fresh but canned work during this time of year) The raspberry coulis is drizzled over it.

It's a very summery tasting dessert and ti does have a fun,fruity flavor. I may make this for the holiday. I did try the coulis with chocolate syrup and the soy vanilla ice cream a second time and that was phenomenal. Chocolate and raspberry work so well together. that that may be the Christmas dessert.

I stored the coulis in a jar kept chilled in the fridge. It can also be stirred in plain yogurts along in oatmeal. You can make a fruity, pulpy soda with it too.

Peach Melba may be the perfect Christmas dessert.It is an easy elegance that is also delicious. Try it for a tasty end to a holiday meal.

What To Make What To Bake

 Christmas is less than two weeks away and many home chefs and bakers have no clue as to whip up. Do you go with a roast or with a ham? Bake the traditional cookies or try your hand at a lush dessert? There are so  many options. Yet what is the right one?

This is my problem on two accounts. What I will make as the main course will be vegan . That's a given. Yet what will it be? My go to is the comforting and tasty Gardein's turkey cutlets. They're easy to make in the air fryer and the accompanying gravy packets can easily be cooked in the microwave. This last is easy to make. Just thaw out add some water and a bit of I can't Believe it's Not Butter and a pinch of onion powder. The sides are an easy stuffing mix usually from Acme. Then there's either Brussels sprouts or green beans. I could change it up, I've seen two recipes that could change my mind.I recently saw the great British chef Mary Berry make a venison Wellington on her Great Country House series. She turned venison into something special at Scone Castle. I looked up a vegan version and found I could make one with Beyond beef, spinach, and chopped mushrooms wrapped in already made puff pastry. Then there's a tofu ham loaf that I know I can make tasty with a root beer glaze. I prepped the Thanksgiving Tofurky as it was the real thing. I can do the same with a faux ham with a delicious tried and true recipe.

Then there's the question of dessert. Who doesn't love a home baked cookie at Christmas however they are work. Even the Pillsbury Slice and Bakes can be laborious. Yet there are some recipes I would love to try, like peanut blossoms or almond spritz cookies.  I did buy a gingerbread house kit at Five Below. This can be dismantled and eaten, hence taking care of the cookie and candy side of the holiday. Yet what to make for Christmas Day dessert? I thought maybe a spice cake with a chocolate ganache icing , a riff on Hackensack New Jersey's  great B & W's Bakery's spice cupcakes with chocolate frosting. Then I saw a PBS special on London's historic hotel  The Savoy and one of its illustrious chefs ,Auguste Escoffier. He was famed for creating amazing desserts , named for the prominent women of the late Victorian Era. One was for the Australian opera singer , Nellie Melba which was a marriage of  raspberry coulis over peaches and vanilla ice cream. That looked wonderful so I Googled the recipe. It's surprisingly easy to make. It would be a breeze to make after a labor intensive  fake meat dinner.. I can easily buy canned peaches and there are fresh raspberries in all the stores. 

I still don't what to make. I am leaning towards the tried and true Gardein turkey and peach Melba.  Or it may be something else? Or something new? There's still a lot of time to decide.

Food And Prayers

 The US Midwest   and South has just gone through  one of the largest and most devastating tornado clusters in American history. Prayers will help. They always do. Yet food , hot and donated will also benefit.

This is one of the most horrirfic natural weather disasters to ever hit the continental US. Six states, were hit, destroying homes, schools and hospitals. The field of impact ranges from southern Illinois to western Kentucky.Arkansas,Missouri and Tennessee have also been hit. There are people and animals without electricity, water and food. Mayfield Kentucky was completely devastated. You can donate to the Kentucky REd Cross along with Aspire Appalachia and United Way  Company. You can also donate baby and pet food along with canned food to The Salvation Army, Kentucky/Tennessee Division. Food donations go to Dare To Care Food Bank, Hope To All Food Pantry at 307 W, Mose Rager Boulevard Drakesboro, KY and Community Kitchen 1237 Martin Luther King Boulevard in Paducah, KY, Give what you can and what can last, Breads, coolies crackers and cold cuts along with cheeses are good choices. Bottled water is a must. It can provide sustenance and cleaning too.

Raising money can also help. Think about creating  a bake sale which is perfect for those who  don't like to bake.Due to the virus, try to have it in a large, spacious area like your school gym or church hall.(some colleges are having holiday bake sales in their parking lots where there's a lot of space and fresh air.)  If you're really talented or can bake with help then think about making gingerbread houses or chocolate Yule logs , sweets that many home bakers find complicated to make. You can also try making fun gingerbread ornaments with royal icing and pretty decorations. These can be hung on the tree and eaten afterwards. Another big bake sale seller at this time are a wide array of cookies. The fancy spritz cookies are easy t make now thanks to improvements in cookie presses (there are even electric ones now). There are holiday themed discs that can be used in the presses and the dough can be tinted green and red for the holiday. of course oatmeal raisin and chocolate chip will always sell.

This is the season for heart and helping. Do what you can to help those devastated by the megatornados that hit six states in the Midwest and South. it could be cans pf pet food and formula. It could be the proceeds of a bake sale. Just reach out and help.

Fizz For The Holidays

The gift of bubbles are always fun. This could range from champagne to soda machines to gift certificates to a soda shop. There's nothing like the joy of fizz

Of course everyone appreciates champagne. Veuve Cliquot is the number one bottle of bubbly given out.It also comes in a very pretty yellow box.Its' notes are grape and apple and would be perfect with a varied charcuterie board.Moet Chandon is another good gift It has a very fruity, almost tropical taste with notes of pineapple and mango. There are under notes of mirabelle plum and apricot. A personal favorite is Asti Spumante which has a delicate blend of orange,pears, apricots and peaches. It's refreshing and not cloying  thanks to the crisp acidity of the Moscato Bianco grapes that comprise if champagne isn't our thing , then think soda. No, not your box of Coke or Dr. Pepper but a gift certificate at some of the new soda shops opening up.Victoria Peterson, a regular contributor covered this in Wednesday's New York Times Food section.  Chains like Swig and Fiiz have such delicious combinations as sparkling water with syrups to create Italian sodas, refreshing alternatives to the regular colas and lime sodas. The companies are mostly in Utah and the West. Some Italian pastry and coffee shops in other metro areas, like New York , Boston and Chicago can make Italian sodas in such refreshing flavors as tangerine, blood orange and lemon.

A soda machine is another great gift idea. Soda Stream has updated its' look and is a great addition to any one with a modern looking kitchen.It's has a new updated model,  Terra which is  sleeker and more aerodynamic looking. It comes in four colors from pale blue to red and the classic black or white. You could be generous and give the Hydration pack which has two extra bottles if the recipient wants to make two or three flavors at once. They also have the One Touch Electric which is much easier to use than the Terra and also the Aqua Fizz which is the sleekest of all the Soda Stream soda makers. It even comes with fancy carafes that go on any table from picnic to dining. What's really good about gifting this handy machine is the new updated flavors. Yes they still have the classic cola, cream and orange soda flavors along with their version of Dr. Pepper - Dr Pete's. Yet they also have Bubly drops for homemade flavored seltzer. Yet they also have a new line of craft soda syrups in such flavors as lemonade and pink grapefruit along with kombucha and passionfruit and mandarin kombucha

Give the gift of fizz for this Christmas. It could be a bottle of bubbly or a gift certificate at a cool soda shop. Better yet, give a soda machine where there's always a fresh amount of fizz. There's nothing like a fun holiday , full of bubbles and fun.

For The Wine Lover

 What do you get a oenophile for Christmas? You could easily pick up a bottle of a good Merlot or Shiraz.However a more enjoyable idea would be a book about wine. Info and stories about the grape is always fun and interesting. It also makes for a nice change up than the usual bottle.

Eric Asimov explored this in his The Pour column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Getting the wine lover in your life a bottle can be a bit uninspired and boring.Give a book about said bottle and introduce culture and history. Champagne lovers will drink up Champagne Charlie : The Frenchman Who Taught Americans To Love Champagne.(Potomac Books ) by Don and Petie Kladstrup. Its' all about the 19th Century scion of a champagne company who introduced the bubbly to Americans and his misadventures during the   American Civil War. In more of the sparkling wine vein there is Rachel Signer's memoir You Gad me At Pet Nat  A Natural Wine Soaked Memoir(Hatchette) which is about her love and involvement with petillant natural,  an ancient style of sparkling wine revived by natural wine producers. It is a coming of age story Mr Asimov writes and it deals with love and back to earth farming. Robert V. Camuto's South of Somewhere : Wine, Food and the Soul Of Italy (University of Nebraska Press) tells of his ancestry's association with wine. Southern Italy, it's people  and the new generation taking over the old wineries. They give the industry a newer, fresher spin, all captured in Mr. Camuto's book.

There are also books on the terroirs. Portuguese wines are the highlight of Foot Trodden: Portugal and Wines That Time Forgot Interlink Publishing) by Simon J. Woolf and Ryan Opaz.It's all about the dynamics of Portuguese wine making. They show the insularity of Portuguese history along with challenges of the winemakers and the potential future oft he country's wines.Jasper Morris covers the ultimate terroir in Inside Burgundy (Berry Brothers and Rudd Press) This is the ultimate guide to the world's most famous wine country. Mr. Morris is an expert himself, living in the region and a retired wine merchant. He even addresses the fallout of climate change.He also covers the rising price of land that affects Burgundy's estates. On a more local note there is Acadamie du Vin Library's On California :From Napa To Nebbiolo _ Wine Tales From The Golden State. it is a collection of short selections from three dozen writers who offer impressionistic and thoughtful views on the state and its' wine making history.There are pieces  how California became an important part of the wine industry and world .

A bottle of wine lasts only for a while. A book about wine lasts forever. Get your oenophile one of theses for endless months and years of entertainment.

It's The Cookie Issue

 Cookies are a part of the Christmas tradition as the Christmas tree and presents. The question is which ones to make. Do you go with something different and fun or classic and comforting? Not to worry. the New York Times Food section has come out with an extensive array of good and delicious cookie recipes.

It was the highlight of today's weekly Food section. Many regular contributors have contributed , giving us some interesting recipes that will sure to be family favorites.There are six pages of great cookies, perfect for a holiday dessert table or any party . There are even savory ones, perfect for charcuterie boards and cocktails. One is a cheddar cheese coin from Kay Chun that is a baked blend of Cheddar, Parmesan, scallions and butter. Imagine this holding bruschetta or devilled ham.  Ali Slagle created a savory mixed nut shortbread rife with mixed salted nuts. There is some sweetness with sugar added but there is also rosemary and cayenne to give it kick. Eric Kim gives us a yummy version of the M&M cookie, perfect with warm milk on a snowy day.Melissa Clark explores butter spritz cookies made richer with the addition of almond extract and almond flour. Nicole Carpino Frasco withe the help of Margeaux Laskey reimagines her nonna's tricolore squares , those multicolor cake like gems that are robed in dark chocolate.Genevieve Ko makes a mean peanut butter cookie, enhanced with peanut butter chips. Jerrelle Guy's creates a homey , tastier version of iced oatmeal cookies zinged up with cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.

Of course there are spins on classics. Melissa Clark reimagines melt in your mouth rugelach with a chocolate banka filling with a crumbly fudge. Those holiday classics thumbprint cookies get an redoing thanks to Yossy Arefi's addition of tahini to the cookie dough and filled with dulce de leche. Gingerbread get a rehaul with Sohla El-Waylly's recipe that gets zinged up with freshly ground pepper. It's also rich and buttery thanks to the addition of fourteen tablespoons of butter. Nina Donabian gives us Finnish gingerbread man coated with a crunchy raw sugar. Biscotti and swirl cookies also are here. Jerrelle Guy  creates her biscotti with a dark chocolate coating and a spicy blend of cardamon , cloves, nut meg and cinnamon. The swirl cookies have hibiscus and ginger as the main flavors in Yewande Kemolafe's version. Great pastry chef and baker Dorie Greenspan has a more candy like concoction that 's more candy. There are also fruity treats  such as Samantha Severinetne ;'s fig and cherry pies and Sohla El-Wally's fruity meltaways spiked with freeze dried berries. want pure chocolate instead? Then try Vaughn Vreeland's mint brownie cookies,

These are just some of the cookies from the Food section cookie issue.They are classic and reimagined. Try them and add them to your arsenal of holiday cookie recipes.

Gingerbread Housing

 The one food item that says holiday time is the gingerbread house. It''s warm and inviting looking, a classic treasure that's on every dessert table and under every tree. Yet times are changing and so is the gingerbread house.

You can still create an old fashioned gingerbread house complete with gumdrop wreath windows and snowy confectioner's sugar dusted roofs. You can easily find a number of scratch recipes on the internet. Gingerbread on its' own is a wonderful holiday treat. The recipe features the best of spices, the original recipe coming from Armenian monk Gregory of Nicopolis who later settled in Bondaroy in north central France. The recipe hasn't changed. much over the millennia .It's cinnamon , ginger nut meg and cloves mixed with molasses which gives it that lovely deep golden brown hue. Shortening ,sugar and eggs are added and then rolled out and cut according to templates. You can download these or draw your own.Get creative with the windows by cutting out circles or squares and then filling them in with crushed hard candies. They'll melt into pretty stained glass. As for decorations think everything from gum drops to unwrapped Hershey's kisses. You can also use Smarties, and candy canes too along with any kind of  Sour Patch strips.

Of course if you don't have the time or the effort to bake, then buy a kit. These have all the pieces already baked and the right amount of icing to glue them to gether along with the right amount of candy decorations, The good thing about these is that now they are varied. There is the gingerbread train and gingerbread treehouse ,both can be bought at Target, These are fun addition to any Christmas table. Five Below has even more. They have the Hershey's Chocolate Cookie House which looks easy to do and can be decorated any way you want. They also have the Oreo train, made from what else, Oreos icings and a variety of different candies. Five Below also has a very easy gingerbread reindeer and sleigh which has only four pieces for the sled and three for the reindeer. Candies also have their houses too. There are also Sour Patch Kids and Twizzlers ones too. These are regular gingerbread houses decorated with the candies. it makes for something different and fun too. Most of the Five Below kits are usually priced at around five dollars. 

it is gingerbread season. Make your own or buy a kit. Just have fun creating this festive and tasty Christmas tradition.

Fasr Food Fast Yuck

 We've been told for decades that fast food is bad for us despite its' taste. Those burgers and nuggets were addictive as were those fries. Somehow these indulgences are as lacking in flavor as they are in nutrition nowadays.

 I discovered this in the last two days. I was rerouted more or less to the Jersey shore after trying to go Christmas shopping in Clark, New Jersey. I didn't mind the detour. I love hanging out at the Raritan Bay, enjoying the calm waters and briny sea aroma. I knew I'd have to stop and eat somewhere along the road because I hand't eaten since mid morning. I knew where to go. The Jon Bon Jovi stop on the Garden State Parkway always had a good choice of fast food. I knew I had wanted to go to Nathan's if it was still there. It was!!! I looked forward to their hot dog and crispy fries. I bought them along with a diet Coke. The diet Coke was the only good thing. The hot dog was so burnt and salty that I couldn't finish eating it . Nathan's fries were known for their crunchy outsides and the perfect taste of potatoes and salt. These were downright horrible. They were overcooked with a charred aftertaste and a strangely mushy and damp inside. These too went right into the garbage. Luckily they didn't disturb my stomach.

Then today i had lunch at one of my local McDonald's near me in Garfield NJ.I had always got a decent burger there (to me the best McDonald's is down in Hazlet on Route Thirty-Six). Tired of eating red meat I thought I'd get the chicken nuggets. Bad idea. They were over crusted and the flavor only improved when I peeled off the coating. Even the accompanying sauces couldn't help. At least the fries were decent, being thin and crunchy. I've got to admit.I was not used to two days  of stupendously bad fast food. I don' know if it's the staff overcooking or just not caring how the food turns out. Maybe fried fast food is becoming a thing of the past as chains like Jersey Mike's offers freshly made sandwiches that require little frying - save for their bacon. it could also be that newer burger chains like Shake Shack and Habit Burger are offering better made hamburgers that taste like they came off the back yard grill. Also many people are embracing vegetarianism and eating Beyond Burgers and Impossible Meats. There probably will be vegan chains that will eclipse the established ones.

All in all it's very surprising about the overall poor quality of fast foods. They have to improve or lose customers like myself to chains offering at least better tasting fare. If not, they face a dismal future.

Supply Chain Holidays

 There is a global supply chain shortage going on right now and it may affect the way we cook for our holidays. what rt do if the store doesn't have what you want? Improvise. It's amazing what you can do with substitutes and innovation.

The news says don't worry. Everything we need will be right there, however there seems to be shortages on the shelves right now. There may be turkey and chicken shortage, but mostly for smaller birds. You could go large or think of a meatless Christmas or New Year's, Unfortunately beef is also going to be in short supply as is bacon. You could try a tofu roast which does come out well of prepared right. If you treat Tofurky like the real thing , using a brush on baste of melted butter followed by a rub of salt and pepper then, you will have a crusty, delicious roast. There is also a plus in serving Tofurky. It comes already stuffed with a wild rice stuffing. There is also a pretty good gravy included in the package. You can flavor this up with a small onion and some butter cooked in with the gravy. Another idea is going to a turkey or chicken farm and buying a free range bird for your holiday meal. Ham isn't going to be affected so you could easily serve that. The leftovers make for great devilled ham and split pea soup.It's also relatively easy to prepare with such glazes as a maple or a ginger-brown sugar one.

What other foodstuffs may be hard to obtain?There is talk of pasta and bread shortages. Luckily there is no flour shortages thanks to the 2020 overage. If you have to make your own. You can get a pasta maker which there are no shortage of (you may even get a discount thanks to holiday sales) or you can even make it by hand alone.It's easy and there are a wide range of types to create. even lasagna noodles can be handmade, giving a holiday meal an extra special touch. Bake bread along with your list of Christmas cookies if there is a bread shortage in your area. You can start with white but add some variety with sourdough and rye. It would be an extra special Christmas treat to make breakfast and dinner rolls for your table. Canned foods may also be disappearing from the shelves.As for veggies, think frozen ones then. You can make some lovely salads and sides using frozen green beans and broccoli. Winter vegetables are another option. You can create amazing sides with carrots, turnips and Swiss chard. Swiss chard is a popular side on Piedmontese tables. Try it cooked with red wine and Parmesan cheese.

Yes, this may be the holiday known for its' food shortages. Yet you can overcome those by ingenuity and innovation. Get creative with substitutes for a memorable Christmas or New Year's dinner.

A Tray Of Pretty Cookies

 It's holiday time and that means a tray of cookies. Why not make them eye catching and pretty. They can be delicious and exquisite, perfect for any Instagram or Pinterest picture. There are many different types to choose from.

One of the most popular and often made is a simple sugar cookie jazzed up with royal icing. The icing by itself is pretty bland but how you use it can be creative and lovely. One of the prettiest is creating simple straight piping on snowflake cookies. You can dye the icing a light powder blue and then pipe white icing using a round cake decorating tip number 2 (buy Wilton's for the best result). You can also first ice the cookie with royal icing and then use silver dragees and silver sanding sugar. Keep in mind that the dragees do have silver and really aren't meant to eat.One way of making snowflake cookies pop is just placing one dragee in the center and let the icing be the star. You can also color royal icing with either bought or homemade natural icing . Keep in mind that if you use natural colorants like spinach or onion, you will wind up with some of their taste. Again start off with a simple royal icing base which is usually powdered meringue or egg whites mixed with vanilla extract and confectioner's sugar. You can use aquafaba or chickpea water for a vegan version. 

Homemade Linzer tortes are beautiful gems on any cookie platter. These Austrian classics have a cookie base of almond flour and confectioner's sugar. This is what gives the base its' tenderness. The jam filling can be any kind of jam from apricot to raspberry. Use raspberry for a Christmas cookie platter. The middle of the top cookie is cut out to reveal the glistening jewel like jam. You could easily do an intricate snowflake or snowman cut out using a smaller cookie cutter or hand drawn template. Dust the cookies with a fine coating of confectioners sugar or for more prettiness use silver or gold sanding sugars.Oatmeal lace cookies are another exquisite addition to the holiday platter. This incredibly complex looking snap is just a simple mix of butter, dark brown sugar, flour, salt, and eggs with a dash of vanilla. The batter is very thin which produces a delicate candy like texture. They can be dipped in dark chocolate and then become florentines. Stained glass cookies are pretty too and the idea can be carried over to make stained glass windows for gingerbread houses and gingerbread churches. Use any brightly colored hard candy and then smash them in a plastic bag. Make an outline whether a circle or a star and fill the inside with the candy, The cookie is typical butter cookie which makes for a solid frame. 

These are the prettiest cookies to bake for a holiday treat platter. Bake them to impress , but also bake them to admire their beauty. They are true gems

Stolen Recipes

 Recipes have a way of becoming our own. Some are legitimately take, passed down from family members or across from friends , neighbors and co-workers. However legit recipes do get stolen.It is a form of plagiarism and something should be done about it.

Priya Krishna, a cookbook writer herself and a regular contributor to the Wednesday New York Times Food section wrote about this in yesterday's section.recipe's really aren't protected by US copyright law.It's much harder to prove someone's stealing your cookbook recipes than it is for such creative material as sheet music, poetry, architectural works, paintings and even computer software.Cookbook writers who believe their works have been copied have little recourse. They can rant on online forums or confront the offender face to face which isn't wise.It's widely known as well in the publishing world that recipes can't be copyrighted.It's a common practice in the US according to Bonnie Slotnick,a bookstore owner that specializes in selling cookbooks and antique tomes.The first one, "American Cookery" written by Amelia Simmons in 1798 liberally borrowed from English cookbooks of the time. In ensuing years white cookbook writers shamelessly stole recipes from Black American cooks, passing them off as their own. Even the famed James Beard stole from his colleagues, claiming the recipes were his creations.

There have been a handful of famous cases in recent history that did result in law suits. One of the famous involved Jerry Seinfeld's wife Jessica and her book "Deceptively Delicious"/ It was all about putting veggies in such treats as brownies. Yet it was originally written by Missy Chase Lapine. However a court ruled against Ms. Lapine because her concept wasn't protected. A more recent and much more famous case deals with famed British chef Elizabeth Haigh, book "Makan: about her native Singapore. Another author, Sharon Wee noticed that the recipes were exact replicas of the ones in her book,"Growing Up In A Nonya Kitchen". even Ms. wee's personal recollections were copied to the letter in the other's book. This involved a heated debate about recipe ownership. Many writers wondered how they could safeguard their recipes against future theft. Now social media makes it even harder  with chefs taking and giving across many platforms. Ownership gets muddled. All chefs, home and professional just use recipes and claim them as their own.

What to do? Give credit where credit is due. That's the best way to honor and respect recipe writers.

Gator Anyone

 Mention alligator at a tailgating party and people will automatically think of a mascot. Yet at Louisiana ones it means the main meat on the barbecue menu. It's usually served when Lousiana and Florida college go against each other on the football field. It's not hot dogs and burgers but it is supposed to be tasty.

Christina Morales, a new and regular contributor to the Wednesday New York Times Food section wrote about this Southern staple in today's issue.It actually started as a tease when Louisiana State University or LSU fought against the University of Florida Gators team twelve years ago. Now this is standard despite it being cruel. Tailgaters either bring ones they've caught or ones they've bought at an alligator farm!! The reptile can be char grilled, blackened, fried, stewed or even roasted whole, the last being done on a rotisserie powered by a windshield wiper motor. everyone always what the meat tastes like? Chicken. It has the taste and even the texture of it.It is a white , tender flesh that is usally brined

Many tailgaters also douse the gators with beer for more flavor. It has always been a food source in The Bayou state.The story started with the Indigenous tribe the Coushatas from the southwestern part of the state. They found a gator stuck in a hole of a dried up pond. The creature asked to be placed in a nearby rivet and would reward them, according to Eli Langley a tribal story teller for the Coushatas.

Of course the reward was its' meat. The Chitimacha People, another southwestern Louisiana tribe ate the meat fried in bear grease according to Chitimacha the tribal historic preservation officer Kimberly Walden.The gators were a convenient food source, being so large.They even provided a French government officials with an alligator feast. for the following Cajuns and Creoles the swamps became a pantry. If they killed it , they ate it according to Louisiana chef and cookbook writer John Foise. Now gator meat is served in a variety of ways at different local restaurants. At Prejean's  a Lafayette Louisiana eatery serve gator legs . They're marinated in buttermilk for three hours , then breaded and fried like chicken wings. Roux 61 in Baton Rouge goes for the more unusual. They blacken the meat and put into into spicy tacos. They gave the recipe to the article. If you're wondering where to get gator meat , especially in the New York area,  there are specialty butchers who do sell it. Try Wild Fork Farms or The Louisiana Crawfish Company which also sells turtle meat and crawfish too.

Alligators do make for an interesting meal.  They have a mild tasting meat, perfect for a host of different recipes. However it is cruel to eat them, farmed or otherwise. 

 

TikTok Treats

 Tik Tok is just more than dance offs and book reviews. IT's providing the inspiration for holiday baking. It;s giving the world excellent cookie and candy  ideas. Best part is that you can even add your own recipes and favorites to the mix.

If you want to see some of the latest trends , first download the Tik Tok app and then go into baking. It's an amazing amount of fun recipes done within just a few seconds. I love the holiday pumpkin rolls one, a tiny film of ingenuity and thread. Then there are the pizookie videoes which feature that clever marriage of pizza and giant cookie. These are easy to make and would be great for any Christmas tree party. Another fun Christmas party treat is the Christmas tree bread, made only and simply with chocolate ganache, what looks like store bought puff pastry and some clever twisting. The dough is cut into a tree shape with some stars cut from the extra dough and then the tree branches are twisted. The stars then are placed onto the tree's middle then the entire bread is baked.For the truly ambitious there are Tik Tok videos on homemade gingerbread houses build with scratch gingerbread. You could even try hot chocolate bombs for an interesting gift. The candy videos are also fun and there are some interesting recipes like crockpot candy one or the treat made with Saltines!

Keep in mind that most of the TikTok videoes do not give measurements , cooking times or oven temps. You have to look on the web for the recipes which, luckily there are many. The app does have some really great cake decorating videos. The cupcake ones are really fun and easy to replicate. However if you want a more detailed video then go to Youtube. As we all know the videos are much more detailed and can give you recipes with exact measurements and show  how to decorate every baked good with precision. Remember all this if you want to make your own Tik Tok clip. You only have a few minutes to create a cohesive clip. Get everything you need together. The bowls, measuring cups and spoons along with whisks and beaters should all be laid out. It helps to measure out everything before hand, like  what's done on You Tube and cooking shows. A good idea is having the treat already baked and decorated. You don't have the time to include the baking and decorating time together. Decorating is another thing. You can show how you added whorls and faces on your creations. The last is picking out the music. Go for a holiday theme background. wear an apron if you want to,

Tik Tok is a great way to get inspiration for your holiday table/ There are some neat ideas you can try. It could be a pizookie or a pan of fudge. Take a look at the app and have fun.

A FAmily Classic Gone Vegan

 One of the joys of Piedmontese cooking is the summery dish of pomodori e uovi, tomatoes and eggs. This dish can be made year round, using fresh or canned tomatoes. The problem in a vegan household? The eggs. However thanks to Just Egg, s plant based egg substitute the dish can be enjoyed again.

                                                                 It's just a mix of these two.

I used a whole can of Acme's Organic fire roasted tomatoes which had a more pasta sauce flavor.I think I'll stick with the regular crushed plum version. It was well married to an entire bottle of Just Egg.

First it was heating up drizzle of olive oil and a good two tablespoons of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter.

A clove of minced garlic was added to this. You can add a pinch of oregano if you wanted to.

The Just Egg is added first and stirred around until curds form, just as with real eggs.

The tomatoes are added and stirred until the mix takes on a creamy texture.

                           Again the end result was so good that there was almost nothing left.

This is a great lunch or dinner and it's so easy to make. It's also heaven on earth to eat and I'm seriously thinking of making this my Christmas dinner (the holiday is about making and eating your favorite foods, after all) It's is perfect eaten with thick chunky slices of either Italian or French bread.

Thanks to discovering Just Egg I can make a family classic and favorite again. Pomodori e uovi is a great summer dish. Yet it's even better when there's snow on the ground and a nip in the air. It reminds one of a summer harvest of warm ripe tomatoes married to eggs.

Culinary Me Time

 After a few days of cooking and baking for everyone it's now time to take care of ourselves. It's time to either treat yourself to a good meal out or make something just for you. You've spent the last few days working like crazy making sure others eat well.It's time for yourself.

There are so many restaurants that you can visit right now. You can carry on the small shop weekend by visiting your local mom and pop eatery. Go to your favorite pizzeria or Chinese food. Get your  anchovy pizza that you've been craving or try the Drunken Noodle dish you've been wanting. Be adventurous too. Visit those eateries you've been wanting to try but have been held back by fussy or timid family and friends. Many towns and cities have off beat places too that specialize in certain cuisines like French or  Moroccan. Book a table for yourself and enjoy crepes Provencale or a chicken tangine.Bakeries are a must see if you're craving a flaky croissant or big buttery cookie. There are also some great candy stores if you want to feed a chocolate craving. Kilwin's a  homemade candy chain is expanding to towns throughout the US. Visit them if you want to try their caramel apples or hand dipped chocolates. Treat yourself to a box of buttery chocolate dipped caramels or brittle, creamy melt in your mouth fudge or a big piece of nutty chocolate bark. You deserve these goodies after working long hours prepping and cooking.

Indulge yourself at home of you don't want to leave your cozy couch. Let the family head to the movies or the park. Get lost in that book you've been meaning to read, sipping your favorite cup of tea and nibbling on your favorite cookies. If you're still in a baking mood, then go easy with Pillsbury's Slice And Bakes. The company now offers gingerbread, peanut butter and candy cane flavors for  Christmas. Their chocolate chips and sugar cookie slice and bakes are still a good choice and perfect for just having to yourself. You can also make yourself a quick and tasty mug cake. All this is is your favorite mug and a mix. You can make it yourself with just a quarter cup of flour , a quarter cup of sugar and just a tiny eighth of a cup of baking powder. There's no eggs needed, Just add the liquids of canola oil, water and vanilla extract. You can add cocoa for a chocolate treat or chocolate chips and a pinch of brown sugar for a chocolate chip one.Don't wan all that work? Then just use Duncan Hines packets that even now have icing too. Want something more substantial, then indulge in a steak with herbed butter. This is a great dinner for one, Have it on slices of Italian or French bread. Use your air fryer to indulge in stuffed portabellos or fried chicken.

You've worked too hard these past few days. It's time to treat yourself. eat out or stay in with your favorite foods and snacks. You deserve it!!!

A German Holiday In Frankenmuth

 Many regret not having to travel to Munich or Stuttgart for the Christmas marts and a taste where the traditions of the season originated.However there is a town stateside that can give you a taste of Deutchland, complete with lederhosen and comfort food. 

The town is Frankenmuth  in Michigan's Lower Peninsula (think the thumb part of the mitten shaped peninsula) is the town where the buildings are built in the Bavarian style and German food abounds. Sara Bonisteel, a regular contributor to the New York Times Food section wrote this interesting article about two restaurants in this charming town.They are the Bavarian Inn and Zehnder's of Frankenmuth which literally face each other on the same street. Nearly thirty thousand visitors are expected this weekend. However they also see the Glockenspeil Tower and the post office has larger than life Hummel cut outs gracing its' front. Yet the restaurants are really the stars. There are some differences. Zehnder's looks like Mount Vernon while The Bavarian Inn has a Sound Of Music Vibe. Zehnder's carries the Mt. Vernon feel even further by having servers dress as Colonial servants, with women in mob caps and aprons and men in knickers and banded collar shirts. The Bavarian Inn has what else, waters and waitresses in leiderhosen and dirndls.

What about the food. Both have an all you can eat menu.They also have chicken noodle soup and end with stollen slices the size of sliced bread ones. Soft serve iced cream end your meal with Zehnder's topping theirs with a translucent plastic animals. The restaurants also share such German classics as weiner schnitzel and sides of red cabbage. It's really no surprise that the menus are relatively similar.Two branches of the family own the eateries. The Zehnder's bought the former Fischer's Hotel in 1959 and built an addition with an architect who only agreed to the project if he could restyle the building in the German style. Tiny Zehnder , persuaded the town to remodel  the entire town as a Bavarian village.The 1980's saw the family split. Dorothy Zehnder's family now runs the Baviarian Inn and a shopping center while Al Zehnder ,and his sisters Martha and Susan run Zehnder's and also a golf course. Both places have adjoining hotels and waterparks. They descend from Johann Stephan Zahnder who more or less shared the land with the Saginaw Chippewa tribe in 1819.

If you're in the area visit both Zehnder's and The Bavarian Inn. enjoy an old fashioned family style meal finished with soft serve ice cream and a treat. It's a fun vacation,f ull of German food and merriment

The Happiest Of Thanksgivings

 For all my American readers here and abroad, have a good Thanksgiving and enjoy the fruits and pies of your labor;

This isn't my labor. Give all the credit to my local Acme for baking such yummy pumpkin pies!!!!

Corn One Of Our Native Best

 Corn or maize is as important to American history as any war or treaty. Its contribution was and still is vital for the American table.It  is the best example of Indigenous love of the land and the sense of community shared with the early European settlers.

Pete Wells who usually writes the restaurant review for the Wednesday New York Times Food section penned this thoughtful and informative piece for  today's section. Corn has been part of the North American diet for nine thousand years.It started in the Balsas River Valley south of Mexico City. It began as teosinte a kernal with a hard, inedible cover. Thanks to genetic mutations the kernels became softer and corn as we know it now was born. The plants traveled around the Western Hemisphere, even winding up in the Caribbean.The Hopi Indians of Arizona planted it a foot below the surface of high winter valleys in order to catch the meltwater , originally snow , that seeps into the ground. A fast growing grain was grown by the Mi'kmaq of Quebec and Maine.It was the Gaspe strain that ripens after only forty-five days of planting. Gaspe corn is still grown in Vermont with the help of Tony Van Winkle an anthropologist who teaches sustainable food systems in Greensboro North Carolina ans Vermont tribe Nulhegen band of the Coosuk Abenaki nation. 

Yet it is the Wampanoag nation of Massachusetts that has the most important connection to corn. They showed the Plymouth Colony settlers how to plant corn after their wheat crop failed. The Pilgrims were on the brink of starvation when they were introduced to the bright red kernels of a strain called King  Phillip's corn.It is still eaten today , although not as much as another heirloom strain called dent corn. Dent corn is still on our tables in the form of cornbread and muffins along with being crumbled in dressings and stuffings. It's steamed with molasses and eggs to create Indian pudding, a kind of custard first made by the colonists  who first called ground corn Indian meal. Some strains were lost as the Indigenous were either slaughtered or moved to different parts of the country. There is one strains that stayed, thanks to the Davis Farm in Stonington Connecticut.  The family obtained kernels in 1654 from a local tribe  when their chief Uncas gave the kernels to Hartford CT founder Thomas Stanton. A few Indigenous women are planting heirloom seeds as their ancestors have done, hoping to bring back the corn their ancestors ate.

Corn is one of the most vital crop in the history of North America.It sustained the Indigenous for millennia . It also was a life line for the early settlers of Plymouth. It was ans still is the backbone of American cooking.

Sweet Spins On Thanksgiving Desserts

 Thanksgiving demands tradition. Yet more and more home chefs are rethinking sides, and reimagining sides and even the turkey itself. Now that idea is coming to dessert. It's not just the traditional pies. It's taking time honored recipes and spinning them around.

Pie has always been the tried and true way to end the holiday dinner.There had to be  home baked pumpkin pie, and if you were feeling ambitious apple and pecan. You can srill have these but rethink them as tartlets The crust can be either already made dough like Pilsbury's or homemade. Instead of using a pie tin, a muffin tin works the best for this. Another idea is ditching the pie pan completely and making a free form galette.  The crust should be a butter one which complements the filling's richness. Fill it with any of the traditional pie recipes. Most galettes are fruit filled so you could just make an apple one although the other fillings work equally as well. Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche  Instead of the usual Cool Whip or even homemade whipped cream. Its' tanginess is perfect to offset the galette's sweetness. if you still want to make pie, then think alternatives. Pears are another delicious fall fruit that unfairly gets second billing. A pear pie would be an interesting way to end the meal. Use Bartlett or Bosc for the filling.Walnut pie can be a tasty sub in for pecan, Use maple syrup instead of corn syrup though. Walnuts have a bitter taste the others don't have.

You can use relatively the ingredients but in different recipes. What about ending the meal with a pumpkin tiramisu? It has the same pumpkin puree and the same spices of cinnamon and nutmeg.The puree is combined with cream cheese and mascapone to form a creamy filling. Lady fingers are still a vital part of the recipe and , yes, there is espresso used as in traditional mascapone.Yet it's given a new spin with cinnamon and nutmeg for a more pumpkin pie tasting flavor. Pumpkin is also an excellent medium for mousse. You can create an easy one using vanilla pudding mixed with pumpkin puree, and maple syrup.  Top with homemade whipped cream. Apples may be good in a pie but they're fantastic in cake. It's a nice old fashioned cake using shredded apples along with apples and cinnamon. It' also makes a good snack cake too when you just want a slice of cake and a cup of coffee or tea later on. Another fun home baked treat is pecan caramel bars. It has all the gooey nuttiness of pecan pie but on top of a buttery shortbread crust. You can also just candy pecans as an after dinner treat too.

Traditional Thanksgiving desserts can be changed up too. It's easy to sub in a galette for pie or create a mouse , cake or bar. Use a new ingredient like a pear or walnuts  in a classic recipes. These  spins will definitely liven up the holiday dessert table.

Sparking Those Sides

 For years we've had the same holiday sides. There will always be stuffing, potatoes, yams , some kind of green veggie and of course cranberry sauce. Yet these can be boring made the same way year after year. It's time to spark up those sides.

Rethink stuffing if you've made it the traditional way for years.Most have a mix of white  bread , celery , sage and yellow onion. Mix it up with subbing in rye bread for the white. You can add caraway seeds, an ingredient in the loaf. Chop up some Granny Smith apples to add in too. French or Italian bread makes for a tastier, chewier stuffing, perfect for sopping up gravy. Change up the way the stuffing is cooked. You can mold the stuffing into balls and then air fry them. Potatoes are another must make Thanksgiving side. Almost all sere their mashed. Yet a tastier alternative would be sheet pan potatoes cooked while the bird is roasting You can also cook greens beans or Brussels sprouts with em too, Onions can also be cooked with the potatoes for a very tasty side.Think of drizzling olive oil on them before cooking and then a sprinkle of rosemary , sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.Another idea is baked potatoes and then splitting them to hold gravy and sliced turkey.

Sweet potatoes or yams are another holiday table must have. Many make them in a casserole , topped with a gooey layer of marshmallow. Yet these beta-carotene  rich gems are just perfect on their own, with just butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon. They could also be the fun side if you sliced them wafer thin and then air fry into crispy chips. They can also be cubed too and then air fried. What about those green veggies? Many serve either green beans or Brussels sprouts. For a more refreshing idea. why not make a green bean salad with a vinaigrette of just olive oil and lemon juice. It's a  break from the usual casserole. Home chefs can also make sheet pan green beans. Roast them with garlic  and rosemary for a tasty side. Another idea is introdiucing a green you haven't invited to the holiday table yet. Kale is versatile and can be turned into a tasty sidekick to the turkey. The best way to cook it is sauteing it in olive oil and garlic. You could also make it into a salad too. Another classic star of the Thanksgiving table is cranberry sauce,. Yet many people don't really like this gelatinous cylinder. A homemade one, zinged up with orange zest is a better choice. You can also turn them into a relish perfect for a leftover turkey sandwich the next day, It's just pulsing fresh cranberries, oranges, sugar and cinnamon together in a food processor. It's a quick easy side that just needs to be chilled for two hours before serving. You can add some sour cream in if you want.

Thanksgiving is all about the sides. Yet make them sparkled and spark with new recipes and new ingredients. It'll make for an interesting and memorable holiday table.