Holiday Desserts Go Big Go Sweet

Forget the cookie board at any holiday party. These are sweet little ornaments but they're 're not as substantial as a cake or trifle. A hearty holiday dinner requires a hearty slice or scoop of dessert. There are some great endings that can top off any turkey or ham dinner.

Alison Roman, a regular Food section contributor wrote about these amazing and toothsome desserts in today's New York Times issue. She gives us four holiday desserts - strangely without the yummy Buche de Noel, the chocolate sponge roll made to look like a decorated forest log. Still , her choices work  - not just finishing a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day meal, but also at New Year's Eve party and New Year's Eve buffets. What is great about them is that they're fuss free. No special icings. No fancy decorations or split time baking where you have lower or raise  oven temps. They're kind of old fashioned recipes with an updated twist. Ms. Roman creates a salted chocolate pudding with a whipped sour cream. This is a homemade one with bittersweet chocolate  and cocoa powder, six whole eggs and heavy cream to give it richness and flavor. As with countless other homemade puddings  cornstarch is the thickener. The pudding would be good on it's own , but it's layered with sour cream blended with heavy whipping cream and any kind of snap cookie. You could use plain Christmas sugar cookies, but there are also ginger snaps and those famed chocolate wafers. These are layered to create a memorable trifle. Eat it the day you make it so you get the crunch of the cookies.

The other desserts include a sunny cheesecake with an easy graham cracker or vanilla wafer crust. The cake is enriched with your choice of either full fat  Greek yogurt or sour cream. Juice is added and it can be either grapefruit, lemon, lime or orange. Grapefruit would be a nice original touch.The zest is also used for more zing. There may be some leftover filling so you may want to create mini cheesecakes with it. Citrus slices and flaky sea salt  are scattered on the finished product for a festive look.For a fun  treat, try the Boozy Cherry Walnut Tart. This is a treat topped with bourbon soaked cherries and chopped walnuts. The crust is the classic butter one, that tastes like a spritz cookie. The filling is toasted walnuts, butter and one large egg. Flour binds us so it will have a cookie like quality to it. Top with more walnuts and cherries. It would be great served with vanilla ice cream. Some traditionalists will want gingerbread. Liven up the dessert table with Ms. Roman's Golden Ginger Cake. This is a mix of freshly grated ginger and cinnamon. The cake is made a sunny yellow with the addition of turmeric, It's also very buttery and sweet  thanks to the addition of 3/4 of a cup of butter (!) and molasses.Buttermilk mixed with either coconut or vegetable oil is added for a silkier batter. A cake like this only requires a blob of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream to highlight the spices.

Keep the cookies for tins and holiday teas. Create satisfying puddings, tarts cheesecakes and cakes. These are definitely  great endings to any Christmas ham and turkey, filling and delicious as the main courses themselves..

Barbecue Leftovers Now What

All those Memorial Day barbecues  lead to one thing - leftovers. if you're lucky the guests ate everything or brought home containers of salads and sides. They even may have taken home dessert for a late night snack. Yet what happens when none of that happens? What do you do with the barbecue leftovers?

Luckily extra burgers and dogs can be stored in the freezer or fridge and turned into a quick lunch or dinner. To jazz them up a bit, add bacon and cheddar to the hamburgers for a flavorful meal. As for the hot dogs.think chili or even salsa. Cheese dogs are a nice change up from plain ones and the kids won't complain about another hot dog meal.Split the dogs, add shredded cheddar and wrap with bacon for a totally decadent meal. You could also slice them and add them into a veggie or potato soup. Leftover steak? If it's cooked then slice and cut into bite size bits for salad. Add in ripe red Roma tomatoes and onions  dressed in a simple red wine vinaigrette. Barbecued chicken is good cold and can be repurposed as a no cook dinner with any left over salads and sides. The next question is what to do with the sides? Surprisingly potato salad can be roasted to produce crispy already seasoned chunks, Just rinse off any extra mayo - they'll need some for roasting and then pop them into a cast iron pan and roast at 425 degrees Farenheit. If you have any leftover veggies then , think tempura. Green beans and tomatoes dipped in batter and air fried  is a nice snack for movie night.

Sometimes there's extra dessert. Hard to believe but true.Barbecues always have fruit as the last course. Sometimes you overbuy , or guests bring fruit platters. If you have a lot of watermelon in the fridge , then think healthy slushie. It's a simple mix of crushing ice cubes in a blender, then adding watermelon cubes and just a drop of honey. It's a refreshing repurposing  and perfect on a hot day. You can do the same with any leftover cantaloupe too. Add a tablespoon or two of almond milk to make it creamy. Add a shot of vodka or gin for some zing.If there are any grapes left over, freeze them. They're great  as frozen bonbons and a nice icy hit when the temps rise. Sometimes you buy a lot as I did with the coconut milk based ice creams.I went out and bought waffle bowls along with Smucker's hot fudge sauce for sundaes. Add the coconut milk Reddi-Whip and all those scoops make for a fun treat.As for those famed chocolate wafers , they're just good on their own as a nice lunchtime dessert or afternoon snack. Of course they can be crushed and used as a sundae or cone topping.

Don't freak out at those Memorial Day leftovers. They can be recooked and repurposed into tasty new dishes and treats. They'll even be better a second time around.

A Memorial Day Treat

It's Memorial Day and there were tons of barbecues throughout the US today.Hopefully they all ended with a homemade ice cream cake.

                              This was mine strawberry and vanilla coconut milk ice cream with
                               chocolate wafer layers.

                                          This was before. As usual I accidentally refrigerated the hard shell  .

Despite the no hard shell it was a big hit with very little left over.

It's a nice treat.

Good food and goodies aside, think about inviting veterans , old and young to your next cookout. We always should remember our slain warriors but it's also the living we need to exalt as well. Invite them to your next cookout. Make them their favorite foods and celebrate their bravery and courage.

Grab Cooking

What happens when you're just too wilted to make a meal?Or if you don't want to trek through a heat wave to the grocery store? You grab cook. Look through your fridge, freezer and pantry and pluck out anything you can use to create a dish. It's a challenge but a fun one using whatever's on hand..

The ingredients to make a good grab dish should be veggies and meat. However cans of beans and sauce can also be included in the recipe.I tried this when I just did not feel like heading out in sweltering temps  just to get lunch. There was a can of chickpeas which was only bought for aqua faba (see yesterday's post), peppers and half an onion. Grape tomatoes,always a must have, looked appealing. Perfect to create a fun and colorful salad. The onion was finely chopped as was the pepper. The chickpeas  and tomatoes were added next as was the fresh parsley I had around.A simple vinaigrette dressing was all it needed and    voila  a refreshing , yet substantial lunch for a ninety degree day.Salads are one of the easiest grab meals because you can grab this and that to create a surprisingly hearty , yet ;light dish Vary the veggies.You can even use canned or steamed ones.Left over meats are great in grab salads. You could even make a chef's salad using last night's barbecue . Try ham in a broccoli and string bean salad. Grilled steak is good with just lettuce and tomatoes. Have ice berg lettuce? Grab it and turn it into a tasty wedge with bacon, tomatoes slices, and a home made dressing using mayo, oil, vinegar and anything else you find.

Grab meals can also extend to cooking too.Eggs make the best grab cuisine ingredient, Add three or four to chopped spinach leaves, tossed in some minced garlic and fry. It becomes a tasty omelet, easy  to make and easy to eat.Turn it into a sandwich by placing quarters on toasted bread. Sub in chopped green peppers and it becomes the filling for the classic Sicilian sub sandwich. Add a can of tomatoes  or fresh ones , some chopped garlic and you have the classic Piedmontese uovi e pomodori, a warm weather favorite.Make sure there's plenty of Italian bread for the last. If it's a cooler day you can combine whatever you can get your hands on for a tasty hodgepodge soup. Start with bouillon cubes and add  odds and ends in the soup pot.This is also a good time to use up those little scoops of rice or pasta.Desserts can also be part of grab cuisine. One of the most fun is the take on Eton mess. This classic British dessert  and a favorite of the brothers Windsor, is made with broken meringues, fruit and whipped. cream. I had leftover Nabisco chocolate wafers, a ton of strawberries and blueberries and whipped cream in a canister. Lsyer the cookies  even the broken ones with the fruit (you don;t have to have berries, bananas and pineapple work just as well),and top with a generous squirt of whipped cream. Sub in ice cream for whipped cream if you have any handy.

Grab cuisine is the way to cook during these impossibly hot days. Check your fridge, kitchen and pantry, grab what you can and create. You'd be surprised what you can make with whatever's around.