Holiday Foods Make Now For Later

The holidays are busy times. It's just that simple. We all have way too much to do ,between our regular lives and holiday prepping. As much as we value any free time , it's good to use it prepping for the holidays ahead. Start making some things now , and then have an hour or two just for yourself later on.

The easiest thing to make and freeze is cookie dough. The dough can last between three and four weeks in a working freezer (I guess you can even put it outside on the front porch if the weather r is freezing by you). This is a great time saver if you're making a lot for school, an office or home party. Create up several rolls , roll them in green and red sugar and then freeze. You can cut and bake later on and have an quick platter of festive cookies all set to go. The best doughs to freeze are chocolate, chip , shortbread, peanut butter, refrigerator , sugar and brownies. These have the e thickest textured doughs. Avoid any cakelike doughs such as madeleines and black and whites.

Surprisingly enough you can also freeze a number of other dishes as well . Chili is one where you can make it now and freeze some for a tree trimming party in mid December.You can also make enough to last you through a few holiday parties if you have the space. Casseroles are also great dishes to make when you have the free time. Whip up a few even for those nights when you'll be out shopping sans family. All they have to do is throw it in the microwave and voila - instant dinner. Jambalaya - that ultimate fun get together dish is another make now freeze, serve later foods. You can make it without meat and serve a vegetarian version.along with cornbread and easy to make po boy sandwiches.

Start on your holiday treats early this year. Stock your freezer with premade goodies that will be a snap to bake or reheat.Doing this will allow you some free time later on where you can shop or just indulge yourself. That;s what any overworked chef or baker needs during this frenzied season.

A Good TIme To Clean

Now is that down time between the holidays. We've gone through one big kitchen oriented one Another is just less than a month away. it;s a good time to defrost the fridge and clean the oven. It's also a good time to take stock of what worked during Thanksgiving and what didn't.

The most important item to clean right now is the oven. It's gotten a lot of use in the past few days. The inside is probably spattered with grease while the burners have all sorts of charred leftovers stuck to them. What's the best oven cleaner? Some swear by simple baking soda, What you can do is sprinkle the stuff over the oven racks and oven floor Then spritz with water and let stand overnight. Come morning all you have to do is wipe everything clean with a damp cloth. If you prefer to use the commercial stuff then try Easy Off. The spray is now safe and relatively non toxic plus it has an industrial strength one for wiping off several layers of grease. For the fridge it's time to think defrosting. It's also time to get rid of all those bottles with barely there stuff in them. You can also defrost the freezer too at this time. Get rid of the summer Popsicles along with any snow the kids saved from last year.

There are also the gadgets to think about too. Some choppers just require new batteries while others may need new parts. However if you do have to replace now is the time to do it. Sales for any cooking and baking items are great, especially at places like Target, Wal-mart and K-Mart. You can buy new cookie sheets and whisks right before the big season starts. This is also a good time to have your knives sharpened too for the big holidays feasts in the weeks to come.

Use this down time to clean and refurbish your kitchen. Take stock of what needs to be scrubbed, or replaced. It'll make the next round of holiday cooking and baking much easier for you.'

Mm Mmm Good Weeds

Now that all the meat eating is over with, It's time to go green. The best place for that is surprisingly still in your back yard or even woods by your home. I'm talking heavy duty foraging It;'s a new again trend that Wednesday's Times Dining section picked up on. The problem is knowing what to pick.

The article, written by Oliver Strand and Joe DiStefano tells of New York's chefs taking a walk back into nature. Instead of choosing regular greens they try sea rocket or sea buckthorn, wild asparagus or morels. Some chefs even use Douglas fir needles. Foraging is not a new trend . Scandinavian cooks have been doing it for centuries, thanks to a lack of greens and an abundance of hearty weeds.

There is a caveat with foraging. Beware of what you pick. there are some goods books on the market as well as Internet sites that can help you. One is Ecosalon which has a good listing , the other is Wild Food School which allows you to download their in color guide and take it with you when you go foraging. There are also classes that you can take as well.

It's good to get back to nature, especially after a decadent holiday meal. Even better is when you can use nature to create healthy and tasty dishes. Forget the canned string beans. head for the woods.

A Happy And Tasty Thanksgiving

To all my American readers

I hope you are still having a good Thanksgiving full of good food, good family and good friends. Remember and pray for all our troops overseas and that they too had a good holiday.

LIZ

An Early Thanksgiving Greeting

For all my readers wherever you are,


This is an early Thanksgiving greeting. I'm not botheringtowrite a column today. I know for the most part Amertica will be elbow deep in pie making and brining today. There will be no time to read this (and if you are - stop , there's gotta be some potatoes that need peeling r dinnerware that needs polishing)

Remember not just to enjoy your feast wherever you are - be it under the tree lined streets of the American Midwest or the dry deserts of Afghan and Iraq. Be thankful for what you have. hard won freedom as an American, the right to vote whomever you please into office, and the choice to enjoy wither dark or white meat, scalloped or mashed potatoes. be thankful for family , that drives you crazy and friends who need you for the rough times. be thankful for the things that make you happy,

Above all be thankful for a good holiday meal. There are so many people worldwide that don't have food. Think of them this day and remember them in your holiday donations.


It's a day for food and fort the celebration of it. Just remind yourselves to give thanks that you're lucky enough to have it.

As American As Squash????

This time of year gets me thinking back to the indigenous peoples and what they ate at the time of the first Thanksgiving. The phrase American as apple pie is kind of inaccurate because the early English settlers brought that over.. What really is true American food? All good for you natural stuff like unprocessed fruits and veggies - not the burgers (from Germany) or the fries (from Belgium and France) like we all think.

Squash corn or maize make up the heart of the indigenous diets.This was supplemented by any meat or fish that original peoples hunted. The American staple , succotash is really native in its 'origins. What is great about the staple is that they can be made a variety of ways, even to this day. Squash can be baked and then mashed. Corn can be ground for fritters or for pone or cornbread. Beans can be mashed or boiled and then flavored. Pumpkin , part of the squash family was also cooked and probably mashed. All these are loaded in antioxidants and vitamins giving the natives a better diet than the European settlers.

The tribes that the Pilgrims ate with gave them maple syrup , cranberries, apples and pears to add Io their vitamin starved diets. Also oysters and fish were in abundance, both loaded with nutrients. Most of the early settlers from the Virginia colonies up to the Massachusetts , relied on the Indian for food. Here in New Jersey the Lenni Lenape , showed the settlers how to gather shellfish from the great Raritan Bay along with hunting wild turkey and geese. There was also wild asparagus and onions too.

As American as apple pie??? Not quite. Try as American as popcorn and squash. The native American knew how to eat and how to respect the earth. They passed that down to us - and we should be grateful for those beliefs.

PBS The Original Food Channel

Long before there was the Food Channel, long before there was the cult f the celebrity chef, there was PBS. Fro decades the Public Broadcasting brought about good shows about cooking. Like today's super glitzy knock offs they were full of good ideas.Unlike said knock offs they brought real gourmet cooking to homes from Boston Mass to Anchorage. Alaska. There are still some good ones on the amazing channel.

PBS started with the famous Julia Child back in the Sixties. Consider hers th e prototype that all cooking shows sprang from. She wasn't afraid to introduce Cordon Bleu to the masses and from her we learned how to debone and glaze properly. There was also graham Kerr, the Gallopign Gourmet who had his own way of cooking. This Aussie is still popular today and has an extensive website any food should visit. One of my favourites was Jacques Pepin , a quiet , almost scholarly chef . He did not have the out there personality of a Paula Deene or a Guy Fieri, His was more commanding, - imagine a college prof instead of a loud mouth show off.

PBS also launched the career of the soft spoken Lidia Bastianich . it was PBS who turned her into a celebrity and they did so quietly.Again watching her half hour program was like watching a favorite relative show you how to cook.and appreciate good Italian food. Another low key but impacting show is America's Test Kitchen with the bow tied also scholarly Christopher Kimball. he did a very fascinating show last year on recreating a late 19th Century feast with Fannie Farmer's recipes. Again it was a very academic approach as is the usual shows. This is a great learning program for beginner chefs and home cooks. Everythng from syrups to utensils are tested and there are some interesting recipe sin this packed full half hour.

PBS has long had a sort of snob appeal. Yes it is loved by intellectuals. but it should be love d by foodies as well. it has produced some of the greatest cooking shows in television history. That;s something the Food Channel should take into consideration.