Your Holiday Baking Guide

It's that time of year when home bakers start creating all those holiday goodies.A successful bake relies on a well stocked kitchen. Get the arsenal ready now. The end result is stress free prep, without any worries.

Before you even assess your ingredients, take a look at your cookie sheets and baking pans. Sometimes rust sets in  which means only one thing -toss.The same principle applies to cookie sheets and pie plates. Splurge and give yourself the early holiday present of a new bake set. Stores such as K-Mart, Target and Wal Mart have great sales on them right now so it pays to replace the old set. The same goes for whisks and rolling pins too,. along with both plastic and metal cookie cutters.Another pre-baking must is checking your hand mixer and blender to make sure they're up to snuff.If not, then take advantage of the holiday sales and buy a new one.If you're thinking of making candy invest in a good candy thermometer.This will help more in registering the right temperature as opposed to the old fashioned way of dropping the mixture into ice cold water to determine its' stage.Cake icers can also crack so check to see if yours still works. If you're planning on creating elaborately decorated cakes and cupcakes, you may want to get more icing nozzles . These will help in fine tuning the decorating with different squiggles and swirls.

Basic ingredients also have to be scrutinized. Luckily granulated sugar can last indefinitely. Brown sugar doesn't and after two years can get hard, sticky, and lumpy.Replace your flour if its' been in the pantry for more than seven or eight months.Anything baked with it will have a stale taste. Whole wheat lasts even less. If you;ve had it more than six months toss. Keep the vanilla extract. it's good for four years. The same for your cocoa powder - it lasts  two years before going stale.If you have to go shopping for new ingredients, make a list beforehand. Ask yourself if you want to make a holiday treat from scratch or from a mix.You can stock up on mixes  if you're pressed for time. The same goes for ready made icings too,.Also stock up on sticks of butter and margarine because you'll be using these the most. Get a five pound bag of flour instead of the usual two pound bag. (remember extra flour will come in handy for thickening sauces too ).It pays also to get bags of almonds ,walnuts and pecans for both baked goods and candy. Don't forget the holiday themed decorations like red and green  sprinkled and metallic sanding sugars.

The best treats come from a well prepped kitchen. Makes sure yours is ready for the onslaught of holiday baking.Stock your arsenal now so you don;t have to run out later.

Vegan For The Holidays

One of the most challenging aspects of a home chef''s holiday menu planning is cooking for vegans and vegetarians. Is it possible to create delicious and fun meals without seafood or beef? Can there be tasty holiday cookies and treats without the enhancement of butter and cream? Yes! There's a brand new cookbook that can help to navigate a meatless season.

The Vegan Holiday Cookbook (Robert Rose Publishers 2017) was written by Marie LaForet, a well known French vegetarian  and creator of the blog Vegetal-100. She is also a Parisian and that means elegant dishes and afters that would go well at any time of the year. Her book 's introduction indicates that she is an animal rights advocate along with being concerned about diet and health.She also lists the gluten free and adaptable recipes so that sensitive eaters won't have to suffer.. Mme LaForet also groups the recipes into different categories, from traditional to light and sophisticated, including buffet and last minute.This book is perfect for any vegan novice , looking to create that perfect at home gathering Another plus is that she concludes with home made gift section.It is easy to copy her various butters using vegan margarine and such spices as dill and black pepper for one and another one loaded with sun dried tomatoes, rosemary and smoked paprika,There's also recipes for flavored salts such as garlic and herb and lemon  and spice. Home bakers would appreciate a pretty jar filled with cinnamon and vanilla sugar.

The recipes themselves are just as flawless.Imagine a party graced with her vegan caviar (!) and squash truffles. The first is made with flaked seaweed sasoning to give it that briny,salty flavor. Mme. LaForet uses this a lot in creating faux seafood dishes such as tofu gravlax canapes and fisherman rillettes. She is big on puff pastry and uses it to create chestnut vol-au-vents and puff pastry stars, ripe with chestnut and squash. Main dishes are a vegan's dream Try the porcini mushroom risotto, chock full of button and porcini mushrooms.A great opener for a Christmas lunch could be the ravioli in flavored broth that's been zinged up with the fiery Chinese five spice powder.A tree trimming or Hanukah  party can be made cozier with the tasty seitan pot pies filled with meaty cubes of seitan -or a meat like wheat gluten.Another Hanukah treat would be the potato pancakes loaded with kohlrabi. The sides are simple but classy. Her Hassleback potatoes and roasted beets would be the right match for her paupiettes or her spin on a vegan Beef Wellington. The book ends with sweets and cocktails. Mme, LaForet has a dairy free panna cotta made with vegan creme fraiche and chestnut puree. Every holiday cookbook has cookie recipes and she gives us shortbread and the sweetly spicy Pepperkakor. Drinks are made with ginger and hibiscus and orange cranberry for some festive sipping.

The Vegan  Holiday  Cookbook is the go to Bible for vegan and vegetarian home chefs. They can create elegant hors d'ouevres, main meals and desserts without sacrificing taste. Buy it today and start creating a cruelty free menus for the holidays ahead.

Thankful???

Today is the American Thanksgiving, while others are thankful, personally I am not. it has been a God awful year , especially with my Mom's passing. I cannot give any thanks for such a bleak, heart breaking year, full of misery heaped upon more misery.

What I will be grateful for being Thanksgivings past, where my Mom cooked such family favorites as Swabische style stuffing , rich with sage along with pecan pies, loaded with nuts and sweetness.I will be thankful for all those New York Thanksgivings where we gathered together with friends in Greenwich Village as I had my version of a dinner, a turkey - spinach- avocado wrap.

That's what I will give thanks for and that's all/

Have a good Thanksgiving. Cherish what you have.

Leftover Time

One of the best things about the Thanksgiving dinner is the leftovers. It is a home chef's blank palette for creating new dishes with whatever remains. It's a way of repurposing everything without all the waste.

Repurposing tomorrow's dinner was the subject of Tejal Rao' s article in today's New York Times Food section. The bird itself is rife with ideas , from a second meal with gravy to being made into  other, more refreshing dinners. The first recipe Ms. Rao gives us is a turkey salad with fried shallots and herbs. She spices it up with a chopped jalapeno pepper mixed with coriander and mint leaves. There are also shallots fried in peanut oil.Another idea is the Southern influenced turkey and noodles. This is kind of like the turkey tettrazini millions of American home chefs made thirty and forty years ago. It's creating and hand rolling homemade egg noodles (however you can use the already made Mueller's for this) and boiling them in turkey stock.  A cup of roasted turkey meat is added to make it more substantial. The noodles must air after making to dry out and then they're rehydrated once they're in the broth


The next dish is from Ms. Rao's cookbook.It is pav bhaji and it's a take on the Indian street food.This is for day three of leftovers when there are bits of meat still stuck on the bones. She recommends crisping them in a cast iron pan.It's then mashed with tomatoes ,onion garlic and peas. Garam masala gives it the kick as does turmeric and ginger.Potato buns are used. They are lightly buttered and then  placed cut side down in a separate pan and browned until they are golden. The turkey mix is then ladled onto the buns and eaten sort of like a sloppy Joe.If there are any leftover rolls, you can use them instead of the potato buns.A spin on this is would be crisping the turkey bits and then putting them in the turkey gravy along with switching the veggies to whatever 's left over. Nix the spices and just add sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

The best part of Thanksgiving is the leftovers. Be creative with the bird. Serve it in sandwiches or an entirely new and different dish.It's a canvas to have fun with in the kitchen.

Thanksgiving Eve Feasting

Everyone is anticipating the big meal on Thursday, but what tomorrow night? Thanksgiving Eve is a big night in the kitchen but not for eating. Many home chefs forego dinner just to squeeze in extra baking or food prep time. Don't . It pays to eat the night before.

It's usually a strange American tradition of ordering pizza the night before the big day. This can be helpful, especially when you want a hot meal or are dealing with starved kids. To some it's the way to go. It's usually fresh from the oven and always satisfying. A better solution that doesn't take much time is English muffin pizzas. These are a snap to make and home chefs can utilize their toaster ovens
 while the main one is used for baking pies. The kids can even make them, it's just slicing the muffins  drizzling olive oil, and tomato sauce on top. End with shredded mozzarella. The kids can also add their own toppings from pepperoni slices to chopped olives. The same thing can be done with pita bread too.A real crowd pleaser that's also easy to make in the toaster oven is French bread pizza. You can use French bread or the long hoagie rolls for this. Again , load it up with filling toppings so the family isn''t into nibbling at the pies or the premade hors d'ouevres.

If you prefer something light, then think of soup. It's easy to open up a can of Progresso or Campbell's. Want something a bit more home made tasting , then try Alessi Soups. It's an easy cook, with just adding four cups of water to the powdered mix. The result is a thick , fragrant potage that tastes like your nonna's soup. There's only one problem with soup . It' not filling. Make a small salad with it along with serving crusty hot rolls. Another easy  idea is any egg dish. They're filling and a good source of protein. Make some scrambled ones and serve on toast for a satisfying yet simple dinner . Microwave a few strips of bacon to make it a bit more substantial. A fritatta , stuffed with leftovers is a great way of cleaning the fridge to make room for Thursday's leftovers. Add any combo of veggies, cheeses and meats to create a flavorful and hearty meal to three to four eggs. The same applies to omelets. Again. serve both  with toasted French or Italian bread and even a relaxing glass of wine or hard cider.

Don't starve yourself when you creating the big feast for Thursday. Have a filling meal the night before and you'll feel better the next day. You'll need all your strength to tackle one of the biggest cooking days of the year.

Tasty Sunday Suppers

One of the best times to sit down to  a meal is Sunday night. The hustle and bustle of the weekend is over and it's a time to relax and catch up.It's a time when families can gather over a good meal and chat about their lives. Now there's a new cookbook that has a whole slew of  great Sunday night suppers and desserts.

  Southern Living  contributor and James Beard Award winner Cynthia Graubert wrote this interesting cookbook Sunday Suppers: simple DeliciousmMenus For Family Gatherings (Oxmoor House Press) about a southern tradition, the Sunday supper. This is usually a light repast, followed by a luscious dessert. Hers is just that along with tips and "Southern advice"  about guests and invites. The suppers shouldn't be relegated to just Sunday night. I can see making these for a Friday or most definitely a Saturday night with a small cadre of friends. Another plus is that she sprinkled interviews with famed southern chefs (including one of my Facebook friends, the great cook, Damon Lee Fowler) and their memories of Sunday suppers and what they do to carry on the tradition. I love her little advice paragraphs that are also sprinkled throughout the book. There's one on being tardy - being fashionably late is not acceptable. along with the day after thank you note - do write out one and mail - not email it. She even addresses the overnight guest and what gifts they should bring to thank the hosts.

What of the recipes themselves? First of all, they 're not all Southern.Yes, there are some Low Country and grits recipes but it's a good mix of Mexican and Italian. She has slotted into seasons along with the fun breakfast for dinner. As Ms. Graubert states the menu plans aren't set in stone. A recipe for one meal can easily be the main one for another.It's kind of  like a mix and match. Again, many of these would make fine Saturday night dinners such as the slow cooker pork and baked mac and cheese, followed by the yummy white chocolate chip cookies. Some of the breakfast for dinner recipes would be perfect for a Sunday brunch. Imagine making Spring vegetable frittata and cheese grits casserole on a cozy Sunday morning and finishing with breakfast cookies and coffee. The recipes can also be adapted for tailgate parties too such as the mini muffulettas and apple cole slaw. Finish with any of of the cookie or many brownie recipes.

Nothing beats a Sunday supper shared with family. Luckily Cynthia Graubert has written a fantastic cookbook that offers some tasty dishes , sides and desserts. This is the perfect cookbook for those that treasure lazy Sunday suppers with friends and family.

Three Perfect Holiday Cakes

It's the start of the holiday season and with it a time of sweet treats. Nothing can compare to a home baked cake, made from scratch and with love. The Sunday New York Times Magazine (spoiler alert!) has come up  with three , delicious recipes that are sure to be family favorites and a home baker's go to.

Tejal Rao, a Wednesday Food section contributor, and master chef herself gathered recipes from three pro bakers. The first cake is cranberry lemon stripe cake,by Helen Goh.. She co authored a cookbook, Sweet, with  famed baker and chef, Yotam Ottolenghi. The cake is a festive one with a vertical (!) stripe. The basic cake is a sponge, which is quite malleable. The filling is a cranberry puree made with just frozen cranberries and sugar. The other part of the stripe comes from the cranberry butter cream, however this is not the typical butter cream most home bakers use. This also has corn syrup and egg yolks. It's more labor intensive too, because the eggs and corn syrup have to be cooked and then added to a bowl. and whisked. Butter cubes are added afterwards as does the puree. Assembly  though is easy,It's creating a sponge roll,  wrapping the three buttercream and puree frosted layers around each other. A watered down version of the puree is then drizzled on top.

Another decadent treat is Stella Park's devil's food cake with toasted marshmallow icing. Ms Parks is author of the cake cookbook, Bravetart and has created some amazing desserts and treats. This cake is a classic, rich, dark cake, zinged up with the addition of coffee. The marshmallow icing is a homemade one, consisting of egg whites , sugar, cream of tartar and vanilla. There is also the addition of Kosher salt too to balance out the sweet. The fun comes in icing it and using a small blowtorch to get that toasted look. The third cake comes from Genevieve Koh, creator of  the cookbook, Better Baking, a full recipe book that has gluten free recipes.  Hers is a sugarplum gingerbread cake, ripe with the flavors of the season.Prunes are what give it that earthy fruity sweetness while the full array of spices such as ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves. The prunes do have to be rehydrated and this is done by simmering them in  boiling water for a few minutes, and then bathing them in molasses and baking powder.The cake is baked in a Bundt pan and dusted liberally with cocoa powder.

Any of these cakes would make a holiday meal more festive. Make them for a holiday dinner or holiday party. They are the perfect treat to welcome in the season