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.

Thanksgiving For Beginners

 Thanksgiving is a daunting cook day even for veteran homes chefs.Imagine what it must be like for beginners. Luckily there is a guide  from the New York Times Food section with simplified recipes for new to cooking home chefs.It's easy, and chock full of good , tasty recipes.

Eric Kin, a regular contributor to The Wednesday Food section for the New York Times and author of a cookbook coming out next year compiled an easy to shop for prep  and cook. His recipes only require a sheet pan, and a large skillet Everything cooks at one temperature 350 degree Farenheit, which is easy to remember. Mr. Kim also suggests use one herb like oregano or sage throughout the recipes to connect everything. He starts off with a salt and pepper roast turkey breast. It's a bone in kind which can be dry brined the night before. Mr. Kim just slathers it with with butter and showers it with seasoning for a succulent, tasty bite. Of course there has to be gravy and he gives a recipe for an unami one. It's made ahead with a base of caramelized red onion, flour milk and butter, There is also sugar and pepper to give it sweetness and some heat. One of the most fun recipes is cheesy pizza stuffing. This would just be great on its' own. This is a custsrdy mix of tomatoes and dried oregano along with buttery sauteed onions and topped with mozzarella. Add sausage or pepperoni and it becomes a great weekend meal.

Of course there are sides.Mr. Kim offers another spin on a Thanksgiving classic mashed potatoes. He serves up mashed sweet potatoes enhanced with roasted garlic.They do have to be roasted instead of boiled to concentrate their flavor. You can make this the night before and warm up in a buttered dish. Add more butter to the top to create puddles.Every Thanksgiving meal needs a salad and Mr  Kin gives us one that combines green beans, radicchio and artichoke hearts in an easy olive oil drizzle followed by a sprtiz of lemon juice and a sprinkling of oregano. For tanginess there is lemon cranberry relish instead of the usual cranberry sauce. This is pulsing fresh cranberries, thin skinned lemons and sugar. A pinch of salt brings out the blend of tart and sweet flavor. No holiday dinner would be complete without dessert. Mr Kim gas created a caramel apple pudding. It's a trifle of apples fried in a homemade caramel sauce, layered with classic vanilla wafers and salted cinnamon whipped cream. The combination is a nice treat , layered and then chilled in the fridge until serving.

These recipes give novice home chefs hope. They are easy and tasty, perfect for the holiday. Try them for a holiday meal that are a dream to make and eat.