The Hassle Of Hasslebacks

 Hasselback potatoes have become one of stars of this crazy year. They look easy to make and all the sites say they're delicious. I thought I 'd give them a try.

I bought  a Hasselback grid from Gia's Kitchen on Amazon. It's a two piece affair with spiked wooden block and a grid on top of it.

It takes a sharp knife to cut into raw  russet potato which is like cutting into wood. 

It was hard to do even slices. You're supposed to cut almost all the way through, leaving about a quarter of an inch untouched. This is supposed to produce an accordion effect when cooked. All the online recipes have a variety of flavorings, from herbed melted butter to olive oil.I just brushed the slits and skins with olive oil and sprinkled on dried parsley.

They're supposed to be baked for half an hour in an air fryer at 350 degrees. This is what they looked like halfway through. a bit browned and promising.

Half an hour later they weren't. They were still raw so I gave them an extra ten minutes at 400 degrees F.

Most of it was OK, They didn't fan out and there were very few crispy bits. They did not look like golden accordions. Making Hasselback potatoes takes practice and making adjustments to the recipe.

Hasselback potatoes are a great side . Keep in mind you have to make them a few times to get those golden accordion slices. It's worth it knowing what the result could be.

Your Own Holiday Party

 The one aspect of the holiday everyone is missing right now is the holiday party. It could be a lavish office affair or a tree trimming bash. There are no more family gatherings or Hanukkah parties. Yet we can still celebrate - at home among ourselves.

Sit down office parties were always full of good drink and good food. You can still have a lush night in, including getting dressed up. Think about serving small filet mignons to make at home with a side of Hasselback potatoes. The meat can be enhanced with garlic or herb butter or a bagna calda sauce of anchovies garlic, butter and olive oil. Hasselback potatoes are accordion sliced russet potatoes brushed with melted butter and different herbs. Another lush meal would be Cornish game hens with flavored rice and/or mushrooms. Corporate Christmas parties are also known for their many hors d'ouevres. Whip up a bowl of fresh made bruschetta to be piled on toasted and sliced Italian or French bread. Cheese and mushrooms puffs are a must. You can make these at home using already made puff pastry but you can also find trays of both at your grocery's freezer section. The same goes for spanokopita, the miniature Greek spinach pies. Since you're not going to be driving, you can make dinner as boozy as you want. Serve champagne or make a packed

 punch with rum ,orange and pineapple juices. You can also create individual drinks like Cosmopoitans and martinis too.If the kids are involved, then make a non alcoholic one with a variety of juices and seltzer.

Hanukkah parties are special times that can still be celebrated. Homemade latkes are a must but these can have different spins. Try making them in a waffle iron for an all over crispiness. Add sweet onions and horseradish for some zing and heat. Veggie laced latkes are a different and flavorful twist. Think about adding in chopped leeks or scallions along with carrots and onions. A true treat is a brisket and latke sandwich, made with melt in your mouth brisket and hot crisp latkes. A fun dessert is sufganiyot , the holiday jelly doughnuts. Also have some chocolate coins for the dreidl games later. A family tree trimming party can still occur. You could give it a Mexican spin with fresh made guacamole and salsa or a plate of loaded nachos. The last are tortilla chips topped with pulled chicken or ground beef  and smothered with cheese, sliced jalapenos and black olives. You can also toss in diced tomatoes and peppers too. Another tree trimming party idea would be a plate of English muffin pizzas. Everyone can put on whatever toppings they want like pepperoni and extra sauce. You could even include garlic knots too and extra pizza sauce for dipping. Finish with a platter of homemade cookies and hot cocoa , tea or flavored coffee.

You can still have delicious food and drink. Just do it at home. It may not be the same as those parties you're used to but it could easily be tastier. Celebrate this holiday season however you want. It's your party.

Honoring Our Vets This Holiday Season

 It's hard to believe but it's the seventy-ninth anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Brave people sacrificed their lives for four years afterwards as they do today. Again we need to honor them  and what better way then cooking and baking. 

We should honor those that we have left from the Second World War. Of course , we can't see them face to face but we can drop off dishes and treats. Casserole dishes are always easy to make and drop off. An elderly couple may appreciate a baked mac and cheese or a homemade chicken pot pie. These are simple to make and always appreciated. You can vary the mac and cheese with the addition of ham, bacon and even chicken. Chicken or even turkey pot pie is easy if you have  the shredded poultry  along with cream of chicken soup for the gravy. Add some frozen peas and sliced carrots for color and texture. The crust can be a premade pie crust or biscuits. Also you can also make crock pot tomato sauce, pack that up with a box of pasta. Veterans from other wars such as the Viet Nam and the Gulf Wars will also appreciate these dinners too. Add a grocery gift card as a Christmas gift if you know they're food challenged . It's a just a lovely way of saying thank you for what they've done for the country.

Holiday time is baking time. Vets of any age will appreciate a cookie box they can have to themselves or share with spouse or close family members. Fill it with classic recipes such as shortbread, sugar and gingerbread. Spritz cookies yield large amounts so these would be perfect for several boxes. You can bake them in holiday colors like red and green along in festive shapes like trees and wreaths. Sugar cookies cut in snowflake and ornament shapes, then gaily decorated are always a cookie box must. You can also include chocolate chip cookies as well as oatmeal raisin and peanut butter blossoms too. If you're ambitious then think of a homemade gingerbread house.Nothing brings on a big smile than a fairy tale dream come true, decorated with the vet's favorite candies. Templates for the walls and roof can be found at any baking site or you can try your own hand at them.  If you're really creative you can try baking a lighthouse or  truck for extra fun. You can also also buy kits that have everything from the icing to decorations.It's not only gingerbread but also Oreo also has a cookie house too.

Today we should honor our vets from World War Two. Yet  we should also honor them this holiday season. Bake them cookies or make them a meal. Show that you not only care but you're also grateful too,

What Do You Want To Bake

 This is the season for heavy duty baking. It's even more intense this year as we leave boxes of treats for our loved ones and friends. The question is what do you want to bake. Do you want to keep within your skill set or go beyond? Do you want to stick with one kind of baked good or expand? Ask yourself these questions when you're planning your holiday baking.

Christmas season means cookie season. There's nothing like a plate of shortbread or chocolate chip cookies along with fancily made and decorated ones. Before you start, ask yourself do you want to stick with the familiar or go beyond? You could uses mixes such as Betty Crocker's . These are basically already mixed and just need eggs and butter. You can turn the mix sugar cookies into fancy ones with the addition of colored sugar and sprinkles. Many would prefer starting from scratch. Nothing beats the holiday spritz cookies which can be baked into so many different shapes and decorated so many different ways.  The classic recipe is just a mix of butter, sugar, flour and egg along with a dash of almond or vanilla. The dough is then chilled and rolled. Keep in mind that spritz cookies don't always work out. There's also a lot from one batch and they bake very quickly. Baking them really is nothing more than a rapid assembly line. If this is too much you may want to stick with easy to mix, easy to make cupcakes. Just bake a dozen of either chocolate or vanilla or both flavors. A fun icing is a peppermint buttercream which goes well with chocolate. The frosting can also be tinted and be festooned with all sorts of decorative pieces, from pretzels for reindeer antlers to marshmallows for snowmen.

Some home bakers are turning to cakes for a different holiday dessert. A simple layer cake with a lovely frosting is always a plus. You can try a spice cake with a maple frosting to finish off a Christmas dinner. Another idea for those who want to go fully traditional is the Christmas fruitcake. It's a bit more labor intensive for some but the result is well worth it.The recipe calls a variety of dried fruit from dates to raisins to candied orange peels. You can easily omit these if they're not your family's cup of tea. Spices abound in any fruitcake recipe. There are cloves,nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice. Of course it wouldn't be a fruitcake without the alcohol .Bourbon, rum or brandy can all be used to douse the fruit before adding it to the batter - not the cake after it's baked.The alcohol is usually mixed with orange juice for more flavor for the dried fruit. If this is too intense, you could try baking a panettone. the Italian fruit bread. It really is a bread thanks to the addition of yeast.It also requires a special pan for it but you can also use a coffee can too. This is a great bake for all those who honed their bread making skills this year. If this recipe works out for you , then try the other Italian Christmas pandoro, or golden bread. This rich confection has egg yolks along with  half a cup of whole cream and two sticks of butter added in for its' deep yellow color and lush flavor. You do need a special pandoro pan for it to create the risen star shape.

Bake what you feel comfortable with this CHristmas. Being confident helps in creating no fail treats everyone will love. Just go with your skill set and make something amazing for family and friends.

 

Ground Beef Versatility

 One of the most versatile ingredients is ground beef, whether the real thing or plant based. It can be made into everything and anything. You can make it plain or fancy, depending on your tastes and what you want to do.

One of the easiest dishes to make with ground beef is hamburger. Many home chefs have very definite ideas about the perfect patty with the perfect taste. For a simple one it's just mixing ground beef or even turkey  with one egg and breadcrumbs for the most perfect and juiciest burger. A flavorful add in is a tablespoon or two of chopped onion. For more flavor saute the chopped onion in butter or I Can't Begin It's Butter.if you want something different, spike up the patties with hot pepper flakes or chili powder. Keep in mind you can also add these when you use the ground beef for meat loaf. Some like to have this American classic with zing whether it's a teaspoon or two of chili powder or flakes.Again the basic recipe is somewhat similar to hamburger patties. It's combining egg, meat and breadcrumbs  with the addition of a cup of milk. Recipes vary here too, with the addition of brown sugar and ketchup. Then there's the question of adding a glaze or not and what kind. Vegans will appreciate a loaf made of Beyond Beef. This is a delicious mix of the plant based meat with fishless  Worcester sauce and breadcrumbs. Onion and garlic powder give it some oomph too.

Ground beef is also the backbone of many other dishes too. You can make a delicious Bolognese sauce with it or with soy crumbles. Both Morningstar Farms and Gardein have the last and it makes for a tasty faux Bolognese.The sauce is a hearty version that works well with any kind of pasta and ravioli.It also freezes and reheats well too. Of course any meat crumbles are great in chili. It makes this fun dish hearty , especially when you add a few different kinds of beans. You could even sub in quartered hamburgers too in this for a filling winter supper. Again chili is up for interpretation. it can be mild or made four alarm , depending on what you or your family likes. Ground beef or vegan crumbles make the perfect filling for burritos and tacos too. Again you can add what you want to it for these. Chili powder give it some zing along with taco mix spicing (which you can buy in your spice aisle) or in your grocery's Mexican food section. Ground beef is also great in Chinese dishes. The famed Szechuan dish Ants Climbing A Tree is a delicious marriage of ground beef, chopped scallions, garlic and rice noodles.Pepper flakes give it bite  as everything is sauteed in a mix of olive and vegetable oil.

Ground beef and its' vegan version soy crumbles are incredibly versatile. Have it in patties or in sauce. Try it in Mexican or Chinese dishes. It gives any home chef a wide range of options and variety.

Gifts For The Cook And Kitchen

 The holidays will be different this year. Yet gift giving will remain the same. Food gifts are always welcome . Home chefs and bakers always appreciate something new and fun to try. 

The New York Times Food section yesterday published a short but excellent guide on what to give. Contributors such as Sam Sifton and Mrgaux laskey give their ideas along with Anna Perling and Marguerite Preston. Food is always a must. It's a fun diversion and perfect for those new at home Zoom Christmas party. A must is a Vermont cheese basket. The Jasper Hill Vermonter basket has not only mouth watering fromage from the Green Mountain State, it also comes with nuts and crackers. Another cheesy gift is from the Plymouth Artisan Cheese Company that's been making raw milk cheddar since 1890. For those who love a dash of fire give a horseradish and ginger spiked hot sauce from  Shaquanda Will Feed You. The company has other flavorful hot sauces such as a seafood green sauce, spiked with both sweet and fiery. A less tongue searing present is a jar from the unique Trade Street Jam Company. This Brooklyn company offers such cool flavors as smoked peach and strawberry chipotle fig. Of course this is the year for beans so why don't  you send Rancho Gordo's heirloom beans from America's West Coast growers in Oregon, Washington and California. Sweet lovers will appreciate Mah-Ze-Dahr's brownies and a gingerbread house making kit.

Home chefs always appreciate a kitchen gift. The Teakhaus Carving Board is perfect for those who do a lot of chopping and slicing  as it stands up to cuts, stains and odors. You may want to pair it with an electric pellet grill from Traegar Pro which can smoke all sorts of meats. It is pricey though at almost eight hundred dollars. For something much less expensive think Kuving EVO juicer which can produce all sorts of delicious juices. Bakers will appreciate the Emile Henry  nine inch pie dish for the perfect dessert.  There are fun gifts too like the Whynter ICM 201S ice cream maker which can make everything from classic ice cream to frozen yogurt. They can mop up the mess with the super cute Cheerful Sponges in fruit  and veggie shapes.Also think about fun reusable straws from OXO. They're made from stainless steel and even come with a brush for cleaning.  For more practical gifts think reusable sandwich bags in bright colors, perfect for lone hikes and walks in the park along with beer glasses which enhance any beer's flavor. A truly lovely gift is a plastic mat for the kitchen floor from France. It may be vinyl but looks and feels like classic linoleum. 

The holidays will be different this year. Gift giving won't be. Pick something fun for the chefs and food lovers in your life.

The Perfect Cookie Box

 One of the best gifts to give this holiday season is a box of homemade cookies. These are perfect because you don't really have to leave your home and you can put your baking skills to good use. It also means you care for those around you when you can't be around them.

Melissa Clark offered this in her column in today's New York Times Food section. She has been creating cookie boxes for a long time and avows that they really do make great gifts. It's also a fun gift , with the recipient enjoying a wide range of flavors and textures Before you start she does recommend creating a cookie box log with a list of what you made, what worked and what didn't. She has other suggestions about how to create the perfect sweet gift.Variety is the key to success. Have different kinds , form gingerbread to shortbreads to a cookie with chocolate.. Something sparkly and colorful is a must. Ms. Clark throws in a recipe for gingerbread cookies topped with a royal icing and shimmery sparkles. Also have cookies with a fruity or jammy note to them. Crunch is also important. Think shortbreads or almond snowballs. Chocolate is a definite must. Another must  are boozy treats for adults. Whip up some rum or brandy balls, brandy snaps or even miniature fruitcakes. Anything made with alcohol is a plus because the heady stuff helps preserve them for weeks. Also present these treats in a nice box too. I would add some chocolates or mini candy canes too.

Ms. Clark gives an excellent array of cookie recipes. I definitely want to bake her traditional spritz cookies, those made with a cookie press. She gives them more flavor with the addition of lemon or orange zest and/or cardamon and cinnamon. Another must bake are her cornmeal lime shortbread fans. This is not the traditional Scottish shortbreads but one made with cornmeal and drizzled with a lime juice glaze. There is the traditional gingerbread, but zinged up with colorful icing and decorations. Peanut butter and jelly lovers will go mad for the honey roasted peanut thumbprints with the well of Concord grape jam in the middle. For a more delicate flavor , bake toasted almond snowballs livened up with brandy, pastis or ouzo. The texture is melt in your mouth , thanks to the almond flour used. Chocolate lovers will most certainly gobble up the black and white brownies made with both white and dark chocolate and dusted with Malden sea salt. Another chocolate lover's dream is a box of fudgy bourbon balls which are no bake - an absolute plus. For a true flavor explosion bake Ms. Clark's cherry rugelach with cardamon. The filling is a yummy mix of cherries and chopped walnuts spiked with cardamon and cinnamon. The cookie is made with cream cheese for a lovely flaky texture.

A cookie box filled with homemade treats is a sure winner for gift giving. It's also a fun way to show off your baking skills to those around you. Create a box of favorites , full of love and home baked goodness.  It's truly a sweet gift.