Various Flatbreads

 Flatbread satisfy the need for a quick but satisfying meal. They could be anything from pizza to a Tarte flambe to focaccia. They're easy to make and the toppings can be as elaborate or as simple as you make them.

Flatbreads are one of the oldest foods in the  world , first coming into existence around 12,400 BCE in what is now modern Jordan.Back then they were just a mix of flour and water, usually grilled on  a hot surface such as a heated stone.Flabread comes in different shapes depending on where you're in. It's naan in India, pita in the Middle East and focaccia in Italy. A simple quick flatbread involves flour water and surprisingly yogurt. Some recipes call for this last. Some don't. A really simple recipe just has water and flour  along with sugar and salt. Most of them don't have yeast, however the Greek version does have.This is what makes the Greek bread have that light fluffiness that goes well with souvlaki. As with any yeasty dough it has to sit and rise for about an hour to an hour and a half.Naan is a bit different  with the addition of the melted butter or ghee along with milk. Pita is truest in form to the original flatbread.There's - only the most basic of ingredients. It ;s an easy make and a great alternative to regular bread.

WHat do you put on flatbread? Pita screams for za'atar - that zingy Middle Eastern spice blend that consists of thyme, marjoram and oregano, mixed with toasted sesame, salt and sumac. This is mixed with olive oil and either drizzled (or slathered) over warmed pita.Shawarma , which can be grilled chicken or beef is also good on it Thee meat is grilled in a spice blend call shawarma spice which has cumin, turmeric  garlic and paprika in it. Lamb can also be cooked this way too. As for Greek flatbread nothing beats souvlaki . This last is meat cooked in a mix of  oregano, paprika and rosemary. Of course there is lemon toto to give the dish some zest. Italian flatbread or focaccia is best known and there are so many debates as to what to top it with. A simple topping is olive oil and black or green olives. Yet for a tastier mix try topping one with sundried tomatoes and marinated onions.. Meats and fish like pepperoni and anchovies can be added for more substance and flavor too.

Flabreads with toppings are nice alternatives to sandwiches and pizzas. Bake them and top them with tasty veggies and meats. They're a perfect lunch or dinner.

Plotting For The Next Big Dinner

 As we're finishing off the Tahnksgiving leftovers our minds turn to - the next big meal or party. it seems almost too much. Yet  December First is just around the corner.It's going to be Christmas Chanukah and Knwanzaa before we know it. Throw in parties and tree trimming get togethers and then it really is time to come up with  menu plans.

It pays to map out the month ahead. Keep in mind people will be busy with finishing up semesters and getting ready for their office parties.It's good to plan parties and dinners on Saturday and Sundays. If people are occupied on Saturday night, then think a holiday brunch on late Sunday morning.Another must is figuring out what people will eat. Take into account that you may have  vegans and vegetarians invited.One idea is having both meat and meatless options like nuggets . You can get Tyson and Gardein or Impossible plant based chicken. These are great with all sorts of dipping sauces from ranch to barbecue.Impossible Meats also has plant based ribs for a fun appetizer.A great tree trimming meal is chili .This can be made quickly and it can have all sorts of ingredients in it.It could have beef turkey, beans and even tofu.It could be as spicy hot  as you and your guests want or comfortingly mild. Serve with crackers or cornbread.This last could be homemade or bought at your local grocery store. Finish with Mexican hot chocolate.

Hosts must also choose between sit down dinners or buffets. Sit down dinners require more planning. the other requires more food. What do you order for a sit down dinner? Is this also for Christmas? Do you serve turkey or ham? What about the sides? Will it include elegant vegetables along with a first course of soup or salad?Will guest have to dress up to enjoy this meal along with cups of punch? Buffets are much more informal but require a good choice of dishes, both savory and sweet. Here's where planning has to come in. A buffet lunch or dinner can be made easier if everyone is assigned a recipe. Make sure that there's an equal balance of savor and sweet along with hot and cold. You don't want ten guests to bring salads or variations of baked macaroni and cheese. Assign what each home chef is good at. If there are dupes then ask them what their second go to recipe is and they can make that. (you may have to have them go to their third and fourth dishes in some cases or switch them from savory to sweet and vice a versa if too many have the same specialty).

Is it time to plan so soon after Thanksgiving? Surprisingly yes! Start now for a month of parties and dinners. All that planning will pay off when you have a good dinner or party.

Zooming and Fooding

 What do fast cars and slow dining have in common? In Las Vegas, a lot. Last weekend good food and good cars came together in a marriage of fun and delicousness.

New contributor and regular New York Times  arts and style contributor worry about this in Wednesday's New York Times Food section.Formula One racing has recently arrived in Las Vegas, coming there in 2023. MGM which handles the pop up dining experience sees this as a chance to cash in on those ultra rich visitors to the country's gambling capital. This is happening during a quiet time between holidays in the city and boosts interest in both racing and the Bellagio where the event is held.It's an interesting construction of using the giant fountain  and man made lake in front of the hotel and using it as the base for the eatery. An event team had to build a sturdy foundational infrastructure at the bottom of the lake and then perform rigourous stress  testing.This ensures that it could support a three (!!!) story building including a full scale working restaurant and a lower level that functions as an industrial kitchen,. It can also hold a whopping one thousand guests.

However eating here is not cheap. Diners have to pay an extravagant $7,750 a head.  The food is also extravagant with people eating  such small plates as soy cured eggs and caviar, Wagyu beef carpaccio and Hokkaido snow crab. Diners can also enjoy pit stop pizza from Bellagio's famed Lago along with a expensive osso buco and branzino plates. Peking duck is also served for those craving Chinese. Famous chefs mills about and cook, Guests and drivers can see such famous chefs as Jose Andres and Michael Mina along with Tom Collichio and Alex Guarnaschell, all friends. there's a fraternal vibe there which adds to the fun of the racing.Other famed chefs like Mario Carobne and David Change also cook there, bringing back their days at the famed New York eatery Boulud.The team at MGM turned out these chefs' best dishes, usually one thousand a night. However the most mind boggling of all of this is the trash disposal.It'  happens underneath the lake, discreetly away from guests.Its' floated to where to can be disposed.

Racing and good food may not  go together at first. Yet when put together it's a dazzling array of speed and taste. It works perfectly.

A Well Cooked Thanksgiving

 What makes a good Thanksgiving? A messy stove that 's been through the wringer today .

There's also an air fryer that needs a break too.

For all my readers here and around the world. her'es hoping your feast was a messy and satisfying as mine. Enjoy making it, eating it and reheating the leftovers tomorrow.🍊

Thanksgiving Words

 There is all sorts of advice for tomororow's big feast. Should home chefs and host take them seriously? Yes and no.Advice is I just that - advice.Take what makes sense and use it.

That was the main article of  today's New York Times Wednesday Food section.New contributor Tanya Sichynsky . the paper's food and cooking sections editor gathered all sorts of gems and nuggets/Should they be followed?Maybe.Maybe not. There are sixty-one points to argue or agree with.  There is the Guest List. One , from Becky Hughes of Where To Eat suggests inviting someone you don;t like that ex or old high school bully. That's not going to work for a huge amount of people. A better suggestion regarding guests is everyone ,including family, should wear name tags. This is a good idea from Luke Fortney , also of What To Eat. There is also Vibes Management - with the best advice - from fashion designer Rachel Antonoff,. Don;t wear anything with a waistband. Everyone ets too much.Loose  comfy clothes, casual or Friday casual should be allowed and worn.Also please accept help.This is from Kia  Damon, recipe developer and chef. If someone wants to clear the table and wash dishes, let them.Chefs should have a moment of relaxation after a heavy day of cooking and prep.

Then there is the bird. Surprisingly a few have suggested other fowl.Melissa Clark suggests duck. She doesn't give a reason why but maybe it;s because the skin can cook up crispier and more burnished than turkey.If turkey isn't liked, then there is chicken. Another Foo section writer, Ali Slagle suggests having two of them. They're easier to store in the fridge.The meat is also juicier which means no dry areas like with turkey. There's also no spatchcocking.This from Katherine Lewn , the owner of BigNight.This method has been done to death.Yes, the meat is well cooked but it's a flat bird. Who wants a flat bird? The sides are also up for discussion too. Challah makes the best stuffing according to the author of this compilation, Tanya Sichynsky.It should be homemade too.Of course there is the marshmallow on yams debate. No, as per StacyMe Yan Fong, author of Fifty Pies and baker. Speaking of sweets what about those ubiquitous pies?There are two camps on this. Pro pie is Eddie Huang, chef , writer and director. Then there is the anti pie crowd.Vaughn Vreeland, who hosts Bake Times nixes it. Panna Cotta can be made according to Paola Velez, pastry chef and owner of Bar Provencia.

So what makes a good Thanksgiving. Everything a home chef wants it to be. A dinner shines when a chef shines. Only he and she can make it sparkle and memorable.

Quick Bakes For Thursday

 Even though most home chefs are already exhausted, they still want to bake for the Thanksgiving dinner. There is something about homemade rolls and desserts straight from the oven. Yet what could a tired home baker create?Something easy and quick.

One of the easiest is a batch of dinner rolls. These can be made without yeast for simple making and baking. Baking powder gives this traditional recipe rise . The rest is classic, with the addition of milk, flour butter or oil. They're made, they're rolled on to a cookie sheet and then baked for twenty five minutes. These can be made tomorrow night or Thursday morning. For an even tastier roll try baking garlic  butter no yeast dinner rolls. These have the addition of Greek yogurt for a very tender crumb. If home bakers want to tackled something a bit bigger, then consider baking a quick loaf of bread.There is a recipe that only calls for five ingredients and the best part it makes for a perfect sandwich bread for all those turkey ones on Friday.It has flour, baking powder,oil , milk and sugar.Use a greased loaf pan to bake it in because the dough will be quite thick.It only takes fifty minutes in a 430 degree Farenheit oven. A plus is that it will bake with a golden crusty top.

There are also the sweet bakes. Everyone loves a good pie after a Thanksgiving meal. the easiest choice would be getting one of those premade ones. You can fill it with a combination of puddings and Cool Whip for something different. A fun one that everyone will like is a cool mint grasshopper pie.Use an Oreo pie crust and fill with a mix of cream cheese and Cool Whip.Mint extract is used for flavor. This is really a no bake. You can try a simple apple pie with an already made pastry crust. (Pillsbury and Betty Crocker makes these). Cut six cups of apples  into thin slices and let sit in a bowl of sugar mixed with cinnamon. Layer these in the premade pie crust and dot with butter. Seal with a top crust and bake first for ten minutes for ten minutes for 450 degrees Farenheit. Reduce the heat after those ten minutes to 350 degrees Farenheit and bake for thirty minutes. A premade pie crust can also work for a pumpkin pie. The filling is  quick mix of pureed pumpkin, eggs, condensed milk, spices and salt. It's blending the filling and then filling the crust with it. Like the apple pie, its first baked at 450 degrees Farenheit then the heat is reduced to 350 after ten minutes. It's baked at this temperature for another forty minutes.

You can easily have freshly baked goods at your Thanksgiving table. Try rolls or bread. Make a quick pie. Everyone will love these at their dinner feast.

Antipasto Or Not?

 Thursday's meal can be considered filling. There are so many sides to sample and of course there's the turkey. Yet is it too much to consider starting the meal with antipasto? Some say yes. Some embrace it.

A small antepasto can work no matter what you're having afterwards. A typical antepasto consists of any cured meats such as soppressata and mortadella along with cheeses, veggies, both fresh and marinated. There are also breads and crackers too to create tiny bite sized sandwiches.Some also include marinated and deviled eggs along with anchovies and tuna.The eggs and fish may be too much especially before a heavy meal, laden with rich gravy and mashed potatoes. You could have just have cheeses and bread or just crackers and some cold cuts. Put out small bowls of olives and marinated mushrooms too. Don't go overboard. Just have enough to tease the appetite. ANother idea is serving an antipasto salad. This is a fun mix of romaine lettuce , artichoke hearts and fresh basil for the greens. Cut up some salami in bite sized chunks Add tomatoes and small, marinated mushrooms . Since the artichokes and mushrooms are already marinated go easy with the dressing. Use more olive oil than vinegar and use only a pinch of herbs.

Antipasto can be handy for those fussy eaters. You can create a vegan version for invited herbivores. Instead of real cold cuts you can easily get Tofurky and Lite Life plant based ones. These can be rolled up around breadsticks ro grissini ri cuts into squares for easy eating. Then add some vegan cheese such as mozzarella and feta along with a host of marinated veggies.This kind of antepasto is filling too so vegans and vegetarians won;t feel so bad if they miss the main course. Antipasto, vegan and non vegan are also great for those who are dieting. They can easily make up a plate of different vegetables such as roasted peppers  olives and cherry or grape tomatoes. Served with a few rounds of bruschetta ,it makes for a tasty meal that's not so high in calories. Guests and family can still enjoy the meal but not indulge in rich , fatty foods. It's also great for picky eaters and kids. It's a plate for fun nibbles that smaller appetites can manage. A kid will go for a tomato or an olive rather than a sweet potato.

Antepasto can work in a Thanksgiving dinner. How to make it is up to you. Create a big or small one. Everyone will be happy with it no matter what the size.