Holiday Goodies

Is everyone familiar with panettone, a sweet, Italian bread loaf, full of candied orange peel and raisins? It comes in a very tall, lofty box we only see at holiday time. 

I am always excited to get my first one of the season. It's the perfect accompaniment to my afternoon coffee. The texture is reminiscent of my mom's babka recipe, another taste I love. I wish it was so easily accessible all year round. But then I guess it wouldn't be special.

Anyway, it is always nice to have Christmas morning or New Year's Day brunch prepped the night before. It makes life so much easier, especially if you have a house full of guests.

When you slice into the panettone, you will see it is very light-colored and airy. Once cooked, the top is very crunchy while the bottom remains soft and custard-like. Serve with warm maple syrup and something salty like bacon or sausage.

The festiveness of the holidays is upon us and it's time to make a plan of attack.  What to serve?  How to serve it? What I am bringing where? And how the heck am I going to feed all these people?

Anyway, I'm hardly the first one who thought of this but it's a staple around here during the holiday season.  This is one of those great, quick appetizers you make in a moments notice.  Stock your fridge with a few logs of goat cheese (it lasts a long time), some dried cranberries and shelled pistachios. 

The sweet cranberries, salty nuts and earthy taste of the goat cheese are a great combination.

If you have unexpected guests, or have to work late before a party and don't want to show up empty handed...this is perfect.  Also, if you have to travel a long way and need something to hold up in the car....this works well.  Even if you have planned every detail down to the millisecond, this is still the perfect appetizer to put out for your guests.

Thanksgiving isn't complete without some sort of sweet potato dish. There's the traditional marshmallow-topped sweet potato side dish or the classic dessert of sweet potato pie. Sweet potatoes are almost magical when cooked or baked. Their bright orange flesh turns soft and almost creamy. Roasting them heightens their natural sweetness even more. Many holiday recipes further improve upon the sweetness by adding brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup. With the holiday only one week away, it's time to start planning. I'll be making a few new recipes to add to my repertoire.

Sweet and savory flavors are the basis of many classic Thanksgiving recipes. This side dish strays from the typical in favor of something a bit more gourmet and savory. Roasted sweet potatoes are mashed with butter, cream, and maple syrup and then spread in a gratin dish. The mashed sweet potatoes are then topped with fluffy panko breadcrumbs, fresh sage, and chopped walnuts. It's then drizzled with melted butter and broiled, turning the top golden and crunchy. It's a side dish that's sure to please both sweet potato traditionalists and those looking for a new take on a holiday favorite.

Another classic Christmas cookie - Shortbread is a traditional Scottish dessert that consists of three basic ingredients: flour, sugar, and butter. According to Wikpedia, this cookie resulted from medieval biscuit bread, which was a twice baked, enriched bread roll dusted with sugar and spices and hardened into a soft and sweetened biscuit called a Rusk.

Eventually, yeast from the original Rusk recipe was replaced by butter, which was becoming more of a staple in the British Isles. Despite the fact that shortbread was prepared during much of the 12th century, the refinement of shortbread was actually accredited to Mary, Queen of Scots, in the 16th century.

The name of one of the most famous and most traditional forms of shortbread, petticoat tails, were named by Queen Mary. This type of shortbread was baked, cut into triangular wedges as they are in this recipe from Cook’s Illustrated.