Holiday Goodies

Thanksgiving may be my favorite holiday. Families gather. And as they surround the dining table they celebrate and give thanks for all blessings, including the bountiful meal before them.

When my mom was living, she prepared most of the Thanksgiving meal herself. Trying to please everyone, she’d make baseball-sized dumplings and sauerkraut for my German dad, lump-free mashed potatoes for the grandchildren, sweet potatoes with a crunchy topping of melted marshmallows for her daughter-in-law, stuffing for her son-in-law, and lentils for herself and me. My brother wasn’t hard to please. I think he ate everything. And, of course, there was always a huge turkey. I am not kidding when I say there was hardly room on the table for our dinner plates.

Not to be forgotten was the wild rice. In Minnesota, where wild rice is plentiful, most cooks have favorite ways to prepare this “gourmet grain.” It seems my mom could never come up with a recipe that lived up to her expectations. Too dry, too mushy, not enough flavor, too much sage or thyme…just never quite right. Her wild rice challenges may have been due to the fact she had been transplanted in Minnesota from Indiana, where she had never even heard of this aquatic grass seed, the only grain native to the North American continent.

"The holiday season would be unthinkable - and a bit unbearable - without plenty of goodies, both sweet and intoxicating. Hear are some of our favorite recipes, some classic, some simple, all sure to put you in the Christmas spirit."

Cashew Linzer Cookie Wreaths
Chocolate Souffle Cookies
Italian Pizzelle Cookies
Mexican Wedding Cookies
Mocha Kissy Cookies
Mocha Mint Biscotti
Valerie's Neapolitan Cookies
Pistachio Cranberry Biscotti
Rice Krispie Coconut Snowballs
Sugarplums

Buche de Noel with Chestnut Filling

Best Red Velvet Cupcakes
Double-Chocolate Peppermint Bark
Homemade Chocolate Truffles

Candy Cane Martini | Champagne Punch | Cranberry-Spiced Martini |
Eskimo Kiss | Happy Elf
Haute Holiday | Holiday Pomtini | Hot Buttered Rum | Matt's Winter Cocktail | Mulled Wine
The Silver Bell | Spiced Mulled Cider | White Christmas Cocktail

From the Huffington Post

With the holidays near -- er, here -- holiday party season is in full swing. We're sure you've already labored over festive meals and decadent desserts to serve to your loved ones when entertaining at home. If you're still hosting, for New Year's Eve, perhaps, you deserve to take a break. Or at least appear to in front of your guests.

These awesome appetizers require almost no moment-of work or attention. Some need to be pulled out of the oven or gently reheated, but other than that, they're purely make-ahead. For the most part, they're easy too, requiring no more than a few hours of work a day or two before.

That means when you throw a finger food party, all you've really got to do is relax, dip your pita into some hummus, and toast to the new year with friends.

Read article...

It's not too early to start planning what you are going to make with your Thanksgiving leftovers. There might be items you want to pick up and have on hand for the days after the holiday. Goodness knows you won't want to head back to the market (even though it will be empty). Anyway, the Monte Cristo is traditionally a fried ham and cheese sandwich. I have always dined on them at the Blue Bayou, the restaurant that sits inside The Pirate's of the Caribbean at Disneyland. Have you been there? It has been years since I was back but I remember them fondly.

The Monte Cristo is essentially a variation of the French croque-monsieur and my version uses your leftover turkey and cranberry sauce. It's kind of like making French toast but with a sandwich. In other words, it's very easy.

I used Muenster cheese (not to be confused with Munster cheese). Muenster is a great melting variety with a mild, creamy taste. Have the deli counter person slice it as thin as possible. 

This sandwich is a great way to use up leftovers, especially if you have to feed a house full of holiday visitors. I think re-purposing leftovers into a completely different meal is always a great way to use them up. No one wants to keep eating the same thing over and over again.