Holiday Goodies

stuffedsquash2.jpgIt's already in full swing. Thanksgiving turkey mania. You know what I'm talking about. The endless, frenzied debate over how to cook the perfect turkey. With all the food magazines, cooking shows and turkey hotlines available, I know you'll find more information than you ever wanted on the bird. 

That's why I'm posting about Thanksgiving side dishes: They're much less controversial. You can't brine sweet potatoes or deep fry cranberry sauce. At least, I don't think you can.

Last year I shared four Thanksgiving side dishes with a twist: Perennial favorites like sweet potatoes and string beans got a makeover. They looked fabulous. But we can't make the same veggies this year. Well, except for the String Beans with Prosciutto, Pine Nuts, and Lemon. I have to make those again. Don't worry though. I've got a few new ones for you that won't disappoint.

Let's start with Festive Stuffed Acorn Squash. A robustly sweet and tangy filling of shallots, cranberries, prunes and pecans is nestled inside of a hot roasted acorn squash half.

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icecream sundaeThanksgiving is next week. I am in amazement as to how quickly this year flew by. Last year at this time I was starting to clean out our pantry in preparation for experimenting with a gluten free diet. That experiment turned into a way of life and everyone in our home has greatly benefited from it.

With the change in diet and lifestyle, I promised myself that I would savor the little moments(Levi and I walking hand in hand to school), embrace my accomplishments, no matter how great or how small, and to try and be in the moment as much as possible.

I have been gradually planning my Thanksgiving menu. Gradually, because I am in denial that it is next week. Pie has never been my dessert of choice. It wasn’t something I enthusiastically raised my hand to make. In the past, when I did indulge in a piece of pie, it was always the center that I savored, discarding the crust.

Having 5 egg yolks on hand, with a day left before they had to be tossed, it was this cinnamon ice cream recipe that inspired me to create, what I am calling, a deconstructed apple pie – a la mode. A big bag of raw pecans and some homemade graham cracker crumbs were incentive to help this idea grow.

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seafoodpates.jpgI always hated how it got so dark, so early in the winter. One day, a friend told me I just needed to manage until December 21st because that was the shortest day of the year and from that day on it would get lighter a minute earlier each day. Growing up and working in Pittsburgh, anything that could help us through the cold and gloomy winter days was motivating, so I decided we needed to celebrate the day.

As a supervisor in a call center, I was always trying to find fun things to do with the team to keep them motivated.  I love trying new dips so I thought it would be a good idea to put the two together and officially make December 21st "Dip Day."  Everyone would bring in a different dip and it often included sharing the recipe because they were so good, garnering me a wide assortment of different recipes to use at parties and family get togethers.  I moved to Florida in 1995 and although I do not have those wintry days to put up with, I still continue to celebrate "dip day" and the extra light it brings. 

 

Hot Artichoke Spinach Dip

Baked Mexican Layer Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Cider Cheese Fondue

Clam Jam Dip

Jumbo Lump Crab Dip

Ina Garten’s Roasted Eggplant Spread

Fig and Walnut Tapenade with Goat Cheese

Lila’s Guacamole

Baked Vidalia Onion Dip

Reuben Dip

Retro Pistachio Cheese Ball

Smoked Salmon Dip

Shrimp, Spinach and Goat Cheese Dip

Spicy Black Bean Dip 

treslecheCinco de Mayo is not necessarily celebrated as a national holiday in Mexico, but here in the United States it's a celebration of Mexican culture and a day where no excuse is needed to fill up on Mexican favorites. Guacamole, tacos, and margaritas are all popular when May 5 rolls around, but what about dessert? One of the most popular Mexican desserts is tres leches cake, a sponge cake made of three types of milk, hence the name. Sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream make up this incredibly sweet cake.

All over Latin America and even the Caribbean, people enjoy tres leches cake for holidays or just simple family get-togethers, so why not serve it on Cinco de Mayo this year? Some recipes for the cake use butter, which creates a more dense cake, but this recipe leaves it out to create a softer texture. Also, the egg yolks and whites are beaten separately, which creates more volume. The resulting texture is truly sponge-like, easily absorbing about 1 quart of creamy liquid. After chilling, the cake is ready for the final flourish of whipped cream.

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eggnogThe last time I made eggnog was in college. It was a recipe from one of the first cookbooks I ever owned, the Joy of Cooking, and it involved whipped egg whites and heavy cream, lots of sugar and brandy. It was voluminous, fluffy and delicious but a fair amount of work and it served an army.

When the holidays roll around, I'm always tempted, but often disappointed by the eggnog available at the supermarket. This year I was sent a sample of eggnog from Organic Valley and was surprised by how good it was. It wasn't fluffy, but it was rich and creamy and it didn't have any strange flavors or weird texture. I wanted to see if other eggnogs were equally as good.

Thanks to a connection at Whole Foods, the next thing I knew a handful of local food writers and bloggers were sitting around a table tasting eggnogs and also some desserts, cheeses (Uniekaas truffled gouda, oh la la!) a delectable baked spiral sliced Wellshireham and wine for good measure (more about that later).

Here are the results:

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