Hello again, friends and fellow food lovers! With the holiday season once again upon us, we must start planning the traditional gatherings with family and friends where food, drink, laughter, and gifts are shared amidst the sound of jingle bells. As years go on, we see the same decorations in shopping malls and are flooded with the same songs over and over to a point of boredom. The same can happen with some of the traditional holiday foods- turkey, stuffing, cranberries cooked until mushy, and although still familiar and tasty, this year we try something new. New flavors, new gift ideas, new uses for chocolate!!
So many of us are quite busy this time of year and have very little time to host huge gatherings and multiple course meals so what better way to celebrate than with a fancy feast of easy to make (and eat) finger foods! There are endless variations to expand upon the ideas I will present here. To start, fruit and cheese, though a classic, can be updated in fun and exciting ways.
A platter with a variety of cheeses in a variety of shapes and textures is a great place to start. For example a camembert wheel cut in half, fresh mozzarella slices, and pecorino sliced into triangles. Each is paired with an accompaniment to compliment it's flavor; in order a savory grape salsa with shallots and balsamic vinegar, fresh tomatoes and herbs, and honey and lavender. Try your favorite variety of pear sliced up and tossed with fresh lemon juice, a little honey, and vanilla to serve along with your favorite cheeses.
Grapes roasted whole with rosemary and a splash of balsamic and a sprinkle of brown sugar poured over a nice ripe brie make an excellent holiday starter. The wintery flavors and the creaminess of the cheese are sure to delight.
Tart cranberries dropped into a hard caramel (sugar cooked until brown, but not burnt) with orange zest are traditional flavors served in a new way. Pair with a fresh chèvre and pink peppercorn, or a soft ripened cheese and apples for those of us with gluten intolerances.
Crostini are a great way to transport delicious, and sometimes messy flavors from a platter to a mouth with minimal fuss. Bleu or goat cheese mousse with a chunk of roasted pear or apple arranged on a thin, toasted slice of baguette sprinkled with orange zest or finely chopped herbs makes a delightful, mouthwatering bite. An alternative to the bread (less gluten and fewer calories for those concerned about packing on winter hibernation weight) is Belgian endive. As previously mentioned in this blog, the little canoe shaped leaves are perfect for holding and easily transporting tasty treats. Below they are pictured with herbed cream cheese and grapefruit supremes. The slightly bitter but overall mellow flavor of the endive lends itself to as many toppings as you can think to put on a cracker.
Now that you have food covered (sorry but you are on your own for beverages-though if you are really at a loss, Brachetto, a sweet and slightly sparkling Italian red wine is one of my favorites for the holidays) you will need gift ideas! Homemade is so in right now, especially in the food world. Putting food up is making a huge comeback these days but many of us have friends who may be hesitant to take on such potentially large cooking projects. Jams, jellies, preserves, and pickles are a fun and homegrown way to prolong the flavors of summer as well as share the treasures you have made. Everyone loves to receive a jar of something brightly colored and edible, especially if it is homemade and given with love. This year I made plum jam, blackberry jelly, peach vanilla jam, and a few pickled items. In addition to eating my own fair share with creamy cheeses and spread on toast, I have shared several jars with those close to me.
If you are intimidated by the canning process- don't be! It is surprisingly easy and fun, and the results are worth the time. Things like plums with lots of natural pectin are a good place to start your jam making adventures, especially here in the Pacific Northwest where they grow in neighbors yards.
Simply cut up your fruit, no need to peel it if you're ok with making rustic jams, add the appropriate amount of sugar (approximately 3/4 cup per pound of fruit) and the juice of half a lemon or so and cook for about 20 minutes, depending on the ripeness of the fruit and piece size, or until the fruit is broken down and the mix is thick enough to stick to the back of a spoon. Pour the hot mixture into sterilized canning jars, (sterilized by being boiled in clean water for 5 minutes) cover, and process in a boiling water bath for 10-15 minutes. You'll have to allow time for your jars to cool and the jam to set but it will come out looking like a jewel!
Speaking of homemade, I remember one sort of unique and fun experiment we did in school, maybe 2nd or 3rd grade, that I rediscovered not too long ago. All of us students sat in a circle and were given a jar containing a thick white liquid. We were each instructed to shake it for one full minute before passing it along. As the jar was passed from one little set of hands to the next, the liquid began to thicken and coat the sides of the jar until an odd thing happened; something solid started shaking around in the jar. We opened it up and were amazed to see that we had just created butter! The taste of the fresh, creamy butter spread on saltine crackers is something I will never forget.
As promised, How to make butter at home: An interactive and kid friendly holiday gift idea!
First, you will need heavy cream purchased from the store. I tried 2 varieties of cream for this experiment, the first was a local, homogenized heavy whipping cream and the other was also local, from a small dairy that sells its products in glass jars which was not homogenized. Both worked but I think I filled the jar too full with the non homogenized cream so the end product was less firm.
Next, you will need a jar. A pint sized jar works well for making larger quantities, but a wide mouthed 8 oz jar fits better into small hands for those with children who need regular entertainment.
Fill the jar about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way up with the heavy cream of your choosing. Be sure there is enough room for the movement of the cream as the agitation and warmth from your hands cause the separation of butterfat solids and the liquid thats left. Also make sure the lid is on tight; the last thing you want is a face full of cream.
Next comes the fun part. Sit down, put on a movie, and start shaking! This is a good time to remind your significant other that you've been talking about cooking together, now is the time to start, and pass them the jar. Kids are also a great butter churn- keeps them busy for 15 minutes or so and they are creating something out of nothing.
The cream will thicken and coat the sides of the jar so you won't be able to see what is happening inside, but keep listening and you'll notice that after 15-20 minutes of shaking you can hear the solid piece of butter rolling around in there.
When the liquid is thin and settles back to the bottom when you set the jar down, if you see a blob of butter in there, pour the contents of the jar into a strainer and let all the liquid drain from the butter. If you don't, it won't last as long. If you don't intend to eat the butter immediately, let it drain for an hour or so, put it in a storage container and use it like you would any other butter purchased in stick form. I recommend trying it on toast or even saltine crackers to fully appreciate the flavor of your creation. Try adding garlic and herbs, citrus zest, or pink peppercorns to make an attractive and flavorful butter for a holiday meal or to give as a gift to a foodie in your life.
What holiday party would be complete without at least a little bit of chocolate? In any part of a meal a little chocolate can inspire a childish giddiness with its familiar and sometimes surprising flavor. I recently created a meal in which each course contained chocolate in some form, even the entree.
I think my favorite part was the appetizer: cocoa and olive oil crackers with fresh cheese and candied cranberries.
These crackers are based off a recipe that we made in Italy and served in our bread baskets at Ristorante Magorabin. They are delicious with or without the cocoa powder.
Ingredients:
250g Flour
13g salt
200g water
100g olive oil
2 Tbs cocoa powder
Preheat oven to 375.
Combine the dry ingredients, mix in the wet.
Roll out by hand or with a pasta roller and cut into desired size.
Prick with a fork to discourage bubbling.
Place on baking sheet, drizzle with additional olive oil and sprinkle with a salt of your choice-I'd recommend Maldon.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes, or until nice and crispy.
Top with cheese of your choice and candied cranberries. I used Fromage Blanc from Mount Townsend Creamery and would suggest that to anyone in the Seattle area. Chèvre is a nice option also, or plain old cream cheese would be tasty too. You could use brie or something similar as well.
Next course was a salad with a Chipotle Cocoa vinaigrette that my mom thinks I should bottle and sell so in case of that eventuality I will not share the recipe with you all today. If you really want to try it, I'll send you a bottle!
I have found that the best way to serve a salad is to dress the greens and put the toppings, well, on top. Everything remains bright and beautiful that way. This particular salad was a mix of baby greens and arugula topped with fresh figs, persimmon, and fresh fennel tossed in fresh orange juice.
On to the entree! Some of you more daring eaters may have had cocoa and coffee rubbed steak or a pork tenderloin drizzled with a savory chocolate sauce of some sort so that may be what you're imagining when I say chocolate in the main course. If you are thinking such things, sorry to disappoint, but you would be wrong! I tried something totally different, slightly edgier, and mostly successful: black onyx cocoa and sweet potato puree. Yes, potatoes and chocolate.
I used white sweet potatoes for a little natural sweetness but not too much and so the color of the chocolate would shine through. It looked like chocolate pudding sitting under the pan seared duck breast but between the richness of the meat and the tartness of the port wine huckleberries on top, it was an almost perfect compliment. We served it with smokey roasted Brussels sprouts and it was a hit even if it wasn't the best looking dish I've ever created.
As a little palate cleanser between dinner and dessert we served a jasmine and ginger quince soup with a drizzle of nice olive oil and a curl of semisweet chocolate.
And dessert was, you guessed it, chocolatey! A beautiful little chocolate cake layered with chocolate mousse, frosted with dolce de leche buttercream, and drizzled with ganache. It was death by chocolate and utterly delectable.
If you are feeling ambitious this holiday season, give something similar a try! You are guaranteed to have fun planning and experimenting in your own kitchen.
As always- leave any questions, concerns, recipe questions, or ideas for me as a comment! If you have any requests for future posts as well, please feel free to let me know.
I wish you all a very happy and delicious holiday season! Create some tasty memories while surrounded by loved ones in the weeks to come. I hope I may have inspired you to try something new and daring!
Happy holidays and happy slicing and dicing! Chop on, friends.
