With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, I’m baking a batch or two of Double Chocolate & Pistachio Blondies for delivery to some special people in my life. Here we have a dough that is very much chocolate chip cookie like, but instead of forming cookies, the whole works is scooped into a 13×9 inch baking pan. This special treat contains a full package of semi-sweet chocolate chips in the batter, along with a hefty amount of chopped pistachio nuts. And then – just to make the point of it all – a big handful of dark chocolate chips and additional nuts are patted into the top of the dough. The result is heavenly – crisp edges for those edge loving people on your list, and an almost gooey center for those of that persuasion. My mother, Neeners, proclaimed “Do not waste your time making cookies anymore – just focus on these. My gawwwd, they put cookies to shame.” I’ll let you judge for yourself, but I tend to agree.
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I, for one, felt the need to lay off the holiday stuffing of myself for a while. This does not mean that I am willing to give up food that is good for me, looks better than good enough to eat, and that has a few little indulgences thrown in for good measure. Here we have a big variety of winter vegetables that have been either steamed or roasted (and in some cases both), then heaped up on a platter and topped with plenty of sweet & salty candied walnuts. The whole works is then drizzled generously with a glaze made with butter, maple syrup and balsamic vinegar. This is coincidentally the same mixture that is used to candy the walnuts, so we happily cut down on some effort there. The result: a beautiful, healthy, and just a tad bit sinful way to jump on the new year. And before you say anything – yes, I have gone overboard with the variety of vegetables here and don’t expect many people in their right mind to do the same, but this can give you many options to think about. How about choosing just one, maybe two, or maybe even three? The variety of tastes and colors can do nothing but make your day a happier, and healthier one. You can think about it this way…the more vegetables you use, the more candied walnuts and buttery glaze you get…I like to operate under those types of principles.
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We We are smack dab in the middle of the holiday party season, which usually means a potluck or two. Are you the person who always gets asked to ‘bring a salad’? …Me too. This is because I have a tendency to go hog wild over them and don’t know when to quit (don’t get me started on my venture into the hard-boiled eggs dyed with beet juice as a garnish-nobody wanted to go anywhere near that). I’m digressing…here we have what I hope you will think is a solution to the ‘bring a salad’ blues. You can put it all together at home and toss in the dressing once you arrive at your destination. This salad is as good to eat as it is pretty to look at. Crisp, red cabbage and slivered chard for the base. Next, we’ll add in some dried cranberries for a sweet-tart kick, then some pomegranate seeds for a tart and crunchy visual show stopper, then fresh blueberries for a sweet surprise. The dressing is not your typical slaw-type of dressing…we add a big dollop of blackberry jelly for color and sweet, and then a good squeeze of lemon juice to balance everything out. Sound good? Oh! Then I threw on a big old handful of roasted pumpkin seeds on top. Nothing like a salty and crunchy finish. If you bring this to your next party, be prepared to be the designated salad assignee for a long time to come.
These yeasty rolls are my attempt at coming close to the delicious rolls my grandma Liz used to make. As a young aspiring baker, I’d watch her assemble dozens of at a time, tossing an armload of dough around like it weighed nothing, and tearing off perfectly shaped rolls that she would let rise by her wood stove. She never measured anything, mixing and baking by feel alone – and they were perfect. I have fond memories of eating as many as I possibly could every Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve – or as many as I could get my hands on. Grandma had seven children and hordes of grandchildren, and when everybody got together it was like a small city which means you had to move fast before my seemingly huge uncles with even huger appetites beat me in line.