the morning after

Deborah
Christmas was truly wonderful. I had eleven teenagers, one baby and 14 adults in my little house in Queens for dinner.

Due to necessity we had to have two seatings. This was the first seating, the "kids" table. They all helped get the table ready and kept me entertained all evening.

This was me. I never stopped moving long enough for any one to get a picture of me in focus.

This was the menu that I wrote on the wall. Can you make out at the bottom Tangerine Sorbet with Star Anise? That was an inspired combo I was particularly proud of. Even my Brother-in-law the sous chef at Craft Steak was impressed.  Everything on the menu tasted great. The Brownie Pudding was contributed by my sister-in-law and it was SICK good.

So here is what we drank:

Petrale. Aglianico 2006. This was a gift.

This one was called Carinu. I picked up at a wine tasting in Chelsea Market for about $16.99. Both wines were really nice. The Carinu in particular had a lot of character and complexity. Amanda, do you know them? What do you think?

I had spent a full day cooking the day before and then just heated everything in the oven right before serving. With the vegetables I blanched them ahead of time, then made some seasoned olive oil: lemon and shallots for the green beans and garlic and red pepper flakes for the broccoli rabe. Before serving I heated the oils in skillets and quickly sauteed the vegetables in the hot oil till they were warmed through.

While I was doing all this cooking I still had to eat! I made a treat for myself and sauteed some broccoli, olives, chickpeas and sun-dried tomatoes in some olive oil and garlic.

I made some spaghetti and tossed it all together with a splash of white wine and a handful of grated Romano cheese. Delish!

My family's holiday was a warm and happy event. We have so much to be grateful for. Access to plentiful and fresh food is an incredible blessing that I try never to take for granted.

Note to Amanda: Best wishes to get well soon! xoxo d

what a girl wants

Deborah
Getting gifts for foodie friends is soooooooo easy, ridiculously easy. We like everything. Everything edible. Even bad edible things are a treat because we would never buy them ourselves. Like a big bag of those new dark chocolate M&Ms for example. Foodies like food. What can I say?

Getting out the door to go gift shopping was a little challenging this weekend.

For good edible things how about some expensive olive oil? I like to go to Fairways olive oil tasting bar and taste ALL the oils and will occasionally buy one for myself as a treat. My latest favorite is a Spanish oil with lots of natural spice. I favor very assertive oils and use them on my salads and to garnish a dish. If I am heating the oil in cooking I will use the everyday supermarket extra virgin olive oil. But for raw oil I want tons of flavor.

These are a few of my favorite things. I am running low.

The spicy Spanish oil I am currently in love with is called ANIGUALA and the last time I went to Fairways in Red Hook, Brooklyn they didn't have any left!! Whah! I also have in my cupboard the last of another lovely bottle of Spanish oil, also cold extract extra virgin, called Mas Portell Arbequina. This one is much smoother, but with lots of body and character. Olive oil ALWAYS makes a great gift because you use it up and then NEED MORE!

There are not too many cookbooks this year that I am jonesing for as it turns out. I looked at a copy of Nigella Lawson's Nigella Christmas and it was very appealing. I wouldn't buy it for myself but I would love it as a gift. Nigella is hilarious and cool and the pictures in the book are great. She is such a homey cool mom type that I think Christmas would really be her thing so I suspect that the recipes in this book are pretty great. I wanted to cook some of the pictures as I leafed through it.
Not to get all food networky on you, but Jamie Oliver's book The Ministry of Food also looks great. It is his passionate attempt to introduce healthy cooking on a broad scale. Oliver is genuinely concerned with improving the food culture in Britain and now in the United States and he is trying to do something about it. All my respects to him in this monumental effort.
600 Curries by Raghavan Iyer is the book I am most excited about. It is right up my alley and the title says it all. I have not come across a copy yet but the reviews are very positive.

A few of my favorite cook books from last Christmas. Kylie Kwong is a super hip Australian chick who owns a restaurant in Sydney, but spends a lot of time in Hong Kong. Her books are fantastic for technique. 

The other disposable item that a hard core cook goes through like water is tea towels or dish towels if you prefer. I can't have enough of these as they don't last long in my hands. There are so many styles and colors to choose from to help keep a kitchen bound person happy and dry. Too many is not enough.

My current collection of dish towels. I pick them up wherever I go, in airports when I travel as a souvenir, in dollar stores on Queens Boulevard, and I am always looking for vintage ones in flea markets.

Of course nothing warms the heart of a foodie more than people eating, so a donation to your local food bank will always be a warmly welcomed gift. Sites like Feeding America offers a food bank locator to find the food bank nearest you.
Sharing a holiday meal with my (very large) family on Friday will bring me joy and the comfort of continuing a tradition with cooking and caring and lots of hugs and laughs. I can't wait to welcome my family into my home, including all my nieces and nephews home from college. It is going to be wonderful!

Best wishes for a happy holiday!

holiday time!

Ahhhh, the winter holidays in New York City. This is my favorite time of year. New York pulls out all her jewelry and puts out a lavish display, from the tacky to the superfine. AND the city clears out and becomes the hometown again that I grew up in. Not having to travel or go near a crowded airport is another bonus of staying home next week.

There is a neighborhood near me in Queens called Middle Village that is really fun to drive through at dusk to see all the lights on the Archie Bunker style houses complete with moving mechanical reindeer and inflatable Santas on Vespas. In Manhattan yesterday I walked by Bergdorf Goodman's and was mesmerized by their Alice in Wonderland inspired holiday windows. Every year they outdo themselves and this year the details are truly incredible. The Time Warner Center at Columbus circle is dazzling with gigantic stars and glittering purple trees out front. The outdoor craft market across the street on the corner of Central Park is worth a visit too.

I have to admit the festivities on the home-front have gotten off to a slow start this year. I have been cooking for so many parties straight through Thanksgiving that I haven't had a chance to plan my own. Christmas this year will bring 28 family and friends to my dinner table. This is what my mother would have called "a busman's holiday" for me. Which is to say that there will be a lot of work involved! yeah. I usually farm out dessert duty to my sister-in-law who makes a beautiful bouche de noel (a French yule log cake).  I think I will stick my uptown sister on Champagne duty (anything special she should look for this year, Amanda?)

I found these Mandarine oranges at Fairways to put in my salad.  I was looking for kumquats, but these were a happy alternative.

As for the menu, it has to be simple but special. It won't be vegetarian for this crowd, but there will be plenty for everyone's preferences (I hope). What is it you may ask. Well, I don't know yet, but I will definitely include my favorite salad of the season which is colorful and festive and easy to make for a crowd. I prepare all the different ingredients ahead of time (even the day before) and then assemble right before serving. The salad consists of mixed greens, chopped radicchio, sliced tangerines or kumquats, pomegranate seeds and sliced radishes.

My daughter loves the chore of removing the seeds from the skin of a pomegranate. Hey, I'll take the help!

The julienne does not have to be perfect. Daikon radish would work in this recipe too but I like the like red tips on these radishes.

This combination seems to be a winner. The sweetness of the fruits really plays well against the bite of the radish and radicchio. The colors are just perfect and the texture is great; crunchy and juicy- all in one little salad. I will dress the greens with the tangerine and walnut oil vinaigrette recipe from a few posts ago. To serve, I toss the salad greens and radicchio with the vinaigrette then sprinkle the rest of the ingredients on top. So pretty!

Mixed Greens with Citrus, Radish, Radicchio and Pomegranate Seeds
1 lb mixed greens
1/2 a small head of radicchio, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 cup sliced kumquats or sliced tangerines
10 radishes sliced or julienned
1 pomegranate seeded

Toss salad greens and radicchio with vinaigrette. Top with the remaining ingredients.
serves eight


Tangerine & Walnut Oil Vinaigrette
Juice of 1 Tangerine (my tangerine yielded 1 Tbs of juice, not much LOL!)
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teas. salt
1 teas. freshly ground pepper
3 TBs Sherry Vinegar
1/4 cup walnut oil

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl except the walnut oil. Mix well with a whisk. Slowly drizzle in the walnut oil as you continue to whisk until well blended. Toss vinaigrette with the salad and serve.

Amanda
Beautiful salad, Deb! Your comments make me miss my NYC days! Don't get me wrong, I love the "burbs" this time of year. But the Big Apple certainly holds a special place in my heart! On Thursday, the Westwood, NJ firetrucks came down my street, blasting Christmas music, with Santa riding on top. The firemen run alongside the trucks, giving candy to all of the children patiently (or not so much) awaiting this yearly ritual. It's so festive and wonderful, I wouldn't miss it for anything!


This time of year I like to take advantage of Italy's answer to Champagne - Prosecco. It's delicious and sparkly  - and much more affordable than Champagne. Prosecco is made predominantly from Prosecco grapes, in the northern region of  Veneto. It's elegant, refreshing, and simply put - delicious. Typically, this delightful sparkler has citrus notes, as well as flavors of almond, honey, and melon. It is crisp and lively, and suits all festive occasions. (I drink it all summer long as well...)


Prosecco is my sparkler of choice for all family gatherings and celebrations. Ranging from $9.99 to $17.99 a bottle, this is the perfect alternative to Champagne - especially for larger get-togethers. My family loves it. Rose Prosecco is also wonderful. It makes a perfect host/hostess gift as well. For something different, add a little peach nectar to make a belini. Yummy! Look to Riondo, Bisol, and Sorelle for some outstanding examples of this affordable gem.