Nomming our way through the holidays

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope that you all celebrated in whatever way makes you happiest. For our part, we surrounded ourselves with friends and family, and filled ourselves with delicious food and drink.

I can only hope that 2011 is as filled with deliciousness as these past few weeks have been--just take a look at the tasty things I've been making!

Apparently the holidays mean one thing for me:

CHEESE!

The above Gruyere and Vacherin Fribourgeois (say that five times fast!) were the main ingredients for the traditional Swiss fondue we made a few days before Christmas. A couple pounds of cheese, plus garlic, chardonnay, and a little cornstarch (and some Acme bread for dipping) and voila!

I'm pretty sure that fondue is the definition of indulgence, given that you're basically eating melted cheese (not to mention that I spent about $60 on said cheese alone). We followed the fondue with a sing-a-long viewing of The Nightmare Before Christmas. I can't think of a better way to lead into the holiday weekend.

Fondue wasn't the end of my recent cheese indulgences. In the past couple of weeks I've also made two different cheese balls, following Kirsten Jackson's artisan spin on those retro rounds of cheese and nuts you probably remember from Christmas at your grandmother's. No Velveeta to be found here--these cheese balls feature farmhouse cheddar and stinky blue cheeses, along with aromatic herbs.

I found the Blue Cheese Ball with Caramelized Balsamic Onions to be a little heavy on the balsamic, but I wouldn't steer away from trying it again with a few adjustments.

The Farmhouse Cheddar Cheese Ball with Pecans and Bourbon was a huge hit, both with me and my in-laws for whom I made it. The onions cooked with rosemary are a really nice inclusion.

Okay, okay. After all this cheese we need a change of pace. I took it upon myself to cook Christmas dinner for the in-laws. For the main course, I decided on Mark Bittman's rack of lamb with a pimenton, garlic, and rye bread rub.

Note to self: an important family dinner party is not the place to try an exotic new dish. The rack of lamb I was cooking was larger than the one the recipe called for, and I also failed to remove the thick layer of fat from the top of the rack before applying the rub and popping it in the oven; consequently the cooking time was quite a bit longer than anticipated. In the end, we ended up scrapping the rub into the pan, slicing off the fat and cutting apart the chops to help them finish cooking faster. With the support of my mother-in-law, it pulled through and ended up tasting great, but not without a decent amount of stress.

Thankfully, I had picked a standby of ours for the side dish that anyone who reads this blog should recognize: pan fried brussels sprouts with bacon, cannellini beans, and balsamic vinegar.

There were no leftovers from my Christmas dinner--success!

My holiday baking season ended, as does any good meal, with dessert. For my contribution to our friends' New Year's Eve party, I chose Smitten Kitchen's crescent cookies with jam and cheese.

(You didn't really think I was done with cheese, did you?)

Actually, the queso fresco I used in the dough isn't noticeable beyond what I assume is its contribution to the texture ("like a really awesome pie dough," as my friend Jeters nicely put it). I was an instant fan of these cookies (as were many other party guests). With no sugar in the dough, the only sweetness comes from the jam--strawberry and apricot in my case--and a sprinkling of powdered sugar on top. They were a little time consuming to make, but simple enough and totally worth it. I look forward to experimenting with different fillings, both sweet and savory.

I look forward to more kitchen experiments in general in the year to come, and I hope that you'll continue to follow along. Cheers!

December Decadence

We got invited to the 11th iteration of a party entitled "December Decadence." Attendees were asked do whatever was decadent to them. Dress up, dress down; bring chocolate or chips and dip... Do what you want, but whatever you do, indulge yourself.

I decided to indulge myself in a little cocktail history.

Champagne (California sparkling wine, actually) and Jamaica rum (Appleton Estates):

Lemon slices:

Maraschino:

...and you end up with Rocky Mountain Punch, a recipe from Jerry Thomas' 1862 Bonvivant's Companion.

Notice I also froze my own giant ice blocks to fit in the jar. #cocktailnerd, anyone?

As the spigot jar was empty in a number of hours, I'll call this venture a success. If I did it again, I would mix the rum, maraschino, and sugar, and macerate the lemon slices first, then add the sparkling wine; as it ws, my stirring made the champagne go a little flat. Either way, it was fun to build the punch in front of everyone; I think more people tried it than might have otherwise because they got to see me make it.

Here's the recipe for Rocky Mountain Punch as written in the book; try it out at a party this season!

Rocky Mountain Punch

For a mixed party of twenty
From a recipe in the possession of Major James Foster
This delicious punch is composed as follows:

Five bottles of champagne
One quart of Jamaice rum
One pint of maraschino
Six lemons, sliced
Sugar to taste

Mix the above ingredients in a large punch bowl, then place in the center of the bowl a large square block of ice, ornamented with rock candy, loaf sugar, sliced lemons or oranges, and fruits in season. This is a splendid punch for New Year's Day.

How was your Thanksgiving?

With all the leftovers finally gone, I thought I'd look back a week to how I spent my Thanksgiving. And by "how I spent my Thanksgiving," I mean "what I cooked for Thanksgiving."

I think Thanksgiving could easily be my favorite holiday, because it glorifies my two main hobbies: cooking and dining. An annual excuse to cook a large meal to share with friends and family? Yes, please!

This year, I made the same cranberry sauce with orange peel and brussels sprouts with lemon and poppyseeds that I've made the past two years; these dishes are easily becoming traditions. But when it came to the turkey, I wanted to try something different.

The past two years, I've cooked Thanksgiving dinner for four people and chose to roast a turkey breast, rather than a whole bird. It's the right amount of meat and you don't have to worry about overcooking it while waiting on the dark meat. It worked well, but I wanted to be able to try something new this year. And besides, I'm a dark meat girl.

Enter Mark Bittman's braised turkey thighs. With pancetta, cherry tomatoes, and olives, what didn't sound good about this dish?

The answer is, "Nothing."

Braised dark meat, exotic accompaniments--I was all over this. And I even used some Punt e mes in my cooking liquid. Unfortunately, the recipe isn't especially carefully written, and I didn't really know how long it would take to cook, especially at 200 degrees.

Long story short: two hours later, the meat still wasn't cooked through. I put the dish back in the oven at our hosts' house, but the temperature was higher and some of the meat dried out. I enjoyed the porky vegetables, but ended up not enjoying the turkey itself that much. Everyone else seemed to like it, though.

At least it looked nice.

I also made pumpkin pie. This was my first time making a pie crust from scratch. It was successful enough to encourage me to try again (but not so successful for me to consider quitting while I'm ahead). I followed both pie dough and filling recipes from Smitten Kitchen--this pumpkin pie filling is really amazing.

Topped with maple-bourbon cream sauce, by the way.

And next year? Well, I'm obviously planning to make the cranberry sauce and brussels sprouts. But when it comes to turkey, I want to try something different again--next year, I want to skip the turkey altogether.

No, I'm not going vegetarian. But I've added myself to the ranks of those who just don't find turkey that appealing. We cook it once a year, which consequently means that we don't really get to practice it. It takes a long time, it's more food than we really need, and the taste just doesn't make it worth it for me.

If we want poultry, really flavorful roast chicken is dead simple. But why not brisket, or ribs? I even saw a tweet from someone who was making porchetta. Seriously, why not?

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Jasper's Rum Punch

I've got a couple posts in the works, including a Thanksgiving post, but in the meantime, here are a few words about a drink I enjoyed the day after Thanksgiving.

There ain't no Coca Cola in that glass.

In July I purchased a bottle of Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum, and used it for making stronger-than-usual Hemingway Daiquiris on the 4th. Since then, however, it's just been sitting on my bar. Given its high alcohol content, Wray & Nephew is often used in combination with other rums in relatively complex tiki drinks, and I hadn't found any recipes that convinced me to buy the necessary ingredients.

While enjoying a cocktail or two at Comstock Saloon last week, my friend behind the bar passed over a copy of Ted "Dr. Cocktail" Haigh's Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails. We started flipping through and I came across "Jasper's Rum Punch," a drink made with equal parts Wray & Nephew and something called "Jasper's secret mix."

The secret mix, detailed at the top of the page, consists of the following, stirred together and bottled:

• juice of 12 limes
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 ounces Angostura Bitters
• 1/2 whole nutmeg, grated

With the exception of the 12 limes (I needed a few more), I had all those things at home! And if you're reading this blog you're probably familiar with my affection for Angostura. This had to be done.

So, on the day after Thanksgiving, I juiced 12 limes and avoided grating my knuckles along with the nutmeg, and combined those with the sugar and bitters, and then stuck it in the fridge. A few hours later, I combined 1.5 ounces each of the mix and Wray & Nephew in a glass with cracked ice.

Jasper's Rum Punch is really delicious. You really can't go wrong with Angostura and freshly grated nutmeg, and the spices make it both island-y and appropriate for the holidays. I'd be interested to try it with turbinado sugar, but regular white sugar was perfectly good.

A word to the wise: the ice really is necessary. At 126 proof, this rum really packs a punch, and while the flavors are pretty balanced, this drink does have the power to knock you off your feet. Enough ice crushed so that it will melt sooner than later may allow you to retain your dignity.

Happy Birthday, Andrew!

I did not end up making my husband (then fiancé) a birthday cake last year, so I made up for it this year with a two-layer banana cake with chocolate butter cream, decorated like a monkey (featured on Smitten Kitchen). I don't think I've made and decorated a layer cake since my second year of college, when I made a Ms. Pacman cake for a friend.

The monkey cake was a success, served at the birthday party alongside those wonderful enchiladas sencillas and cabbage slaw that I've made before--the two pans of enchiladas disappeared in an instant. We're still working our way through the cake.

There is much less than this much cake left.

The party happened after Andrew's actually birthday. On the day itself I made lasagna, with San Marzano tomatoes, Harley Farms goat ricotta, mild Italian sausage, and half a package of frozen spinach that's been hanging around for awhile. The recipe is from Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook, and I remember my mom making it when I was a kid; the original recipe was vegetarian (my favorite part is the dash of nutmeg in the ricotta-spinach filling), but I was pleased with this compromise: the spinach I wanted and the meat the birthday boy wanted.

For dessert a surprise: rice pudding! To make it extra surprising, I added shaved dark chocolate and some garam masala. The flavors were perfect, but the chocolate made the pudding a little thick, and it basically solidified in the fridge. Next time, I'll use cocoa instead of chocolate.

Happy birthday, Andrew! I hope it was a good one.