In A Nutshell

  I'm not sure what magazine I cut this recipe out of but I changed it up enough that I don't think it matters who gets the credit.  I served it with caldo verde  from Leite's Culinaria and the whole thing couldn't have been better! A word (or two) about the flour: I use the kind of cornmeal that comes in the canister (Quaker). I do this because the Bob's Red Mill medium-grind is too coarse; back when I used to buy it, one of those pellets cracked a friend's tooth (although he politely claimed that the tooth was already cracked before the cornmeal lined pizza I served him finished the job); I also use King Arthur's Artisan flour and I want to assure you that using a good quality bread flour is essential and totally makes a difference.  Start this bread the night before for best results.  The night before: make the sponge 1/4 t instant yeast 1 cup bread flour (refer back to my word or two above) 1 cup lukewarm water Mix with a spoon and cover tightly; leave t...

I tinkered significantly with a recipe that I saw online and came up with this version. So so delicious and quite festive looking as well. This is a batch recipe; you can scale down or up. A note on the type of grapefruit juice: I usually use Matt's grapefruit but because I was feeling a little flinty, I bought Simply Pure and I'm sad to say the cocktail was noticeably NOT AS GOOD! So please use Matt's- it's worth the extra money and makes a big difference. We made several different batches of drinks the week before Christmas to have on hand and it was quite delightful:   12 oz. tequila, any kind 4 oz. triple sec 12 oz. Matt's grapefruit juice (I am very specific about that) 4 oz.  spicy hibiscus syrup 4 oz. lime juice Mix everything up in a pitcher; you have the option of shaking it in an ice-filled shaker first (nicer result but more work) or simply pouring it into a salt-rimmed glass of ice directly from the pitcher. Garnish with a lime and enjoy!  

  This soup is delicious but I have never particularly enjoyed the sight of a green soup—hence the attempt to draw your eye to the croutons and my cute napkin. I had a hankering for a soup like this but every recipe I looked at involved something I didn't want; for example, a roux with  lots of flour (which IMHO gives it that pseudo-homemade taste that you find in Panera soups or the like), lots  of heavy cream, carrots (why?!!!). I decided to use one small potato as a thickener and only a small amount of cream rather than the 2 cups called for in several recipes I saw. If I’m going to consume 2 cups of cream (and believe me, I’m not unwilling), it’s certainly not going to be with broccoli!  The croutons, in addition to being aesthetically pleasing, are pure deliciousness; I like to make my own from stale baguettes or bread that no one wants to eat anymore. There's not really a recipe- I cut the stale bread into cubes and sauté them in a decent amount of EVOO, sprin...

  This originally comes from a longtime college friend and it has become a family stand-by over the years (thank you Laura C.- this dip has changed my life for the better!). My daughter discovered that if you pop it under the broiler quickly after it bakes, you get this beautiful cheesy top. This is totally an old-school dip- it's best served with sturdy, sensible Triscuits which can stand up to the fatty, creamy, decadent dip.  1 14-oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (you don't have to use anything fancy here) 1/2 cup mayo 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded* 1/4 t garlic salt 1/4 t garlic powder Mix everything together and bake at 350º for 30 minutes; pop under the broiler for a few seconds to get the brown bubbly top pictured above.  * As with any recipe, I think it will always taste best if you grate your own cheese (with the exception of the Parmesan); they put cellulose into those bags of pre-grated cheese to keep it from stick...

Most of my life I found the idea of eggnog to be disgusting until I tried real homemade eggnog. (Awkward sentence coming...) My daughter's friend Audrey's mom, Lee used to host this super fancy holiday dinner party every year- by far the fanciest sort of thing we had ever attended. She looked glamorous like a film star and the first thing she put in your hand upon entering was a glass of delicious, and as we subsequently found out, strong!!! eggnog. It's nothing like that stuff that comes out of a carton.   I now make it every year in homage to Lee; this year it took me two tries: the first was Scrambled Egg Nog which nobody likes. I, of course, am blameless in this debacle; Saveur said to whisk the custard until "very thick" which is not possible and ends in a combination of sorrow and scrambled eggs. Now I ignore that prompt and simply adhere to the time direction. I like to serve additional bourbon on the side because.... well, because I like bourbon. You can a...

 I found the inspiration for this recipe in an old edition of Food & Wine magazine; it took some tweaking but its final incarnation is delicious and festive. I added an egg white to mine but that's optional; if you choose to add it, dry shake it first in the shaker and then add the ice and other ingredients. For the salted rim, I like to add Tajin or chili powder to the salt for a little extra pep! Also, this is a great recipe for the holidays because you can batch mix it before you need it and if you have a lot of guests, skip the shaker part and serve on the rocks. 1 1/2 cups silver tequila 3/4 cup triple sec 3/4 cup lime juice 3/4 cup pomegranate syrup (recipe follows) 24 dashes of orange bitters salt for rim  Mix all the ingredients in a pitcher; you can chill this if you are not using it immediately. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add some of the mix from the pitcher- how much mix is up to you: how large of a drink do you want? Shake and strain into a pretty cock...

This recipe is adapted from Gourmet magazine (back when that still existed); the rolls are delicious and tender-perfect for Thanksgiving! 1/4 cup warm milk  3 T warm water 5 T unsalted butter, melted 2 t instant yeast 1 T honey 1/3 c canned pumpkin 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk 2 3/4 c all-purpose flour 1 1/2 t salt Egg wash: 1 egg beaten lightly plus 1 T water In the bowl of the mixer, stir together flour, salt and yeast. Stir together milk, water, butter, honey, pumpkin, egg and egg yolk and add to the flour mixture. Knead with dough hook for about 8 minutes until dough is smooth. It should have the consistency of moist, freshly opened Play-dough; if it doesn't add water just 1 teaspoon at a time. You want to avoid a dry, stiff dough. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl; cover and let rise until doubled and very puffy. The recipe says 1 1/2 hours but it was a cold day and I keep my house cool so it took around 3 hours.* Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled counter (I spray cooking spray on t...