Category: Food

Both the lasagna and the cauliflower soup (not shown) were good, but quite rich. Not a good combo since we didn’t have any plain dishes. Next time, I’d decrease the amount of cream in the soup by half or three-quarters.

We’re also staying in New York for Christmas and New Year’s…

Christmas buffet

• Deviled eggs
• Cheeses
• Olives and other pickled veggies (cocktail onions, peppadews, etc)
• Zucchini salad
• Focaccia or other crusty bread
• Quiche
• Coleslaw
• Avocado
• Bell pepper strips
• Sun-dried tomatoes
• Lox + cream cheese
• Caramelized or pickled onions
• Chickpea salad with celery, parsley, and vinaigrette
• Roast cauliflower with pine nuts, capers, and vinaigrette
• Hummus
• Artichoke hearts
• Baba ganoush

Christmas Eve menu

• Hot cross buns
• Hash browns
• Cauliflower and bacon soup
• Spinach lasagna
• Lechón
• Buns (leftover from Thanksgiving 😳)
• Pear galette (but using apples instead)
• Chocolate meringue pie

The Christmas day menu is a bit sparse – I used up all my interesting food ideas on Thanksgiving.

These recipes combine a Betty Crocker recipe and one from my grandma. It is surprisingly fast to make!

Chocolate pudding

• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch (or other refined starch) or 4 Tbsp flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 2 cups milk
• 2 egg yolks, beaten
• 2 tsp vanilla

Mix sugar, starch, and cocoa powder in pan, being sure to remove lumps – sift if needed. Combine milk and egg yolks. Gradually add to pan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Let boil for 1 min, then remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Chill.

Vanilla pudding

• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch (or other refined starch) or 4 Tbsp flour
• 2 cups milk
• 2 egg yolks, beaten
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 tsp vanilla

As above, stirring in butter with vanilla. Chill.

Tips

• If you are having trouble with lumps forming during the cooking process, use a whisk to stir vigorously and make sure the heat is on low. As a last resort, strain the pudding after cooking. Do it fast before the pudding cools and thickens.
• I’ve only used the starch for this recipe. Flour has approximately half the thickening power of pure starch, so the flour amount provided should be about right, but you might need to adjust a bit.
• For thicker, richer pudding, replace some of the milk with cream and/or boil for longer than 1 min to reduce the water content.
• Butterscotch variation: substitute 2/3 cup brown sugar for sugar in vanilla pudding recipe.
• I find this pudding to have a gelled consistency rather than a gloopy consistency. If you want more gloopiness, try decreasing the amount of starch/flour.

Recipe from Jun’s Kitchen

• 300g flour
• 140ml water
• 15g salt (optional)

Sift the flour. Add water and salt. Knead until smooth. Let rest for an hour (optional). Roll out on a floured surface to a diameter of ~16 inches. Fold into thirds and cut into noodles about 1/4 inch wide. Boil for 10 min.

We used the quick bread recipe, but let it ferment overnight in the fridge to get better flavor. Besides good dough, I think the keys to good pizza are salty toppings (hence the bacon; the margherita used especially salty cheese) and putting the oven as high as possible.

We’ve forgotten to use an upside-down cast iron pan as a makeshift pizza stone the last few times, but that seems to improve the crust as well.

Full menu and recipe info here.

These also didn’t get made for Thanksgiving, but previous batches have been delicious!

• 1 1/2 lb sweet potatoes
• 1/2 cup rice flour
• Cornstarch, other refined starch, or flour

Boil or steam sweet potatoes. Mash well. Add rice flour. Form mixture into balls (~4 cm in diameter). Coat in cornstarch and deep fry until browned.

Tips

• I like putting the sweet potato through a mesh strainer to remove large skin pieces and fibrous sections.
• You may be able to use refined starches in place of the rice flour, though the rice flour gives a particularly nice bounce/chew, mochi-like.
• These are good as dessert or as a savory side dish!

My family’s recipe, I think from my dad’s side. We didn’t end up making it for our main meal, but maybe tomorrow!

• 8 slices bread, cubed
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup finely diced celery
• 1/4 cup finely diced onion
• 1 apple, cubed
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning (combination of sage, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, and nutmeg)
• Approximately 1/2 cup milk
• (Optional) 3-4 boiled or roasted chestnuts, chopped

Mix; should have a pasty consistency. Don’t add so much liquid that it pools at the bottom. Stuff into your poultry or bake alone in a dish. If cooking alone, bake ~40 min at 350°F; if cooking inside a bird, cook until the bird is done.

Tips

• Add other veggies or nuts for more texture
• Add more eggs and milk (or cream) to make a savory bread pudding.

• 6 to 8 larger Baby Bella mushrooms (may use extras for extra stuffing)
• Olive oil or other liquid fat
• Butter
• Salt and pepper
• Bread crumbs
• Onion
• One salty cheese, such as parmesan, and a melting cheese, such as Colby or cheddar
• 1 egg

Remove the mushroom stem (reserve). Grease the mushrooms all over and turn them upside down ready to be stuffed.

Chop the mushroom stems (plus extra full or partial mushrooms, if you want) and the onion. Cook in butter until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Add bread crumbs, Parmesan, and the egg. For decorative bread pieces, you can add some additional small dry bread cubes after mixing in the egg. Stuff the mushrooms and top with slices of the non-parmesan cheese. 

Bake for at least 30 min at 350-375°F in a closed container (casserole dish with lid or aluminum foil). May remove the top near the end to encourage browning.

My first time making blintzes!

Base recipe is from Joy of Cooking, with modifications and recommendations from my mom.

The outside crepe (makes 12)

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 tsp sugar

Warm together butter and milk. Add flour, and then eggs. Let batter stand for 30 min.

Pour 3 Tbsp batter into a lightly buttered, large, nonstick/well-seasoned pan, lifting the pan and tilting until batter forms an even layer. Cook until top is dry and set, and bottom is lightly browned.

Be careful to avoid forming holes, which will cause problems with leaky filling.

Cheese filling (for 8 blintzes)

• 10 oz ricotta or other crumbly, moist fresh cheese (e.g. cottage cheese – drained, queso fresco, farmer’s cheese)
• 2 oz cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Zest from half an orange
• 1/2 cup raisins or currants

Blend; thicker is better so feel free to strain the ricotta, add more cream cheese, or omit the egg white if needed.

Fill blintzes from uncooked side of crepes, folding into a rectangular shape. Cook on both sides in oiled pan until browned. Eat with sour cream.

Blueberry filling (for 6 blintzes)

• 2 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
  
• Juice and zest from half a lemon
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Cook everything together until very thick. Fill blintzes as directed above.