Spirit of Christmas

The elegant (hic!) tradition of bourbon balls

by Julie Tilsner, Posted May 3rd 2008 @ 10:01AM

I come from a long-line of Irish alcoholics. And although I myself hold my liquor like a ten-year-old, I have a special place in my heart for alcohol-flavored sweet things. Indeed, I have had a torrid love affair with the bourbon ball ever since my mom first let me try one during the holidays when I was a kid.

See, at my house, bourbon (or rum) balls were holiday fare. But I'm told they're traditional at the Kentucky Derby as well. I've never been to Kentucky, and I know next to nothing about the event, which, I'm told, involves race horses and women in elaborate hats.

But in the spirit of this prestigious event, I offer you my family's decidedly un-traditional recipe for bourbon balls.

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Filed under: Spirit of Christmas, Liquor Cabinet, Ingredients, Drinks

WearEver announces cookie contest

COMMENTS 5

by Shayna Glick, Posted Jan 10th 2008 @ 8:04AM

Do you like to bake cookies with your kids? Are you interested in going to New York City or winning a $10, 000 savings bond? Well then you may be interested in entering the Second Annual WearEver Extreme Cookie Challenge.

The contest is for a parent/child team, though the child must be between the ages of 5 and 15. WearEver is looking for your "tastiest and most extreme cookie recipes". Five finalist teams will be flown to New York City to compete in the "Cookie-off" In April 2008.

The grand prize is a $10,000 savings bond. The four runners up will each receive a savings bond for $1,000. All finalists get an assortment of WearEver products for lots of baking fun.

You can check out the website for official rules and entry information. The entry deadline has been extended through January 31, 2008. The final deadline is fast approaching, so if this sounds like fun to you then now is your chance!

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Filed under: Spirit of Christmas, Methods

Gift Guide: A Dozen Decadent Kitchen Gadgets

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by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Dec 19th 2007 @ 2:45PM

Normally, I am of the very firm belief that most kitchen gadgets are unnecessary. With the exception of something like a waffle iron, which is pretty necessary to make waffles, there isn't much need for anything other than a razor-sharp knife, a solid cutting board, and a heavy saucepan. However, the Holidays are a time when all logic goes out the window, and we honestly believe that we won't be able to live without a $900 espresso machine or a a $1,000 rice cooker. Okay, so maybe we will never think that, but if there is someone in your life who does, we have a dozen gadget-ous gifts for him or her:

Espresso Yourself: For $900, you could probably buy an airplane ticket and have an espresso in Italy, but isn't so much more practical to let the FrancisFrancis X1 Trio make espresso for you every day?

Waffle House: The Heart-Shaped Waffle Iron by Cuisinart isn't so much a luxury gift for the price as it is for the experience it creates. Waffles for breakfast are impressive, and for some reason, their being heart-shaped screams "eat in breakfast bed!"

Vita Stats: VitaMix makes the top-of-the-line blenders and juicers, and while the message from the manufacturer is for health, who couldn't whip up a blended margarita in one of these $600 machines?

Toaster with the Most-er: Pop-tarts will never be the same once you've had them out of the Bugatti Toaster, designed by the same folks who make, well, Bugatti cars.

What a Crock: Low and slow is the way to go, and with the Rival Slow Cooker, you can put together the ingredients in the morning, leave it all day, and come back to a finished product.

Grills Gone Wide: Technically, it's called an Indoor Grill, but really, would you cheat your George Foreman of making lean mean turkey burgers? Save the Breville for paninis, which can be made many-at-a-time on this particular model that has more surface area.

Rice, Rice, Baby: Because yes, someone needs a $1,000 rice cooker.

Cuts Like a Knife: Shun makes top-shelf knives, and for over $300, the Kershaw 10 5/8" knife could probably slice that top-shelf into perfect julienne strips.

In the Mix: Everyone {hearts} a KitchenAid Stand Mixer, and really, it might be one of the most coveted pieces of kitchen equipment out there. However, it's the Custom Metallic series that makes your mixer special. We love the brushed copper to match all of our copper pots and pans, but the brushed nickel is so sleek.

Deep Freeze: You may have an ice cream maker, but is it as beautifully sleek and chic as the Musso Lussino Dessert Maker? Hopefully it isn't since the Lussino is $700.

Ream Me Up: Reaming a lime for your cocktail has never been so artful.

Pop and Lock: This may be the one "gadget" that encourages us to step away from the power source in the wall. We know that microwaves are bad, and we also know that popcorn from the microwave is even worse. Whirley Pop lets you pop on the stovetop.

Filed under: Lists, Food Gadgets, Spirit of Christmas, Retro cookery, Holidays, New Products, Methods

Ornamental Holiday Chile Plants

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by Jonathan M. Forester, Posted Dec 9th 2007 @ 7:21AM

For those of you who want something a little bit different in the holiday decorations department you may want to consider some Holiday Chile plants. Long a holiday gift in the Southwest going back to the 1800's, red and green chile plants were very popular until they dropped out of style in the late 1920's. Now available in a multitude of colors, these brightly colored chili's are certainly festive.

For at least the past twenty years the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, has been breeding ornamental chilies with a variety of different holiday colors, such as ones that turn from orange to black for Halloween, yellow to orange for Thanksgiving, and red to white for Valentine's Day."

Look for them under the names "NuMex Christmas" or "NuMex Halloween" from Sunland Nursery at independent garden centers in New Mexico, Texas, North Carolina, and other states as available. Also at some Wal-Mart and Lowe's. If you find any out there please let us know.

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Filed under: Did you know?, Spirit of Christmas, Ingredients, New Products

Monday Happy Hour: The Red Hot Santa Tini

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by Bob Sassone, Posted Dec 3rd 2007 @ 5:45PM

Red Hot Santa Tini There are many cocktails that can warm you up on a cold winter evening (I know, it's only December 3, but when it's Christmas time and much of the nation has been hit by a snowstorm, it's winter), but there aren't many that can honestly be called "hot." This one can.

It's the Red Hot Santa Tini, and not only do you rim the glass with cayenne pepper (added to cocoa), the main ingredient is chili-pepper infused vodka. And on top of the whipped cream you put a little chili pepper! Full recipe after the jump.

Filed under: Happy Hour, Spirit of Christmas, Drink Recipes, Holidays

Cookie-a-Day: Gingerbread people

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by Marisa McClellan, Posted Dec 3rd 2007 @ 4:39PM

gingerbread cookies as far as the eye can see

Last Christmas I went a little crazy with gingerbread cookies. I made hundreds of gingerbread men, women, stars, bells and other cut-out shapes. I spend hours rolling, cutting, transferring, baking, cooling and frosting. You don't have to go so crazy with your cookies, although when you try this recipe, you might just be similarly inspired. The great thing about this dough is that you can keep it in the fridge for several days, so you don't have roll and cut it all in a single afternoon. This is also a terrific recipe if you have kids or want to have a cookie party.

For the frosting, I tend to just mix up powdered sugar, a drop of vanilla and some water into a semi-viscous state and dip the tops of the cookies straight into the frosting. They end up looking really pretty and are so delicious! Just remember that if you frost them that way you need to wait until they are totally dry before stacking them or your perfect cookies will adhere together into solid stacks. Which can be a bit disappointing (I speak from experience here).

Filed under: Spirit of Christmas, Ingredients, Holidays, Methods

A.J.'s Christmas Punch

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by Bob Sassone, Posted Nov 30th 2007 @ 2:30PM

"A.J." is A.J. Rathbun, the senior editor over at Amazon's kitchen section, and this hoilday recipe comes from his book Good Spirits: Recipes, Revelations, Refreshments, and Romance, Shaken and Stirred with a Twist (which could also get an award for longest book title of the last decade) and FineLiving.com. It includes one of my favorites, Cointreau (I like drinking that stuff by itself in a little glass - it really warms you up), and also brandy and champagne. Recipe after the jump.

Filed under: Spirit of Christmas, Drink Recipes, Holidays

Friday Happy Hour: The Santa Claus Metropolitan

COMMENTS 3

by Bob Sassone, Posted Jan 5th 2007 @ 5:10PM

Santa OK, so this might be a week or so late, but some of us are still in the Christmas spirit, right? Well, if you're not, maybe you can check out this drink and get back in the Christmas spirit! Or maybe as a way to toast the holiday season goodbye until next time.

It's called the Santa Claus Metropolitan, and I got it from Dale Degroff's excellent web site. He's known as "King Cocktail," and it's easy to see why. He's got a lot of drinks there that I've never even heard of before, in addition to all the classics and twists on classics.

Read on for the recipe:

Filed under: Happy Hour, Spirit of Christmas, Drink Recipes

I think I've gained 35 pounds this week

COMMENTS 4

by Bob Sassone, Posted Dec 27th 2006 @ 11:32AM

turkey I always have the best plans around the holidays when it comes to food. I always have some mathmatical formula where I'm going to consume the least amount of calories possible. If I don't have any cookies, I can drink more. If I don't have any of my sister's brownies, I can have a third helping of stuffing.

It never works out though. I go back for seconds at my sister's house (ham, lasagna, chicken breasts, green bean casserole, various desserts), then have a turkey sandwich and stuffing later that night at home. I go to my other sister's Xmas Eve party and find myself eating pasta salad and grazing on tortilla chips, cheese, and trifle all night (and six beers - "light," but still). Then, on Xmas Day, another meal, this one consisting of turkey, oatmeal and sausage stuffing, yams with marshmallow topping, a bottle of wine, Oreo Cookie cake and cheesecake.

What did you have to eat the past few days?

Filed under: Spirit of Christmas, Super Size Me, Ingredients

Food Porn: Cranberry-Cherry Icebox Ribbons

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by Nicole Weston, Posted Dec 27th 2006 @ 10:56AM

Is it too late to make another batch of Christmas cookies this year? Dessert First's Cranberry-Cherry Icebox Ribbons are just gorgeous. The recipe originally came from The All-American Cookie Book, which is a great source for recipes for all occasions and at all levels of difficulty, from dropped cookies, like chocolate chip, to more elaborately shaped ones. These cookies fall in between the two extremes, although they are certain to impress with their looks, as well as with their flavor. The cookies have layers of shortbread-like butter cookie dough sandwiching layers of dried cranberry and cherry preserves. The thing that makes them much easier than they look is that the cookies are icebox cookies, meaning that the dough is assembled and frozen, then the individual cookies are sliced off of a larger log when you are ready to bake. No shaping is necessary and the resulting cookies are still picture-perfect. Different fillings can be substituted for the cranberry/cherry combination, so look for your favorite seasonal jams to complement the cookie.

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Filed under: Food Porn, On the Blogs, Spirit of Christmas, Feast Your Eyes