"christmas cooking" news and stories

The Slashfood team is heading out for our own Christmas celebrations. But there's still time to get your feast prepared. Read on for a host of last-minute holiday ideas.

• Still looking for that last minute ham recipe? AOL Food has Christmas recipes for the entire day, including Christmas breakfast and dessert! Please guests of all ages with Slashfood's picks of the seven best non-alcoholic holiday cocktails and treat adults to a warm cup of spiced hot cider.
• AOL Food and Slashfood put together a roundup of our favorite cookie recipes, tips on hosting a cookie swap, and how to make homemade candy canes.
• Need some conversation starters for the table? Take our Holiday Food Song Quiz and find out whether you're a holly jolly lyrical master. In the meantime, brush up on your history of plum pudding and the Christmas pickle with the History of Christmas Food.
• Turkey isn't just for Thanksgiving. There's still time to ensure it's juicy and delicious, just follow our brining guide and follow this easy turkey brine recipe.

I picked up a cookie. It was a stocking sugar cookie, the kind with just enough spice and a lot of crunch. It was covered in a thick coating of bright Christmas red icing, with white squiggles at the top to stand in for fur trim. I bit into the toe, a bite big enough to stain my teeth and leave crumbs all over my lips. Yum, red! I thought.

There is a distinct taste to red food coloring, the kind that is so prevalent around the red-centric Christmas holidays. And I love it. I can't quite explain it - it doesn't taste of chemicals to me; either I've developed a celebratory association with it over the years, or the taste comes from some more natural source (beetles maybe?) that I just enjoy thoroughly.