"holiday food" news and stories

Just in time for the upcoming festivities: Linda Grasso's "Going Hollywood with your Holiday Party" (at The Huffington Post). Now no one in America has to spend another dreary Christmas merely feasting on baked ham with loved ones and friends. Linda, who says she's been to some "really smashing holiday parties this year" (although she never does mention whether she saw Brangelina, got Justin Bieber's autograph, or if at least Kathy and Team Griffin showed up), suggests a few ideas to put a little "glamour into your holiday soirée." Of course, we don't have much of a budget, so following Linda's thoughts, our versions of her take on how to get the party started.

Linda Sez: Put platters on boxes, covered with runners, so dishes will all be at varying heights, which will make your buffet table much more dramatic, a trick she picked up at an open house "thrown by a hot LA TV producer."
We Sez: Try to use only platters and dishes that don't have chips in them so nobody suspects you're struggling this year after being laid off and your 401K evaporated.

Linda Sez: Fill vases with cranberries before adding the flowers, which will take the arrangement from "ordinary to extraordinary."
We Sez: Do not try this with Ocean Spray jellied cranberries.

Linda Sez: Accessorize your cookie platter by sprinkling candy around the plate, another tip picked up at a "fancy holiday dinner party."
We Sez: Don't just limit yourself to candy. Get creative. We like to sprinkle sauerkraut and Bac-Os bacon bits around our cookie table for an offbeat marriage of sweet and savory. (We picked this up from the old lady next door, a former maid at MGM, where she once saw Joan Crawford do this at a party given by Louis B. Mayer.)

Linda Sez: "Make Sure You're Lit Properly."
We Sez: Linda's talking candles here. But we find that Jim Beam or Wild Turkey work just as well.

It's party season, and that means if you have any social life whatsoever, someone will be asking you to bring something to a get-together. Certain foods are obvious no-nos unless you're aiming for cheeky: anything made with aspic, blood sausage or Spam, for example. In general, you want to avoid needlessly messy, borderline unhealthy and unintentionally labor-intensive dishes, as well as ones that simply don't travel well.

The following rules apply no matter what kind of party (potluck, New Year's Eve, birthday, tailgating) or crowd (young, old, football freaks, opera fans). If you can't cook at all, bring good cheese and crackers. That's the universal crowd-pleaser.

Hummus
It seems like such a no-brainer -- who doesn't like dip at parties? But this one has a fatal flaw: garlic. All it takes is one big scoop to render your breath intolerable. Great for family get-togethers, not for swinging singles mixers. How about salsa instead?

Celebrity chefs -- they're just like us. Only with mega book deals, product lines, contracts with mayonnaise companies, a slew of sous chefs and a staff to clean up after them. Still, when it comes to food, most of 'em have a down-home and humble favorite that defines the holiday. Over the next few weeks, we'll share must-have festive fare from Rachael Ray, John Besh, Michael Symon and many more.

In this Slashfood exclusive, Chef Bobby Flay disses his mother's stuffing, goofs on his canned-cranberry-loving cousin and plays with a whole lotta mayo.

Buy Bobby Flay's books and read more about Bobby Flay on Slashfood.

Previously -- Marcus Samuelsson's must-have holiday dish -- which also involves vodka and red wine. Sensing a trend here...

Celebrity chefs -- they're just like us. Only with mega book deals, product lines, TV shows, a slew of sous chefs and a staff to clean up after them. Still, when it comes to food, most of 'em have a down home and humble favorite that defines the holiday. Over the next few weeks, we'll share must-have festive fare from Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay, John Besh, Michael Symon and many more.

In this Slashfood exclusive, Chef Marcus Samuelsson explains why bad red wine is essential to his holiday happiness.

Buy Marcus Samuelsson's "New American Table" and read more about Glüewhein and Glogg.