Meet our writers

Win $1,000

Go60 YUM - articles about food and the joys of dining
YUM articles - The enjoyment of food

Food Ventures

Entertaining Suggestions for the Holidays

By Ann Hattes
Rate this item
(0 votes)

Try her browned Brussels with maple butter this holiday season. It matches well with bacon-crusted roast turkey; apple, pear and sage stuffed pork loin roulade; slow-cooked chicken and cippoline; herb stuffed leg of lamb; butternut ricotta lasagna.   

Choosing Sides, a cookbook devoted entirely to side dishes, offers fresh ideas in memorable recipes. Every recipe offers multiple entrée suggestions. Tara Mataraza Desmond’s recipes cross cuisines, techniques, and complexity. They range from brunch items to foods for intimate gatherings, potlucks, parties, and holiday feasts.

Accompany your old standby of meat loaf or roast chicken with an inspired accompaniment. A helpful chart, organized by main entrée, gives a quick look at the options to serve. Try her browned Brussels with maple butter this holiday season. It matches well with bacon-crusted roast turkey; apple, pear and sage stuffed pork loin roulade; slow-cooked chicken and cippoline; herb stuffed leg of lamb; butternut ricotta lasagna.   

Both home cooks and chefs know that quality fresh herbs help produce outstanding recipes, though there is the ever constant problem of waste and short shelf life. Now there is an alternative. Litehouse Foods offers Instantly Fresh herbs that are freeze dried immediately after harvest to retain their natural flavor, aroma, and nutritional benefits, only needing a small amount of moisture to gain the equivalent of fresh herbs. The Instantly Fresh herb line offers 15 different herbs from basil, chives and lemon grass to jalapenos, dill and Italian herb blend.

They bring signature tastes and aromas to favorite foods. For most recipes you can just add the herbs in and they will gather enough moisture from other ingredients. Only a small amount of water is needed to rehydrate, so if too much is added, just strain the excess. Litehouse Instantly Fresh herbs are found in the produce department, often above or below the packaged fresh herbs. Visit www.litehousefoods.com for a wide variety of recipes.

For those looking for a respite from party or meal cooking during the holidays, consider Kent Island crab cakes (www.kentislandcrabcakes.com), made exclusively from crabmeat of the blue crab, sourced as much as possible from the Chesapeake Bay. These hand-made gourmet crab cakes are available as jumbo lump style, as minis, and even gluten free. For an intimate celebration, just add salad and the wine. For a cocktail party, pass crab cake minis, add crudities, dip and champagne. Best of all, the crab cakes can also serve as an ingredient, using in a quiche, for example, or for making crab pasta. The crab cakes can be safely held for six months in the freezer. 

 

Browned Brussels with Maple Butter

(Courtesy of "Choosing Sides," Andrews McMeel Publishing LLC). Serves 4 – 6.

Author Desmond says that if any preparation of Brussels sprouts is to make a convert, it’s this one. “The maple butter is reminiscent of caramel, creating a sweet cloak over savory sprouts.”

Note that the maple butter can be made a day ahead, cooled completely, and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature while the sprouts roast and then scrape it into the hot sprouts to melt it.

 

1 tablespoon plus 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 pounds Brussels sprouts, stem ends trimmed, outer leaves peeled, and halved (quartered if large)

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Brush 1 tablespoon of the olive oil on a baking sheet and transfer it to the hot oven for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, toss the sprouts with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the salt and pepper. Pour the sprouts out onto the hot baking sheet and spread into a single layer. (Take the time to place each sprout cut side down for especially crisped and browned sprouts.)

Roast the Brussels sprouts for 15 to 20 minutes, until fork-tender and a dark brown crust forms on the sides exposed to the baking sheet.

While the sprouts roast, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, swirling it around as it becomes liquid. Keep a close eye on the butter as it starts to foam. If you look closely at the liquid butter as it cooks, you can see tiny specks of brown appear (which are the browning milk solids). Continue heating it until it starts to smell nutty and turns from off-white to golden to light brown. Immediately remove from the heat and stir in the maple syrup. Stir briskly as the mixture sizzles and spurts. Set aside in the saucepan until the sprouts finish roasting. Remove from the oven and transfer to a serving bowl. Drizzle the maple butter all over, tossing to coat evenly. Serve immediately.

 

Pasta with Crabmeat

(Courtesy of Kent Island Crab Cakes.) Serves 2 as a first course.

Saute 2 shallots in 2 tablespoons good olive oil with 1 clove garlic, finely minced, until soft.

Add ¼ cup dry white wine and reduce slightly. Add 1 softened, flaked Kent Island crab cake and cook for 2 minutes.

Add handful of halved cherry tomatoes and cook covered until softened.

Toss in 1 cup roughly chopped or torn arugula leaves, season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Remove from heat.

Drain ¼ pound excellent linguine and toss with pasta sauce, setting aside a half cup or so to top the plates.

Top with finely chopped parsley and serve.

 

Ann Hattes has over 25 years experience writing about both travel and food for publications both in the US and internationally. A senior living in Wisconsin, she’s a member of the International Food, Wine and Travel Writers Association and the Midwest Travel Writers Association.

Meet Ann