Holiday Smells

One of the greatest things about the holidays is cooking for friends and family and filling your home with the wonderful smells of freshly baked holiday desserts. Even if you're not planning on serving a feast you can still enjoy the wonderful holiday aromas.

My mother always had a small pot on the stove bubbling away to fill the house with the aroma of warm cinnamon and holiday spice.

3-4 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
2-3 star anise
4-6 whole cloves
1/2 small orange, quartered (or 1 clementine halved) with peel

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan and fill with just enough water to cover. Set on the stove and let simmer.

Not You're Mother's Brussels Sprouts

If you haven't discovered, or re-discovered these delectable treats yet, you're missing out. They have become a staple side dish for many of my dinners - I have even entertained with them. Turns out these mini-veggies are packed with flavor and roasting them with olive oil and shallots (or onion) really makes them shine. All that is needed is a little salt and pepper.

2 lbs Brussels Sprouts, halved (remove any loose leaves)
4-6 shallots, sliced
Olive Oil to coat
Salt and Pepper to taste

Roast for approx 30 mins at 375, turn about half way through cooking.

Naked Gnudi

Mission: Eat the Spotted Pigs Gnudi without waiting 3 hours for a table

After a romantic dinner at the Spotted Pig I couldn't wait to get home and try and make my own gnudi. I did all of the required blog surfing looking for someone who has cracked this masterfully puffy and cheesy dumplings only to find many other unfulfilled quests. After a few sad attempts I was able to come up with something that was still pretty irresistible even if didn't exactly resemble the Spotted Pigs' . Ok, so I'm no April Bloomfield, but it turns out I can make a mean gnudi.

Fresh whole-milk ricotta (1 lb) is key. I let it sit in a cheese cloth lined sieve for about 30 mins to drain any excess liquid. I mixed the ricotta with egg and added enough flour to bring it all together. After some trial and error I found that forming the gnudi and then chilling them was essential for achieving the right texture when cooked. Cook the dumplings in simmering water until they begin to float. Serve the gnudi in a browned butter sauce with crispy sage and prosciutto chips and a splash of balsamic vinegar (the good stuff).

Rainy Day Eats

One of my favorite things to do on a cold rainy Sunday is to hunker down and spend the day cooking. The more aromatic the dish the better. Today I played with my new toy - a 5 1/2 Qt Le Creuset Dutch Oven, care of my wonderful husband who brought Christmas 1 week early. I swear everything taste better in Le Creuset.

To me making the sauce is almost as enjoyable as eating it, I'm never able to replicate the same recipe twice - I get too wrapped up in adding/subtracting ingredients that each sauce takes on a life of it's own. My tomato sauce always consists of a few basics things like, San Marzano crushed tomatoes, yellow onion, garlic, red wine, tomato paste, basil, and chicken stock. Today's batch also managed to include carrot and prosciutto.

What could be better than playing with new toys in the kitchen on a rainy day?