Posted on 12/06/2016 3:21:02 PM PST by Jamestown1630
One of the prettiest of the holiday specials for television done by Jacques Pepin is his Hanukkah Celebration video. Everything he made for the meal was visually beautiful and different. I especially liked the Frozen Souffle, and the Chicken-Pistachio Mousse covered in aspic above, which is a lot easier to do than it appears:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWzfqc5rf5E
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A great tool for making holiday treats are these irons; the flower shaped ones make cookies, but the shell-like ones are great for making little cases to stuff with savory or sweet fillings. The shapes are made by dipping the iron in batter, and then into hot fat for a few seconds. Like crepes, your first one might be lacking, but you get the knack very quickly, and they're fun to make. The cases can be made in advance and kept crisp in an airtight container. I like using a shrimp or crab salad inside; you should fill them just before serving. If for some reason they didn't remain crisp, a quick tour in a low oven or dehydrator should bring them back. The iron sets come with recipes, and I usually use an adapted beer batter for savory cases. (The ones pictured are available at World Market, but you can find them in many places.)
Among my favorite cookies to make for Christmas are 'polvorones', or Mexican Wedding Cookies; they're very easy and special. (Practically the same cookie is also called a Russian Tea Cake):
I usually make these with Pecans.
-JT
Half the stuff in my kitchen was inherited from my grandmother including her Betty Crocker Cookbook. Still using her old faded melmac dishes, pressure canners, knives, baking pans, etc. Still using the old Ronco dehydrator from the early 70s. Just because they aren’t shiny and new doesn’t mean they don’t still work and will for years go come.
I had her spritz cookie gadget but haven’t been able to find it. I think I loaned it to mother and she misplaced it. Still in it’s cardboard box. Mother has been hassling me for years about it so I finally just bought her a new one. Wouldn’t you know, she broke down and bought the same one two days before so now we both have the cheapo Walmart verson and mine is still in the package.
Melt lots of butter in heated maple syrup....to serve alongside.
No fresh strawberries? Not a problem. Just blender/chop frozen ones and add a bit sugar.
I love stories like yours....using gram’s vintage kitchen stuff.
My mother “herself” threw everything away. She did not like clutter.
I hang onto everything.
All I can say is the slices of cauliflower were cute.
This was my first taste of capers. Meh. It’ll likely be the last time I buy a jar. Could probably just as easily add a bit of vinegar, salt and black pepper, and perhaps a pinch of powdered mustard to most any dish calling for them, especially since Georges’ recipe called for them to put in a blender so you’re not seeing the actual caper itself. See, unsophisticated palate.
;)
I think I’ve seen Jacques Pepin fry capers, to turn them into a kind of appetizer:
http://foodandstyle.com/fried-capers/
I can’t believe I have never see that. On my bucket list. Thanks for mentioning.
Where did you get the recipes for this dinner? Are they posted somewhere? I seem to have missed them.
I have been a long time fan and user of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s recipes/cookbooks. I have eaten at many of his restaurants around the world. Every meal we had was simply outstanding. His recipes can be very very fussy, but some are also quite simple.
One of my favorite cookbooks of his is “My favorite Simple Recipes. Home cooking with Jean-Georges. He has a recipe in there for pork chops with cherry mustard that is really good.
It’s a fun Scorcese movie - if you can imagine that. Alice is a single mother with lousy taste in guys, saddled with a kooky kid. She moves around the southwest trying to find a job as a singer. It says a lot about Reagan and Trump voters although, of course, the movie is completely a-political.
Great performances from a cast that includes Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson, Jodie, the little boy who plays her son, and an explosive performance from Harvey Keitel.
As a former student of Stella Adler, I can tell you that Harvey Keitel is nothing like the character he plays in this movie or other movies.
You don’t like capers? Oh, dear. I adore them and pick them out of the jar with a tiny fork to eat.
My favorite pizzeria in Italy put them on their cheese pizzas. It was the best pizza I’ve ever eaten in my life.
That is a wonderful, down-to-Earth list! I especially love #4, “The dust has a pretty glow to it…” - my house is always full of dust ;-)
When I was young - and admittedly had more time - I thought everything had to be perfect; I went overboard on things, and ROUTINELY caught a terrible ‘flu, every year on schedule, just after the first of the year. I wore myself out!
Then I learned to relax, and things got much better. I realized that half of the stuff I was so concerned about - NOBODY EVEN NOTICED! People love Christmas for reasons that the ‘perfectionist’ often forgets.
But I do try to start early, so it’s not so stressful. Buy a few gifts throughout the year; make a list in January of what went wrong, what went right, things you need for next year; and get out to those 50 to 75 per-cent sales right after Xmas, to save a ton of money on next year’s stuff. (I haven’t bought wrapping or Xmas cards ‘new’ in decades.)
Relax and have fun!
Will you share?
Very nice pic; and those are great ‘old standard’ cookies. Everybody likes them.
Pati’s table is good, but the best of the “Create” tv food shows imo is “A Chef’s life”...really good....more about culture and history of food.
I like ‘A Chef’s Life’ a lot.
Do you ever see ‘Kitchen Vignettes’? They are really beautiful little videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRr9piw5ZEg
I love A Chef’s life-probably my fav program. Her recipes are also terrific.
Yes. I will have to remember to find the recipe in my “loose recipe” file and post it, but I will definitely pass it along. If you like divinity, this is a great recipe. I’ve been using it for 30 years.
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