Holiday Blitz

When it comes to holiday entertaining, I like to hit it hard and hit it fast. This year, that meant getting the tree and other decorations up before Thanksgiving; planning a party for forty-something upon returning from New Orleans; and giving an open house on the first day of December before anyone had a chance to get sick of all the madness.

Those who know me, know that I am a meticulous party planner. This means that I:

• Begin to think about the menu months in advance.
• Pull recipes as I find them and keep copies in appropriately labeled files.
• Start a shopping list weeks before with complete breakdown of what needs to be purchased from where.
• Create a list of what need to prepared in what order.
• Consider serving pieces and tablescaping far in advance.
• Make intricate sketches of how the serving pieces should be arranged.
  

This year, I just threw it together in about three days. Honest. I didn't even decide on the final menu until the Wednesday night before the party. Of course, this sort of lackadaisical approach took its toll on the host, and I spent the week after recovering at an undisclosed location frequented by many celebrities. Anyways, it all turned out magnificently and I hope you enjoy the photos of the spread...



Savories:
Mixed nuts
Peanuts with rice paper (my favorite addiction)
Pub mixed
An array of fine cheese, with fig compote, quince paste, dried apricots, fruit and nuts
Raw and roasted vegetables with green goddess dip and hummus
Polenta squares with tomato olive relish
Potsticker baskets with cherry, cashew 'chicken' salad
Hot onion souffle
Wheatsville Co-op Popcorn Tofu w/apricot dipping sauce

Sweets:
Chocolate cakes with peppermint whipped cream
Ruth Johnson's Almond Roca
Crème puffs

To drink:
Beer and wine (everyone was drinking beer, which was strange)
Sodas
Spiked Angel Punch

Glad you came if you were there, wish you had if you didn't...

Happy Holidays!

Yummy Soft Polenta

Sunday was a rainy, dreary day. What better way to cheer it up a little than a big pot of creamy, warm polenta? So that is what I did. April came over and we had a delightful meal and conversation.

The polenta was actually inspired by a bunch of leeks that came from the farm, which I wasn't sure what to do with. I cracked open a couple of cookbooks and found this recipe in the Bon Appétit from last year. It sounded like the perfect thing to do with leeks and the contrast between the creamy polenta and leeks was extremely satisfying. Polenta is pretty straightforward, but does require a little attention and a lot of stirring. There are a few leftovers and I'll probably do something fabulous with them later this week.

Recipe: Soft Polenta with Leeks
3 tablespoons butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), thinly sliced
2 1/4 cups (or more) water
2 cups good vegetable broth
1 bay leaf
1 cup polenta

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks; stir to coat. Cover and cook until leeks soften, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add 2 1/4 cups water, broth and bay leaf. Bring to boil. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until mixture is thick and creamy, stirring often and thinning with more water if necessary, about 20-30 minutes.

Remove pan from heat. Discard bay leaf. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon butter and Parmesan cheese. Season polenta to taste with salt and pepper. Divide polenta among plates.


For dessert I had few cherries left from the last bag I purchased. These were a big and flavorful variety, so I pitted them and tossed with a couple of handfuls of Texas blueberries. To round out this antioxidant powerhouse dessert, I made a green tea whipped cream. I wasn't sure how this would taste with the fruit, but the slightly sweet and earthy flavor combination was inspired.

Recipe: Green Tea Whipped Cream
In a microwave-safe container, heat 1 1/2 cups of heaving whipping cream on high until it is steaming, about 4-5 minutes. Add four green teabags and let steep while the cream cools to room temperature. Squeeze every last bit of goodness from the bags and then place the cream in the refrigerator to cool. At this point, you can whip it (whip it good! sorry, i couldn't resist) conventionally with a hand mixer, adding 1 1/2 to 2 tbsp. of powdered sugar once it starts to thicken. (Since powdered sugar is cut with cornstarch, it aids the thickening process and is better to use than conventional granulated sugar.) You can also add the very chilled cream to a iSi Cream Whipper, add sugar and process. Either way, add generous dollops to the berry mixture for a wonderful summertime dessert.

Mangez!

Cherry

I never really liked cherries, because I had never really tasted cherries. Not as an adult anyway. I equated cherry with the artificial flavor used in candies, throat lozenges and cough syrup, which couldn't be further from the real thing. Or maraschino cherries, which are an aberration of nature. When I finally tasted cherries several years ago, with an open mind that was not thinking of Jolly Ranchers, I became obsessed. And right now is the season when obsession turns to fanatical obsession, because cherries are everywhere.

Of course, the cherry of all cherries is the Rainier. It is the most difficult cherry to grow and one third of the crop is eaten by very lucky birds. (In the next life, I would like to come back as a bird that feeds on cherries.) The fruit is yellow, with a blush of red like an embarrassed schoolgirl. To me, it tastes like a cherry combined with the most exquisite flower in the garden. Or a cherry, mashed together with a plum and drizzled with just the tiniest amount of honey. Yes, the Rainier are expensive, but worth the small price to enjoy a few at the peak of their ripeness. The little bowl above was full the day before yesterday, and now it's sadly empty. The price per pound isn't that much, when you consider that in Japan they sell for as much as $1 a piece. Per cherry.

When I buy cherries, they usually get eaten out of hand. If I do make something with them, it's a dessert from the Limousin region of France called clafoutis. The recipe I like is from Martha Stewart and makes six small individual servings, perfect topped with a dollop of whipped cream.

Recipe: Cherry Clafoutis
The batter in this recipes puffs to a golden brown cross somewhere between a cake and pudding, gently cradling the cherries. It's doesn't overpower the fruit, acting more like a cherry delivery system. In Limousin, it is conventional to leave the cherries with its pits, allegedly lending a deeper flavor to the dessert. Dangerous, but you're welcome to try it if you like to live on the edge and have a very good dentist.

3 tbsp. sliced almonds (optional)
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup plus 2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
4 large whole eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (optional)
1 pound fresh, ripe cherries, stemmed and pitted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place sliced almonds (if using) on a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast until they are fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Coat six four to five inch diameter ramekins with one tablespoon butter and set aside.

Place flour, 2/3 cup sugar, salt and almonds in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade; pulse until mixture is finely ground. Transfer to a big yellow bowl, add eggs, egg yolk, 3/4 cup cream, vanilla and lemon zest and whisk to combine. Place in the refrigerator and let set for 30 minutes.

Divide cherries among buttered dishes. Whisk remaining butter into batter and pour over cherries. Place ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining sugar and then bake until tops are golden and bubbly, 15-20 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Whip remaining cream until soft peaks form and serve on warm or room temperature clafoutis.

Mangez!