It's Just Not the Holidays Without ...
It's Just Not the Holidays Without ...
These are the dishes — mostly sides and accompaniments — that we make year after year
We believe that the best holiday memories are made in the kitchen. First in this roundup are our personal “must-haves,” followed by links to our favorite sides and accompaniments to celebrate the season. We've even included some tips for how to time cooking and serving all the components of your feast.
Perhaps you recognize your celebrations and people you love in these recipes? We’d love to hear from you in the comments about what you’re planning for the holidays.
Whatever you're doing this time of year, we're grateful for your time and attention — and your enthusiasm for gathering around our table. We hope you'll take one of these dishes for a spin sometime — now or in 2023.
Mark:
I’m going to do that thing I did over Thanksgiving again … cook all day (and a couple of days in advance), but serve single dishes over hours. One might be this liquid gold thing I’ve been doing – water, carrots, celery, leeks, pureed into soup; I cannot get over how good that is. Another is going to be toro brown rice sushi, with soy and lemon. I have a piece of lamb shoulder in the freezer I’m eyeing.
The one thing I know I’ll make is this cake by Michel Keller that I first had in the mid-80s. Keller was a pastry chef who eventually took over Restaurant du Village, in Chester, Connecticut, where he hosted a winter dinner with culinary luminaries including Jacques Pépin and Pierre Franey. I made it last year and …it’s the best “plain” cake I know, and a very tidy, reliable recipe. Pain de Gens means bread of the Genovese, and indeed there are loads of nuts in Ligurian baking. Note that it's flourless.