Hanukkah is here, and in our home that means my husband Jeff spends a few days making his perfect vegan latkes (sometimes called potato pancakes, and pronounced “laht-kuhs“). All traditional latkes contain shredded or ground potatoes. Many contain onions and eggs. They are fried in oil (cooking with oil is one of the things you…
Category: Holidays
{edible gift} Chocolate Dipped Candied Orange Peels
My sister-in-law is a new vegan. I had a moment of disquiet about this over Thanksgiving, saying to her, “But what are we going to do about mashed potatoes?” We sub-divided them, of course, which was perfectly sensible. But my next question was even more important: what about dessert?!?!?! Thanksgiving without pie? Really? She made…
{from scratch holidays} Challah for Christmas
Some of my earliest memories are of my Jewish grandmother setting out a loaf of challah, along with a spread of white fish, cream cheese, lox and bagels. She never made any of these foods herself, but challah still reminds me of her. Recently I developed an interest in making challah bread myself. Thinking about…
{from scratch holidays} Arugula Pesto, Two Ways
I like local food. I like to eat it, I like to read about it and I like to sell it. Every Saturday morning I am lucky enough to talk about and sell local vegetables for Michael Kilpatrick (Kilpatrick Family Farm) at the farmers market in Saratoga Springs. Working at the market is so much fun for me,…
{from scratch holidays} Cheesy Potato Casserole: Makeover Edition
For the holidays my grandmother would make a dish that was simply called Cheesy Potato Casserole. It’s pretty much exactly what you would find at a Midwestern church potluck. I absolutely adored it and my brother and I would beg for it whenever we had a family holiday meal together. As my grandmother got older,…
{from scratch holidays} DIY Natural Food Coloring
As the Holidays are upon us, cookie-making season is in full swing. My kids have a list of cookies they want to make {or rather, eat}, I have my own recipe list of goodies to try, and then of course there are the edible gifts. At my house, there will be lots of cookie baking…
{edible gift} Homemade Irish Cream
Every winter, I crave an icy glass of Bailey’s Irish Cream. Something about it is filling and comforting when the cold weather rolls in. This year I decided heck, I can make my own butter, I want to try this! A mason jar filled with this delicious concoction is sure to please almost anyone this…
{edible gift} Fudge
Fudge is one of those treats that I usually reserve for the holidays. I’m not sure why, because it really is incredibly easy to make and SO delicious. Served alongside traditional holiday cookies, fudge is a welcome treat in my family. Wrapped in a box (check craft stores for a great assortment this time of year) with…
{from scratch holidays} De-Mystifying The Cheese Plate
The words holidays and entertaining seem synonymous. For most people, the only time the top of the bookshelf is dusted is when expecting an onslaught of visitors for the five to six weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year. It also raises the timeless question what the heck do I serve all of these people?! If you are…
{from scratch holidays} Not Your Grandma’s Tea Sandwiches: Shrimp & Radish Toasts
If I had to choose my favorite type of meal, it would probably be a dinner of appetizers. I love how each little bite is packed with flavor and color. During the December holiday season I make a lot of appetizers for parties and festive dinners. One of my new favorites is a twist on…
{edible gifts} DIY Coffee Creamer
Every few months or so the topic of flavored creamer comes around in my circle of friends. Many of them are curious as to how to make their own for various reasons, usually it is because they are concerned about the chemicals in store bought flavored creamers, they are allergic to milk, or because of…
{edible gift} Alegria, a traditional Mexican amaranth dessert
On the one hand, I really like cookies, like the way they look, like the way the taste, like their size and variety. On the other hand, I am on the far side of 50, have a sedentary day job and would like to survive to enjoy 25 years or more of active retirement, so…
{recipe link love} Cookies Cookies Cookies!
{Albany Food Swap: Lavender cookies by Swapper Nicole} To celebrate our December Food Swaps, which will be traditional cookie & recipe swaps, I am doing a little recipe link love to some absolutely fabulous cookie recipes I’m seeing all over the interwebs these days! +++ First up, Our friend Kate Payne has a Gluten-Free Sugar…
{from scratch holidays} Sweet Potato Casserole
The first holiday dinner I had with my husband he made his mom’s sweet potato casserole for me. To be honest, I was nervous I’d hate it, even though he swore up and down that I’d love it. Up until this point I’d really hated the sweet potatoes that would grace our table on the…
{from scratch holidays} GF & DF Roasted Pumpkin Pasta
My kids can still remember “real” mac n’ cheese, as they have only been dairy-free for a year. Every so often they beg for a pile of the cheesy good stuff they fondly remember. While I wont make them traditional macaroni and cheese anymore, I will make this: Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Pasta Roasted pumpkin takes…
