Guest Blog by Tory Temple
Hi everyone! I’m Tory, and Keira asked me to write up a little post even though I don’t have a holiday release, and I was more than glad to do so. I’m right there in the swing of things with the mad shopping, baking, and wrapping. My family celebrates Hanukkah, my sister-in-law’s family celebrates Christmas, so we’re all together on Christmas Eve this year with menorah lighting and present opening. I’m looking forward to it. As long as I get all the presents wrapped, of course.
Anyway, my contribution to Christmas/Hanukkah dinner this year is the traditional latkes – potato pancakes. Hanukkah foods are often fried in oil to remind us of the miracle of the holiday. Here is my recipe, sort of adapted from Martha Stewart:
4 large russet potatoes, peeled
1 small white onion, finely grated
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil, for frying
Applesauce – optional
Sour cream – optional
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Shred potatoes using the large holes of a box grater into a large bowl of ice water. Alternatively, place half the potatoes in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the shredding disk attachment and process until shredded. Repeat process with remaining potatoes; transfer to a large bowl of ice water. Using a strainer or slotted spoon, transfer potatoes, reserving liquid, to another large bowl lined with a clean kitchen towel; gently squeeze dry.
2. Set reserved liquid aside for 10 minutes to allow starch to sink to the bottom; carefully pour liquid from the bowl, reserving milky residue (potato starch), and discard. Transfer potatoes back to bowl with potato starch.
3. Add onions to bowl; stir in eggs, flour, salt, and pepper.
4. Line a baking sheet with paper towels; set aside. In a heavy nonstick skillet, heat 1/4-inch of oil. Spoon scant 1/2 cup of potato mixture per pancake into skillet, working in batches and taking care not to crowd the skillet.
5. Fry on both sides until golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to prepared baking sheet to drain; transfer to oven to keep warm. Repeat process with remaining potato mixture. Serve hot with applesauce, or sour cream and caviar, if desired.
Serves 4 to 6
Do you have a favorite holiday recipe? Or another latke recipe I MUST try? You can put it in the comments, or just tell me your favorite holiday food. I’ll give away a copy of my newest release, Teaching Topaz, available now from Torquere Press. I’ll pick a winner by Monday morning, 9:00 am Pacific Standard Time. Happy holidays, readers!
I found
this recipe and we really love this cookies.
I replace the pecans with walnuts or almonds
Ingredients:
1/4 cup shortening
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/2 teaspoon Spice Islands® pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Directions:
In a small bowl, cream the shortening, egg yolk and marmalade until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and pecans.
Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks. Yield: 2 dozen.
This recipe uses marmalade for sweetener and does not need additional sugar.
Happy holidays from Germany
try this link http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Chunky-Orange-Marmalade-Cookies
Those look DELICIOUS. I’m printing that recipe out to try this year! My grandmother was from Austria, and this looks like something she would have baked. Thank you!
Stereotyping it drives me nuts.We get a lot of iltrnaojsus who just aren’t interested in anything other than confirming their preconceived ideas with some evidence’ even when the evidence doesn’t exist or contradicts what they want to say. Five years after the fact, there are still articles claiming that the number of egg and sperm donors dropped through the floor when the law on anonymity was changed. It didn’t the numbers actually went up. If they’d bothered to check the publicly available stats on the HFEA website they’d know this is a non-story but no, bad news is so much more entertaining.Then, and I hate to say it, there are the articles in women’s mags who want a very specific story about a grieving infertile couple given hope by a donor and how they had suffered for so long but look there was a happy ending. I know this is what they DO and it’s also the kind of story that helps recruit donors, but y’know, it’s not the whole picture.
Hmmmm….so many great holiday recipes. One I just finished making the other day is going into rotation from now on, it takes wonderful, the presentation is so pretty that it is great for guests and the leftovers, if any, taste even better the 2nd day:
Flank Steak Roulade:
Ingredients
2 red bell peppers, stemmed, halved lengthwise and seeded
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 leek, white and light-green parts only, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 2 1/4-to-2 1/2-pound flank steak, trimmed
1/2 pound sliced provolone cheese (about 8 slices)
For the Crust:
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
3 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons drained horseradish
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Prepare the stuffing for the steak: Preheat the broiler and place the peppers cut-side down on a foil-lined broiler pan. Broil until the skin is charred, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover with a plate and set aside until cool enough to handle. Peel the peppers with your fingers or a paring knife. If necessary, lightly rinse to remove any remaining skin and pat dry.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leek and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the parsley and season with salt and pepper. Let cool.
Gently pound the steak with the flat side of a mallet or heavy skillet until 1/4 inch thick. Lay out on a cutting board with the long side facing you and season with salt and pepper. Place the roasted peppers evenly over the meat, leaving a 1-inch border all around. Top with the cheese slices, then the leek mixture. Roll the meat away from you into a tight cylinder, tucking in the filling as you roll.
Make the crust: Mix the breadcrumbs, rosemary, parsley, horseradish, olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a medium bowl until moistened. Brush the steak roll with a bit of olive oil and press the breadcrumb mixture over the top and sides. Tie the roll with twine in three or four places, making sure it’s not too tight (you want the crust to stay intact).
Place the steak roll on a rack in a roasting pan and roast until the crust is golden and a thermometer inserted into the center registers 130 degrees for medium-rare, about 45 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 15 minutes. Carefully cut off the twine, then slice the roll crosswise into 1-inch pieces.
Melanie, this sounds DELICIOUS! Thanks for sharing!
Hey Melanie! You were the winner I picked out of my hat, so can you email me for your book at ragingpixie at gmail? Thanks!
Melanie, my husband just read this over my shoulder and wrote down the ingredients so he can try it at work. He’s a much better cook than I am. I can follow a recipe, but he can MAKE STUFF. Thank you!
One of our Xmas traditions is to make candy cane pastries with raspberry jam and powdered sugar glaze. It’s delicious!
smaccall AT comcast.net
Sarah, I love anything in candy cane form, even if it’s not peppermint. They sound yummy!
Unfortunately anything I try to make ends up in disaster. There are a few simple things I can do though. At craft stores they have discounted chocolate melts around this time. If you melt them and pour them over a food of your choice it is delicious. I have tried peppermint, almond, and pecan. You have to make sure to cut them up into small pieces. It tastes better that way. My sister takes pretzels and puts them in the microwave with a chocolate piece on top. When it comes out she places either an M&M or nut on the melted chocolate then refrigerates. As you can probably tell, we are a chocolate-loving family. : )
Hey Marissa – substitute caramel or butterscotch for the chocolate and you have me sold.
I usually make truffles for Christmas and cookies but don’t think I’ll get the chance this year
Happy holidays
Sarah S
Sarahs7836(at)gmail(dot)com
Hey Sarah – some years it’s just too hard to bake. Time seems to speed up around the holidays. I just finished three batches of shortbread and it took me two hours….