It is official: the Thanksgiving Break countdown clock reads less than 48 hours to go before a week-long vacation from Albertson’s library and early morning wakeups. For many of us, it couldn’t come soon enough.
Time for an extended holiday: a foodie holiday, in fact. You deserve it.
That said, it won’t hurt to let your collegiette instincts kick in one more time before you lapse into a food coma, and do a little advanced prep for the holiday… sometimes it’s not enough to just show up at your parents’ house and gorge. Up the ante this holiday season and show up for Thanksgiving dinner bearing gifts: I promise everyone from your parents to your boyfriend to your grouchy Uncle Joey will be impressed. The follow holiday recipes are quick and easy for the not-necessarily-kitchen-savvy collegiette, and can be completed in less than 5 steps and 30 minutes of hands-on time. Did I say quick and easy???
Ginger cookies: This is a new spin on an old, seasonal favorite. Gingersnaps get a makeover with this recipe: same spice, chewy twist. While many versions of this recipe are out there, I’ve messed around with the ingredients and have finalized the following recipe.
Tips for success: Do not over-bake. In fact, I suggest you undercook the cookies slightly to optimize the chewy texture, as they will continue to cook on the cookie sheet once they are removed from the oven.
1. Mix 2 ¼ c. flour, 2 tsp. ground ginger, 1 tsp. baking soda, 2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 tsp. ground cloves, and ¼ tsp. of salt in a bowl. Yes, that’s a lot of spices. Trust me… it’s worth it.
2. Cream ¾ c. room temp butter with ½ c. white sugar and ½ c. brown sugar. Add an egg and a little more than ¼ c. molasses.
3. Combine ALL ingredients! Dough should be a rich, brown color and sticky. Roll into little balls and coat in granulated sugar.
4. Grease a baking sheet and arrange cookies on it, flattening slightly with a fork. Make a crisscross pattern if you’re feeling extra creative.
5. Bake at 350°F for only about 5 minutes or until the BOTTOMS ONLY are crispy. Trust me. Serve with milk.
Bread pudding: Everyone is so focused on Thanksgiving dinner it’s easy to forget about BREAKFAST! Did you know you are more likely to overindulge if you skip meals? That may be the whole point of Thanksgiving dinner but… why not extend the tradition of yummy-food eating to the morning after? I don’t see why not. Bread pudding is probably the most delicious and also the easiest hot breakfast food out there (instant oatmeal doesn’t fit the first criterion, smart*ss).
1. Take an entire loaf of day-old bread. If it’s not properly slightly stale, toast each piece and then cut into 1-inch squares.
2. Beat 4 or 5 small eggs and whisk in about a quart of milk. Amounts are not hypercritical; the mixture needs to be gooey and have enough volume to submerge every last toast square. Stir in 2 Tbsp. vanilla, 2 Tbsp. whiskey, 1 tsp. cinnamon and a couple dashes of nutmeg.
3. THEN add the toast. Make sure the toast gets nice and soaked. If you want, add a cup of raisins to the mix. Only if you like hot and juicy raisins, though… no complaining later if you don’t.
4. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan (or so) and add bread pudding mixture. Bake at 350°F about 40 minutes or until properly set—it shouldn’t jiggle excessively. Remove from oven.
5. Melt a stick of butter and stir in 1 c. of sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Off heat, add 1 c. whiskey. Pour delicious sauce all over bread pudding before serving. Dust pudding with powdered sugar if you fancy. Serve with eggnog.
Classic apple pie: Anybody who can read the recipe on a pumpkin pie can make a pumpkin pie, right? Well, anybody who can do THAT can make applie pie, too… a more sophisticated holiday pie, in my opinion.
1. For the crust: mix 2 ¼ c. flour and 1 tsp. of salt in a bowl. “Cut” in ¾ c. shortening – that’s the gross white stuff. Um… what? “Cutting” refers to a very simple technique that you can do with a couple of forks. Basically, mash up the shortening into the flour until it forms pea-sized pieces. Mash it good.
2. Add about ½ c. of ice cold water, a little bit at a time. The amount of water you will need will vary depending on how “dry” your cooking environment is. Employ some basic chemistry skills. Use a standard barometer to measure the atmospheric pressure of your kitchen so that you can calculate the percent saturation of the air… I’m just messing with you. Toss around the flour mixture as you’re adding the water. Mix with your hands, if you’re so inclined. When you’ve added the correct amount of water, the dough should ball up nicely. Make sure you split it in two halves… top and bottom crust, yo!
3. On a lightly floured surface, lightly flour the top of your dough and your rolling pin and roll out to about ¼ inch thick. Fold the dough into quarters for an easy transfer to your greased pie pan… and then transfer. Let your other dough half hang out for a few minutes.
4. For your filling: peel and chop about 5 large apples of assorted variety. Cut into thin slices. Mix with ¾ c. white sugar, ¾ c. brown sugar, and ½ c. flour. Add 1-2 tsp. cinnamon and a couple dashes of nutmeg. Pour filling (yes, that is all it is…) into your prepared pie shell. Dot the surface of your filling with a couple tablespoons of butter.
5. Then, roll out your other dough half to ¼ inch thickness, fold into quarters, and place on top of pie filling. Pinch and crimp the edges of the pie (press down with your thumbs all the way around the pie). Trim the excess dough off the edges of the pie plate. THEN! Do a pretty pattern with a fork in the top of the pie. This is important so that steam can escape and your pretty pie does not explode. Finally, bake at 350°F for about 45 minutes or until pie is crispy and the filling is bubbly. Serve with vanilla ice cream and more eggnog.