Winter break means holidays, and holidays mean food. Whether it’s a giant Christmas dinner or your favorite dish from your favorite hometown restaurant, something about this time of year makes everyone want to eat. Here are four easy and delicious things that you can make during your time at home!
Saltine Toffee
Put it into festive baggies, and give it as gifts!
This recipe only has five ingredients and requires no fancy equipment (as opposed to most toffees that require a candy thermometer), so it can make even cooking novices look like pros!
1 sleeve of saltine crackers
1 cup of unsalted butter (2 sticks)
¾ cup of dark brown sugar
2 cups of chocolate chips or broken up chocolate bars
1 cup of chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds … whatever’s your fancy!)
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a pan (not a flat cookie sheet, but a baking pan that is about 1 inch deep) with parchment paper, because this will make getting the toffee out much easier and less sticky.
Lay the saltines in a single layer on top of the parchment paper.
In a saucepan on the stove, mix the sugar and the butter. Stir to be sure the butter melts and then bring to a boil. Let boil for 3 minutes without stirring, and then take it straight from the stove to the pan and pour it on top of the saltine layer.
Bake this saltine-toffee concoction for 5-6 minutes in your 400 degree oven, then remove and sprinkle the chocolate on top of the piping hot toffee. Allow 5 minutes for the chocolate to melt, then spread it evenly over top the toffee. Sprinkle with the chopped nuts (optional).
Don’t try to take the toffee out of the pan until it is completely cooled! It will take a few hours, unfortunately, because at this point you probably want to stuff your face with chocolaty goodness. Give it as gifts or keep it all for yourself—your call!
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Chicken Chili
When it’s cold outside, there is nothing better than a hearty soup!
I got this recipe from one of my favorite celebrity chefs, Ina Garten, who lives and cooks in the Hamptons and is certainly one of the greatest betch chefs.
2-3 yellow onions, chopped
1/8 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of minced garlic
2 red bell peppers
2 yellow bell peppers
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
Dried red pepper flakes to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
2 cans, or 28 ounces, of whole peeled tomatoes in puree, undrained
2 teaspoons of kosher salt
¼ a cup of minced fresh basil
Black pepper
When it comes to the chicken, I took the ultimate shortcut: rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. It still tastes as delicious and cuts down the cooking time by over half. And since you’re making the rest of the chili, you won’t be lying when you say you made it yourself! Personally, I don’t feel even the slightest bit guilty.
Completely core, de -vain and seed the red and yellow peppers. What this means is cut out everything on the insides that is white or white-ish, and it will be bitter and just make your chili look ugly. Chop the flesh (the bright red and/or yellow parts of your pepper) into a medium dice.
Pour the olive oil and the chopped onions into a large pot and cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add in the peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper and salt and let cook for another minute.
Now it gets fun: crush the tomatoes by literally squeezing them to death. You don’t want there to be any huge chunks, because then someone’s bite of chili could be nothing but tomato. After everything is crushed, pour the entire contents of the cans into the pot. Add the basil last.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally!
While the base of the chili is simmering, remove the meat of your chicken from the bones and peel off the skin. Chop the meat into bite-sized pieces, or if it’s easier, shred with a fork. The texture isn’t important, just make sure it’ll fit in a spoon!
Add the chicken to the chili and let simmer for 15-20 more minutes, until it’s reached the thickness you like. What’s great about this chili is that you can serve it immediately or put in the fridge and reheat when you’re ready to eat!
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Christmas Morning Breakfast Casserole
I discovered this recipe years ago, and now we eat it every Christmas morning!
1 cup of quick grits. Not instant grits, quick grits. I’m honestly not sure the difference, but it matters. Just read the box carefully.
4 cups of water
1 teaspoon of salt
1 pound of pork sausage
4 eggs, lightly beaten
½ milk
1 stick of butter, softened
6 oz shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat the oven to 360 degrees.
Brown the pork sausage in a pan until completely cooked. Remove from the pan and spread out on a large paper towel to drain out some of the oil. Set aside.
Bring the water and the salt to a boil in a large pot. Once boiling, add the grits, stirring occasionally for 4-6 minutes. Take it off the heat.
Take about 2 spoonfuls of the grits and add them to the lightly beaten eggs and mix. This will help bring the eggs and the grits to a more similar temperature so that the eggs won’t scramble when you add them in! Then add all of the eggs to the grits’ pot. Stir in the sausage, about 2/3 of the cheese, the milk and the butter. Salt and pepper to taste!
Pour the mixture into a greased 9×13 inch pan. Don’t stress if your pan isn’t exactly 9×13 inches, just whatever you have closest in size, and make sure it’s greased well!
Sprinkle the leftover cheese on top and bake for 50-55 minutes.
Serve immediately after taking out of the oven!
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The Easiest Holiday Cocktail You Will Ever Make
I can’t even take credit for this … Smirnoff just conveniently released its marshmallow-flavored vodka just in time for the holidays!
Simply add 1-2 ounces of Smirnoff Fluffed to your mug of hot chocolate! A timeless winter classic, grown-up style!