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Christmas is coming and the goose is getting fat...
I really can't tell you how much I love the holidays. Why I love it is easier to explain: twinkle lights and fir trees, dressing up for parties and, of course, food. The list could go on and on, but for the purposes of this article, let's stick with food.
There are two types of holiday dining—in or out. I believe that the season deserves a healthy serving of both home cooking, and a chance to delight in the efforts of the professionals. I visited a few of my favorite restaurants to find out what they were doing for the holidays, and to see if I might pick up a few tips for entertaining at home.
A Trunk Full of Panettone, and Gnocchi the Roman Way for Firehouse Restaurant's Matthew Busetto
I've always wanted to have a big traditional Italian feast for Christmas Eve. I knew who to ask about recreating that—Matthew Busetto, chef and co-owner of the Firehouse Restaurant. He says that different regions have different traditions, but his family had two that they held steadfast—Panettone and lentils with sausage.
The crew at Firehouse Restaurant. Bring a little Firehouse to your home with Chef Busetto's semolina gnocchi recipe.
"My father was obsessed with finding the best deals on Panettone. He would fill the trunk of his car with them," Busetto tells me. "Once he found a grocery store where they were ringing up less than they were marked, so he filled the trunk and the backseat. He called it the deal of the century, a Christmas gift from God himself."
The Busettos would have it for breakfast, dunking it in cappuccino, but sometimes for a nighttime treat as well. They ate it from November to February—until his father's car was empty.
For Christmas Eve, the Busettos opted for a Northern Italian tradition of serving a hearty meal of sausage and lentils. The tradition dates back to a siege of the Italian city of Modena in the 1500's when hunger birthed culinary ingenuity. With little food, someone came up with the idea of boning pigs' forelegs and stuffing them with a mixture of ground pork, pork rinds, and spices. A super fatty, gelatinous sausage was born—the Zampone.
In the interest of health, Busetto has since modified this recipe by using a less fatty meat and casings to make his own sausage. With a family of his own now, he continues some of the traditions of his Italian heritage, and combines them with new traditions that he will pass on to his own son. This year, Matthew and his wife Elizabeth will sit down to a dinner of red wine braised lentils and sausage, braised beef cheeks with wild mushrooms and creamy polenta, and semolina gnocchi with pork ragu. This more traditionally Roman preparation of gnocchi has no potato in it at all, and has a richness and flavor all its own.
"It's easy, delicious, and festive," he says, encouraging me to make it at home. I don't know—it sounds like he's got this whole meal down pat, so I might just bring my party over to the Firehouse. Get the recipe for Busetto's semolina gnocchi. Get the recipe!
See what Chef Busetto has planned for New Year's Eve dinner at the Firehouse here.
Holiday Spirits from Ten-01's Kelley Swenson
My next stop was Ten-01, the swanky Brewery Blocks restaurant to talk with Kelley Swenson, considered by many to be one of the best bartenders in town, about his recommendations for festive cocktails that wouldn't break the bank.
He suggested making what he calls a Winter Spice Syrup—a simple syrup made complex and wonderful with the addition of crushed, toasted cloves, cinnamon sticks, allspice berries and star anise. He suggested using it in a holiday punch, which could be mixed individually into drinks, giving guests their choice of spirits (he recommends gin, vodka, or aquavit). Tasting his samples, I decided that my favorite was the aquavit, followed closely by gin. The vodka was okay, but markedly less festive. I loved the garnish of kaffir lime leaves and cranberries, that stood in nicely for holly. Sold—this one will definitely be on my holiday party menu. Get the recipe!
Kelley Swenson of Ten-01. Be sure to include Swenson's festive holiday cocktails at your holiday party. Photo: Ten-01
Now for stocking the bar; always a daunting experience for me. How can I offer my guests variety without maxing my credit card out at the liquor store? Swenson had great ideas for stocking a holiday bar for a hundred bucks. Sounded good to me.
He emphasizes a departure from brand fixation, and instead realize that good taste can come from less flashy bottles. If you're really concerned that a party-goer will balk if they don't see Ketel One behind the bar, Swenson suggests pouring the spirits into modern or vintage decanters, which, in my opinion, will add to your cheerful quotient immeasurably anyway.
He starts by suggesting the $12 Sobieski Polish Vodka.
"Stay away from brands that market themselves as premium," he warns, saying that that is a meaningless moniker. "When looking for a vodka, you want one that is clean and without any impurities."
For gin he recommends Seagram's Extra Dry—shockingly low priced at $10 a bottle. He calls it a "secret weapon," that he believes, with its assertive, floral flavor, can out perform most high-end gins. I was picturing it in my delicious holiday punch already.
Nothing is more festive than brandy, but the French-made brands could easily blow your budget. Swenson suggests American brandy as a less-expensive and quite passable alternative. Germain-Robin, he says, makes an artisan brandy that, at under $40, will still impress.
Tequila has grown tremendously in popularity, meaning more of your guests are likely to notice the quality of tequila you serve, so Swenson suggests serving only 100% Agave Tequila. Some of the less expensive Tequilas are mixed with other spirits, but, for $18 a bottle, Swenson suggests El Jimador Reposado, inexpensive 100% Agave Tequila. Offering good warmth with an absence of unpleasant burning, it is a great deal for a Tequila good enough to be sipped all on its own.
Bourbon is another spirit featured in many holiday cocktails, and it can be found in a wide range of price points. Swenson explains that all Kentucky Bourbon distillers share the same recipes, and that Old Weller 107 uses the same methods as Makers Mark for a fraction of the price. Add it to your stock list for twenty-five bucks.
Inspired and fears of bankruptcy eased, I thanked Swenson, and continued on my holiday treasure hunt.
Mother's Bistro Chef/Owner Lisa Schroeder Shares a Recipe from her Mother
I like mixing traditions, too, and really love a dish more often associated with Hanukkah than Christmas. Potato latkes are a delicious, wintry comfort-food, and I knew just who would have the perfect recipe. Lisa Shroeder, chef and owner of Mother's Bistro and Mama Mia Trattoria is famous for her holiday meals. She just released her first ever cookbook—Mother's Best: Comfort Food That Takes You Home Again—that honors all that she learned about cooking from her mother, Belle Cohen Schroeder.
Raised during the depression by Russian-Jewish immigrants, Belle began her restaurant career as a waitress at the age of sixteen. She ended up marrying her boss and became a restaurateur. Together they owned a number of restaurants, and Belle wore many different hats—cook, waitress, hostess and manager. The marriage didn't work out, but Belle was undeterred, opening her own tiny luncheonette, called "The Little Spot"—with only 3 booths and 13 stools.
"She made everything from scratch every day, and waited on the customers, too. She was a trailblazer—a single mother of two running a successful business back in the 50's. She met my father in 1955, they married in 1956, she sold her restaurant, and I was born a year later," says Shroeder.
Belle passed away when Lisa was only twenty-one.
"There's no doubt I inherited my cooking abilities from her," Lisa confesses. She remembers her mother hosting many family dinners, fancy French buffets for 30 friends, and cooking for her family every night.
"I still remember the kvells [oohing and ahhing] of the family while they were sipping my mother's matzo ball soup or eating her made-from-scratch gefilte fish," Lisa reminices. "I only wish she were alive today to taste mine."
I can't wait to taste her latkes! She has a bit of advice on the recipe.
Wanna try Lisa Schroeder's latkes at home? You can—with her mother's fabulous recipe. Photo: Mother's Bistro
"The key to light, crispy potato pancakes is not scrimping on the oil and squeezing out as much liquid as possible from the grated potatoes and onions before mixing them with the eggs and flour. Don't rinse the grated potatoes—their natural starch helps hold the pancakes together."
Go to Mother's during Hanukkah for brisket and latkes, and check out their anniversary/new year's day party:
New Year's Day Anniversary Party at Mother's and Mama Mia (Being Rescheduled!)
On January 1, Mother's Bistro & Bar is celebrating its 10th year in business; Mama Mia Trattoria, its fifth year. To commemorate these momentous anniversaries, Lisa is celebrating with a New Year's Day, Night Pajama Party. $25.00 per person includes food, drink & entertainment; one price gets you into both venues for all events and $5.00 will be donated to the Bradley Angle House. She's invited DJ Aquaman, Northwest Gospel Choir, and Aunt Lena to perform. Call for details: 503-464-1122.
Editor's Note: We just received word that this party will be rescheduled later in January. Something to look forward to in 2010—isn't Chef Lisa thoughtful?
Christmas Eve Brunch, and a Cure for What Ails You, At Country Cat
Speaking of comfort food, Adam and Jackie Sappington are bringing some comfort. They'll open their Country Cat restaurant on New Year's Day, offering not only Dungeness Crab benedict to the post-New Year's Eve revelers, but also a special "cocktail hangover elixir" sure to bring comfort to those who may have overindulged the night before. Get the recipe!
They'll also be open for brunch on Christmas Eve, before heading home to be with their two sons to expand on their own family tradition of choosing a different area of the world for a festive themed dinner. Different regions of Italy, Mexico, and India have been family favorites; on Christmas day they stick with just one menu—clam chowder and Caesar salad.
Good Luck for the New Year from Andina
I always think of Andina when I think of festive locales for an evening out, so I wondered if "Mama Doris," Andina owner Doris Rodriguez de Platt, had any holiday traditions to share. And she did—involving grapes, the color yellow, and an empty suitcase.
"My family has always celebrated "good omens" for the coming year," said Rodriguez de Platt. "We believe the twelve grapes bring good luck if they are all eaten by the last stroke of midnight." Wearing yellow, and carrying an empty suitcase around the block on New Year's Eve is a Peruvian tradition that is meant to bring adventure and travel in the New Year. Rodriguez de Platt said that on New Year's Eve she'll be found at Andina in yellow with suitcase in hand.
"Guests can certainly borrow my suitcase," she announced. They can also opt to eat their grapes as the French might—in the form of champagne. Check out the menu options here.
It Looks Like the Dickens at Gilt Club this Christmas
Chris Carriker, chef at the ever-festive Gilt Club, shows that he shares my love of tradition by offering a very Christmas-y goose dinner, from December 9th through the rest of the month. Offering a choice of either 3 goose-focused courses (including goose and duck terrine, goose confit salad, and goose breast) or a goose entrée by itself, this unexpected, old-fashioned treat in the middle of Old Town sounds as good as their Dickensian Special Spirits Christmas Eve menu. Diners choose items from three "ghost" menus—the past, present, and future, which can be paired with optional cocktails from their inventive list. Always a little intimidated by the idea of cooking my own goose, leaving it up to a chef whose proven he knows how to handle fowl, seems like a sure-fire way for the bird to live up to my yuletide expectations.
Ring in New Year's Eve at Gilt Club. Photo: Gilt Club
Goose Dinners at Gilt Club
Gilt Club Ghost of Menus Past Christmas Eve
Gilt Club New Years Eve Menu
A Christmas Break, and a Break from Tradition
The food and staff at Toro Bravo makes every day feel like a holiday, so it is no surprise that they are sticking with their regular, extensive menu for New Year's Eve. They will add some festive cocktails to their drink menu, however, featuring many champagne-based cocktails and house-infused bourbons.
All your favorites are on the holiday menu at Toro Bravo. Photo:Toro Bravo
They will close for Christmas Eve and Day, allowing their staff to spend the holidays with family, and allowing chef/owner John Gorham to indulge in a holiday tradition of his own making—Christmas morning dim sum. He assures me that this is more popular than you might think, saying that there is usually a long wait for a table at Wong's King, the Southeast Division Street Chinese restaurant famous for their dim sum. This year, he is prepared to wait in style, perhaps with a Bloody Mary or Bailey's and coffee, in his recently purchased 1973 VW bus. Now that is a new way to spend Christmas morning.
Here are some other places to consider this holiday season:
Castagna
with a traditional Basque menu and more
Metrovino
two New Year's Eve tasting menus—one for omnivores and one for vegetarians (both with or without wine)
Heathman
soulful New Year's Eve with Patrick Lamb's R&B
Jupiter Hotel's Distillery Row Package
not a restaurant, but a really cool idea from a cool little hotel
