By Melissa Ruggieri
We’ve all been there.
Rushing through the mall, trying to hit that last couple of sales before proclaiming victory (or defeat) for the afternoon and, suddenly, the temptation overwhelms us.
We might not even be hungry, but we’re surrounded by food. And the worst of it – the cookies, the pretzels, the frozen yogurt with a cup of hot fudge – is the most enticing. Read the full story
Rachel Rinker is the winner of our Holiday Cookie Contest.
Video: Learn how to make Rachel Rinker’s winning batch
They flurried in like snowflakes, the confections of this year’s Holiday Cookie Contest. And they descended upon Cookie Headquarters in full bling mode, decked out in royal icing, sparkles and candy bits.
Take our First Place-winning entry, Rachel Rinker’s Gingerbread Christmas Cookies: These cookies were dressed to the nines in vivid icing and Bavarian squiggles that brought the cut-out shapes (reindeers, gingerbread men and ginger houses) to life. They were just as delicious to nibble on, too — buttery and not overly sweet, full of ginger-cinnamon holiday flavors. Read the full story
Wine pairings by sommelier Joshua Liberman. Chestnut soup, red velvet cupcake
Award-winning chef Michelle Bernstein hosted a Holiday cooking class this past Saturday at The Omphoy in Palm Beach.
Her executive chef, Lindsay Autry, was also on hand to demo dishes for the four-course Holiday brunch.
Sommelier Joshua Liberman paired magnificent wines with each course. Sarah Ortiz, the pastry chef, was on hand and prepared the decadent red velvet cupcakes. Read the full story
More: Holiday guide | Holiday dining
“Dear Santa,” writes the foodie, settling in with a cup of hot chocolate that has been laced with orange zest and vanilla and a pinch of dried chile de arbol. She gazes at the crisp, blank page, reading its infinite, delicious potential.
“All I want for Christmas is Eric Ripert.” Read the full story
Anne Byrn, author of The Cake Mix Doctor series visited St. Petersburg recently on a book tour. She stopped by Food Editor Janet Keeler's kitchen for a baking session.
More: Holiday Dining | Holiday events, photos and more!
Dear Liz,
Several years ago – probably 2006 or 2007 – I was avidly reading all the holiday cookie contest winning recipes when I found a Winner. The trouble is that after I made several batches of the bar cookies and gave them as gifts, the recipe grew legs and ran away!
The cookie base was a box of devil’s food cake mix evenly distributed in a 9-by-11-inch pan and topped with a can of condensed milk, coconut, chocolate chips and chopped nuts – and maybe other things as well.
DB's BatterUp Cookie Dough, made in Lantana by Denise Garling and Cathy Beck, is sold in 32-ounce tubs that make about 3 dozen cookies.
By Amelia Gonzalez
Personal chef Denise Garling used to fly across the nation to prepare the meals of famous clients, including President Gerald Ford and President George H.W. Bush. Today, after 30 years of culinary experience, the Jupiter resident partnered with her former co-worker and best friend, Cathy Beck, 51, to create a line of gourmet cookies.
“Denise had the idea of selling frozen cookie dough, and when she told me about it, we shook hands on it and took it from there,” Beck said.
Seasons 52 pastry chef Paula Perlis based the mini on a recipe from her mother.
There’s always room for dessert – even when there’s no room for anything else, even after the turkey bones have been picked clean and the stuffing devoured. There’s always room for a mini-indulgence.
The right mini-dessert can be as lush as a chunk of cheesecake. If you’ve ever dined at Seasons 52, where every flavor-packed dish is under 475 calories, you know this is true.
This Thanksgiving, the upscale national chain with restaurants in Palm Beach Gardens and Boca Raton will be serving a short-and-sweet version of pumpkin pie. Read the full story
Vegetable sides can be the most virtuous players in the pageantry of the Thanksgiving meal, but only if they’re cooked and finished the right way.
After all, veggies are low in calories and fat until you add lots of calories and fat to them. Which is easy to do with many traditional sides. The traditional creamy green bean casserole, for example, usually sports tons of butter and is topped with greasy fried onions.
The trick is to prepare the vegetables in a way that keeps them flavorful and satisfying without adding tons of fat. For this, you need moisture. Read the full story
Slices of fried turkey cooked in a turkey cooker are ready to be surrounded by Thanksgiving side dishes. The turkey cooker is produced by Masterbuilt, a Columbus, Ga. company headed by John McLemore (Renee Brock / For the AJC)
By BOB TOWNSEND
Brothers Don and John McLemore fondly recall Thanksgiving 1982 as the time they tried out one of their first and best inventions.
“I called my mom and said, ‘Momma, don’t cook a turkey,’ ” John remembered. “I told her Don and I were going to cook the turkey for the whole family. She kind of got a kick out of that.”
“But I think she was pretty worried about leaving Thanksgiving dinner to a couple of teenage boys,” Don said.
As the favorite family tale goes, Don and John hatched a plot to show up at 4:30 for a 6 o’clock dinner, armed with a raw turkey and their secret weapon, a new turkey fryer they’d fashioned out of a fish cooker.
Read the full story
By GRACIE BONDS STAPLES
From $50 turkeys to just the right Napa wine, ingredients for the perfect Thanksgiving feast can put a hole in any budget, especially in these hard economic times.
But don’t lose heart. Regardless of your financial means, you can have a great meal and spruce up your home, too, said Shelley Wolson, author of “Budget Celebrations: The Hostess Guide to Year-Round Entertaining on a Dime.”
“The basic rule is you have to allow people to bring food,” said Wolson. “I think people are expecting to help out this year, especially.”
Read the full story
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