It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

That's probably the most overused blog post title in December, but since this quick update is really just a handful of iPhone photos strung together, it IS all about the visuals of the season.

Above is our buffet, with a few Pinterest-inspired centerpieces that were easy and affordable. How awesome is Pinterest for party planning and inspiration?!

And I love our simple twig tree, bare except for a few felt ornaments courtesy of Ikea.


Tourtiere happened this week, many of them. I even turned some of the pie crust and filling into hand pies for party appetizers. They also work pretty great for Noah's school lunches.


I got my Christmas present early. Ahh. A fantastic new Le Creuset flagship store opened at my local shopping mall. It's the first of its kind in Quebec and I was fortunate enough to be invited to the press opening.

Thanks to a gift certificate, I choose a new kettle - the 1.7L Whistling Tea Kettle in Cherry red, to leave with me. It already looks right at home in my kitchen. Then again, most anything from that store would...


Homemade mincemeat also was chopped, simmered, and jarred this week. Tarts soon followed and it finally feels like Christmas.


This year my annual cookie swap may have topped all proceeding events, with sponsors, press, a successful fundraiser, and, of course, stacks of beautiful homemade cookies. Here's the recap on Simple Bites, and if you're in the Montreal area, watch CTV news at 6 on Sunday, December 11 for the story.


The first snow came and went, and hasn't been seen since. If feels a little odd as we're December already, but getting into the winter coat and boots isn't so easy with a six-month-pregnant belly, so I'm not wishing for snow just yet.


One of the most fun holiday treats this year has to be these Peppermint Marshmallow Kisses. We've been popping them into hot cocoa and our mouths! Come to think of it, there isn't a single one left.

To make them for yourself, take my basic marshmallow recipe and replace the vanilla with 1 teaspoon peppermint extract. Add a few drops of red food coloring but do not mix it in. Fill a pipping bag with a #12 tip (or your favorite) and pipe kisses onto a greased parchment paper. Sprinkle with crushed candy cane and allow to set for at least 6 hours. Dust with powdered sugar and store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.


It just wouldn't be Christmas without gingerbread. We devoted a recent PED day of Noah's to making, rolling and baking nearly 10 dozen cookies. It was epic fun and they did a great job.


Noah (now 6) and Mateo (4 in Feb) are both such pros in the kitchen now. I actually really relied on them for cutting and rolling the dough while I took care of baking and cooling the cookies.


The next day we worked on frosting, that sweet, sticky task. My basic recipe for both dough and royal icing can be found here. Shaina's also just posed a fun tutorial on the many variations of the gingerbread cookie.


Snow falling on trees; these won't last long.


Stockings have been hung, and my current obsession with cardinals leaked onto our personalized felt Christmas stockings. Notice the pink one for Baby Girl?


Lastly, Pumpkin Challah has been made and frozen for toasting on Christmas morning or perhaps lending itself to French Toast.

What is Christmas looking like in your home?

Homesick

This photo puts both a smile on my face and a weight on my heart at the same time. It's my mother's Thanksgiving table set from last Monday. She told me she spent an hour putting it together.

I love the mismatched chairs, the light coming in, the antique water glasses, and colorful Denby dishes. Most of all I love that she is there in the kitchen, slicing homemade pies (made with fruit from her own plum tree) before the guests arrive.

I'm sad that I wasn't there. I can't remember the last time we celebrated Thanksgiving together. It's easily been ten years. Sure we celebrated the holiday here in Montreal (twice, actually), but there is nothing like being with your own family and knowing you are loved. Despite everything.


I love you, Mom. Don't ever change.

WW: Easter Egg Hunt

Holiday Highlights

Nearly two weeks into the new year, and I'm finally feeling ready for anything. The last few traces of Christmas have been packed up, the remaining cookies sent to Danny's co-workers, and we've hit a comfortable grove.

Now a menu plan is in place, the fridge has been overhauled (good-bye triple cream brie, hello kale), and Noah is back in school. That alone forces a routine into our daily goings and comings, and the rest falls into place.

I've been cooking and freezing food for Danny and the boys to eat while I'm gone to Blissdom, (uh-huh, leaving in two weeks for a little blogging conference in the States), brainstorming like crazy for blogging in 2011 and getting out with the boys everyday for walks and sledding.

Since this winter feels like it's flying by, I thought I better do a holiday recap before Easter is upon us. At first I didn't think I had anything to recount, as we took our two weeks very slow and laid-back. For once I didn't invite guests over for practically ever day, and declined to many events with regrets (sort of).

It was lovely. And memories were made, great food enjoyed,

Skimming through iphoto showed that we did do enough to warrant a recap, so here are some of the best holiday moments, in no particular order (because they uploaded all wonky).


The Christmas morning table at my in-laws, bracing for the load of blueberry pancakes, bacon, sausages, fruit salad, bagels & lox, and some 19 guests.


The boy cousins on my husband's side, sporting handmade vests from Grandma D. My two there on the left.


Homemade gingerbread ornaments that kept the house smelling like Christmas. No scented candles here.


Good times playing with food and cameras with these kind folk on New Year's Eve. I'm all for simple entertaining on New Year's.


Our pot-luck menu for eight:

• Homemade tourtiere (Quebec pork pie)
  
• Salad of fennel, pecans, pomegranate, and feta.
• Potato & parsnip gratin
• Butternut squash & ancetta risotto
• Asparagus with lemon-dill compound butter
  

One of our many NYE desserts, Berries & Cream Pavlova. The perfect finish to 2010.


Midnight came while we were still sipping the last of our coffees and we toasted with champagne, kissed, set off fireworks, and celebrated my double win in the Canadian Weblog Awards. Incredibly, Simple Bites took home Best New Weblog and third place in Best Food Weblog. !


New Year's Day. 3am. Good times with A and A.


Christmas Dinner at home. (I told you these photos were all mixed up!)
Relaxed and fun. More or less this menu. Should have done away with the hideous candles, though. Cook, I can, dress a table? Not so much.


Admission: we fed the kids, then put them to bed before sitting down to dinner. Aahhhhhhh. Peace, quiet, adult conversation, and the chance to savor hot food.
Best Christmas present ever.


A Christmas day game of Memory, of course.


Christmas Day dessert: Black Forest Trifle with home canned cherries, which seemed like a better idea than it was; I didn't love it. I think Black Forest is best left in cake form, and one should not mess too much with a perfect, classic trifle.

We also savored the mincemeat tart pictured at the top of the post. Served warm with whipped cream, I could have eaten half of it. Maybe I did.


Sisters. And gifts. The best gift was escorting each other to this spa a few days later, though.


My homemade gifts this year consisted of:

• Candycane Marshmallows (so good in hot cocoa)
  
• Chai-Spiced Granola
• Assorted cookies from The Swap
• Tourtiere

And each child had their own gingerbread man with their initial. Simple and handmade.


Horrible wrapping paper, but it brought such smiles. The gingerbread didn't last long at all.


Between Christmas & New Years, I took time to make a vibrant batch of pink grapefruit & pomegranate marmalade.


And this outing to Montreal landmark, Wilensky's, was memorable and fun. Loved all the feedback I got over the Wordless Wednesday post!

So there you have it!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

Today was spent playing 'Memory', assembling puzzles, eating Christmas cookies and leftover Black Forest Trifle, tromping through the snow and sledding down hills, coming home for hot cocoa, and eating turkey leftovers for dinner.

We're really, really enjoying the holidays.

I've been taking a much-needed blogging break....but did manage to throw together a little video to wish readers happy holidays. Please stop by Simple Bites to receive holiday greetings from the whole family...

There's also been Classic Tourtière, a pretty Citrus Salad (which got picked up by both Glamour and Gourmet. !), and a lengthy, personal and much-loved recap of my holiday cookie swap.

Here's hoping your holiday was a special one.

Mince Pie and a video demo

When Danny walked in the door Friday afternoon, he leaned on the door frame, and was completely overcome by an enormous yawn. While his mouth gaped, I laughed at him, because the yawn said it all. It was the end of a long week, a long couple of months, and the beginning of holidays!

It's Christmas vacation!! Well, for Danny, anyway. I'm still hard at work, one of the downsides of working from home. One doesn't just tidy a desk, flip the answering machine to 'away' and take off for two weeks.

I took last night off though. Once two exhausted little kiddos were asleep, Danny made lattes and I baked off a mince pie, (a total cinch, thanks to jars of homemade mincemeat in the fridge and chilled pie crust) and we retreated to our cozy loft to chill and chat about the whole two weeks ahead.

We're looking at a surprisingly relaxed holiday season, mostly because we haven't just moved (one year ago) and I'm not attempting to invite every single person we know over AND attend every event on the calendar.

Sometimes, I do the right thing.




Let's talk about this mincemeat, though.

You may recall I made a Canadian version of this traditional holiday pie filling last year, which I went rather ape over. Seriously, the homemade stuff cannot compare with store bought. Shocking, I know.

This year, I was planning on making more, but hadn't picked up all the ingredients. In fact, a few days of serious snow had me put off grocery shopping altogether and I avoided exiting the house as much as possible. (Thanks goodness for Skype and *high-five* to all work-at-home peeps!)

So here I am one recent morning, with very few groceries, entertaining a Montreal Gazette reporter and photographer in my home for an interview/photo shoot (for a future feature, not out yet) when the photog mentions that his editor wants him to shoot a cooking demo video as well.

Oh. OK. A little notice would have been nice. I scrambled together ingredients for mincemeat and we shot the clip below in one take. A few hours later it was up on the Gazette website, and my mincemeat was stashed in the refrigerator for the holidays. Not a bad morning!



A few notes from the impromptu cooking demo:

• 1/2 cup maple syrup is too much. I should have said 1/4. But then again, I like my mince on the tart side and not too sweet.
• I listed cognac as an option for the alcoholic ingredient. I meant brandy. Please don't use cognac! Rum, whiskey or port are also great options.
• I prefer currants to raisins, but didn't have any in the house.
• You can grate the apple if you like a finer mincemeat.
  

Head here for the full recipe.

Do give the recipe a go, then tuck it between two flaky layers of pastry and enjoy the best pie of the season.

Happy Holidays!

Winners, all of them

That you all for your patience; I know I've slacked off terribly in announcing the winners to my Phaidon Press cookbook giveaway.

I won't make you wait another minute. There are two winners, as promised:

Congratulations to....

Damaris Santos-Palmer of Kitchen Corners who said:

"I really hope I win this because I seriously want the kids cookbook so bad. Currently I'm enjoying Crazy About Cookies by Krystina Castella. So good!"

And

Sam of Gastronomists Weekly who said:

"I am currently baking my way through The Bread Bakers Apprentice by Peter Reinhart. Loving it and learning a lot about bread in the process :)."

Congratulations, ladies!! You have both been notified by email.

A warm thank you to each and everyone who entered the giveaway. I really wish I could award cookbooks to each of you. (please Santa!)


There was also another winner this weekend. Yesterday I hosted my annual Christmas cookie swap and we voted for the best cookie. Twelve girls each contributed the 'Best Cookie of their Lives' and let me tell you, the competition was fierce.

The wining cookie is pictured at the top of the post, Spice Cookie Sandwiches with a Lemon-Mascarpone Cream.

Oh.my.goodness.

I was happy award the lovely Jess with her prize: The Gourmet Cookie Book. Congrats, Jess!

Look for a full report of the cookie swap soon. It's Here! It's Here!

A Cookbook Giveaway (or three)

This giveaway is now closed. Check back soon for the winners!

Lest you think all the giveaway fun only happens on that other blog of mine, allow me share a very special giveaway opportunity with you today.

Friends at the most amazing Phaidon Press are helping me to give away three of my absolute favorite cookbooks to Under the High Chair readers! Not one, but TWO winners will receive all three cookbooks you see below. Oh yeah! For a couple of readers, your cookbook collection is about to get a lot richer.

Say, did you know Phaidon Press was named as the Best Cookbook Publisher in the World at The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards earlier this year? I know! I just love them. Now here is the awesome thing about these three cookbooks from Phaidon and why I'm so excited to feature them in this giveaway...

There's a cookbook here for everyone.

The young cook.
The home cook.
The gourmand.

No matter where you fit in those various stages of culinary mastery, one of the following cookbooks are sure to fit you like a glove.

The Silver Spoon for Children

• Title: The Silver Spoon for Children: Favorite Italian Recipes
• Author: Amanda Grant
• Illustrator: Harriet Russell

Yippee! Finally here is a cookbook for my kids with nary a sprinkle or mini-marshmallow in sight. Instead it is full of over forty well-balanced recipes that feature wholesome ingredients such as beans, fish and vegetables. All dishes are depicted with absolutely charming step-by-step illustrations that present cooking as fun - and it already holds the attention of my 5-year old.

Noah pounced on The Silver Spoon for Children the second it arrived. He sat down and proceeded to read it for nearly thirty minutes. Have I mentioned he's five?

He then had me read him the recipe for Rigatoni and Meatballs, while he followed along with the illustrations, his finger slowly spanning the page. Well, that was that, we had to make dinner together that very night and we did.

Only we changed it up for spaghetti and meatballs. (Yes, I'm teaching him substitution and adaptation early.)

There's no question that this is the cookbook that will nurture every seed I have already planted in my boys and help inspire a lifetime love of cooking.

What to Cook and How to Cook It

• Title: What to Cook and How to Cook it
• Author: Jane Hornby

This cookbook is the next best thing to having a personal chef demonstrating right in your own kitchen. It really is the ultimate step-by-step illustrated cookbook for adults; each recipe is depicted with clarity and demonstrated with as many as eight photos, leaving little room for question.

What to Cook and How to Cook It IS perfect for beginners, but also compelling for experienced cooks as well. I love its clean, simple layout; somehow it makes the task of preparing dinner seem relaxing.

Recipes are classics: Cinnamon Buns, Barbecue Ribs, Apple Pie, Spaghetti Bolognese.

You find all of your favorite comfort food on the pages of What to Cook and How to Cook it, and with such tantalizing visuals, you'll be opening this cookbook frequently.

NOMA

Title: Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine
Author:René Redzepi
Photographer: Ditte Isager

It sounds like the sappiest thing to say, but this cookbook took my breath away when it arrived. I believe I tweeted:

"NOMA! Just received this astonishing cookbook?artwork?manual? from Phaidon. Almost want to weep at the beauty of it. #coffeetablestatus"

After one rapturous trip through the cookbook and its extraordinarily beautiful photos, I immediately cleared a place of honor on my coffee table for Noma.

Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine is the new cookbook from chef René Redzepi, a chef who's passion is to create something from nature. His Copenhagen restaurant, Noma, holds the prestigious title of, well, The Worlds Best Restaurant. Yeah, serious stuff.

Will I ever cook from it? Never say never, so I'll say probably, one day. Will I frequently flip through it, sigh over the photographs, find inspiration in the essays and draw from chef Rene's refreshing philosophies of food and nature? Absolutely.

Boasting 365 pages, 200 photographs, 90 recipes, and an education in Nordic cuisine, Noma is THE most sensational addition to my sizable cookbook collection this year.


Giveaway!!

The prize package includes the following cookbooks from Phaidon Press.

• The Silver Spoon for Children: Favorite Italian Recipes
  
• What to Cook and How to Cook it
  
• Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine
  

Two winners will be selected to receive the prize package.

How to enter:

Let keep this simple, shall we?

Leave a comment to enter this giveaway answering this question: "What cookbook are you currently enjoying?"

This giveaway will end Friday, December 10, 2010 and 11:59 pm. Good luck to all!