Not Your Mother's Cookbooks

Ever since its debut in the 1950s, the bundt cake pan has become de rigeur in every baker’s equipment stable. Originally a whimsical alternate to the smooth angel food cake tube pan, the bundt mold with its fetching large-lobed flute design transforms a simple tube cake into a gourmet gateaux by visuals alone.

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It’s technically the end of the cranberry season. But I notice big piles of cranberries in the produce section, begging to be taken home and frozen for use throughout the year. Hopefully you stashed a few bags in the freezer to hold you over until next fall holiday season. Frozen cranberries are excellent for making muffins, quick breads, even in stews or as one of your favorite cranberry sauces at Easter, if you haven’t noticed.

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the traditional thanksgiving plate/bless the abundance

Overview

Recommended Size: Large oval for turkey, medium round or oval for cranberry sauce
Machine Setting and Cook Time: High Heat: 4 1/2 to 6 hours for turkey; High Heat: 1 hour, then 2 to 3…

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Overview

Cooker: Large Oval
Machine Setting and Cook Time: Low Heat: 6 to 7 hours
Serves 2 to 4 (depending if you want a whole or half hen)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• 1/2 cup chopped celery (include some leaves)

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1 (6-ounce) package…

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I started making steamed puddings in my restaurant days. Barbara Hiken brought in a recipe from one of the waitresses for persimmon pudding and we made it that day. And never made another recipe since it was so darn good.…

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This is one of my favorite steamed puddings and it couldnt be easier. The cranberry and molasses combination is a great flavor. This is an Americanized version of the very traditional, very beloved English pudding called Spotted Dick, which originally…

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Fresh cranberries are available in the produce section of most supermarkets from late October right into January, often sold in their familiar 12-ounce plastic bags, which yield about 3 cups whole berries. Exceptionally high in vitamin C, the raw fruit also contains benzoic acid, a natural preservative, so they hold up to prolonged refrigeration, staying fresh for about 8 weeks after harvest. One should look for plump, shiny, and firm berries, not mushy, shriveled, or green, under-ripe ones. Fortunately we find most bags of cranberries in perfect shape, since the sorting and packing process is so efficient.

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Every holiday season I make lots of this bright cranberry chutney to serve with turkey and as a spread for sandwiches. I got it from extraordinaire food writer and recipe developer Peggy Fallon, a cranberry lover, who serves it as an accompaniment to a savory cheesecake for winter entertaining. This is one of my all time favorite cooked sauces, one I prepare every year and often give as gifts. Serve it as a condiment, or dabbed on unsalted crackers with soft cheese.

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Cranberries and blueberries come from the same botanical family as rhododendrons and heathers. They are native to the bogs of New England, but great fruit comes from Oregon and Washington, all grown organically. Fresh cranberries arrive in stores in late fall and can be frozen in their original wrapping (don’t put frozen cranberries in the bread machine; defrost first) for use in the spring and summer. Use bags of fresh cranberries within two weeks of purchase so that they won’t get mushy or shriveled. My mother got this recipe from her antique dealer, Alan, who is a genius in the kitchen. For so few ingredients, the results are tart and satisfying with all sorts of roasted meats like poultry, pork loin, and ham. This method of preparing cranberry sauce with the ginger juice fast became a yearly ritual at Thanksgiving and Christmas in my family.

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