The holiday season and the end of the year mean it’s time to gather with family and friends to give thanks, reminisce, catch up and get ready to shake off this year and ring in a new one. And an essential part of any gathering is food (and some spirit-lifting spirits). Here is a collection of recipes from local chefs and mixologists with a nod to the flavors of the season.
The Cocktails
What do you mean you drank all the eggnog?
Recipe provided by Omy Bugazia, formerly of Please
“This is a fun single-serving creamy cocktail to make after you run out of eggnog because Aunt Judith drank it all. Bourbon is the base, but the Smith & Cross steals the show. A bit of absinthe gives it some complexity and it’s deceptively boozy.”
Ingredients:
- 1 oz. bourbon
- ½ oz. Smith & Cross Navy-strength rum
- 1 oz. heavy cream
- ½ oz. maple syrup
- 1 dash absinthe
- 1 whole egg
- Nutmeg, for garnish
Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a shaker without ice and shake hard for 10 seconds to incorporate egg. Add ice and shake again for 10 seconds, then fine strain through a mesh strainer into a coupe glass. Let settle for 10 seconds, garnish with grated nutmeg and serve.
Mama, I missed ya’
Recipe provided by Omy Bugazia, formerly of Please
“To me, this cocktail tastes like coming home for the holidays. It’s spicy and bittersweet but still tart and the rye whiskey shines beautifully while the Cappelletti lifts it up and adds pleasant notes of orange and vanilla.”
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ oz. rye whiskey
- ½ oz. Cappelletti aperitivo
- ¾ oz. lemon juice
- ½ oz. cinnamon syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- 1 egg white
Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a shaker without ice and shake hard for 10 seconds to incorporate the egg white. Add ice and shake again for 10 seconds, then fine strain through a mesh strainer into a rocks glass over a large ice cube. Let settle for 10 seconds, then serve.
The Side
Leek & Wild Mushroom Goat Cheese Stuffing
Recipe provided by Jackson Rouse of Bauer Farm Kitchen
“The dish can be completely assembled up to one day ahead and refrigerated until ready to bake.”
Ingredients:
- 1 10-ounce loaf sourdough (preferably day-old), cut into ½-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided, plus more for greasing dish
- 1 pound shiitake mushrooms, trimmed and sliced, stem removed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 ½ cup fennel, coarsely chopped
- 1 ½ cup Savoy cabbage, coarsely chopped
- ½ cup fresh goat cheese
- 1 ½ Tablespoons chopped fresh sage
- 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- ½ Tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 leeks (white and light-green parts only)split lengthwise and sliced (about 4 cups)
- 2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 Tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Instructions: 1) Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Butter a 3-quart baking dish. Place cubed bread on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until slightly dry, 10 to 15 minutes. 2) Raise oven temperature to 350 degrees. In a large sauté pan over high heat, melt 1 Tablespoon butter. Add mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until mushrooms have released their liquid and start to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Scrape into a medium bowl and set aside, reserving pan. 3) Return pan to medium heat and melt remaining 1 Tablespoon butter. Add fennel, cabbage, sage, thyme, rosemary and cook until fennel softens and starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Add leeks and cook until all the vegetables are very soft, about 5 minutes more. Return mushrooms to pan, add broth and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 4) Transfer vegetables to a large bowl and let cool slightly. Add cubed bread, goat cheese and eggs and toss until mixture is combined. 5) Transfer bread mixture to baking dish. Bake in the center of the oven until golden brown and slightly puffed, 35 to 40 minutes (add 10 minutes if the dish has been refrigerated). Top with parsley and serve immediately.
The Main
Coffee/Herb-Crusted Pork Loin Topped with Sage Brown Butter
Recipe provided by Kayla Robison of Arnold’s Bar & Grill
“(This recipe is) one I did as a special and it sold like crazy!”
Pork Loin
Ingredients:
- 2 lb 4 oz. pork loin (6 oz. per serving)
- ½ cup coffee grounds
- ¼ cup ground sage
- ¼ cup dried thyme
- 3 Tablespoons salt
- 3 Tablespoons pepper
- ⅛ cup oil
Instructions: Pat loin dry. Lightly lather with oil. Mix coffee, herbs, salt and pepper and cover loins with dry mix. In a sauté pan or cast-iron skillet on med/high heat, place remaining oil in pan and sear all sides of the loin until light brown. Finish in 350 degree oven until preferred temp — I like mine at 140 — then rest for 5 mins. Slice on a bias.
Sage Brown Butter
Ingredients:
- 1 sprig of sage
- 1 pound of butter
Instructions: Place butter and sage in a small sauce pot on med/high heat. Cook butter until light golden brown and you can smell the nuttiness from the browning butter. Turn off heat and strain into a fine mesh strainer. If you don’t have one, you can use a coffee filter. Top pork loin with brown butter and serve.
The Dessert
Bourbon Bacon Pecan Pie
Recipe provided by Teeny Morris of Teeny Pies
“Because pecan pie is delicious and bourbon plus bacon makes everything better!”
Whole Wheat Pie Crust
Ingredients:
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 Tablespoons shortening
- ⅛ cup cold vodka
- ¼ cup ice water
Instructions: 1) In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt and sugar until everything is thoroughly combined. Cut in the shortening and the butter using a pastry cutter, a fork or your fingers until each piece of butter or shortening is the size of a small pea and coated in flour. You can also cut the butter into small squares before tossing them into the bowl and it will take less time to cut it into the flour. 2) Add the vodka and, using a rubber spatula, press the dough together. Add the water second, and again using the rubber spatula, press the dough together to form a large ball of dough. Be careful to work the dough as little as possible when forming the ball, otherwise your dough has the potential of being too tough. The dough should be fairly wet and sticky, so you shouldn’t have any issue getting all of the crumbs to stick together, but if for some reason your dough seems particularly dry, you can add a little extra ice water a Tablespoon at a time until everything comes together easily. 3) Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for at least an hour.
Bourbon Bacon Pecan Pie Filling
Ingredients:
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup dark corn syrup
- 3 eggs
- 2 Tablespoons bourbon
- 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
- 3-5 strips bacon, cooked until crispy and chopped fine
Instructions: 1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with the rack in the middle position. 2) In a large mixing bowl, lightly mix together the salt and brown sugar. Add the melted butter and whisk until it is fully incorporated. 3) Add the dark corn syrup and the eggs and whisk until the mixture is smooth and the syrup and eggs are fully incorporated. Add the bourbon and whisk gently only until the bourbon is completely incorporated as well. Set aside. 4) Prepare the crust: place the dough on a floured work surface and using a rolling pin, roll it into a rough 11-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick. Lay the crust into a 9-inch pie dish, gently press it in and trim any excess dough from the edge with a paring knife, being sure to leave a 1-inch overhang. Tuck the overhanging dough under itself and crimp. Place the lined pie dish on a rimmed baking sheet. 5) Arrange the chopped pecans and crispy bacon bits in a layer on the bottom of the pie shell. Give the filling one last stir, in case anything has settled to the bottom. Pour the filling over the pecans and bake until the crust and the pecans are golden brown and the middle of the pie no longer wobbles, 50-60 minutes. Let cool at room temperature until the filling is set, at least 45 minutes, before serving.
This article appears in Nov 28 – Dec 5, 2018.