Posted by Erin Zimmer, March 13, 2009 at 8:00 PM
Photograph from bec.w on Flickr
Tomorrow is a really big day for math dorks and pie appreciators alike. Pi Day comes but once a year, celebrating over one trillion digits past the decimal point and people who just need another excuse to eat butter.
Last year, Ed rounded up some of the best pie sources in America, and as to be expected, the Serious Eaters chirped up with other favorites.
Note: Pi Day on March 14 should not be confused with the American Pie Council's Pie Day on January 23. Both involve happy tummies.
Related
Cook's Illustrated's Foolproof Pie Dough
Vodka, the Secret to Foolproof Pie Dough
3.14 pie day [Talk]
Posted by Robyn Lee, March 9, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Cupcake Project
Hamantashen cupcakes aren't just cupcakes topped with a hamantashen. Stef of Cupcake Project explains that, like the cookie, the cupcakes are also triangle-shaped, have a sugar cookie flavor, and filled with jam—and then they're topped with a hamantashen. Cookie-topped cake? I like the sound of that. (Stef also shares a recipe for making hamantashen.) [via Cupcakes Take the Cake]
Related: How Much Should a Hamantaschen Weigh?
Posted by Linnea Covington, February 23, 2009 at 8:30 AM
Photograph from joshmt on Flickr
I had never heard of a king cake until my roommate's parents sent her one from their home in New Orleans this past week. Although I didn't get the full experience (and nobody got the traditional baby in the cake because the bakery packaged the tiny plastic effigy separately), she did bring me home a slice of the green and purple sugar-coated pastry. Even after four days of sitting in her office, the cake maintained its moisture so I happily dug in. It had a briochelike texture and flavor and the inside was spiced like coffee cake, a nice surprise as it wasn't too sweet but was perfect for a breakfast treat.
There are a few different types of king cake, like the galette des rois, which looks more like a pie. The more traditional Mardi Gras version is usually shaped in a ring and topped with colored icing. You can get them stuffed with various things like cream cheese, dried fruit, or the classic cinnamon and sugar version. The three colors on top of the cake represent justice (purple), faith (green), and power (gold).
If you want to make one of these pretty, delicious cakes for your Mardi Gras party, follow the recipe from mardigrasday.com, a company claiming to have sold the first king cake online, or there's a good one by Cajun chef Ryan Boudreaux.
Just watch out for the baby—if you find him in your slice, you have to buy the cake next year.
Related
2009 Mardi Gras Events
Sugar Rush: Galette des Rois (King Cake) from Ceci-Cela Patisserie
Baking with Dorie: Galette des Rois
Posted by Erin Zimmer, February 16, 2009 at 10:45 AM
From left: Lincoln Cake from bakinghistory.wordpress.com; Abraham Lincoln.
When you think of Abraham Lincoln, who would have celebrated his bicentennial this week, do you think of pound cake? This vintage recipe for Lincoln Cake found on the blog Baking History was first published in The Godey’s Lady’s Book Receipts and Household Hints in 1870 to honor the sixteenth president. The lemon pound cake doesn't have any overt Lincoln qualities, but sure looks tasty. [via Frederick Kaufman]
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 6, 2009 at 3:00 PM
And this giveaway marks the end of our second-annual Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway.
Holiday season is ham season, so it's only right that we give away some seriously delicious hams as part of our holiday giveaway extravaganza. The nice folks at D'Artagnan, who supplied us with those wonderful organic turkeys for our Thanksgiving giveaway, have provided us with some whole boneless heritage applewood-smoked hams this time around. This is a serious 7- to 8-pound ham that will look great on your holiday table. —Ed Levine
To win, just leave a comment on this post answering this question: What's on your favorite ham sandwich?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 7) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 5, 2009 at 3:00 PM
We actually have a few more gift packages to give away, so our Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway is running through tomorrow. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some crazy good food this new year.
When winter draws near, I start thinking about sausage. (Actually, I think about sausage year-round.) About the best, juiciest, meatiest, just-smoky-enough sausage I know is the sausage the Bracewell family makes and serves at their phenomenal Texas barbecue joint the Southside Market. The Bracewells are a generously spirited bunch, so they've given us ten pound packages of their incomparable sausage to give away as part of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway. Win and you can have your very own Texas barbecue sausage holiday party. Doesn't that sound good? —Ed Levine
To enter: Tell us what your favorite barbecue joint is.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 6) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 4, 2009 at 3:00 PM
We actually have a few more gift packages to give away, so our Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway will run through January 6. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some crazy good food this new year.
Today we're giving away an edible chocolate holiday box—18 chocolate pieces tucked inside a box made of chocolate—in addition to a can of triple chocolate almonds and two jars of the company's own marmalade (one blood orange and one Meyer lemon), courtesy of the generous folks at San Francisco–based Charles Chocolates.
Even if you don't win, you can still buy this box and anything else from Charles Chocolates' online store for 15 percent off by using the coupon code SERIOUS, good from now until December 24. —Ed Levine
For a chance to win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite chocolate dessert?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 5) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 3, 2009 at 3:00 PM
We actually have a few more gift packages to give away, so our Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway will run through January 6. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some crazy good food this new year.
Today we're giving away a package of two prime, dry-aged ("longer than four weeks") porterhouse steaks, thanks to the generous folks at Peter Luger. These steaks are not small. Each weighs more than two pounds. The steaks come with two bottles of Peter Luger steak sauce and a bag of chocolate coins. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite cut of steak?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order steaks right now from Peter Luger, you may do so at peterluger.com. You will make any serious carnivores on your list very happy.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 4) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 2, 2009 at 3:00 PM
We actually have a few more gift packages to give away, so our Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway will run through January 6. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some crazy good food this new year.
Our second-annual Serious Eats Holiday Giveaway series continues today with a chance to win the new, just-for-Serious-Eats Zingerman's Praise The Lard Gift Box. I think it is the quite simply the best pork product group ever assembled in one gift box.
OK, now listen to what's in it:
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, January 1, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Holiday season is ham season, so it's only right that we give away some seriously delicious hams as part of our holiday giveaway extravaganza. The nice folks at D'Artagnan, who supplied us with those wonderful organic turkeys for our Thanksgiving giveaway, have provided us with some whole boneless heritage applewood-smoked hams this time around. This is a serious 7- to 8-pound ham that will look great on your holiday table. —Ed Levine
To win, just leave a comment on this post answering this question: What's on your favorite ham sandwich?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 2) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Kerry Saretsky, January 1, 2009 at 8:00 AM
Jeeves, valet to Bertie Wooster, is one of the most renowned characters of English fiction. How did he garner fame and notoriety? Well, it all began on the day that Bertie hired him in the first of P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves stories. Jeeves confronts Bertie's wretching hangover with his magic potion: raw egg, Worcester sauce, and red pepper. As Jeeves puts it: "It is the Worcester sauce that gives it its colour. The raw egg makes it nutritious. The red pepper gives it its bite. Gentlemen have told me they have found it extremely invigorating after a late evening."
Lo and behold, the hangover vanished. Bertie attests: "I would have clutched at anything that looked like a lifeline that morning. I swallowed the stuff. For a moment I felt as if somebody had touched off a bomb inside the old bean and was strolling down my throat with a lighted torch, and then everything seemed suddenly to get all right. The sun shone in through the window; birds twittered in the tree-tops; and, generally speaking, hope dawned once more."
It's New Year's Day. Chances are, you may need a little something with color, nutrition, and bite to invigorate you after last night. No guarantees, but this potion may help hope to dawn once more. I've heard of a lot of crazy ways to de-hang yourself. Emergen-C, pickle juice, Gatorade, Alka Seltzer, hair of the dog, whatever that may have been, Bloody Mary, sand, sweat…
What is your surefire hangover cure for those of us without a Jeeves waiting in the wings?
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 31, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
When winter draws near, I start thinking about sausage. (Actually, I think about sausage year-round.) About the best, juiciest, meatiest, just-smoky-enough sausage I know is the sausage the Bracewell family makes and serves at their phenomenal Texas barbecue joint the Southside Market. The Bracewells are a generously spirited bunch, so they've given us ten pound packages of their incomparable sausage to give away as part of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway. Win and you can have your very own Texas barbecue sausage holiday party. Doesn't that sound good? —Ed Levine
To enter: Tell us what your favorite barbecue joint is.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (January 1) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Paul Clarke, December 31, 2008 at 2:30 PM
In last Sunday’s New York Times, drinks writer Jonathan Miles relates the story behind Nick Fauchald’s sad discovery one recent Christmas: after years of serving his guests a hot, mulled wine upon their arrival, he realized that nobody ever came back for more. Fauchald’s realization? “It’s hot wine [...] it’s not that good."
The holidays are a time when all kinds of special recipes get trotted out for an annual airing, and like those red-and-white sweaters with little reindeer buttons, some of them should be tossed out along with that string of lights that no longer works. Everybody has their own issues with certain seasonal dishes—I, for one, have never understood the desire to consume cranberry sauce—and the same goes for seasonal drinks.
Mulled wine is but one example. Many varieties of the drink exist, from the Nordic glogg to the English bowl of Archbishop; some are better than others, but for many seasonal imbibers, a few sips are enough to hold them over until the next year. Eggnog is another polarizing beverage; granted, most of us had our eggnog baptism at a young age, drinking carageenan-thickened ‘nog from a green-and-red carton from the store, but old taste preferences die hard. There are certainly some extraordinary eggnog recipes out there, but for many people the comment, “Wow, I actually finished the cup!” is about the highest praise they’ll be able to summon.
I’m a dedicated devotee of most holiday drinks, though a down-at-heel mulled wine does tend to make me yearn for the arrival of January. What about you? What seasonal drinks have you been served at holiday parties that absolutely make you cringe? Or do you secretly look forward all year to the next time you can pour a bottle of Bordeaux and a sachet of spices into a Crock Pot? Let’s hear it.
About the author: Paul Clarke blogs about cocktails at The Cocktail Chronicles and writes regularly on spirits and cocktails for Imbibe magazine. He lives in Seattle, where he works as a writer and magazine editor.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 30, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away an edible chocolate holiday box—18 chocolate pieces tucked inside a box made of chocolate—in addition to a can of triple chocolate almonds and two jars of the company's own marmalade (one blood orange and one Meyer lemon), courtesy of the generous folks at San Francisco–based Charles Chocolates.
Even if you don't win, you can still buy this box and anything else from Charles Chocolates' online store for 15 percent off by using the coupon code SERIOUS, good from now until December 24. —Ed Levine
For a chance to win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite chocolate dessert?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 31) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Hannah Howard, December 30, 2008 at 8:45 AM
I blog by day and wait tables in a New York City restaurant by night. I'm excited to bring you Served, dispatches from the front of the house. Enjoy!
T., my friend from school, asked me if she should work on New Year's Eve.
“I don’t know,” I said, really not knowing. “Do you think you’ll make good money?”
Our friend Andrew, who graduated last year, now runs the front of the house at a newish East Village spot. It’s the kind of restaurant that makes great boozy drinks and often employs a DJ, so it seems like a natural New Year party setting. He recruited T. to play hostess and/or coat check girl for the night.
“I don’t know about the money,” T. confessed.
“Ask Andrew!” I said.
Andrew got back to T. with a guestimate, which did little to help her resolve her quandary. She’d probably come home with a reasonable (although not extraordinary) sum of cash. But did she want to battle the drunken masses to get back home to the Upper West Side at 4 AM? Did she want to miss out on her own New Year revelry?
My Restaurant: Closed!
J., the assistant fomager at my restaurant, faced a similar dilemma. My restaurant decided this year to close for the New Year—both the eve and the day. Last year, we opened for a night that made us significantly more stress and frustration than money or fun. So this year, we’re closing our doors and skipping out altogether.
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 29, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today's Seriously Delicious Holiday Food Giveaway is a New York Nostalgia package from Russ & Daughters.
I've known Russ & Daughters' Mark Federman and his family ever since I came to New York 32 years ago. When I knew very few people here I used to come to Russ & Daughters to kibitz and just feel like I belonged somewhere. It's a place I still visit for shelter from any storm—and for the company and the Russ family's incredible food. They know smoked fish like very few other people in this world.
The package includes: one pound of Gaspé Atlantic smoked salmon, a half-pound of sliced smoked sable, one pint house-cured herring fillets in cream sauce with pickled onions, one pound of natural cream cheese with chive, eight authentic New York bagels, one pound of old-fashioned rugelach, and a piece of old-fashioned marble halvah. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite New York brunch food?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order now from Russ & Daughters, we have a special Serious Eats promo code you can use for a 10 percent discount. Just mention SERIOUSRUSS when ordering on the phone (not applicable to online orders). Visit russanddaughters.com for phone numbers.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 30) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 28, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away a package of two prime, dry-aged ("longer than four weeks") porterhouse steaks, thanks to the generous folks at Peter Luger. These steaks are not small. Each weighs more than two pounds. The steaks come with two bottles of Peter Luger steak sauce and a bag of chocolate coins. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite cut of steak?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order steaks right now from Peter Luger, you may do so at peterluger.com. You will make any serious carnivores on your list very happy.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 28) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 27, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Our second-annual Serious Eats Holiday Giveaway series continues today with a chance to win the new, just-for-Serious-Eats Zingerman's Praise The Lard Gift Box. I think it is the quite simply the best pork product group ever assembled in one gift box. Before I get into that, there are two important points I need to tell you:
- Discount: You can buy this gift box or anything at Zingerman's for 10 percent off. Use the promo code SERIOUSLY when you call or check out. Good now until December 31
- If you recount your fondest pork memory in the comments of this post, you'll be entered to win the Praise the Lard Gift Box, mailed directly to you We'll choose the winner at random from among the comments below. Commenting will close at 3 p.m. ET tomorrow, December 28
OK, now listen to what's in it:
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 26, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Holiday season is ham season, so it's only right that we give away some seriously delicious hams as part of our holiday giveaway extravaganza. The nice folks at D'Artagnan, who supplied us with those wonderful organic turkeys for our Thanksgiving giveaway, have provided us with some whole boneless heritage applewood-smoked hams this time around. This is a serious 7- to 8-pound ham that will look great on your holiday table. —Ed Levine
To win, just leave a comment on this post answering this question: What's on your favorite ham sandwich?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 27) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Ed Levine, December 26, 2008 at 10:17 AM
"What might have saved me is the box of Harry & David pears."
The holidays are tough enough for any serious eater on a diet, but this year I am particularly challenged by the fact that Thanksgiving (per usual), Christmas Day, and New Year's Day (not usual), all fall on Thursday, right before my weekly date with Thinner, my scale.
It's enough to make any dieting serious eater feel persecuted. The combination of Thursdays and the array of foods sent to my wife this year from her gracious and grateful clients are not making me feel very sanguine about my moment of reckoning on the scale. In fact, there were moments this week that I almost just gave in and said the hell with it.
Continue reading »
Posted by Ed Levine, December 25, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Jacques Torres loves bûches de Noël, but even he doesn't take them as seriously as they do in Paris, according to the New York Times. There the Christmas logs are "opportunities for creativity, commerce, competition, and consumption among various Parisian shops." The great Paris bakery Lenotre hired de Givenchy this year to design a $160 bûche that features a a golden ribbon of pulled sugar and a light dusting of 22-karat gold. I guess there's gold in them thar buches. Me, I still prefer pie during the holidays.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 25, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
When winter draws near, I start thinking about sausage. (Actually, I think about sausage year-round.) About the best, juiciest, meatiest, just-smoky-enough sausage I know is the sausage the Bracewell family makes and serves at their phenomenal Texas barbecue joint the Southside Market. The Bracewells are a generously spirited bunch, so they've given us ten pound packages of their incomparable sausage to give away as part of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway. Win and you can have your very own Texas barbecue sausage holiday party. Doesn't that sound good? —Ed Levine
To enter: Tell us what your favorite barbecue joint is.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 26) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 25, 2008 at 12:00 PM
What do you do on Christmas if you're Jewish? Chinese food and a movie. Brandon Walker sings about this perennial pairing, after the jump.
Continue reading »
Posted by Kerry Saretsky, December 24, 2008 at 9:00 PM
"It’s something special. I go out of my way to make that."
In his new book A Year in Chocolate, Jacques Torres claims that the "bûche de Noël, a classic dessert of the French Christmas season, is quickly becoming an American tradition."
Torres has a history nearly as illustrious as the chocolate that is his medium. When asked to describe chocolate, he waxes didactic: it was traded as currency, used as an aphrodisiac, exalted as a food of the gods, and served as a royal exclusive. In his more than a decade as pastry chef at Le Cirque, Jacques created aphrodisiac desserts for royalty, that certainly traded for a lot of currency. In 2000, Jacques opened his own chocolate factory in DUMBO, Brooklyn, and has expanded his chocolate empire to downtown Manhattan, where he grazes on chocolate, a food that he extols as "loved by anyone" and everyone, all day long.
Christmas, to Torres, is about tradition. About sharing. About festivity. In his mind, it is classical, and should stand out as unique, and special. Jacques eats chocolate every day, but there is only one day a year when he eats the bûche de Noël, a roulade of sponge cake, pastry cream, and buttercream, sculpted into a representation of a Yule log, classically decorated with Dutch cocoa dirt, confectioners' sugar snow, and meringue mushrooms, to depict a wintry woodsy scene. Torres describes the log as "something festive, something you do only for the holiday." In France, the lines stretch long from the bakery doors on Christmas Eve, as families queue up to retrieve the bûche they ordered for the occasion.
Torres' memory of the bûche de Noël begins far earlier than his years as a patissier, a career that began at the tender age of 15. When Torres was a child, all his cousins and aunts and uncles would come together on Christmas Eve. They would begin dinner at about 9 or 10 o’clock at night, and feast on turkey. Just before midnight, the family would gather around the bûche de Noël, cut slices, and munch away, awaiting Father Christmas. At the stroke of midnight, he would appear—one of Torres' uncles picturesquely disguised for the moment—with presents, and soon the cake would be forgotten in the midst of wrapping paper. But for the moment, it brought the family together.
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 24, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away an edible chocolate holiday box—18 chocolate pieces tucked inside a box made of chocolate—in addition to a can of triple chocolate almonds and two jars of the company's own marmalade (one blood orange and one Meyer lemon), courtesy of the generous folks at San Francisco–based Charles Chocolates.
Even if you don't win, you can still buy this box and anything else from Charles Chocolates' online store. —Ed Levine
For a chance to win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite chocolate dessert?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 25) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Kerry Saretsky, December 23, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Jewish guilt may be something that many of us have to live with throughout the year, but for the next eight blissful days of Hanukkah, Jewish gelt becomes more prevalent. Gelt, which means money or coins in Hebrew, is the currency of the dreidel, a spinning top with four sides that dictate the stakes of the gambling game. Perhaps it is impolite to play with your food. It is also a bad idea to eat fried food for eight days straight. Hanukkah gets us off the hook on both counts—a week and a day of positive dining abandon, and a festival of not being quite so light the week after next.
Wikipedia informs us that during the 20th century, American confectioners started making gelt from chocolate to sweeten the holiday—as if dreidel victory weren’t sweet enough for us competitive types. The rules are simple: spin the dreidel and put one chocolate coin in the pot to start the game. If your dreidel lands on nun, נ, nothing happens. If it lands on gimel, ג, you get all the chocolate coins in the pot. If it lands on hey, ה, you get half. And if, unlucky you, you land on shin, ש, you lose one of your own coins back to the pot. Better luck next time. After the game, sit around and peel the metallic gold back off the milk chocolate with your teeth, and lick the warm chocolate coins off their resilient wrappers.
In my house, we rarely remember to buy manufactured gelt (or dreidels, really, for that matter), but if we happen to find a dreidel, we usually play for shards of dark chocolate, pieces of cold latke, or real money—which is, after all, real Jewish gelt. And unlike the latkes and the chocolate, playing for money is positively guilt-free.
What do you spin the dreidel for?
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 23, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today's Seriously Delicious Holiday Food Giveaway is a New York Nostalgia package from Russ & Daughters.
I've known Russ & Daughters' Mark Federman and his family ever since I came to New York 32 years ago. When I knew very few people here I used to come to Russ & Daughters to kibitz and just feel like I belonged somewhere. It's a place I still visit for shelter from any storm—and for the company and the Russ family's incredible food. They know smoked fish like very few other people in this world.
The package includes: one pound of Gaspé Atlantic smoked salmon, a half-pound of sliced smoked sable, one pint house-cured herring fillets in cream sauce with pickled onions, one pound of natural cream cheese with chive, eight authentic New York bagels, one pound of old-fashioned rugelach, and a piece of old-fashioned marble halvah. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite New York brunch food?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order now from Russ & Daughters, we have a special Serious Eats promo code you can use for a 10 percent discount. Just mention SERIOUSRUSS when ordering on the phone (not applicable to online orders). Visit russanddaughters.com for phone numbers.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 24) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Erin Zimmer, December 22, 2008 at 5:15 PM
Photograph from Sarah Serendipity on Flickr
If cookies were to congregate on a wooden surface for something really important in the cookie world, this might be the result. They seem to be paying homage to the center oatmeal lace one, which is clearly a deity in the cookie community. Though not all are pictured, this was part of one woman's 40-ish dozen retro cookies baking project, inspired by a recent Gourmet spread. You can make the same volume with 10 pounds of flour, five pounds of butter, a lot of sugar, and some swearing.
Related
5 Tricks to Baking Perfect Sugar Cookies
Gourmet Shares Best Cookie Recipes from 1941 to 2008
Dorie Greenspan's Chocolate Sparkler Cookies
Serious Cookies: Cocoa Snowflakes
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 22, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away a package of two prime, dry-aged ("longer than four weeks") porterhouse steaks, thanks to the generous folks at Peter Luger. These steaks are not small. Each weighs more than two pounds. The steaks come with two bottles of Peter Luger steak sauce and a bag of chocolate coins. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite cut of steak?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order steaks right now from Peter Luger, you may do so at peterluger.com. You will make any serious carnivores on your list very happy.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 23) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 21, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Our second-annual Serious Eats Holiday Giveaway series continues today with a chance to win the new, just-for-Serious-Eats Zingerman's Praise The Lard Gift Box. I think it is the quite simply the best pork product group ever assembled in one gift box. Before I get into that, there are two important points I need to tell you:
- Discount: You can buy this gift box or anything at Zingerman's for 10 percent off. Use the promo code SERIOUSLY when you call or check out. Good now until December 31
- If you recount your fondest pork memory in the comments of this post, you'll be entered to win the Praise the Lard Gift Box, mailed directly to you We'll choose the winner at random from among the comments below. Commenting will close at 3 p.m. ET tomorrow, December 22
OK, now listen to what's in it:
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 20, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Holiday season is ham season, so it's only right that we give away some seriously delicious hams as part of our holiday giveaway extravaganza. The nice folks at D'Artagnan, who supplied us with those wonderful organic turkeys for our Thanksgiving giveaway, have provided us with some whole boneless heritage applewood-smoked hams this time around. This is a serious 7- to 8-pound ham that will look great on your holiday table. —Ed Levine
To win, just leave a comment on this post answering this question: What's on your favorite ham sandwich?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 21) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 19, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
When winter draws near, I start thinking about sausage. (Actually, I think about sausage year-round.) About the best, juiciest, meatiest, just-smoky-enough sausage I know is the sausage the Bracewell family makes and serves at their phenomenal Texas barbecue joint the Southside Market. The Bracewells are a generously spirited bunch, so they've given us ten pound packages of their incomparable sausage to give away as part of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway. Win and you can have your very own Texas barbecue sausage holiday party. Doesn't that sound good? —Ed Levine
To enter: Tell us what your favorite barbecue joint is.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 20) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Deb Harkness, December 19, 2008 at 11:00 AM
On Fridays, Deb Harkness of Good Wine Under $20 drops by with Serious Grape. This week, the best in bubbles.
I can't seem to get my fill of bubbles this time of year.
The holidays seem a bit more special with some sparkle in them.
Just in time for pre-dinner sipping, post-shopping relaxing, holiday brunch mixing—and of course toasting the New Year—I've got my buying guide for the very best, affordable bubbles in the market. None of these sparklers should be hard to find, and they will add a festive note to whatever you're doing, even if it's just wrapping gifts.
NV Soligo Prosecco Brut (find this wine for $11-$18) Really well made with a superb balance between toast and citrus notes. No harsh or bitter elements, and lots of creamy froth with a medium size bubble. Many steps up from most prosecco, and a bargain at around $15.
Continue reading »
Posted by Kerry Saretsky, December 19, 2008 at 10:15 AM
'Tis the season of peace and love, and the best way to spread love is with a kiss. Due to all those winter germs teeming in the air, maybe the best way to kiss is through Hershey's.
In fact, if Mr. Hershey were still alive, he would be the first one I'd shove under the mistletoe. Why? Because he invented the Candy Cane Kiss, my new love. After we reviewed the Pumpkin Spice Kiss around Halloween, even I, a pumpkin devotee, found the "white chocolate" kiss a touch cloying. I could see myself getting over Pumpkin Spice pretty quickly.
Since Candy Cane Kiss is also "white chocolate," I had my doubts. But he proved himself; The peppermint cuts the sweetness, the nonpareil candy bits add a perfect bite, and he stands swathed in a handsome red-and-white-striped ensemble. And so I melt faster than Candy Cane Kiss does.
What do you think of the Candy Cane Kiss? Have you tried the other winter flavors, Hot Cocoa and Mint Truffle?
Posted by Ed Levine, December 19, 2008 at 8:55 AM
"As Albert King sang in one of my favorite blues lyrics, 'Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die'."
The holiday party food gauntlet is a rough one. How many mini-sliders can one serious eater resist? How many slices of good, really good pizza go uneaten? How many pieces of slow-cooked beef cooked in lard can a man turn down? The answer after the jump, complete with a bite by bite breakdown of the past week.
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 18, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away an edible chocolate holiday box—18 chocolate pieces tucked inside a box made of chocolate—in addition to a can of triple chocolate almonds and two jars of the company's own marmalade (one blood orange and one Meyer lemon), courtesy of the generous folks at San Francisco–based Charles Chocolates.
Even if you don't win, you can still buy this box and anything else from Charles Chocolates' online store for 15 percent off by using the coupon code SERIOUS, good from now until December 24. —Ed Levine
For a chance to win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite chocolate dessert?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 19) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by Robyn Lee, December 18, 2008 at 12:15 PM
Aw, it's a town populated by pickles singing pickle-themed songs, walking their pickle dogs, throwing snowballs, and ice skating without a care in the world. What could possibly go wrong in such a wholesome, picture-perfect—HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, WHAT IS THAT GIANT HAND DOING? Run, little pickles, run! Watch the video after the jump.
Continue reading »
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 17, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today's Seriously Delicious Holiday Food Giveaway is a New York Nostalgia package from Russ & Daughters.
I've known Russ & Daughters' Mark Federman and his family ever since I came to New York 32 years ago. When I knew very few people here I used to come to Russ & Daughters to kibitz and just feel like I belonged somewhere. It's a place I still visit for shelter from any storm—and for the company and the Russ family's incredible food. They know smoked fish like very few other people in this world.
The package includes: one pound of Gaspé Atlantic smoked salmon, a half-pound of sliced smoked sable, one pint house-cured herring fillets in cream sauce with pickled onions, one pound of natural cream cheese with chive, eight authentic New York bagels, one pound of old-fashioned rugelach, and a piece of old-fashioned marble halvah. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite New York brunch food?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order now from Russ & Daughters, we have a special Serious Eats promo code you can use for a 10 percent discount. Just mention SERIOUSRUSS when ordering on the phone (not applicable to online orders). Visit russanddaughters.com for phone numbers.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 18) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 16, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Today we're giving away a package of two prime, dry-aged ("longer than four weeks") porterhouse steaks, thanks to the generous folks at Peter Luger. These steaks are not small. Each weighs more than two pounds. The steaks come with two bottles of Peter Luger steak sauce and a bag of chocolate coins. —Ed Levine
To win, just answer this in the comments below: What's your favorite cut of steak?
PS: If you just can't wait for this contest to be over and want to order steaks right now from Peter Luger, you may do so at peterluger.com. You will make any serious carnivores on your list very happy.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 17) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 15, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Our second-annual Serious Eats Holiday Giveaway series continues today with a chance to win the new, just-for-Serious-Eats Zingerman's Praise The Lard Gift Box. I think it is the quite simply the best pork product group ever assembled in one gift box. Before I get into that, there are two important points I need to tell you:
- Discount: You can buy this gift box or anything at Zingerman's for 10 percent off. Use the promo code SERIOUSLY when you call or check out. Good now until December 31
- If you recount your fondest pork memory in the comments of this post, you'll be entered to win the Praise the Lard Gift Box, mailed directly to you We'll choose the winner at random from among the comments below. Commenting will close at 3 p.m. ET tomorrow, December 16
OK, now listen to what's in it:
Continue reading »
Posted by Robyn Lee, December 15, 2008 at 10:15 AM
Food blogger Nicisme of Cherrapeño teaches you how to make melted snowmen cupcakes with cranberry cake as the base and carefully shaped fondant and icing for the malformed snowman.
Or if the "snowman" part is too much trouble, just make "melted snow cupcakes." [via Boing Boing]
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Posted by Adam Kuban, December 14, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times ran a roundup of homemade food-based gift ideas on Wednesday that might be just the ticket for saving money while coming up with a thoughtful present:
1. Make a batch of grissini grissini (homemade breadsticks), flavored with rosemary or black pepper, wrapped in parchment paper and tied with a bow.
2. Cut out cinnamon marshmallow stars with cookie cutters, then pack them, dusted with powdered sugar, into a tin.
50. Use a new apron to wrap a loaf of cranberry-orange bread, a sachet of loose-leaf black tea laced with dried orange peel, a cinnamon stick, whole allspice and some star anise. Suggest a time to drop over for a spot of holiday tea.
Are you making—instead of buying—gifts this year?
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Treats for Your Neighbors
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Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 14, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
Holiday season is ham season, so it's only right that we give away some seriously delicious hams as part of our holiday giveaway extravaganza. The nice folks at D'Artagnan, who supplied us with those wonderful organic turkeys for our Thanksgiving giveaway, have provided us with some whole boneless heritage applewood-smoked hams this time around. This is a serious 7- to 8-pound ham that will look great on your holiday table. —Ed Levine
To win, just leave a comment on this post answering this question: What's on your favorite ham sandwich?
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 15) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners are limited to residents of the continental U.S., and you can only win once during the duration of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway contest. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
Posted by The Serious Eats Team, December 13, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Every day through January 1 we're giving away a crazy good food item on Serious Eats. Try your luck, and if you win, you'll be eating some seriously delicious food come the new year.
When winter draws near, I start thinking about sausage. (Actually, I think about sausage year-round.) About the best, juiciest, meatiest, just-smoky-enough sausage I know is the sausage the Bracewell family makes and serves at their phenomenal Texas barbecue joint the Southside Market. The Bracewells are a generously spirited bunch, so they've given us ten pound packages of their incomparable sausage to give away as part of the Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway. Win and you can have your very own Texas barbecue sausage holiday party. Doesn't that sound good? —Ed Levine
To enter: Tell us what your favorite barbecue joint is.
You have until 3 p.m. ET tomorrow (December 14) to enter. One winner will be chosen at random from among the commenters. Contest winners
