Scents of the Season

I love that the holiday season starts at Thanksgiving. What better way to start anything than with gratitude? Christmas decorations in October I could do without, along with all the hype. And although I want to put everything Christmas away by New Years, in December, I’m full of holiday spirit.

Maybe it’s because gratitude kicks off the season and infuses it with a certain scent - like basil does for tomato sauce - that captures me so. For almost 30 days I get to bring my inner child out to play. We enjoy the feeling we get when the air is crisp or when a coating of fresh snow covers the landscape undisturbed and pristine, and a forest of bare tree branches, wrapped in ice, is magically transforming into a crystal city when backlit by the sun.  Wow!

I love the smell of fresh cut pine when passing by the Christmas tree lot, or when I walk by the wreaths piled in front of the supermarket and I rub my hands along the branches. It’s then - that memories of Christmases past, for a few moments, are felt once more. I’m a kid again. 

It’s the scent of Christmas, more so than sight or sound or even taste, that has the power to instantly bring me back to a particular time and place.  I connect to a part of me that’s allowed to make a fuss about things that the rest of the year seem provincial - even for a romantic optimist like me. In December, I give myself permission to play.

I go in search of my glue gun, stored in a clear plastic shoebox for eleven months, collect cans of spray paint and begin the process of covering everything I’ve gathered, from dry leaves and berries, to nuts and even pasta in glossy metallic. I relish the hours spent decorating wreathes and small trees, gift boxes and wrapping paper. It’s fun and relaxing - even meditative.

Christmas, like food, is an emotional experience. It’s a return to innocence - a time when simple pleasures never failed to light our face with joy. No guilt. No need to be anywhere else - content to be fully present and completely delighted. So I stir my English breakfast tea with a fragrant cinnamon stick, lick the cookie dough from the large mixing bowl, put a tray of vanilla walnut biscotti in the oven and walk outdoors and load up on seasoned birch logs to feed the fire.

Take a few moments to savor the scents of the season.


Happy holidays,

Chef Silvia

Seafood Risotto

 Seafood Risotto

Makes 4 to 6 servings

1 pound risotto, made from Arborio rice prepared according to package directions and kept warm (see note)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Red pepper flakes to taste
2 dozen small clams, rinsed
2 dozen small mussels, cleaned and debearded
12 large sea scallops
12 medium to large shrimp, shelled, cleaned, and deveined
1/2 medium clove garlic, minced
3 plum tomatoes, diced
2 to 3 tablespoons dry white wine
2 to 3 tablespoons unbleached white flour (or gluten free flour)
1/2 cup fish broth
1 tablespoon Italian (flat-leaf) parsley, stems removed and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 to 6 lemon wedges, for garnish

Prepare the risotto but remove from the heat while the rice is still quite firm to the bite. This is because the rice will continue cooking even when off the heat.
Put the olive oil and red pepper flakes in a large sauté pan over high heat for about 30 seconds, or until the oil is hot but not smoking. Cook the clams, mussels, and scallops (on both sides) for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the clams begin to open and the scallops begin to turn opaque. Add the shrimp and cook everything for 1 minute more, until the shrimp turn pink on one side. Turn the shrimp, add the garlic, and cook for a few seconds, until the garlic begins to turn golden. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove the seafood from the pan and set aside.

Add the flour and whisk until it forms a paste. Add the wine and continue whisking. Slowly add and clam juice or fish broth, and cook for about 1 minute more, just until the sauce begins to boil. If too thick, add a bit more broth. Reduce the heat to low simmer for about a minute until the sauce is the consistency of smooth gravy. Remove from the heat, and season with salt and pepper.
To serve, stir a bit of the sauce into the risotto, then spoon the risotto onto individual serving plates or a large platter. Top each serving with the remainder of the sauce and the seafood. If desired, arrange the mussels all along the rim of the platter or plate, then add the seafood in the center. Sprinkle with the parsley, salt and pepper, and garnish each serving plate with a lemon wedge.

Note: Arborio rice, for making risotto, is sold in 1-kilogram boxes (2.2 pounds) and comes in two packages. The cooking time is about 15 minutes, but it’s best prepared slightly underdone because it will continue cooking after it’s removed from the heat.

Vanilla Walnut/Gluten Free Biscotti

Vanilla Walnut/Gluten Free Biscotti

Dry Ingredients

3 ¾  cups gluten free flour + 1/4 cup (reserved for dusting on your
board) or 3 ¼ cups unbleached white flour
3/4 cups packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Plus 1 cup walnuts

Wet ingredients

4 large eggs
6 oz canola or vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1.    Shift together dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Add nuts
2.    Wisk wet ingredients in a separate larger bowl.
3.    Slowly fold dry into wet ingredients, and knead into a smooth (slightly sticky) dough.
4.    Dust your surface with reserved flour to prevent sticking (If dough is too sticky, just add a bit more flour. Gluten free dough will be somewhat sticky, so keep that in mind.)
5.    Divide dough into 4 parts and roll each part into a log that's approximately 2 inches wide and 1 inch thick (The wider and thicker the log, the larger the individual biscotti. For smaller cookies, make the logs smaller.)
6.    Place on greased cookie sheet or parchment paper and bake in a pre- heated 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until firm and golden.
7.    Remove and let cool for 10-15 minutes.
8.    With a sharp knife, cut each log on the diagonal, every 1/2 inch or so to form individual cookies. (It helps a great deal if you have a large chef knife and make each cut in one push. Don't go back and forth with your knife and "saw" for the log will break.)
9.    Place cookies back on the cookie sheet, upright, with both cut sides up, and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Create your own variations by substituting the walnuts with almonds, pistachios or pine nuts, or maybe dried cranberries or raisins. Try different extracts for an intense flavor.: almond, anise, lemon for example. Add a teaspoon or so of cinnamon or nutmeg. Maybe add some seeds such as anise, poppy or sesame. The variations are almost endless

You can even make this recipe a savory one by cutting back the sugar to about 1/2 cup (or less) and adding a couple of teaspoons of crushed red pepper or course black pepper or fennel seeds.

Making Holiday Cooking a Little Easier

1.    The holiday rush can make cooking in December just another chore. Give yourself a break from the mundane, everyday mealtime cooking by incorporating a few helpful tips.

2.    This is a perfect time to pick up your favorite prepared food - more often. There’s almost always a roasted chicken in my fridge. It’s great for dinner one night, standwiches the next and food for my dog, Max after that.

3.    Spend an afternoon making two or three different soups (the soups I posted on _____are perfect.) and freeze them in quart sized containers. At mealtime, you can just reach into your freezer, add a tossed salad, maybe some fresh or garlic bread and dinner or lunch is ready in minutes.
4.    Have lots of food that requires no cooking in your fridge or pantry. Cold cuts, cheeses, cured meats, pasta or potato salad, marinated vegetables, olives, fresh bread, etc.

5.    When you do cook, make it special whatever it is you like to whip up. And if it’s a batch of cookies, make lots and invite children or friends to join in.

Joy

Joy is never about things - it’s a feeling that grows from within. It spreads easily, is highly contagious and affects all who come in contact with it.