LindaK

Yes, I've noticed that as well on those few occasions when there are actually leftovers. My friend cooks his indirectly on his enormous bbq, so there are no drippings, sadly. But there is no mistaking the scent of lemon wafting in the air or on the bird when you dig in. I must admit I've never tried it at home, I wonder if the heat source makes a difference.

My experience is entirely different. I've a friend who cooks up several lemon-stuffed chickens each year as part of his July 4 bbq feast. If there's a trick, it's to prick the whole lemons many times through with a skewer and stuff as many as will fit inside the chicken cavity, then truss. He does this the night before, so the chickens rest in the fridge with the lemons overnight. You can smell the lemons a mile away during the cooking and the flavor of the finished bird is heavenly, lightly lemony, moist, and delectable. I don't know if this follows Marcella's recipe but I'm a believer.

Richard Olney's description of Coq au Vin in The French Menu Cookbook suggests making some adjustments when cooking with the young birds we're likely to have access to. One is using two smaller birds, as you suggest. Another is replacing half the wine with a gelatinous stock, such as veal stock or a combo of veal and chicken stock. That last tip might also help with the purple color issue--I've had the same experience. In his cookbook Sauces, James Peterson discusses that when using red wine in a sauce, the proteins in meats and fish reduce the color and astringency of red wine when they are cooked together. Maybe that isn't happening sufficiently in our recipes. Perhaps adding additional stock will give that chemical process a boost.

Yes! And to further procrastibake, ideally you'll choose a recipe that you're three ingredients short of, ingredients that can only be purchased by visits to three different locations. And preferably a recipe that you've never made before, requiring much research on eGullet forums and possibly the purchase of an additional cookbook. I probably do more procrasticooking than procrastibaking, but the technique remains the same.

Well, I'd agree with you if we're talking about pies and cakes and duck confit. They certainly do require some knowledge and effort and time in the kitchen. But salsa? Com'on. No question, homemade salsa is a snap to make and infinitely better than the jarred stuff--as long as you have access to quality ingredients. The tomatoes I can get November - May are not worthy of any salsa, so if i really want the stuff, I buy it premade. Sad but true.

Interesting comment, which points to an important point--geographic context matters a lot. Much of what you list here would not have much of an audience in the U.S. at least. But a few items you list as underappreciated, like canned tuna, are staples here. For example, I just returned from a trip to my local market, and cod, which is a local fish and hardly underappreciated, was selling for $13.99 lb--high as far as I'm concerned, but folks were buying it. By contrast, I picked up some salt cod for half that price--an underappreciated food, imho, in most parts of the U.S. but probably not in Portugal.

I'd never heard of it until this morning, when I read that the Boston Globe food staff had named the series one of their favorite things of 2009: article here.

I received some truffle salt for Christmas and have been wondering how best to use it. Not the same as whole truffles, certainly, but this topic is a good place to consider the possibilities. I had already decided to try it with sea scallops--surf and turf, mmmm. Popcorn sounds completely and deliciously decadent.

Holy cow, this is a gorgeous menu! The herring and salmon alone would have been a huge hit with my family. But I have to ask about the colors of the vegetables and the ham in the aspic photo...are they for real?

Duh. In addition to the cookbook, the other excellent kitchen present I received was a small jar of black truffle finishing salt. A little truffle goes a long way--this stuff is powerful. I'm already pondering recipes that will best showcase it.

Can someone clarify when one would use gelatin and when one would not? I've been making chocolate (not white chocolate) mousse for years, in quantities small and large, and have never used gelatin. I've relied on eggs, separated, with the whipped whites providing the volume, and have never had a problem with stabilization, even with leftovers sitting in the fridge days later. I'd hesitate to deviate from a successful formula without good reason. Does the white chocolate make a difference?

What an appropriate story for these frigid December days at year's end 2009. I missed this when it first appeared but am thankful that it was bumped up again. Beautiful writing, Maggie. Tourtiere has always been one of the great culinary mysteries/temptations for many of us here in the U.S. It reads like a delicious way to harden one's arteries tout de suite.

What do experienced folks think about Barbara Tropp's cookbooks as a launching place for beginners? I'm also trying to wade into these waters and have read good things about her cookbook, especially the China Moon Cookbook.

This is probably my next cookbook purchase. I've cooked from the Portuguese recipes on his web site Leite's Culinaria for a while now and have found them to be reliable and delicious. In fact, since I tried it a few years ago, his recipe for Pork and Clams has become a tradition for my Christmas tree trimming dinner for a group of friends and their kids. A definite crowd-pleaser, plus easily multiplied for a crowd, mostly (all but the clams) make-able ahead of time, and the clams make it a special treat. Never any leftovers, and I make a lot.

When I get desperate for a taste of summer during the long New England winter, I find that green beans and asparagus from far away places can be pretty good. When I need to taste a tomato, I find that roasting plum tomatoes (halved, a little evoo, garlic, salt and pepper) makes me happier than the grape tomatoes, though I agree that they can be decent. Actually, roasting out-of-season vegetables, not just tomatoes but also zucchini and peppers, is a good way to intensify their flavors and make otherwise insipid vegetables tastier. Then there are items that are never from the northeast, like avocados, that I buy year round.

This was a lite year for kitchen gifts, oddly (not counting the always welcome stack of kitchen towels). I did get a new cookbook, Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, which looks like great reading as well as a terrific source of recipes.

HOST'S NOTE: The discussion of Peter Greweling's new cookbook, Chocolates and Confections at Home, has been moved to its own topic here.

I can imagine, sounds delicious! To clarify for other readers, though, Federal Wine isn't just for high end wines. Though they don't carry the mass market stuff, you can get wonderful wines in the $10-30 range. I'm convinced that you get better wines for your money here than any other shop in the area. I don't buy all my wine at Federal, can't afford it, but I get all my favorite wines here. I'd also put in a plug for their tastings, which are generally very well selected, informative, and offer great bargains if you purchase a tasting case--2 bottles of the 6 tasting wines, always at a reduced price. Most amazing has to be their 2 day champagne tasting in early December. Offerings range from the very pricy tetes de cuvees--this year's selection included Veuve Clicquot 1998 La Grande Dame--to lesser known but excellent small estate champagnes. A great education in champagnes and it is FREE. They do a terrible job of updating their web site (www.federalwine.com) but you can sign up for their weekly newsletter there. They also do occasional scotch tastings, but I've never participated.

Last week I was in my favorite wine shop in Boston, the miniscule Federal Wine in the Financial District. Despite the complete lack of space, they are well regarded for their wine and scotch selections--and their tastings are excellent. Anyway, for some reason, I looked up and saw a shelf of liquors I'd never noticed before, such as the creme de violette that you mentioned. They're worth a call or visit, especially if it's not peak hour and you have time to chat with the proprietor, Len, or the other folks who work there. Very knowledgeable and generous.

With my family, the menu on Christmas day is leftovers from Christmas eve, which is when we traditionally celebrate. Our Christmas eve menu would not hold up under scrutiny for coherent menu planning. Perhaps it did once upon a time, but now it's been pared down to everyone's favorite dishes from our Greek, Swedish, and Polish heritage, plus some New England favorites and some excellent salumeri that I bring from Boston's North End. So there's roast lamb, cured fish with dill, perogi, salt cod cakes, stuffed clams, and more. Sweets are my mother's swedish cardamom bread and lots of cookies. What's not to like?

I use a similar pressed pastry technique, but with a rather unorthodox dough that has the cheese worked into it. Press it into the mini muffin tins, add custard/filling. No blind baking required. Sounds crazy but it actually works. You get a tender, cheesy crust and whatever filling you desire. Here's the dough measures I use for approx. 3 dozen mini quiche: - 2 cups flour, 8 oz grated cheese (gruyere, mild cheddar, etc), 1/2 lb butter (softened), salt, dash of cayenne pepper - cream the butter and cheese, add the salt and cayenne. - add flour, work into a smooth dough. Let rest at least 1 hour. - cut off small pieces to form into 1-1/2 inch balls (more or less, depends on how thick you want the crust). Press into mini muffin tins. Fill with custard and filling. Bake at 400 F for approx 15 minutes.

My local Whole Foods was selling them today, same price. When I bought mine, I inquired, and the guy behind the counter said they'd started selling them only recently and that demand had been surprisingly high. Only a little lemon and salt with mine, but oh so tasty. It never ceases to surprise me how flavorful these little guys are. Inspired by jonhnyd's picture above with the avocado, I'm thinking about a ceviche next--when something is this fresh, makes sense.

Similar to the Martha Stewart recipe but simpler: preheat oven to 400. use kosher salt to make a 1/2 inch bed of salt in a shallow roasting pan. Wash and dry fingerling or other small waxy potatoes. nestle the potatoes into the salt, roast until tender and skin begins to wrinkle. remove from salt bed, brush off excess salt, toss with a little bit of evoo, pepper. Perfect, but for variation some chopped parsley adds some freshness. Another memorable potato roast was equally simple: thin slices of waxy potatoes, tossed with evoo, salt, pepper, and chopped fresh rosemary. arranged artfully on a baking sheet in a thin layer, roasted at high temperature until cooked through. There was a friendly fight over the last few slices of this one. When adding potatoes to roast alongside meat, though, I'm with Chris Hennes and others who prefer the floury potatoes. Consider roasting whole (peeled) shallots along with the potato chunks. Not only are they delicious as a side with the potatoes, but they add nice flavor to the jus.

I was referring to the frozen naan, but will look for the fresh version in the bread section and give it a try. Thus far I've not been impressed with anything from their fresh bread section, so haven't browsed there in a while. The mini toasts, like many of their crackers, are a great buy, I agree.

Cleaning up along the way is a habit that was forced on me when my kitchens were tiny with little or no counter space, much less a dishwasher. It's stuck with me, and it makes all the difference. The other point Paul made that I would heartily second is that of keeping lots of clean towels handy. I go through a pile of them everytime I cook.