The Bitten Word

Chili-Lime Roasted Butternut Salad

Everyday Food (December 2012)

"I need a great side dish that's easy and will feed a crowd, but something that'll still impress people."

We've heard that question dozens of times, and we usually give the same answer: Fajita sweet potatoes. They're phenomenal, and phenomenally easy. In fact, we just made some again this past weekend.

The spicy-sweet combo that makes those Fajita Sweet Potatoes so great is the same thing at work in this yummy salad from Everyday Food. (And no we're not ready to talk about how this is the last monthly issue, so let's just pretend eveything's fine and the same as always and we'll deal with that another day.)

2012 Gift Guide: Bitten Word Faves for Everyone On Your List

It's been a few years since we published a gift guide at the holidays. But we've been keeping a list this year of things we've eaten and sampled that we really loved. And now seems like as good a time as any to share them with you! 

If you're looking for some gift ideas (or maybe a treat for yourself), here are some things we recommend:

 

Caroline's Cakes: When we were getting married, we debated for a long time about what to do for dessert. One excellent option, recommended to us by our friend Katy, was to buy Caroline's Cakes. They're made near us, in Annapolis, Maryland, and they're beautiful -- based on the classic Smith Island seven-layer caramel cake, but with tons of different varieties and flavors.

We took a trip out to the store to try a few slices (okay, it was more like six slices) and we fell in love with them. We opted against them for the wedding because of the kind of event we were having, but we've often recommended them as gift ideas. Cakes vary in size and price, but a 9-inch cake that serves 14-20 people is $48. They ship nationwide and you can order at CarolinesCakes.com. 

 

 

Zingerman's Candy Bars: Earlier this fall, Tori from Sickles Market (a sponsor of this blog) sent us a box of products to sample. Among them was one of the best -- if not the best -- candy bars we've ever tasted, a Zingerman's Zzang! Original Candy Bar, from Zingerman's Deli and food market in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

We loved it so much that Clay ordered five of them as a surprise for Zach's birthday. At $6 each, they're definitely an indulgence, but one that the chocoholic on your list will enjoy immensely. Available to ship from Sickles Market. 

 

Thanksgiving 2012: It's All Over But the Stuffing

It's Thanksgiving Tuesday! You most likely already have your meal planned out, at least most of the way. Or perhaps you've made reservations! In case you're looking for some last-minute inspiration, here's all our Thanksgiving coverage.

We'll see you next week. In the meantime, let us know what you're making, send us some photos of the food, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

• Full Thanksgiving Recipe Index from This Year's Food Magazines
• The Top Thanksgiving Trends for 2012
• Our Favorite Holiday Recipes from Years Past

 

Our 2012 Fakesgiving Menu: All the recipes we test-drove for you:

Cocktail:
Gin Apple Cider

Snack:
Fried Brussels Sprouts with Paprika-Spiked Dipping Sauce

Turkey:
Simple Grill-Roasted Turkey

Relishes:
Cherry Lemon Relish
Tart Apple Chutney

Dressings:
Tortilla Chip Chorizo Stuffing
Mushroom and Leek Bread Pudding
Hominy, Oyster and Sausage Dressing

Sides:
Creamed Greens with Chestnuts
Haricots Verts with White Beans and Shallot Vinaigrette
Winter Squash with Spiced Butter
Sweet Potatoes with Bourbon and Maple

Desserts:
Make-Ahead Maple Walnut Tart
Sorghum-Sweetened Chocolate Pecan Pie
Apple-Date Betty
Tot's Egg Custard Pie

Thanksgiving 2012: Gin Apple Cider

A recipe from The Bitten Word

Happy Thanksgiving Week! Have a cocktail!

This is our final Thanksgiving preview recipe.  We've told you the biggest Thanksgiving trends, cataloged all the recipes from this year's food magazines, and walked you through the 20 or so recipes we tried out ourselves.

Now it's time for a drink.

Thanksgiving 2012: Tot's Egg Custard Pie

A recipe from The Bitten Word

Egg Custard Pie was a staple at my family gatherings growing up. Regardless of the occasion, be it Thanksgiving or lunch after church, in a time of celebration or sorrow, Egg Custard Pie was present. And it was always made by my grandfather, Tot.

Tot is an unusual name. And it's even more unusual when you learn that it's his full first name -- It's not short for anything, and he has no middle name. Even more odd, Tot is a twin. The name my great-grandparents chose for my great-uncle? Dot.

All you need to make Tot's Egg Custard Pie are eggs, sugar, nutmeg, cornstarch and whole milk. Tot's notes for the recipe say to use "sweet milk," by which he means non-buttermilk. And he never bothers with a homemade pie crust -- he's perfectly content with a store-bought shell. 

The pie itself is a cinch to make. Whisk the filling together, pour them into a pie shell, and bake until the pie is set. Serve the pie at room temperature after it's had time to cool. The pie, sweet and scented with nutmeg, is light in texture, rather like a cross between a cream pie and a flan. The texture of a Egg Custard Pie might not be for everyone, but we love it. 

Decades later, Tot is still making this pie. We hope to be making it for just as long.

-- Clay  

 

Thanksgiving 2012: Tart Apple Chutney

A recipe from The Bitten Word

When we were asked by the Washington Post to come up with a few recipes for their Thanksgiving coverage, we thought of a few cranberry sauce alternatives that we wanted to try. So we hit the kitchen, developing three recipes for turkey-complementary sauces. They each turned out rather well, but our favorite was this Tart Apple Chutney. 

Any time of the year, we love a thin slice of a Granny Smith apple on a turkey sandwich. That was the inspiration for this chutney, which is made with Granny Smiths and golden raisins and flavored with cider vinegar and fig preserves for a nice tart/sweet contrast. To give it a bit of texture, we added toasted walnuts. 

We loved this as a complement to turkey. The tartness of the apple and vinegar went perfectly with a nicely roasted bird. If you want an alternative to cranberry sauce that will stand out at the Thanksgiving table, this will do the trick. 

Thanksgiving 2012: Fried Brussels Sprouts With Paprika-Spiked Dipping Sauce

A Recipe From The Bitten Word

So, we knew a few weeks in advance that the Washington Post was coming for Fakesgiving. That was good news, because it gave us plenty of time to plan our big meal. It also gave us a chance to try out some of our own original creations to accompany the profile.

First on our list was Brussels sprouts. Sometimes, it seems as if the mission statement for this blog should read: "Convincing You to Love Brussels Sprouts Since 2008."

We were eager to try frying Brussels, so we broke out the Dutch oven and heated up some peanut oil. 

Thanksgiving 2012: Hominy, Oyster, and Sausage Dressing

Saveur (November 2012)

One thing we love about Thanksgiving issues of food magazines are the regional features you often see. You know what we mean: "Thanksgiving Comes to Napa," or "A Southwest Celebration of Thanks," or "A Traditional Pan-Asian Hawaiian Turkey Feast By Way Of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan." Those features.

This year, our favorite was Saveur's lovely spread about celebrating Thanksgiving on the Chesapeake Bay. We highly recommend you take time to read the first-person narrative by historian Bernard Herman. Maybe it's because we're Chesapeake-adjacent ourselves, but we were really enamored by that feature. We want to go live inside that Thanksgiving. 

And it was that Chesapeake feature that convinced us to try a new take on oyster dressing. 

Thanksgiving 2012: Cherry-Lemon Relish

Food Network Magazine (November 2012)

When we started making Fakesgiving plans, in order to do a dry-run of Thanksgiving dishes, we had trouble getting excited about cranberry sauces. As our recap of favorite holiday dishes shows, we've made a bunch of cranberry sauces over the years. We like -- and sometimes even love -- cranberry sauce, but after a while, they all start to run together. 

This year, we got really excited about alternatives to cranberry sauce. We were so excited, in fact, that we served three of them. (Never fear: We also whipped up a fourth more traditional cranberry sauce for guests.)

This Cherry-Lemon Relish was one of our favorites -- and it definitely deserves a spot on your Thanksgiving table. 

Thanksgiving 2012: Apple-Date Betty

Everyday Food (November 2012)

Here are the main ingredients for this Apple-Date Betty: bread, butter, sugar, apples, dates and spices. 

That list should produce a spectacular dessert, one that's homey and flavorful, the equivalent of a big autumn bear hug.

So how can you have this many great ingredients and not produce a stellar Thanksgiving dessert? 

We're not exactly certain, but we have some ideas for how to fix it.