The Holy Grail of Holiday Drinks- The Tom and Jerry

Before I know it, summer is going to be here, with the humidity and oppressive heat. I'll be moaning and groaning about it, most certainly. The Minnesota girl in me is built for cold weather and snow that's for sure, so it should be no surprise really, that while the rest of the state is looking towards spring, new flowers, leaves unfurling, gardening, even tornado season, I'm obsessing over something you only say in the coldest times of the year. It all started about a year ago. I was minding my own business, wandering an antique store here in Des Moines, looking for vintage cookbooks and doilies when I came across something that brought all the childhood feels flooding back- a Tom and Jerry punch bowl set. Holy balls!! I wanted to take it home with me but it wasn't in my budget that day, and someone else took home the prize- it was gone the next time I went.

Saddened by this lost opportunity I began browsing Ebay and online posts. I wanted one sooooo bad. A many times as I went back to the antique store, I never found another one. My dream of owning this precious piece of memories was fading quickly. I'd already worked out the recipe for the batter. The drink, you see, is a holiday tradition- a little bit like a hot boozy eggnog but not quite. Eggs, butter, sugar and warm spices are mixed into a batter that combines with brandy or rum and steamy hot water for a perfect cup of holiday cheer. Some families have their traditional recipes. My family bought the batter at a local grocery store. It was only available for a very short time and always sold frozen. My grandmother always called it "batter crap" ,my mother carried on that tradition and to this day my dad, sister and myself still say that.

I was minding my own business one day when I got a text from my sister. "Are you home?" she asked. I was not, of course, I was out and about food shopping and having a bite of lunch. "Well, I bought you something. I want to bring it to you." I had noooooo idea the surprise I was in for that day. She sent me two pictures and told me to pick which one I wanted. 

My heart stopped, I swear. The end of the search. The object I had been crushing on for years, the missing link, the be all and end all. The Tom and Jerry punch bowl set!!!!!! I picked the white set, and she kept the green set. The happy ending is mine. Tom and Jerrys shall be enjoyed in my home once again. I cannot tell you how many cups of this iconic holiday drink have been served by my family at Christmas time. I'm not sure any human has ever counted that high! Seriously! The Tom and Jerry is as much a part of my life, my memories and my DNA as blonde hair and freckles. 

The batter is made as follows:

12 eggs, separated

1 pound butter

3 pounds powdered sugar

1 teaspoon each: ground nutmeg, ground cloves, ground allspice, cinnamon

2 teaspoons vanilla *

big pinch salt 

*I used 1 teaspoon liquid vanilla and 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder because I wanted the little flecks of vanilla in the batter, but you can use all liquid if you prefer.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In another large bowl, beat the egg yolks until lemon colored and very thick. Set aside.

In a third bowl, beat the butter and the powdered sugar and spices together. Mix in the egg yolks and vanilla. Stir in the egg whites until completely blended. Pour mixture into a freezer safe container and store in the freezer.

To make a classic Minnesota-style Tom and Jerry, place 1-2 ounces of brandy, whiskey or spiced rum in a coffee mug. Add 2 tablespoons of the batter mixture and top up with simmering water or milk. My family always used water. Stir and enjoy.

Doesn't that just make you feel all warm and happy and cozy inside? I know it sure does me!!

Guest Chef- Katie and the Soroka Family Pierogies

Since I have never made, or even eaten, a pierogi in my life, when my friend Katie asked if I'd like to come over and learn how, I jumped at the idea! You know me- if it's food I'm all for it, and learning something new is always a great opportunity. Since she and I started having our weekend cooking days we had only made treats- with the holidays and baking and candy-making, it just seemed normal. Now that all the celebrating and festivities are behind us we decided we should focus less on sweets and more on other foods and meals, traditional family recipes and maybe even some healthy recipes.

The Soroka family has a long history of making pierogies. Katie's great grandmother used to make this dish for special occasions, and it was passed down to Katie's grandmother and grandfather, and then her uncle, who then taught Katie how to make them. This family tradition graces the Soroka table at Christmas and New Years.

Pierogies are widely thought of as the national dish of Poland. While lots of other European countries have their own versions of the dish, Poland and the Ukraine are considered to be the places of origin of these tasty dumplings. There is no standard filling either. Whatever the cook likes and has on hand goes inside- often with mashed potato. Meats and vegetables, sometimes cheese, go inside and they are often topped with sour cream, applesauce or fried onion. Seriously, at this point, what is NOT to love about these dumplings? Katie got the idea to try a dessert version too, and we decided to go with tart cherries as the filling. A little research tells me we didn't invent this idea, but it was pretty darn good.

When Katie and I were working out the details of our cooking, i.e. what can I bring, what do you need, she asked if I would grab some butter. "Sure," I said without hesitation. "How much do you need?' I asked, and her answer almost knocked me off my chair! "4 or 5 pounds," she said. Yes my friends, you read that right. Pounds. Not cups. Pounds. Now before anyone has a heart attack and starts to lecture us on the heart attack you think we will surely have after dinner let me just say- while this IS a rich and buttery and in no way a low fat dish, you don't actually consume all that butter. In fact, Katie and I were kicking around ideas for using the butter once the pierogies were gone. Lobster tail, of course, was the first suggestion. Crab legs, scampi, heck even just spoon it into a jar and use it for cooking and baking. In reality you could use a lot less butter, but today we are making it the Soroka family way.

As I said, I have never made, nor eaten pierogies, but I have seen them around. Little small ravioli-type dumplings like half-moons that I see in the frozen food section. People boil or microwave them, then saute in a little butter to brown them and eat as a side dish. This is not the authentic Polish way at all! These pierogies are the meal and are served as the main dish, not reheated and served alongside something else like an afterthought. They certainly aren't little half-moons either. These are some serious dumplings with loads of filling. Watching Katie fill the first one clued me in- I was in for a real treat. Like so many traditional family recipes, a lot of the process is eyeballing ingredients and mixing things "til it looks right." Katie measured things as I was writing notes so it would be easy to share the recipe with all of you.

To make the Soroka family piergoies, you will need:

5 lbs potatoes

1 quart sauerkraut

3-4 lbs butter

flour- approx. 10 cups plus more for rolling, divided

eggs- plan on a dozen

milk- plan on at least 1 cup, divided

Start the butter by placing 3 lbs of butter in a large roasting pan. Place in a 250 degree oven to melt. You will be adding the boiled pierogi to the butter bath after they are boiled.

I wasn't kidding! That is 3 pounds of butter in the pan.

Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Boil in salted water until tender.

Drain and mash with a bit of butter. Drain the kraut completely and mix into the potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Potato kraut filling, top, and potato beef filling, bottom.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Pop the lid on and hold at a very low boil.

For the dough, start with 3 cups of flour, 3 eggs and 1/4 cup milk in the bowl of a stand mixer (you CAN make the pasta dough by hand but using a stand mixer is much much easier), attach the dough hook and begin mixing the dough on low speed, gradually bumping up the speed as the dough comes together and you hear the machine struggle a bit. Keep the milk handy in case you need to dribble a little bit more in there. The goal is a somewhat stiff, smooth and non-sticky dough.

Pull the dough off in ping pong ball sized pieces and roll out on a floured surface. You want the dough to be thin but not quite as thin as, say, a wonton wrapper. Scoop about 2-4 tablespoons filling onto the dough in a loaf shape.

Pull the dough up and over to cover the filling. Trim the edge of the dough to about 1/4 inch beyond the filling and pinch and turn over to seal. 

Continue with remaining dough and filling. You will need to make a second batch of dough. You can cook the pierogies as you make them (3 or 4 at a time) or make them all, cover with a towel, and cook them when they are all assembled. It also helps to have a helper- someone to roll dough while you fill. I was the designated roller while Katie filled and crimped the pierogies and got them going in the boiling water.

These are no teeny tiny dumplings- these are HUGE!

*Note- Katie does not moisten the dough edges to seal, but if you like you can, use water, milk or an egg wash.

Add the pierogies to the boiling water a few at a time. Boil them gently until they rise to the top of the pot. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in the melted butter. Hold in the butter int he 250 degree oven until all the pierogies are cooked.

Now one of Katie's son is not a fan of kraut, so she also made a beef and potato filling for him, using browned ground beef that was drained and mixed with the mashed potato, and of course, Katie's brilliant suggestion, the cherry-filled dessert pierogies. I just have to say, what a stroke of brilliance. We DID use one cheat product- canned cherry pie filling- but everything else was totally homemade and dreamed up in the kitchen as we went along.

Katie made another batch of dough, using 2 cups of flour and 2 eggs and the milk. I rolled out smaller circles of dough for the dessert version, which she filled with the cherries, folded over, crimped the edges and into the boiling water they went.

For the butter sauce, Katie ladled some of the melted butter from the big roasting pan of pierogies into a 9x13 baking pan. Into the butter went a couple teaspoons of cinnamon, 1/4 cup of honey, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. 

After rising to the top of the water, remove them with a slotted spoon into the cinnamony butter mixture and pop in the oven for a good 15-20 minutes to get all the flavors married. 

The dessert pierogies were served with small scoops of creamy vanilla ice cream. 

Around the edge of the dish the butter mixture chilled and clung to the ice cream like that Magic Shell. It just tasted incredible. The dessert version was declared a HUGE success. We oohed and ahhed and already are dreaming up new fruit versions for next time. Can't wait !!!

Holiday memories and cranberries

Are you an entertainer? Like the dinner party host/hostess of a generation ago? I am. I love cooking for other people. LOVE putting together fabulous meals that require lots of prep and shopping and planning and time tables. Perfect place settings with real china and silver, crisp linens and starched napkins. Place cards. The whole bit. One year for Thanksgiving I did exactly that. The whole nine yards and then some. Oh the menu was fantastic. Rather than the usual family dinner of people swarming the kitchen plopping food on plates I recruited my daughters to help me serve the courses. What was the menu?

Trio of Appetizers:

Shrimp Martini

Mini Crab Quiche

Sweet Corn Madeleines with Creme Fraiche and Caviar

***

Cream of Asparagus Soup with Parmesan Custards

***

Baby Field Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette

***

Herbed Roast Turkey

Chestnut Stuffing

Rustic Mashed Potatoes with Pan Gravy

Green Beans Amandine

Cranberry Sauce with Roasted Shallots and Port

***

Pumpkin Pie

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Nut Praline Tart

Ohhhhhh if only people had started taking food pictures all the time 12 years ago........

What does this menu have to do with anything? Nothing really and I am NOT sharing every recipe right now- good grief, this would be the longest blog post in the history of mankind. But I happen to have a freezer full of cranberries and a chicken to roast so I thought I'd dig out this cranberry sauce recipe and share. I did not write this recipe- it's from an old issue of Bon Appetit magazine from November, 2002. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Cranberry Sauce with Roasted Shallots and Port 

18 shallots, peeled and quartered lengthwise through root end

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

5 teaspoons minced fresh thyme

5 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup sugar

1 2/3 cups ruby port

1/3 packed brown sugar

12 oz bag fresh cranberries

1/4 cup dried currants or raisins

1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss shallots with oil and 3 teaspoons of the thyme, spread onto rimmed baking sheet, season with salt and pepper. Bake until golden and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Mix 1 tablespoon of the vinegar with 1 tablespoon of sugar, drizzle over shallots.Continue roasting about 10 minutes. Remove from oven.

In saucepan bring port, brown sugar, remaining vinegar and 1/2 cup sugar to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add cranberries and currents, cook until berries pop, stirring occasionally. Mix in marjoram and remaining thyme. Stir in shallots. Transfer to bowl and chill overnight. Serve cold or at room temperature. Can be made ahead and refrigerated.

Of all the holidays our family has celebrated, this one was truly memorable. The food was divine, yes, A LOT of work and prep but so worth it. I hope that some day you and your family will give this one a try. It really is delicious. And just maybe I'll share a few more of these recipes in future posts.

Restaurant Review: Date Night with The Chef and Riccelli's

"Honey, let's go for Italian tonight."

Normally at my house those words are met with a look of "You have GOT to be kidding me." After all, I live with my very own Italian chef. He can make me a fantastic Italian dinner without batting an eye. Tonight, however, his response was "Hey, let's go to Riccelli's." As you can imagine, I was delighted. Growing up on Des Moines' south side meant EVERYONE ate at Riccelli's. My first DATE ever was at Riccelli's. Too many people these days look to those national chain restaurants for a night out when the real deal is the longtime family owned and operated genuine Italian restaurant.

Riccelli's is truly a Des Moines institution. It would be hard to find someone who hasn't eaten there, nearly impossible to find someone who hasn't heard of it. They have been visited and reviewed by several food critics and been featured in countless Best of Des Moines listings over the years. Founded in 1964 by Lillian and Pete Riccelli, the restaurant has remained in the family ever since, in their original location on Indianola Avenue and today is led by Terry Riccelli, and supported by a staff that includes his brother, Frank, son Tanner, and mother Lillian- truly a family run empire.

Terry, Tanner and Frank Riccelli

We were very fortunate to be seated in the bar. The atmosphere is intimate and quiet, the lighting subdued. It was like being on that first date again! We were greeted immediately by our server and drinks and those world famous onion rings were on the table in a flash. We felt super special- we had two servers really, Tanner, and Devin who was just starting that night. You wouldn't have have known. Tanner has to be one heck of a trainer because those guys treated us like we were the only customers in the room (and we know we weren't). It's hard to find that work ethic in young adults these days but it's alive and well at Riccelli's. Joe asked Devin if Terry was available, and immediately as named were exchanged an uncle of Joe's appeared from a nearby table! It was great!

We were in no hurry to eat and dash out of there, and that was fine- we were not rushed by the staff at all. Friendly and attentive they genuinely cared about the customers in the dining room. Unlike the endless staff turnover of a chain restaurant, this is family, and a very tight-knit crew. The menu is quite extensive. Loaded with Italian favorites, a great selection of steaks and seafood, some of the best fried chicken I've ever eaten (can you tell I've been here a ton of times?) it was just plain HARD  to narrow it down to one choice! They even have Spaghetti Caruso, something you just don't see on menus anymore, and my childhood favorite. I smiled to myself thinking back on all those waitress all those years ago that tried to talk me OUT of ordering that because they didn't know I knew what it was.....But I knew I had to, so stuffed peppers it is for me, and an Italian sausage sandwich for my chef.

Riccelli's Famous onion rings

You know it's old school when one of your courses before the entree is a small bowl of spaghetti with Riccelli's famous red sauce. Salad with one of the best creamy parmesan dressings, freshly sliced bread, it was like childhood all over again.

Side of spaghetti, and salad with creamy parmesan dressing.

Now, backing up just a minute, Terry Riccelli is one of my chef's high school classmates. When Terry realized we were there, he invited my chef back to the kitchen for some chef chat, photo opps, and a look at how the kitchen operates. This was truly the highlight of the evening for my chef. He kept sneaking back there several times to get a few snaps of different dishes coming out of the kitchen with Terry's generous welcome. He was like a kid in the candy store.

Dueling chefs !! Joe on the left and Chef  Terry Riccelli on the right

Tanner shared stories with us about how the restaurant was founded, how his grandparents met and married and how he's grown up working first as a busser and now a server. We also heard hilarious stories of Terry's younger days, being so short the servers couldn't see him in the window of the pass through doors so he got stuck scrubbing pots and pans. How can you not laugh at that? You can really see the passion in these men as they talk about their experiences.

Terry, as a chef, is a MANIAC! My chef was astounded at how fast he worked, how well he managed the kitchen staff, dishes finishing on time and perfectly prepared for table after table. Folks, let me tell you, when we got there the parking lot was PACKED. That kitchen had to be crazy busy. Yet in spite of the crazy atmosphere Terry and his staff were more than happy to let Joe check it out.

Once our entrees arrived we tucked in to some of the BEST, real, authentic, homemade Italian food I have had in ages. The Chef's Italian sausage sandwich was made with Des Moines' famous Graziano's Italian sausage, their red sauce, cheese, peppers on a toasty crusty roll that was overloaded with deliciousness. What about the stuffed peppers? Well......let's just say I didn't talk too much while I was eating. The peppers were tender and flavorful, the meat filling fantastic. Smothered with more of that red sauce.......... I could eat that every day. 

Italian sausage sandwich

Stuffed peppers, smothered with the awesome red sauce.

The aftermath......empty plates!!!

One other thing about Riccelli's that really stands out is the decor. I have heard a lot of buzz about needing an update and blah blah blah. No way !! Pictures of celebrities from bygone eras line the walls, a baby grand piano in the bar- it's perfect and unique. I love that! 

The red entryway and white brick has a vintage appeal that is the polar opposite of the over-processed, pre-packaged chain restaurants and cannot  be duplicated. And with a portrait of the late Mr. Pete Riccelli overlooking everything.......you really get it. These Italian roots have grown very very deep.