Holiday Recipe Exchange!

[3113]

Time to get started folks! Put your holiday recipes here from now till the end of the season--sides, mains and desserts, be they Hanukah brisket and latkes, bûche de nöel, Kwanzaa okra, Yuletide goose, New Year's black-eyed peas or Christmas crown roast and plum pudding.


http://images.marthastewart.com/images/content/web/features/feature3/ft_holimenus25_l.jpghttp://www.marthastewart.com/sites/files/marthastewart.com/images/content/tv/martha_stewart_show/show_photos/1101_1150/1136_recipe_matzo_xl.jpghttp://www.marthastewart.com/sites/files/marthastewart.com/images/content/pub/ms_living/2009Q4/mla105129_1009_yulet_logtif_l.jpg


There'll be a separate thread for cookies, and one for drinks

Enjoy!

 

[Dianthus]

If we posted the recipes to the AH Recipe Book here, we'd have the recipes year after year.

 

[3113]

If we posted the recipes to the AH Recipe Book here, we'd have the recipes year after year.

True, but until that thread has an index, it's a bit hard for people who are after only holiday recipes--like glogg or latkes or what to use for that gingerbread house their kids want to create--to find such things in a general recipe thread. And it's likely that any help they ask for on such recipes will also get lost in such a thread.

Here they can get ideas for the dinners they'll be hosting next month, the pot-luck parties they'll be attending, or the home-baked gifts they want to give--and I don't see these "exchanges" as just recipe exchanges, but also a place where people can say, "Anyone have a good eggnog recipe?" or "I'm making crown roast for Christmas dinner, help!" It's a place not just for holiday recipes, but holiday assistance.

The best recipes we get out of these threads can always be moved to the Recipe book after the holidays.

 

[Dianthus]

True, but until that thread has an index, it's a bit hard for people who are after only holiday recipes--like glogg or latkes or what to use for that gingerbread house their kids want to create--to find such things in a general recipe thread. And it's likely that any help they ask for on such recipes will also get lost in such a thread.

Here they can get ideas for the dinners they'll be hosting next month, the pot-luck parties they'll be attending, or the home-baked gifts they want to give--and I don't see these "exchanges" as just recipe exchanges, but also a place where people can say, "Anyone have a good eggnog recipe?" or "I'm making crown roast for Christmas dinner, help!" It's a place not just for holiday recipes, but holiday assistance.

The best recipes we get out of these threads can always be moved to the Recipe book after the holidays.

I look forward to reading both the recipes and the advice.

It's Stir-Up Sunday weekend here; time to make the fruitcake.

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

Hmmm . . . can I beg for recipes here?

I want to make a coconut cake for Christmas. Not a coconut cream pie, but a coconut cake. No idea why, though it might have something to do with seeing this terrible remake of Emily Dickinson's coconut cake.

In any event, I've never made one. Does anyone have a spectacular recipe? One their grandmother only gave away on her deathbed? I'll take a link to something less glamorous, too, as long as it's good.

 

[voluptuary_manque]

Coconut is not allowed in the den! However, I do have this cranberry pie recipe.

First make a lower pie crust and an upper one cut into strips and heat the oven to 400 F.

Now the filling:

Put 4 cups of fresh cranberries, 1 1//2 cups sugar, 3 Tbs. cornstarch, an egg and 1 tsp. vanilla extract in a food processor and grind to the degree of coarseness/fineness you prefer. Scoop out into the pie shell. Cover with the lattice top. Bake 10 minutes at 400 and then about 35 more at 350F. Serve with either whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on top. NOM!!

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

Coconut is not allowed in the den! However, I do have this cranberry pie recipe.

LOL. See, coconut is normally not allowed in our house, either. Which is why I'm so excited for a larger crowd for the holidays: finally, after ten years with Mr. I Hate Coconut, I can have a coconut dessert as long as I make him two others.

Yes, two. I'm thinking chocolate chess pecan and lemon meringue. If he has those two, there won't be a word of complaint about the coconut.

The cranberry looks good, too.

 

[3113]

Ultimate Coconut Cake!

Hmmm . . . can I beg for recipes here?

Of course you can ask for recipes here! And I've a spectacular one (not mine--it's from Robert Carter, a pastry chef at a restaurant in South Carolina)...unlike Emily's its a little time consuming, but its ultra-super coconut, coconut, coconut! Believe me, I'm a coconut lover, and what I love about this recipe is it's coconut flavored top to bottom--unlike some cakes that put in strange fillings or use straight vanilla cake and only the coconut flakes on top of the frosting are what make it "coconut cake" And why not coconut cake for the holidays? All snowy and white?

This recipe is also flexible, by the way. You can halve the cake recipe, make one cake, slice it in half for a simple two layer cake, or three for three slender layers. Or you can half the two cakes for four hearty layers, or cut them each into three layers for that show-stopping six layer extravaganza! And the best thing is that you make the cake ahead of time. Up to a few days ahead of time as the filling needs to refrigerate overnight before you put it on the cake, and the cake needs to sit in the refrigerator for at least five hours before serving. So it's ready to go and you don't have to worry about dessert as you make the rest of dinner.

Here you go:

Ultimate Coconut Cake

http://www.marthastewart.com/sites/files/marthastewart.com/images/content/tv/martha_stewart_show/show_photos/2101_2200/tvm2162_072707_coconutcake_l.jpg

Cream Filling:

5 cups heavy cream
3 cups sugar
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
9 cups shredded sweetened coconut

Directions

Place cream, sugar, and butter in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together cornstarch, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon water. Add to cream mixture, bring to a boil, and simmer until thickened, about 1 minute.

Place coconut in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until coconut is finely chopped. Remove cream mixture from heat and stir in coconut until well combined. Transfer to a large baking dish; let cool. Cover filling with plastic wrap and chill overnight. Just before using, place mixture in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat until smooth and creamy, 4 to 5 minutes

Next, make the cake (two cakes):

Nonstick cooking spray with flour
1 pound unsalted butter, preferably European-style
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray two 10-inch round cake pans with cooking spray; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 5 to 6 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until creamy, occasionally scraping down sides of the bowl using a spatula.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl, mix together cream, vanilla, and coconut extract. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture, alternating with cream mixture, beginning and ending with flour; beat until just combined.

Pour batter into prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack before removing cakes from pans.

Now you cut each of those two cakes in half (or thirds if you're daring--remember to brush off crumbs) and layer them with this filling. Then cover the cake in this frosting:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 cups confectioners' sugar
1 vanilla bean, scraped

Directions:

Place butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until creamy.With mixer on low speed, slowly add vanilla extract, seeds from vanilla bean, and confectioners' sugar. Continue beating until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.

Press toasted (or regular) coconut into the sides (and or top) and chill up to 5 hours or 5 days. Enjoy!

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

Thanks, 3. That looks spectacular!