I know I’ve been concentrating a lot on entertaining and homemade gift recipes this month. When I asked about it on Facebook in November you all said they were things you needed this season. You also said you needed some easy make-ahead breakfast recipes for the holidays which is what I am going to talk about today and tomorrow. Today we are starting off with a simple overnight french toast made with that loaf of panettone someone may have just given you the other day. I happen to adore panettone and this is one of the first things I make with a loaf whenever I get my hands on one. If you’ve only just received one, or are looking for a new way to prepare your favorite sweet loaf, this french toast is a great place to start.
I am so excited to share the third installment of my trip to Thailand from last February. The purpose of this entire trip was to explore Thai seafood on behalf of Sea Cuisine. Having been to Thailand once before I was thrilled to have the chance to return. This post chronicles our last day in Bangkok before we traveled down the Phuket to experience Southern Thailand. We had the great fortune of eating the most amazing shrimp dumplings and fresh cut noodles I’ve ever tried. It has been almost ten months since our visit and I still think about them!
When it comes to entertaining this season a lot of you asked for some easy-peasy quick party recipes. I am, of course, very happy to oblige since you know I am all about delicious food made with minimal fuss. Today I’ve partnered with Whole Foods Market to share an excellent, and simple, seafood appetizer that is perfect for seasonal entertaining. Sure, this could be done with seafood from any market, but today I am specifically working with Whole Foods Market because of their commitment to sustainability. I simply love that Whole Foods Market features Wild-Caught Seafood Sustainability Ratings for each of their seafood products. And, better yet, they no longer carry red-rated (i.e. unsustainable) seafood in any of their stores as of Earth Day 2012. I’ll always root for a company that commits themselves so wholly to respecting the Earth and maintaining our food supply for generations to come.
For my third day of holiday food gifts I am pleased to present an exclusive shopping discount at the Food52 Shop. As most of you know, I am huge fan of Food52 and am so proud that three of my recipes are in their first cookbook. I also highly recommend their holiday iPhone/iPad app, it is so useful during the entertaining season! Today I am psyched to offer this discount because I think their web-based store is a great place to shop for friends and family. Amanda and Merrill personally vet everything that is available for sale and work directly with sellers to create special products and pricing. It is like shopping at the most well-cultivated online food and kitchenware store on the entire internet! Here are some of the awesome things available this season:
I am so thrilled that Food52 is offering a special shopping discount to all Naptime Chef readers this season! Use Code Naptime10, Save an Extra 10% Off* in the Food52 Holiday Shop
*Offer ends December 31, 2012, at 11:59 p.m. PDT. Excludes past purchases. Limit ten discounts per customer. Excludes travel and copper offers. Minimum $20 purchase. Offer is subject to change without notice and is not redeemable for cash or cash equivalent. May not be combined with any other offer or promotion. Void where prohibited by law.
Today I am thrilled to bring you my foodie holiday gift guide for 2012! Not only is this a gift guide of a few of my favorite foodie items, I also have the great fortune of being able to giveaway one of each of the items below. That’s right, it is kind of like Kelsey’s favorite foodie finds for the holiday season Oprah-style. I had so much fun putting this list together and hope it gives you some great gift ideas. Stay tuned for more holiday shopping tips and giveaways later this week!
Today I am thrilled to kick-off my holiday gift week chatting about one of my favorite causes, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer. I know cancer isn’t necessarily a fun topic, but making cookies and selling them to support pediatric cancer research is definitely a fun thing to do. For me there are fewer things that feel better or more worthwhile than putting my baking skills to good use during the holiday season. This month I have joined several of my food blogging buddies to create and promote a great Holiday Recipe Video series featuring our favorite holiday cookies to support Cookies for Kids’ Cancer. I’ll admit, I am feeling rather large these days and didn’t necessarily want to film myself, but I’ll do anything for this organization. (Don’t worry, I plan to bring back The Naptime Chef Cooking Show this spring post-baby – most likely to make lighter food as I lose the baby weight!)
Tonight is Mom’s Night Out! Woot! Of course, this year this doesn’t carry the same meaning it usually does. But I’ll take whatever mid-week break I can get during the holiday season. Celebrating with friends is always up my alley, even if it means sipping my Elderflower Presse and being the designated driver. For my contribution to the little potluck we’ll be having at Maura’s house I am bringing a trio of party crostinis. I LOVE taking crostinis to parties because they are so easy to prepare ahead of time, they travel well, and everyone always appreciates a party nibble that can be eaten in two bites or less.
This holiday season I am parring down my sweets list. I simply can’t stand on my feet for hours on end baking like I usually do every other Christmas season. I was a little bit sad about this at first until I realized that it is actually a good exercise in editing for me. Instead of manically baking endless batches of cookies and bars with no end in sight, this year I’ve been forced to identify a select few that will appease everyone in our house. For my daughter I’ll make classic Peanut Butter Blossoms and cut-out butter cookies she can decorate. My husband has requested Buttery Pecan Snowballs, and I want simple shortbread in holiday flavors like chocolate espresso and this warm, cinnamon chai.
With the holiday season quickly approaching it is time to start thinking about party food which is why I am thrilled to be working with Kettle Brand Chips to share my favorite holiday dip recipe today! When I talk about party food this time of year I am thinking about all the fun dishes to serve when you open your home to friends and family in November and December. In my case, I usually focus on recipes that are festive but simple to pull together in advance. I also like to make things that can be paired with store bought food. For example, this awesome roasted red pepper and spinach dip is perfect for Christmas because it is a beautiful shade of light red with little green flecks and it tastes delicious when served with a variety of Kettle Brand Chips.
Since we are on the topic of homemade gifts I want to share another one of my favorite small batch gift recipes: White Chocolate Bark with Fruit & Granola. This sweet, crunchy bark first came about when I was attempting Ina Garten’s recipe for White Chocolate Bark and realized I was out of walnuts. Instead, I tossed on some homemade Dried Cherry Granola followed by a handful of toasted sliced almonds and a new holiday recipe was born!
It is finally the time of year when we start thinking about homemade holiday gifts. Yes, I did make my big batch gifts like Homemade Vanilla Extract and Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce earlier this year, but my smaller batch gifts are just getting started. This is the food that is easy and fun to make in small batches as needed throughout the season. One of my favorite things to make in this category are fresh, crunchy biscotti in an assortment of flavors. Not only are these sophisticated coffee-dipping cookies a welcome departure from the onslaught of super-sweet Christmas cookies this time of year, they are also perfect for a wide variety of gift-giving situations. For example, when I hear the moms in my daughter’s class are assembling the teacher gift bags I always whip up a quick batch of Lemon Ginger Biscotti to add as my contribution. Or, when I know I have a meeting with a client or editor coming up I bag a fresh batch of Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti to bring along. Sometimes I even make two or three batches at once and ship an assortment to friends around the country to spread a little holiday cheer.
Today’s post is in honor of my daughter who is celebrating her birthday this month. She is at such a fun age and this year I am going a little overboard with the whole occasion. This week she’ll be having two small parties. The first will be at school where I will bring in a little art project for all the kids to make together. The second will be outside of school with some of her closest friends. Finally, at the end of the week I’ve promised her a flower manicure at our favorite nail place followed by special snack of peppermint hot chocolate and a donut (her favorite treat) at home with Mom.
