Give the Gift of a Good Time

The holidays are all about gift-giving and good times, so as chaotic as the celebrations may seem, it’s some of the best times of the year with friends and family.

From company holiday parties to white elephants to the classic BYOB dinner with friends, we’ve done all the celebrations. I can’t say I have a favorite leading into the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day festivities. Just like how I can’t tell which movie is my favorite. Quick rundown for the Christmas movies I’ve watched so far:

• The Holdovers

• Elf

• Gremlins

• Feast of the Seven Fishes (highly recommend this one on Netflix for a simple watch)

• Home Alone

• Four Christmases

Last year my family celebrated our first Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve. Our choices were shrimp, crab cakes, smoked trout dip, lox, caesar salad (made with real anchovies, slight stretch here), scallops and calamari. Not too shabby for a first go around. Especially since my mom pulled out the bells and whistles, while breaking tradition of the feast, and made some braciole as well. 10/10, would do again.

Pictures of the spread left to the imagination because we were deep into the chaos of prepping and eating before sitting down for the full meal for 14 of us. Maybe next time.

This year Christmas Eve will be at my aunt and uncle’s, so no second go at the feast just yet, but still some damn good food ahead. And then Christmas Day is light this year, but turning back to some classics with family sauce and pasta with another full course for the four of us.

What’s Cookin’

By this point, I’m already deep into baking for the holiday treats (shoutout to those who ordered 🙌 very excited to share). Are you looking for any last minute ideas of what too cook or bake? Here are a few ideas that have caught my eye heading into Christmas:

• Lemon Butter Scallops – Scallops are a perfect treat for Christmas, whether they’re a starter or part of the main course. This slightly elevated way to cook a perfect soft bite with greens, capers and walnuts adds a nice twist.

• Mini Hasselback Potatoes with Crème Fraîche & Caviar – I know I’ve featured mini hasselback potatoes before, but the one-bite concept is just a perfect dish to add to the mix. Also, full disclosure: caviar here is optional. I don’t know if I’d go out of my way to get caviar just for this dish, but I think the holidays may be a justified reason to put it on just about anything and everything around.

• Pistachioroos – It’s like the rice krispies treat takes on its pistachio moment that’s been big this year. A no-bake treat is always a good option with so much going in the oven these days.

• Chocolate Babka Buns – I love a good babka, and why limit yourself to a slice? These buns are a perfect portion for the soft dough. Also, a big fan of the mini chocolate chips going on here from King Arthur.

I cant wait to see all the holiday spreads over the next few days. Fingers crossed for even a bit of snow. I know I’ll be keeping warm with some good Guinness, maybe some egg nog and of course some glasses of wine (not all at the same time, though).

Rounding this all out to say that this is all just the start. We still have Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day with the Mummers in Philly to celebrate this holiday season.

Happy holidays ✌️