We say - don't start from scratch? Have we lost all our principles? Hardly. We are not in any way, shape, or form above the idea of starting with a good commercially-made base and creating something new and unique with it. For instance, Sara Kate suggests a Homemade-Not-Homemade Holiday Ice Cream:
Slightly soften vanilla ice cream and stir in a nice spice mixture (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger) or powdered espresso or some caramelized nuts then re-freeze before serving.
Click for another quick holiday dessert idea...
Another way to hurry along your holiday dessert plans is to make bread pudding with those rich panettone cakes that are so popular at Christmas. Here's an easy recipe from Real Simple - just add a few eggs, some milk and sugar and bake and you have a special holiday dessert.
What sort of food hacks do you employ around the holidays to keep everyone fed, warm, and happy?
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Comments (6)
What is this, Rachel Ray?
Carrier, I hear you, lol, but I do think sometimes you can take shortcuts and still be a fine cook. I like to use this mix here http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w21/scrap2day/PillsburyQuickBread.jpg and add 2 tablespoons of fresh squeezed orange juice and a 1 tablespoon of finely grated orange zest to the mix. Tastes wonderful and I get loads of compliments every year when I hand them out. Shortcuts during the holidays that don't sacrifice flavor are okay in my book. Not everyone I give a gift to is going to get the made from scratch candies but I do want to give them something tasty and somewhat homemade.
Every time I see panettone, now, I think of the Iron Chef episode where Mario Batali made a zuppa inglese using a panettone ... it looked so delicious, and the judges loved it!
I was always under the impression that bread pudding was a way to use up leftover breads and pastries. Is it meant to be done from scratch and not "à la Rachel Ray"?
You all need to chill. Maybe you have 4 hours to make dessert, but I'd rather take some shortcuts using quality products. I'm making a trifle for our holiday dinner using a pound cake from a local bakery.
I love using Panettone for as many things has possible during the holiay season. It's delicious in bread pudding, as french toast, in a triffle, you name it