PARTY SNACKS

The tree is up and the wreath is hung and I already have one holiday party under my belt. Last weekend was the fourth annual Christmas Caroling night right here, in my Brooklyn brownstone. We had a piano delivered (ok, my neighbor threw his keyboard in his car and drove two blocks) but I like the sound of it, very Jazz Age. "The piano is getting delivered at noon and the bathtub gin should be here around three."

Usually I cook a whole bunch of food, but since I am hosting my ENTIRE (22 of us) family on Christmas day, I simply could not exhaust myself. This year we just did drinks and appetizers (and dessert, of course.) I relied on my tasteful friends to show up with a variety of wines, cheeses, and dips. Talk about holiday cheer: my brilliant cousin brought a gluten-free cranberry tart, and a dear friend adapted a artichoke-dip recipe, gluten-free. I felt like I was at TGI Friday's! In a good way!

I couldn't resist making a few things, and I enlisted the help of my industrious roommate. There are no pictures because we were pretty beside ourselves with party cheer and general industriousness.

Ginger Infused Cranberry Gimlets

-One bottle medium quality vodka (the liquor store guy recommended Svedka)

-One ginger root

-Cheese grater

Grate about 5-6 tablespoons of ginger. Pour vodka over it. Soak overnight.

Serve over ice with cranberry juice, sparkling water, and a dash of simple syrup. Or ginger ale.

Clementine Mimosas

-1 large box clementines

-Several bottles of champagne

-Lemon juicer

Cut clementines in half. Do NOT cut your finger. Squeeze juice. Pour some into each individual glass of champagne.

Turkey-Curry Meatballs

-One container ground turkey [warning! get the full-fat kind or else your meatballs will be dry]

-One small onion, diced

-A few garlic cloves, diced

-One egg

- 1/3 cup gluten-free rice crackers OR corn chips OR non-sweet cereal, OR breadcrumbs if you have such a thing in your kitchen

-1 tablespoon gluten-free soy sauce

-1 tablespoon gluten-free Worcestershire sauce
-2 tablespoons curry powder

-Salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. (Don't taste the raw turkey.)

Brown the onion with the garlic. Dump the turkey meat into a bowl. Add all ingredients, taking care to blend well, with your hands.

*WARNING* if you are making these the day OF YOUR PARTY, you will have yellow fingernails due to the turmeric in the curry powder. I don't have a solution for this, except maybe to get a manicure (red) or use a spoon (not as good for blending) or make them the day before.

Make little balls. If the balls are not sticking, add more bread crumbs or another egg.

Bake at 35o for about twenty minutes. Serve with toothpicks.

Coconut Rice Pudding with Mango

Adapted from here.

-1/2 cup basmati rice

-2 cups light coconut milk

-2 cups water

-1/3 cup sugar

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-1 large mango

-Cardamom powder, optional

Combine rice, coconut milk, sugar, and water in a pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. When done, add vanilla and cardamom. Slice mango and put on top. Serve in little cups, to your vegan and dairy-allergic friends!

And now, for something completely...HEALTHY

Steamed vegetable lunch from Spring Street Natural, conveniently located near my office. Usually this comes with seaweed - I usually opt out. Sometimes, if I am feeling indulgent, I ask for an extra side of the tahini dressing. So. Good.

The rest of the food is fairly bland, but the portions are huge and can make for two lunches. I like this meal because it's vegetarian and dairy-free, too. Sometimes a girl just can't have cheese in her lunch. (Sometimes.) I have also ordered the taco salad - without the homemade tortilla chips (fried on premises with other wheaty things.)

The restaurant uses tamari instead of soy sauce, and because it is one of New York's first health food restaurants, the staff is pretty accommodating!

[For a health food restaurant, though - I wish they had better packaging. That is one serious plastic dish.]

This 'n' That Stir Fry!

So it was Friday night last night, which means a couple of things. It means I had time to cook dinner, but it also means I had NO GROCERIES! OK, that's not completely true. One always has some pantry items, perhaps a single carrot, some soggy celery. A can of beans, rice, onion - this 'n' that.

If I were a French housewife, and it were 1940, I would take my celery and onions and make a stock or a stew. Well, I had just gotten back from yoga, and it is 2010, and basically, I needed to eat.

Back in college days, my brilliant friend invented a stir fry with two basic flavor ingredients: peanut butter and chili garlic sauce. Sticking to college canon, I dutifully always made this dish with broccoli, as she recommended. Making it with broccoli is THE BEST because the peanut butter sticks to the little green bristles. SO. GOOD.

Turns out, you can make this stir fry with anything. Variety! The spice of life. Ahem.

You will need:

onions, chopped

absolutely any vegetables, chopped (broccoli, snap peas, carrots, celery, zucchini, anything)

1 heaping tablespoon peanut butter

1-2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce (to taste, it is HOT)

tamari (or gluten-free soy sauce)

sesame oil (or any oil for frying)

ginger, if you have it

rice

Saute the onions. Add the rest of the vegetables. Add the peanut butter and chili garlic sauce (and ginger) and stir until the peanut butter is evenly distributed. Cook until vegetables are cooked - but still crunchy. Look for the bright green glow - don't let them brown. (Obviously this does not apply to carrots. They are orange.)

I added kidney beans - cuz I had them - but you could add chicken, tofu, or chick peas, too!

Serve over rice, add soy sauce as desired.