Holiday Recipes – In Good Taste

Chocolate Chip Candy Cane Cookies

Maris Callahan — Sun, 16 Dec 2018 22:39:15 +0000

I love chocolate and I love candy canes, so I knew when I saw a recipe for Chocolate Chip Candy Cane Cookies on the Food Network, that I would need to make them. I made these cookies on Wednesday night, and since Brad was working late I invited my neighbor over to hang out and have a glass of wine while I baked. As most bloggers can probably relate around the holiday season, I was so excited to pull these out of the oven and see that some of them had even turned out round, and even more excited when they tasted perfectly chocolatey and perfectly pepperminty. My excitement waned when I realized that in order to share them here on my blog I would have to take photos of them. I love to cook and bake, learn about food and wine, mix festive cocktails and explore new cuisines and cooking styles when dining out. I adore writing and since I was in fifth grade and used to try to write “novels” on my dad’s enormous Compaq desktop computer, have enjoyed the creative outlet. What I don’t enjoy is photography because I’m just not good at it. I have a Canon […]

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How To Host a Holiday Biscuit Bar Brunch

Maris Callahan — Sun, 05 Nov 2017 18:00:32 +0000

When I have guests visiting for the holidays, I think about making dinner reservations or trying out new recipes. I rarely think about brunch, which around the holidays usually means offering guests cold cereal or leftover Christmas cookies if they happen to wake up before noon. That will all change with this holiday biscuit bar brunch idea from Chicago’s own Home Chef. When I heard that Home Chef, a weekly meal delivery company based in Chicago, is making it easier to entertain during the holiday season, I was on board. Home Chef offers weekly deliveries of fresh, perfectly portioned ingredients and chef-designed recipes for people who want to eat better at home, but want to save a little time in the kitchen. I thought their main and side dishes sounded nice, but it was the Holiday Morning Biscuit Bar that really sounded like the most awesome thing on the planet, and I can now confirm that it very much is. For $13.90, you receive the ingredients and recipe to make a dozen+ biscuits plus three unique toppings to mix and match. The Asiago biscuits in less than 20 minutes, and you serve them alongside warm apple-cinnamon butter, rich cherry butter, and a sweet onion jam. (You could even get […]

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Hoppin’ John Recipe

Maris Callahan — Thu, 29 Dec 2016 07:19:14 +0000

Last year, my friend Anita hosted an open house New Year’s Day party where her daughter, also a good friend of mine, made a big pot of Hoppin’ John, a simple black-eyed pea stew made with bacon, rice and banana peppers. Black eyed peas are said to bring upon good luck in the New Year. This was new to me, but from here out I think I’m going to make it a tradition: 2016 has been a great year for me. I know it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows for a lot of people and I am the first one to agree: there is a lot of scary shit happening in the world. Pain is local though and I find myself practicing gratitude regularly — not just saying I’m grateful for what I have, but actually feeling it and believing it. Of course, I don’t owe it all to the Hoppin’ John. At the beginning of 2015 I was stuck in a big fat rut — unhappy running an all-consuming PR business, struggling financially, and overall feeling kind of lonely. My friend Kelley told me, as cliche as it is, that “life is a roller coaster, and sometimes you’re at the top and other […]

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Cookies, Chocolate & Cheer [Snickerdoodle Blondie Bars]

Maris Callahan — Mon, 12 Dec 2016 04:31:30 +0000

Snickerdoodle Blondie Bars are moist, dense and have a little added kick from a ginger cinnamon sugar topping. Perfect for rounding out a holiday cookie platter or packing up as a holiday hostess gift. I know, I know. This time of year there are sweets and cocktails everywhere and you’re actually sick of desserts and you’re tired of drinking and you just really want to eat a salad. Well, to that I say: TOO. BAD. Not only did I make cinnamon snickerdoodle blondie bars, but I am co-hosting an amazing event on Tuesday, December 13th, so put on your party pants and get ready to sip cocktails, decorate cookies and take home some delicious artisan chocolate. I am teaming up with a few of my blogging friends to host a cookie decorating party to raise money for Youth Outreach Services, an organization in Chicago uniquely dedicated to providing prevention services, child welfare, juvenile justice support and mental and behavioral health counseling to at-risk teenagers, all with the intention of helping these young adults reach a brighter future. Here’s the scoop on how you can join us too: Freehand Chicago 19 E Ohio St, Chicago, IL 60611 United States What better way to get in the […]

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Salted Caramel Eggnog Punch

Maris Callahan — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 21:48:14 +0000

Eggnog: you love it or hate it. Around this time of year, it’s hard to step foot in a restaurant, bar or friend’s house without someone offering you a holiday spirited cocktail. From spiked apple cider to a classic Tom & Jerry to cranberry martinis, holiday cheer is plentiful in December, in more ways than one. I am a bit of an anomaly — I love eggnog, but generally find it too thick and cloying to drink more than a few sips, so making it from scratch is more effort than it’s worth. Brad isn’t much of a mixed drink guy — he drinks beer, wine and the most festive cocktail you’ll see him sipping is gin and tonic. Yet, every year in December I find myself drawn to fill my shopping cart with eggnog and use it in some of my favorite holiday recipes. Last year I made Iced Eggnog Cookies that were hugely popular in my office and this year, Chila ‘Orchata Cinnamon Cream Rum has been a game changer in my kitchen. Chila ‘Orchata mixes the richness of Puerto Rican rum, spice of cinnamon horchata and sweetness of Tahitian vanilla for a delicious result. Just the right […]

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