Today we present the other drink of holiday song, the wassail bowl (pronounced WOSS-ul).

Wassail is an Anglo-Saxon term meaning “good health.” During the holiday season in merrie olde [medieval] England, a host would invite friends over for a celebratory drink. The festivities began when the host held up the bowl and exclaimed, “Wassail!”

Punch was drunk, songs were sung. The tradition began in the 14th century in southern England, where the apple groves produced a lot of cider. The first wassail bowls contained hot mulled cider.

But your wassail bowl can contain whatever type of punch you like, hot or chilled.

While wassail is a spirited drink, you can make a non-alcoholic versions as well.

Here’s a video recipe for wassail.

This non-alcoholic version of a wassail recipe combines apple cider and pineapple juice: certain to be popular with the kids.

Start wassailing!

Bavarian cream. Photo by Massimiliano
Pieraccini | IST.

November 27th is National Bavarian Cream Pie Day.

Bavarian cream is a 19th century creation that seems to have gone with the wind that closed out the 20th. We rarely see it on a menu or in a bake shop.

Invention of the cold molded, gelatin-based dessert—a custard, not a pie—is credited to the great chef Marie-Antoine Carême (1784-1833) in the first part of the 1800s. One of the first recipes in the U.S. appeared in the Boston Cooking School of 1884.

The connection with Bavaria is obscure; although Carême cooked for the rich and famous and it is conceivable that he may have created this dish for a guest of honor from Bavaria.

The original Bavarian cream, or crème bavarois, was created in a fluted mold, chilled, umolded and sliced. In these more informal days, the dessert can be scooped from the bowl like mousse.

Sometimes the mold is first coated with a fruit gelatin, which “glazed” the Bavarian cream. Sometimes it is flavored with chocolate, coffee, fruit or liqueur.

The mold can be first lined with ladyfingers first, creating a charlotte.

Individual servings can be garnished with whipped cream (Chantilly) or fruit purée. Here’s a recipe for Bavarian cream from Chef Michael Symon.
Bavarian cream is similar to pastry cream but lightened with whipped cream and thickened with gelatin instead of flour or cornstarch. Check out the different types of custard.

Now for the holiday:

For Bavarian Cream Pie, get a pie crust: Bavarian cream in a pie crust is simply a different type of custard pie. And note: Real Bavarian cream does not pipe smoothly because of its gelatin. In the U.S., products called “Bavarian cream” pie (and doughnuts) are actually filled with a version of a crème pâtissière (pastry cream)—so they’re “faux” Bavarian Cream Pie.

One of our favorite gifts that’s always well-received is gourmet pasta sauce, with or without a package of gourmet pasta.

Marinelli’s pasta sauce is a double winner: delicious and beautifully packaged. The new boxes (and jar labels) are such fun works of art, we’re not even wrapping them. (Those who sell packaged products take note: Look at the old, boring labels (just another jar of sauce) and the exciting new design (beautiful and giftable).

Marinelli sauces are also certified gluten free, certified non-GMO, OU-kosher, sugar/sweetener-free and vegan.

Handmade in small batches from the very best all natural ingredients, the pasta sauces are healthful and low in calories—and are not just for pasta. On carb-sparing days, we ladle it over spaghetti squash or steamed zucchini.

The sauces are available on Amazon.com in six-packs, about $12.65/jar.

Learn more at MarinelliSauce.com.

Find more of our favorite pastas, sauces and recipes.

You can serve mulled wine in a mug, brandy snifter, wine glass or other vessel of choice. Photo courtesy Spice Islands.

It’s a popular holiday drink. The word mulled means heated, sweetened and spiced. The expression “cup of good cheer” that comes to us from Merrie Olde England refers to hot mulled cider and wine.

Glögg is the Swedish form of mulled wine, Glühwein is the German variation, vin fieri (“boiled wine”) is Romanian, and so forth. Hot buttered rum (also called rum toddy), the Colonial favorite, uses similar spices and brown sugar (both rum and sugar came from the Caribbean).

Different countries use different spices (cloves and black pepper versus cinnamon and star anise, e.g.) and sweeteners (sugar, brown sugar, honey, molasses). But the end result is the same: fragrant, warm, sweet and comforting.

While delicious and festive, recipes originated not as party fare but as a way to save wine that had turned (throw in enough sugar and spice and anything tastes good). Ale was/is also mulled.

You can cook up the ingredients and keep them in the fridge, reheating when friends and family stop by.

Check out our article on mulled wine, cider and glogg and enjoy a cup of good cheer.

Tomorrow: how to make a wassail bowl.

There are as many mulled wine recipes as there are people who make them. This recipe, from Estancia Winery, mixes Estancia’s Pinot Noir with apple cider.

Ingredients

Hot buttered rum at left, flanked by a Scotch toddy (substitute Scotch for the rum). Photo courtesy National Honey Board.

1. PEEL long strips of rind from the orange, lemon and lime and place in a saucepan along with the sugar/honey and the juice of the orange.

2. ADD the cloves, cinnamon sticks, 3 gratings of nutmeg, zest of orange, bay leaves and sliced vanilla pod.

3. POUR enough wine and cider to cover the sugar and place over medium heat. Stir frequently until the mixture boils and thickens slightly (roughly 5 minutes).

4. POUR in the rest of the wine and cider and turn the heat down to low.

5. ADD the star anise and leave the mixture to heat through for about 10 minutes without boiling. Make sure to leave the spices and zest in the pan.

6. LADLE into glasses or mugs and garnish with slices of orange, nutmeg or cinnamon sticks and enjoy!
 
FOOD TRIVIA

Some American food holidays are on dates that make no sense:

Inspire someone to cook with these fun knife
designs. Photo courtesy Kuhn Rikon.

To encourage teens and other untamed potential chefs to roam free in the kitchen, how about a gift of a Kuhn Rikon Safari Colori Knife Set? There’s a 6-1/2-inch chef’s knife and a 3-inch nakiri knife that slices, dices and juliennes.

The nonstick coating not only bears the design; it ensures that food doesn’t stick to the blades. Each knife has a matching protective sheath. Sets range from $25.00 to $37.00; some are available with a paring knife as well. Designs include:

The chef’s knife, also known as a French knife or a cook’s knife, was originally designed to slice and disjoint large cuts of beef. Today it is the primary all-purpose knife in most Western kitchens.

Japanese nakiri knives are the opposite: thin bladed and not suitable for chopping through bones or other solid items like frozen foods. However, like a Chinese cleaver in mineature, they require very little effort to wield.