[1] Acorn squash stuffed with Brussels sprouts, dried cranberries and almonds (photo © Chef Eric LeVine).

[2] Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms. Here’s the recipe from Healthy Recipes Blog (photo © Healthy Recipes Blog).

[3] Potato latkes with grilled root vegetables, applesauce, sour cream and Maille mustard (substitute nondairy sour cream—photo © Maille).

[4] Quinoa and beans salad with roasted heirloom carrots (photo © Obra Kitchen Table | Miami)

[5] Angel hair pasta with San Marzano tomatoes and extra-virgin olive oil (photo © Davio’s | Boston).

New year, new goals.

As advocates for sustainability, our first tip of the year focuses on Meatless Mondays.

If you’re not already in the fold, now’s the time to open the gate.

It’s not just about meat. Cheese and other dairy products, including yogurt and cottage cheese, contribute the same greenhouse gases that meat does.

Yes, you could eat fish; in fact, substituting more seafood for meat is another important resolution.

So if you really want to help Planet Earth, we propose to make Meatless Monday, Vegan Monday.

Almost every health, nutrition and sustainability expert advises: Eat a plant-based diet. Here, we’re only asking you to eat a plant-based Monday.
 
 
MEATLESS MONDAY: WHERE TO BEGIN

There are countless online recipe troves to tempt you. You can make—or take out, or order in:

 
For protein, add:

When you look at recipes, you’ll discover that quite a few popular foods are on the Meatless Monday menu.

 
Restaurant chains nationwide from Burger King to Chik-Fil-A to KFC offer meatless options. Hooters just debuted Meatless Wings (just as crisp and half the calories of its chicken wings).

Here are 147 chains with vegan options.

Here’s a Whole Foods article, 9 Easy Ways to Eat More Plants at Every Meal.
 

MEATLESS MONDAY HISTORY

It may seem like Meatless Monday is a 21st-century idea, but it originated during World War I.

Before formal rationing began, the U.S. Food Administration promoted reduced consumption of key staples to aid the war effort.

President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation calling for every Tuesday to be meatless and for one meatless meal to be observed every day, for a total of nine meatless meals each week [source].

“Food Will Win the War,” proclaimed government ads. “Meatless Monday” and “Wheatless Wednesday” were introduced to encourage Americans to do their part.

The effect was overwhelming. More than 13 million families signed a pledge to observe the national meatless and wheatless conservation days.

During World War II when President Franklin D. Roosevelt relaunched the campaign to help the war efforts. In the immediate post-war years, President Harry S. Truman continued the campaign to help feed war-ravaged Europe [source].

Most of us alive today hadn’t heard the term until 2003, when the concept was relaunched by a former advertising executive turned health advocate, Sid Lerner.

In association with Johns Hopkins University (The Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for a Livable Future), the concept was reintroduced as a public health awareness campaign.

The “new’ Meatless Monday was launched to addresses the prevalence of preventable illnesses associated with excessive meat consumption.

With the average American eating as much as 75 more pounds of meat each year than in generations past, the message of “one day a week, cut out meat” became a way for people to do something good healthwise. The health benefits of reducing meat consumption became regular stories for the nation’s news outlets.

With awareness of global warming and the causes of greenhouses gases, Meatless Monday has achieved even greater promotion as an environmental campaign, and has been growing worldwide.

The growing vegan movement has greatly helped the movement. Even for omnivores, cafeterias and restaurants offer meat-free options not only on Mondays, but everyday.

Make one of your New Year’s resolutions to join in.

Epiphany, a Christian holiday celebrated on January 6th, marks the end of the Christmas season and the beginning of Carnival (which concludes with the beginning Lent).

January 6th, which is 12 days after Christmas in the Gregorian calendar, is also known as Twelfth Night.

It can get confusing to those not schooled in the tradition. Epiphany is also known as Three Kings Day, the Day of Kings and Feast Of The Kings (Fête des Rois in French). It’s the day that the Three Kings (les rois) appeared in Bethlehem bearing gifts for Baby Jesus.

And it’s celebrated with a special cake, Galette des Rois (Cake Of The Kings, a.k.a. King Cake).
 
 
HOW TO CELEBRATE EPIPHANY

Epiphany is celebrated with parties for children and adults alike. Whatever the food served, the “must have” is a Galette Des Rois (photos #1 and #2), otherwise known as an Epiphany Cake.

The cake is a frangipane* tart. In France, people enjoy it throughout January, regardless of religious background.

Composed of two circles of puff pastry (pâte feuilleté) with frangipane (almond-enhanced pastry cream) in between, each cake comes with a hidden charm or other trinket, called a fève, or bean†, baked into it. A gold paper crown, provided by the baker, sits on top.

The person who gets the slice with the charm becomes “king” or “queen” for the day, and gets to wear the gold paper crown. But it’s an entailed honor: By tradition, the king or queen has to provide next year’s galette.

Most people head to the nearest French bakery to buy a Galette Des Rois.

But you can bake one: Here’s an Epiphany Cake recipe from the two-Michelin-star French chef Héléne Darroze.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF GALETTE DES ROIS

Hiding some type of token in food is a pre-Christian tradition, with roots in the Roman feast of Saturnalia‡. When the Church later instituted the Feast of The Epiphany to celebrate the arrival of the three wise kings, the tradition of the bean in the cake remained.

The Galette Des Rois as we know it first appeared in the 14th-century [source].

Before the custom of the gold paper crown emerged (probably in the 19th century), the cake was covered with a white napkin and carried into the dining room.

The tradition was adopted by other countries, to a more or less extent.

 
 
TRADITIONAL VS. MODERN

While traditionalists like the cakes in the photos, others bake outside the box.

 
Are you inspired to create your own Epiphany Cake? Traditional or not, January 6th is a day to celebrate with a good piece of cake.

Don’t eat sugar? Make a vegetable filling, like creamed spinach with a hint of nutmeg.

________________

*WHAT IS FRANGIPANE? Frangipane is a dense pastry cream flavored with almond paste. The almond paste base is enriched with sugar, butter and eggs. (Alternatively, milk, sugar, flour, eggs and butter are mixed with ground almonds). It is related to marzipan, which also has a base of almond paste. A key difference is that frangipane is a spreadable cream, and marzipan is a semi-hard almond candy.

[1] Famed patissier Ladurée fills the puff pastry with almond cream, then garnishes the top with a confit of mandarin orange topped with a crunchy biscuit (cookie) of nougatine (almond croquant).

[2] Beautiful galettes with different patterns, from the great Parisian pâtissier Pierre Hermé.

[3] Pierre Hermé adds some color—and two chocolate treats—to this galette.

[4] Modern chefs add their own creative touches (photo © Breads Bakery | NYC).

[5] After centuries of tradition, some pastry chefs are ready for a major change, like this “Crystal Cake” from French pâtissier Dalloyau. (photo © Dalloyau).

‡Saturnalia, a festival spanning December 17-23, honored Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. Festivals were organized in honor of the gods between late December and early January. A dry bean would be hidden in a dish prepared for the household staff (slave servants). The slave who got that helping would be given the “kingship,” which included drinking, gambling and general bawdiness.

Many Christian celebrations date back to pagan customs. They were adapted by Christians to make religious conversion more familiar to pagans. The Christian festival of the Epiphany is even older than Christmas and Easter [source].

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

 
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[1] Tuna and salmon crudo, simply garnished (photo © Elea | NYC).

[2] Like a painting: salmon crudo from Mihoko’s 21 Grams | NYC.

[3] Creative plating: avocado, pink grapefruit, hamachi and garnish of microgreen and radish (photo © Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse| NYC).

[4] Add some salad on the side or on top (photo © Catch | NYC).

Looking for low-calorie deliciousness? Or an easy-to-make, sophisticated first course?

We nominate crudo. It’s raw fish, kin to sashimi, but with a different cut and very varied garnishes.

It’s the fish version of carpaccio, made from beef (although chefs have adopted the term for vegetable and other meat carpaccios). A recipe is .
 
 
TYPES OF RAW FISH DISHES

 
RECIPE: CRUDO OF TUNA & SALMON

Tailor this recipe to your preferences. For example, you can replace the conventional olive oil drizzle with flavored olive oil, add balsamic vinegar, use a Dijon vinaigrette, etc. Garnish with arugula, citrus, herbs, mango, mesclun salad, microgreens, salmon caviar, watercress, etc.

For a larger dish, you can add salad on top or on the side, dressed very lightly. We like a lemon vinaigrette—half vinegar, half lemon [or lime] juice), or just a flavored olive oil, before topping the fish.

Ingredients For 4 Servings

 
Preparation

1. Combine vinegar and mustard in small bowl; whisk in 4 tablespoons olive oil. Season dressing to taste with sea salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.

Arrange the tuna slices on the plastic as you would like them to be on the plate (this makes plating them easy). Cover with a second sheet of plastic wrap.

3. USING the flat side of a mallet, gently pound the fish slices until they are to your desired thinness. Do this in batches as necessary.

Refrigerate the fish in the plastic for at least 30 minutes, and up to 4 hours.

3. ASSEMBLE: Remove the top plastic sheet from each serving of fish and place a plate upside-down on top of the fish.

Invert the fish onto the plate and peel off the remaining plastic. Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle with a bit of sea salt, chives and pepper.

Toss watercress and 2 tablespoons dressing in medium bowl; season to taste with sea salt and pepper.

4. MOUND the salad greens on top and serve.

If you’ve wondered how the practice originated: It began in pre-history and evolved over the millennia.

And for many centuries, a piece of toast was floated in the punch bowl. The scoop:
 
 
AN ANCIENT PRACTICE

The practice of toasting to someone’s health goes back to ancient times. Evidence reveals that most ancient societies raised a glass.

 
 
BUT IT WASN’T YET CALLED A TOAST

Drinking to health continued over the centuries. But the term “toast” did not originate until the 16th century, and it did involve a piece of toast.

One of the first written accounts appears in Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives Of Windsor when the character of Falstaff demands of Bardolf, a rogue member of his posse: “Go fetch me a quart of sack; put a toast in’t.”

Adding toast to wine was actually quite a common practice in that period—and long before.

 
 
THE WASSAIL BOWL & WASSAILING

The term “wassail” (WASS-ul) was a greeting among Anglo-Saxons, who inhabited England beginning in the 5th century. These Germanic tribes migrated from continental Europe, and their language was what is now known as Old English.

“Wassail” is Middle English contraction of “wæs hæil,” a toast meaning “good health” or “be healthy.”

The wassail tradition began in pre-Christian times, in southern England. The region’s apple groves produced a major food crop, from which [alcoholic] cider was made.

The early tradition of “wassailing” was a festive procession of townspeople into apple groves, with songs or chants, and the sharing of alcohol from jugs.

Participants tied pieces of toast to apple tree branches, meant to ensure a good crop.

By the 14th century, in Merrie Olde England, wassail referred to a holiday punch bowl and the mulled beverage inside of it. Beer, cider, mead, and later, wine were heated with spices (mulled) and topped with a slice of toast.

Every good Christmas gathering included a wassail bowl, and people toasted as they drank their “cup of good cheer.” They held high, and often clinked, their glasses (more about that below).

Bowls of hot mulled cider were served in homes to visitors, and the custom of caroling (a.k.a. wassailing) led groups to go from door to door, singing for a drink. (The custom of singing Christmas carols, charming in recent centuries may well have begun as a way to get free drinks.)

The terms “toast” and “toasting” emerged to describe both drinking to one’s health and drinking to honor a person or occasion, at any time of year.

For another couple of centuries, there was still a piece of toast involved, added to the top of the jug or pitcher.

The piece of toast might be presented to the honoree. Saturated through with wine, it was tasty—and added to the alcohol content consumed.
 
 
THE TOASTMASTER APPEARS TO MANAGE THE EVENT

The piece of toast gradually disappeared, and in the 17th century the position of toastmaster emerged. His job was to ensure that the toasting didn’t become too excessive and that everyone got his opportunity to toast the honoree:

One historian notes: Toasting was a great excuse to drink a large amount of alcohol without being seen as a staggering drunk. So if left to their own devices, participants would toast every individual in the room [source].

[1] “The Toast,” an 1893 painting by August Herman Knoop (photo courtesy Wikipedia Commons).

[2] Pouring the glasses for the toast (photo photo © Moet et Chandon)

[3] For our Champagne toast, we prefer rose Champagne in tulip glasses (photo © Bureau du Champagne USA | Facebook).

[4] “Hip, Hip, Hurrah!” by Danish painter P.S. Krøyer, 1888 (photo courtesy Wikipedia).

[5] The tradition of topping a warm bowl of food or drink continues to this day with French Onion Soup (photo © Foodie Crush; here’s the recipe).

In Shakespeare’s time, drinking games became customary. There was a particularly unusual practice where a gentleman would cut himself, mix his blood into his drink and toast to his lady love as another way to prove his devotion.

 
The custom of toasting to a lady’s beauty by drinking from her shoe also arose at this time. What the lady did with her stained, wet shoe we have not yet uncovered.

A particularly beautiful lady was “the toast of the town.”

But toasting was often rowdy. To orient toasting toward civilized behavior, “Toastmaster” books were published to teach the refined toasting etiquette. Some contained a selection of toasting phrases—since even centuries ago, people had trouble creating one.

 
CLINKING GLASSES & SAYING “CHEERS”

In terms of why we clink glasses and say “cheers,” there are at least four non-related explanations:

 
Read more about them here.
 
“Cheers” originated from the Old French word chiere, which meant face or head.

By the 18th century, it meant “gladness.” The practice endured: We still wish our fellow partiers gladness, or happiness.

“Here’s to a bright New Year and a fond farewell to the old; here’s to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold.”
 
 

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

[1] Surf & Turf Bloody Mary with bacon and shrimp from The Wayfarer in New York City. They call it “Fully Loaded,” with a celery stalk and a cocktail pick with cheese, olive and cocktail onion (photo © The Wayfarer).

[2] The Hanako San Bloody Mary features an octopus tentacle and a skewer of raw tuna and beet cubes. Here’s the recipe from Bamboo Sushi in Portland (photo © Bamboo Sushi).

[3] Bloody Mary Oyster Shooters. Depending on how large the oyster, you can top a full-size Bloody Mary Here’s the recipe from Chow.com (photo © Chow).

[4] Threaded on a kabob wire, this Philly Cheesesteak Bloody Mary has grilled steak and veggies. Here’s the recipe from Campbell’s Kitchen.

[5] This Chicago-Style Bloody Mary has basics like a pickle, grape tomato and cocktail onion—then adds a mini sausage link! Here’s the recipe from V8 vegetable juice (photo © V8).

[6] A California Roll Bloody Mary with pickled ginger, cucumber ribbons and a side of green dumplings. Here’s the recipe from Campbell’s Kitchen (photo © Campbell’s).

[7] This Kansas City BBQ Bloody Mary would do us in, garnished with fried onion rings, curly fries, corn on the cob, pickled jalapeno and a spare rib. Here’s the recipe from Campbell’s Kitchen (photo © Campbell’s).

January 1st is National Bloody Mary Day, a cocktail invented in Paris in the Roaring 20’s (here’s the history).

For decades, the garnishes included a lemon wedge and a celery stalk.

But in the recent years of creative mixology, bartenders have added garnishes that amount to a bar snack. We’ve included photos of some of them.

Do you want to create a glamorous garnish?

You may not want to fry onion rings, but here’s a list that’s almost all simply slice, dice and skewer.

If the following are too tame for you, check out these outrageous Bloody Mary garnishes.

For a fun crowd, serve Bloody Marys in pitchers and set out a selection of garnishes so people can create their own.
 
 
CHEESE OR TOFU CUBES

 
 
FISH/SEAFOOD

 
 
FRUIT

 
 
HERBS

 
MEAT

 
 
PICKLES

 
 
VEGETABLES

 
 
RIMS

 

MORE BLOODY MARY RECIPES

 
 
ONE OF OUR FAVORITE WAYS TO SERVE BLOODY MARYS:

A BLOODY MARY BAR
 
 
 
 
WISHING YOU A TASTY NEW YEAR
THE NIBBLE