You can purchase a sampler of lovely cupcakes like the ones in the photo (from Williams-Sonoma).

Or, you can do it yourself: Turn plain cupcakes into holiday celebrations with green, red and white icing and some purchased adornments such as:

 
Hanukkah cupcakes are even easier: just blue and white icing, topped with:

Inspiration to bake your own! Photo courtesy Williams-Sonoma.

Different companies make a variety of designs. The set in the photo is from Williams-Sonoma, and includes festive holiday cupcake papers.

Holiday cupcake decorations can be found online, at craft and baking stores, and maybe even the baking department of your supermarket.

Make Christmas/Hanukkah/holiday cupcakes an annual tradition!

Thanks to Hannah Kaminsky for tipping us off to this great cookie stamp.

Whether for the experienced baker who’s looking for something new, or the newbie who wants to surprise friends, this little gadget rocks!

Interchangeable letters, numbers, and symbols offer endless possibilities for personalized messages that you create within the frame of the stamp.

Spell out names and messages (Congratulations, Happy Birthday, whatever) to make your next batch of cookies memorable.

The Customizable Cookie Stamp is $15.00 at UncommonGoods.com.

Our friends at GQ magazine sent us their 50 Best Things To Eat Right Now article, and we learned something new: trash fish.

In the fishing industry, a by-catch is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while catching the target species (recall the dolphins swept up in tuna nets).

A subspecies of by-catch is rough fish—the slang term is trash fish. The term is used in the U.S. to describe fish that are less desirable to sport anglers.

While not desirable by anglers for sporting purposes, trash fish species can be very important in the commercial fishing industry, where they make up the bulk of commercial food fish catches in inland fresh waters. The challenge is turning them into popular fish, desired and asked for by consumers.

There is no standard list of trash fish. A fish that is considered trash in one region may be treasure in another. For example, the common carp is considered undesirable in the U.S. and Australia, but is the premier game fish of Europe and the most valuable food fish across most of Asia.

Dogfish, a.k.a. Cape shark, travel in schools with flounder, hake and pollock, so are often landed as by-catch. Fishermen in the U.S. toss them overboard because dogfish don’t often command prices worth the effort of processing them. Yet, the mild, sweet, boneless flesh is desired for fish and chips in the U.K. In Germany, the belly section of the fish, smoked, is considered a delicacy. [Source]

You can buy a trash fish like dogfish for say, $5.50 a pound to substitute for the fashionable cod or haddock, which command $15 a pound.

Today’s trash fish lack the marketing heft to become glamorous fish like branzino, cod, flounder, salmon and tuna. But with the increasing demand for fresh fish, the overfishing of popular species and the ever-increasing prices, attention must be paid.

So today’s tip is: Don’t turn your nose up at a trash fish because it’s oily (blue fish, mackerel), ugly (scorpion fish) or small (sardines). Once it’s cleaned and in the pan or the pot, it looks like other fish, and taste just as delicious. For a fraction of the price.

Get some suggestions from your fishmonger, and make an entire Feast Of Seven Fishes!
 
  

If you appreciate great cookware, you may wish to treat yourself to a set for Christmas; specifically, the new Aurora cookware from Zwilling J.A. Henckels.

This is sexy cookware for a serious cook. First, the looks: a gleaming satin finish 18/10 magnetic stainless steel exterior, mirror finished, with gently curved sides.

But more important is the beauty of the engineering.

 
The Sigma Clad five-ply construction both guarantees even heat distribution and makes the cookware stove top-flexible. Three aluminum layers are sandwiched between two stainless steel outer layers, making Aurora compatible with induction stove tops.

USING THE COOKWARE

Although the recommendation from the manufacturer is not to use high heat (if possible), I had no problems using the skillet to sauté the skin side chicken breast at high heat with little more than a light coating of oil.

On another occasion, I left the oil in a pan heating for too long and a distinct brown stain appeared. It did take some elbow grease to clean afterwards but it was restored to its original pristine condition.

The only issue for some people desirous of Zwilling’s Aurora cookware set is the price. But you do get what you pay for. For serious cooks and for others willing to take care of their set, the longevity of these pieces will cancel out the cost in the long run. I expect to get full use out of this set for the next 12-15 years. (There’s a lifetime warranty.)

At CutleryAndMore.com, the price is:

 
The 10-piece set includes a 9.5-inch stainless steel skillet, 11-inch stainless steel skillet, 1.5-quart saucepan with lid, 3-quart saucepan with lid, 3-quart saute pan with lid and 8-quart stock pot with lid. (If you’re new to buying cookware, lids are counted as separate pieces.)

To dip a toe in the water, you can buy an individual piece. The 9½-inch skillet is the lowest priced, at $79.95 (list $138).

Aurora is the Latin word for sunrise, and Roman goddess of dawn. It’s the sunrise of a terrific line of cookware that we can’t recommend highly enough.

For more information visit ZwillingOnline.com.
—Kris Prasad

If you live in a community where you can walk from home to home, how about going a-wassailing?

No one has to sing—that’s caroling. But you certainly can combine the two.

Line up friends to participate, have everyone make a different punch (or egg nog). Start at one house, work your way down the line and then, if you like, vote on the best. Make it an annual tradition.
 
WHAT EXACTLY IS WASSAIL?

“Wassail” began as a greeting among Anglo-Saxons, early Englishmen. Pronounced WASS-ul from the Middle English wæs hæil, it means “good health.” Centuries later, the term evolved into a drinking toast.

The wassail bowl tradition began in the 14th century in southern England, home to apple groves galore and a lot of apple cider. The first wassail bowls contained hot mulled cider. When you come across references to “a cup of good cheer,” that’s what you were served.

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 big bowl* of drink and exclaimed, “Wassail!”

As wine became more plentiful—and there was a need to salvage bad batches of wine—hot mulled wine became an alternative to mulled cider.

Both are still traditional Christmas drinks in Europe. Mulled wine is called Gløg in Sweden, Glögi in Finland and Glühwein in Germany.

You don’t have to serve mulled cider or wine in your wassail bowl. There are many, many Christmas punch recipes, made with your favorite spirit or alcohol-free.

 
*Today that big bowl is known as a punch bowl, but punch was not to arrive in Europe for three more centuries. Details below.

If you consult a dictionary, you’d think that mulled wine is one that is studied or pondered. According to Harvard University, the origin of the word “mull” to mean heated and spiced is shrouded in mystery.

Mulling spices are a blend of allspice, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg (what some Americans call “pumpkin pie spices”). The recipe varies, and star anise, cardamom and peppercorns can also be included, along with dried fruit such as apples, orange rind and raisins.

Thus, a “mulled” drink is one which has been prepared with these spices. The technique is to heat the drink with the spices and then strain them out before serving. Mulling spices may also be added to the brewing process to make spiced beer.

 
HOW DOES PUNCH FIT IN?

In the 17th century, merchant travelers of the British East India Company discovered the festive Indian drink, punch.

The word “punch” is an English variation of the Hindi word, “panch.” Panch was made from five different ingredients: sugar, lemon, water, tea or spices and an alcoholic spirit. The word for “five” in Sanskrit is panchan–hence the name.

After carbonated water (soda water) became available in the late 18th century, it became a sixth ingredient, added to the punch for some effervescence. However, the word for six in Sanskrit is shata. “Shat” just doesn’t work, so we’ll stick with “punch.”
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 planning to go a-wassailing!