Prep time is 30 minutes. For best results, prepare no more than 2 hours in advance of serving.

 
RECIPE: STRAWBERRY SANTA HATS

Ingredients For 30 Pieces

 
Preparation

1. WASH the strawberries and pat completely dry. Slice off the stem of each strawberry, creating a flat bottom.

2. MELT the CandiQuik in a tray according to package directions. Dip the bottom of each strawberry in the CandiQuik, allowing the excess coating to drip off.

3. POUR the pearl dragées into a small bowl. ROLL the bottoms of the strawberries in the pearls. Dip the very bottoms of the mini marshmallows in the coating and attach to the tips of the strawberry hats.

4. PLACE on wax paper to set.

RECIPE: CHEESECAKE SANTA HATS

This Christmas cheesecake treat is from Rachel of BakedByRachel.com. The mini eggnog-flavored cheesecakes have a chocolate cookie crust, topped off with fresh whipped cream and strawberry Santa hats.

Prep time is 15 minutes, cook time is 20 minutes.

Ingredients For 12 Pieces

For The Crust

 
For The Filling

 
For The Whipped Cream

 
Plus:

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease the 12 wells of a mini cheesecake pan.

2. BLEND the cookies in a food processor until only fine crumbs remain. Combine the crumbs with the butter and sugar. Divide among the greased cheesecake wells, adding 1 small cookie scoop of crust mixture to each cavity. Press down firmly to create an even layer. Bake for 5 minutes.

3. REDUCE the oven temperature to 325°F.

4. BEAT together in a large bowl or stand mixer the cream cheese and granulated sugar, until fluffy and smooth. With the mixer running on low, slowly add the eggnog, flour, vanilla and salt. Gradually increase the speed, mixing until no lumps remain. Finally, add the egg, mixing until combined with no streaks remaining.

5. DIVIDE the batter among the cheesecake pan cavities using a medium scoop. Add roughly 1 and 1/4 scoops (a heaping scoop) to each cavity. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the cheesecakes are set.

6. COOL the cheesecakes in the pan on a wire rack until they are room temperature. Transfer them to the refrigerator to chill overnight or until chilled through.

7. BEAT together the heavy cream and powdered sugar in a medium bowl, until stiff peaks form. Cover and chill until ready to use.

8. CAREFULLY REMOVE the cheesecakes from the pan, removing the pan discs from the crusts. Top off with whipped cream and strawberries. Sprinkle with optional powdered for a snow dusted look.
 
Find more delicious recipes at BakedByRachel.com.

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