Holiday Dinners with Bradley Ogden

150 Festive Recipes for Bringing Family and Friends Together

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By Bradley Ogden

With Lydia Scott

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$20.99

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$26.99 CAD

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ebook

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Award-winning chef Bradley Ogden presents his first cookbook in over a decade. Holiday Dinners with Bradley Ogden includes 150 cherished recipes for a range of winter holidays — Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s — in one easy-to-use and delicious guide for making the most memorable meals for the most special occasions. With preparation schedules, sample menus, and instructive sidebars, Chef Ogden takes the guesswork out of holiday preparation so that you can spend more time with the family and less time in the kitchen.
With Ogden’s focus on responsible cooking, he includes information on buying sustainable local ingredients, and a glossary of terms.

Excerpt

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

THIS BOOK IS A CULMINATION OF THREE DECADES OF COOKING FOR THE holidays. These recipes were refined at home in my kitchen and not too long ago just a dream to publish.

I would like to thank Lydia Scott for all her dedicated work to make this book and my dream a reality. My editor, Geoffrey Stone, for his guidance, knowledge, and support. My sons Chad and Bryan, also chef graduates from the Culinary Institute of America, and Cory Ogden, the doctor of the family, for making me proud. A special thanks to Bryan for his excellent taste and wisdom of wine and to Jody Ogden for her years of encouragement and expertise. A special thank-you to Maricla Salcido for her support in testing, tasting, organizing, and typing my recipes.

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my close friends, Maria Ferrer Murdock, Michael and Sandy DeRousse, and Carolyn Stuart for their overall influence, advice, patience, and support. Thank you to Jeremy Ball for the photographs, Amanda Richmond for the art direction and book design, Ricardo Jattan and Jackie Prophit for the styling; Sparrow Lane Vinegars, for continuously supplying their fine wine vinegars; and Wes Hagen for his wine.

Finally, I am eternally grateful for the contribution of my fellow chefs from Root 246 Restaurant, Brian Ridgeway, Yohan Denizot, and Daniel Talaima, and Iris Rideau and John Martino from Chumash Casino Resort, and to my business partners, Michael and Leslye Dellar.

And to all my friends and neighbors who volunteered their talents, taste tested my recipes, and offered their helpful and meaningful critiques.




FOREWORD

IT WAS IN THE 1980S WHEN I WAS WORKING WITH THE LATE JAMES BEARD that I first heard of Bradley Ogden. Each year Beard went to San Francisco to conduct a series of classes and always stayed at Campton Place. Without fail, he came back quite impressed with the quality of Bradley’s ingredients, his use of inspired flavors, and his exquisite execution of the food. Bradley’s upbringing in Michigan unknowingly prepared him for his culinary journey where fresh trout, just-hatched chicken eggs, and his grandmother’s homemade pies were taken for granted. “Food from scratch” would come to form the backbone of his approach to cooking for others.

He trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and had come to California via The American Restaurant in Kansas City, which was one of the foremost restaurants of its time in the Midwest. In Kansas City, Bradley had utilized local farm purveyors and farmers and brought that same sensibility with him to the West Coast.

When Bradley was arriving on the scene, there were other chefs on the same American fresh food bandwagon, each with an individual style. Their menus were driven by the bounty of the season (still a novelty in some areas today) with great importance given to the provenance of the produce. It was only a matter of time before this concept began to make an impact around the country. At Beard’s house, where the James Beard Foundation is now located, on West 12th Street in New York City, I witnessed a pilgrimage of visiting chefs who would drop by to receive the master’s blessing; Bradley was among them.

A fewyears ago, Bradley started conceptualizing this book. He envisioned one that celebrated holidays throughout the year. It is clear why it covers Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s with a slight nod to summer celebrations. The end-of-the-year holidays are our most cherished ones, and this book allows more concentration and dedication to these holidays. It’s in this spirit he shares an abundance of good food, which connects us to loving friends and family in the kitchen and around a festive table.

Holiday Dinners with Bradley Ogden is a comprehensive reference to our three most important holidays of the year. While paying homage to our traditional holiday menus, Bradley has brought the old into the new with added life and sparkle. He teases us with some non-traditional recipes like his wonderful signature dish, Twice-Baked Blue Cheese Soufflés. This book offers a simplistic approach to timely recipes for you to create for the holidays. It makes holiday cooking even more pleasurable.

—CAROLINE STUART,

Cofounder James Beard Foundation and cookbook author


INTRODUCTION

PEOPLE HAVE MANY GIFTS IN LIFE—MUSIC, LANGUAGES, PAINTING, and even gab. Mine is a special talent for food. I spent the summers of my youth on my grandmother’s farm in Windsor, Ontario. In retrospect, this was the beginning of a fabulous career that I never could have recognized at the time. Both of my grandmothers were great cooks. I believe my mother was as well, although with seven children to look after, she seldom had the opportunity to really demonstrate what she knew. My father, on the other hand, considered himself the world’s greatest cook, and was especially known for his breads and homemade ice cream. Of course, the young spindly arms of my six brothers and sister and me were the engine for his churned creations. Nevertheless, to us, it wasn’t about hard labor but rather playing a game, resulting in a reward of creamy fresh flavors, from cherry to peach to strawberry, all of which we felt were awesome.

Being around good cooks was important for educating my young palate, but the other even more essential lessons were learned from the farm, regarding the importance of seasonal fresh quality ingredients. Every season held a gift of fresh new produce to be picked, prepared, and, most importantly, enjoyed. I vividly remember anticipating certain times of the year for summer tomatoes fresh off the vine, asparagus and morels in the spring, pumpkin and macintosh apples in the fall. There is nothing more flavorful than the simplicity of a farm-fresh egg or a trout taken from an icy creek and placed directly into a sizzling frying pan. Experiencing and appreciating these pure unadulterated tastes and flavors unwittingly helped lay the foundation for my cooking philosophy and successful career.

There is no exception to my love of all things fresh from the farm. These days that means regular visits to my local farmers’ market to buy seasonal items, and purchasing organic and sustainable produce and meats. It’s the best way to get the fresh flavors I remember so well from childhood. Still, when I come across cherries I have mixed feelings of love and dread. I’m sure this came from overexposure, brought out by the fact that I had to spend endless hours picking them in my youth. Fortunately, I’ve long ago learned to appreciate cherries for what they are, and find great satisfaction in cooking with them, as long as I don’t have to pick ’em!

Churning ice cream might have been the extent of my culinary career except for the fact that my father read a feature in the Detroit Free Press about a cooking school called The Culinary Institute of America, based in Hyde Park, New York. I was only eighteen at the time, but from the CIA article, my father developed a plan. His logic was simple: “If you can cook, you can always find a job!” Another ulterior motive might have had something to do with someday owning a family restaurant. Up until this time, he had owned and operated a rock-and-roll dance hall, named the Tanz Haus. Traverse City, Michigan, might seem an unlikely location for such a venue, but he was able to book the big-name talent of the day, drawing from nearby Detroit. His vision might have been to convert the dance venue to a dining room and kitchen with me as the cook. Instead, it functioned for twenty-five years as a dance hall.

Prior to my first days at the CIA, I had never set foot in a commercial kitchen, but by the time I emerged from the CIA four years later, I recognized that I had an innate talent. It was a bit of a fluke that I fell into something I loved. I reflect on it sometimes. I might have been a draftsman, since I had studied drafting for three months. Had it not been for my father’s plan, born out of desperation for fear of unemployment, I might have been just like a musician whose talent never found a stage for lack of piano lessons.

In the years since, at every one of the restaurants at which I’ve been involved, we have paid special attention to the holidays. It has become part of my signature, just as farm-fresh, organic ingredients have been my theme for the last thirty-five years. I’ve paid special attention to holiday meals because they meant a lot to me growing up. In my youth, other than holidays, Sunday afternoon was the only time we, as a family, came together for a meal. All of the other meals of the week were one-pot dishes consumed individually whenever each of us found the time. The food was good, to be sure, but there was no real celebration or intimate sense of family that I love so much.

At the restaurants, I constantly strive to create the feeling of a special family meal. Everyday at work, I imagine that patrons are coming to my home for me to cook for them. I always serve expected and traditional foods, prepared with an exciting and creative touch. At Lark Creek, for example, we offered turkeys with a twist for the holidays: fresh, natural turkeys, grilled outdoors or roasted with interesting spices. Always something new, flavorful, and exciting delivered continuously to the dining room, which patrons appreciated and devoured. Menus are always prix fixe, and engineered so that each course supported and complemented each other. Never heavy, always fresh, and definitely designed to leave room for dessert.

On hearing that I was working on a cookbook about the holidays, a friend pointed out that there were already many resources for holiday recipes, and questioned why anyone should use my recipes versus someone else’s. My reply was that I create amazing American food on a daily basis and that there may be people out there who would like to put a new creative twist on their routine holiday meal. My recipes are tried and true. They are traditional, accessible, and inspiring, and have been lovingly refined and served over a lifetime of real cooking. These recipes are important to me. They are what I like to eat and share. Since they have worked so wonderfully for me in my professional career, I would like to share them with anyone who is interested in my philosophy of cooking. Some of the recipes that appear in this book have been born in restaurants, but all have been tested at my home on equipment found in virtually all homes. I would be honored to reinvigorate someone’s holiday feast and introduce tempting new flavors with my recipes.

Some ingredient lists and procedures you will find here might look long and more ambitious than other recipes. Where that is true, I invite you to persist. This is the way I cook and you won’t be disappointed. Quality ingredients and certain techniques make the difference between a good recipe and a great one. Where practical, I will point out a recipe or portion of a recipe that might be done in advance, and often it will be the better for it, as flavors will get the opportunity to meld and develop.

Inside I am still that little boy who grew up in the Midwest and savors the traditional, down-home flavors of good old American food, and my recipes reflect that. My repertoire has been built on this great country’s food and traditions. I have always strived to improve on the familiar and make it the best it can be. I think you will agree when you prepare these recipes for yourself. Happy holidays, and bon appétit.


Thanksgiving Feast

THANKSGIVING GATHERINGS USUALLY INVOLVE AN OVERABUNDANCE of food that celebrates the cornucopia our wonderful country has to offer. Where I grew up in the Midwest, freshly picked corn, sweet pumpkins, unfrozen turkeys, and ham were always available and extremely flavorful, since they were grown or raised nearby. Besides the seasonal food, I especially enjoy the communal atmosphere of this special holiday. Sharing a great meal, I believe, is one of life’s richest experiences, undoubtedly strengthening family ties and friendships. Because holiday get-togethers are so important, I believe the food should be outstanding too. With that in mind, I have kept my recipes traditional, but with updated or flavorful twists that make the meal memorable and delicious. Take, for example, my beloved Three-Layer Pumpkin Pie (page 84). I layer different pumpkin flavors and textures, turning a traditional pumpkin pie into a showstopping dessert capable of winning any blue ribbon for its flavor and appearance. It is definitely a family favorite.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it is the one time I can say for sure that the whole family will make the effort to come together and share a meal. Memories of my youth like sweet baked ham, savory roasted turkey, and my all-time favorite food—pumpkin pie—have been recreated and perfected in the pages that follow. Since traditional favorites like turkey and canned cranberry jelly can seem unimaginative and boring, I have taken the opportunity to slightly change holiday classics with creative touches and flavorful elements. If you are planning a large family gathering, try the Sage-Butter-Roasted Turkey (page 40); or for more intimate gatherings, the Pan-Roasted Turkey Breast with Sweet Squash Matchsticks (page 44) and the Celery Root and Pear Purée (page 61) would be perfect. If a more exciting and exotic recipe is desired, the Red Curry Turkey Scaloppini recipe (page 49) will not disappoint. It is light, quick, and easy, with bold and unexpected flavors.

These are recipes for you and your family to remember and I hope they become a regular part of your holiday table. They can be arranged in a number of different dinner combinations for use throughout the years. I have put together several menu suggestions that combine all the exciting flavors and vibrant colors from this special time of year.

 

APPLE JUICE WITH CRANBERRY AND GINGER

HOT MULLED CIDER

SPARKLING PEAR PUNCH

CHILLED APPLE SOUP WITH LOBSTER SALAD

SHELLFISH CHOWDER

ROASTED HARVEST SQUASH SOUP

ENDIVE SALAD WITH TANGERINES AND KUMQUATS

LOBSTER SALAD

GREEN BEAN AND PERSIMMON SALAD

ROASTED PEAR AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD

YANKEE SALAD WITH APPLE, WALNUTS, AND BLUE CHEESE

CORN AND SHRIMP FRITTERS

TWICE-BAKED BLUE CHEESE SOUFFLÉS WITH CITRUS-FENNEL SALAD

CRUNCHY HONEY LAVENDER ALMONDS

GRILLED CHICKEN AND CARAMELIZED PEAR SALAD

SPICED HONEY-BAKED HAM

SAGE-BUTTER-ROASTED TURKEY

PAN-ROASTED TURKEY BREAST WITH SWEET SQUASH MATCHSTICKS

WOOD-GRILLED TURKEY CHOP WITH WILD MUSHROOM GRAVY

RED CURRY TURKEY SCALOPPINI

LEFTOVER TURKEY HASH

BRAISED SHORT RIBS WITH ONIONS AND SUGAR PUMPKIN

WOOD-GRILLED BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB

GRILLED SPICY SOLE FILLETS

BRAISED NAPA CABBAGE WITH APPLE AND BACON

BUTTERED BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND CHESTNUTS

BUTTERNUT SQUASH GRATIN

CELERY ROOT AND PEAR PURÉE

CHESTNUT AND OYSTER GRATIN

GRILLED CORN WITH ROASTED PEPPER BUTTER

CORN AND SAGE STUFFING

KUMAMOTO OYSTER AND SAUSAGE STUFFING

MASHED RED POTATOES WITH GARLIC

SWEET POTATO GRATIN

WINTER PANZANELLA

CORNBREAD

CRANBERRY SCONES WITH ORANGE GLAZE

DILL BUTTERMILK DROP BISCUITS

PERSIMMON BREAD

APPLE CRUMB PIE

BUTTERMILK ICE CREAM

CLASSIC PUMPKIN PIE

THREE-LAYER PUMPKIN PIE

PERSIMMON WALNUT UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

SOUR CREAM PIECRUST

CITRUS-CRANBERRY GLAZE

CHIMICHURRI

JELLIED CRANBERRY SAUCE

RED ONION AND TOMATO RELISH

SPICY GLAZED WALNUTS

LEMON-THYME-MUSTARD BUTTER

LEMON-BASIL VINAIGRETTE

TURKEY GRAVY

ONION-BOURBON-HORSERADISH MUSTARD

CORN STOCK

LOBSTER STOCK

TURKEY OR CHICKEN STOCK

SETTING THE HOLIDAY TABLE

DECK THE HALLS AND THE HOLIDAY TABLE WITH THE RIGHT DECORATIONS to make any holiday meal even more appetizing. A simple yet stunning centerpiece, candles, and the proper flatware are all you need to festively adorn your table.

1.I like to use a simple white tablecloth with a contrasting placemat. Use name cards for a sophisticated formal touch.

2.The simplest ideas are the best ones, especially with all you have to do during the holidays, so take a minimalist approach to flowers for your table. Instead of doing an arrangement of different flowers, which can be difficult, pick one type of flower and do a large mass of them. It will look dramatic yet understated. Or, pick one color scheme, like orange, and mix all types of flowers with the same hue. Another idea is to mix bunches of herbs in with the flowers: sage imparts the perfect color and aroma during the fall. Try mint in the spring and basil in the summer. For a modern approach, place single flowers in small vases and arrange the vases in the center or down the table. A clear vase filled with colored Christmas ornamental bulbs also makes a nice centerpiece.

3.Don’t forget vibrant and aromatic seasonal fruits and vegetables. Use them whole and uncooked to garnish holiday platters or to grace ornamental fruit bowls. Fruit arrangements can be stunning and made in lieu of or in combination with flowers. Try floating flowers in a bowl of water with sliced or whole seasonal fruits, such as kumquats and cranberries during the fall and winter, or strawberries and blueberries during the spring and summer. Harvest corn and seasonal gourds like pumpkins and squash also make colorful and festive harvest baskets, perfect for any traditional table centerpiece. For a contemporary look, use squash in the same hue, like pale green; coat the squash with a shiny layer of lacquer for added vibrance and place in dark brown bowls. Offset the centerpiece with white table linens and china.

4.Candles—from large decorative sconces to small tea lights—create instant atmosphere. Let the flame sparkle against your fine crystal or clear glass creating an ethereal and intimate atmosphere. For a clean modern look, fill a small glass vase or bowl with water and float a small candle, cranberries, and sliced kumquats in it.

5.Use your best silverware or simple silver cutlery. Remember to lay out all the proper flatware for the courses you plan to serve. Always place the utensil one will use first furthest from the plate, such as an appetizer fork or soup spoon. Lay the forks on the left side of the plate: first the appetizer fork, then the salad fork, and last the entrée fork, closest to the plate. The knife, with the sharp edge facing towards the plate, fish knife, and soup spoon are set to the right of the plate, in that order from left to right. Dessert forks and spoons go at the top of the plate. And don’t forget the butter knife, which lies atop the bread plate, blade facing the center of the bread plate, above the forks on the left. Drinks go above the knives to the right of the plate.

6.Place a nice folded linen napkin neatly to the left of the forks for formal occasions or on top of the plate for less formal gatherings.


APPLE JUICE with CRANBERRY and GINGER

LEMON BALM IS A PLANT FROM THE MINT FAMILY AND HAS A PLEASANT LEMON aroma. You can use either fresh or dried for this recipe. If you can, try pressing your own apple juice from either Pippin or Granny Smith apples—it really does make a difference in the flavor.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

STUD APPLE WITH THE CLOVES. In a large saucepan over high heat, combine all ingredients except garnishes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Pour the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a large pitcher. Serve hot in glass mugs garnished with a lemon twist and a sprig of lemon balm or mint.


HOT MULLED CIDER

ASIMPLE YET DELIGHTFULLY SPICED HOLIDAY DRINK. FOR EXTRA FESTIVE cheer, add your favorite brandy or rum.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

IN A LARGE SAUCEPAN OVER MEDIUM-HIGH HEAT, combine all of the ingredients except the vanilla and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the mixture steep until cooled to room temperature. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve; add the vanilla, if using. Serve warm.




SPARKLING PEAR PUNCH

THIS FESTIVE PUNCH WILL SET THE MOOD FOR EITHER A FORMAL OR casual holiday party. Red Bartlett pears add a stunning pink blush and champagne adds effervescence and elegance. Anjou pears or yellow Bartletts can be substituted for the red pears. Try adding a handful of crushed or whole pomegranate seeds or a couple of Clementine slices to the recipe as a variation for additional flavor or color.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

SPICED SIMPLE SYRUP

PUNCH

Genre:

On Sale
Sep 27, 2011
Page Count
280 pages
Publisher
Running Press
ISBN-13
9780762443598

Bradley Ogden

About the Author

Bradley Ogden is a renowned chef and owner of more than a dozen restaurants in California and Las Vegas. Bradley Ogden won 2010 Best Restaurateur of the Year by the Nevada Restaurant Association. He has won the Golden Plate Award by the American Academy of Achievement and Chef of the Year by the Culinary Institute of America. He lives in Bulleton, CA.

Learn more about this author