Feb. 13, 2021
Some people love to go out for Valentine’s Day, some people like to stay home. I fall in the latter camp, and if you do, too, you may be looking for some ideas of what to put on the table for dinner.
It’s nice that this year Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday. For me, that means no after-work mad rush to make dinner. You can spend as much or as little of the day (and weekend) cooking as you like.
I tend to plan and make dessert first. Times cooking columnist Ben Mims has you covered there, with three delightful and decadent chocolate desserts that he has crafted specifically for this Valentine’s Day. All can be made the day before.
Though many people will be grappling with how to celebrate New Year’s Eve without getting dressed up for a fancy party to toast the occasion with a dozen or so friends, who are instead forced to sit at home for the holiday for the first time, let me be the first to say: It’s great. Never one for a crowded bar or being in a room full of people who’ve decided to go out and/or drink for the first time in a while, I always spend New Year’s Eve at home . alone . and it’s highly underrated. You drink exactly what you want, refills are easy to come by, and all the food you want is at your disposal when the pangs hit no having to subject your sober friend or Uber driver to having to drive you to a fast-food spot that’s open at 3 a.m. Oh, and sweatpants.
Fabulous desserts for the holidays 70 Recipes
Life is uncertain. Make dessert first.
Dec. 20, 2020
Remember how, as a kid, you would painstakingly eat every last carrot and pea on your dinner plate only to have your mom give you a slice of cantaloupe or a banana at the end of the meal and call it dessert? Don’t get me wrong. I love fruit. But fruit is not dessert, even when eaten at the end of a meal. As I child, I had difficulty articulating the argument, but some years ago, my friend Zvi laid out his dessert rule for me. For something to qualify as dessert, at least two of three ingredients must be present: flour, sugar, chocolate. If it does not meet the criteria, it is a sweet treat, but it is not dessert.
Nothing says holiday meal like a beautiful roast 42 Recipes
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Not feeding 25 this year? Serve a smaller roast. Something on this list will surely feed your yen.
Dec. 18, 2020
With or without a crowd, a roast is a great centerpiece for a meal, if for no other reason than roasts are easy. Throw the meat in the oven and you don’t have to think about it for a while. You can turn your attention to side dishes, desserts and setting the table, or leave the kitchen altogether and take a shower or catch an episode of “The Queen’s Gambit” or “The Crown.” With the right size roast, once you’ve shut that oven door, you are free for a good two hours, often more, to do whatever is on your list.
Toast your fortitude in this unprecedented year with a bubbly cocktail
A trio of bubbly cocktails is perfect for an end-of-the-year celebration for one.
(Silvia Razgova / For The Times; prop styling by Kate Parisian)
By Rebekah Peppler
Print
If you’re thinking, “A piece on sparkling wine for the year-end holidays, how original,” same. But nothing about this year has been familiar and, as 2020 extends into its final month, there is a strong case for seeking comfort in the traditions we can safely keep.
Enter bubbly-based drinks. While it’s not the year for bathtubs filled with ice and bottles of wine, shared noisemakers or lack of personal space, the practice of raising a fizzing glass to cap the year’s finish stands. These sparkling cocktails aren’t intended to reinvent the holiday wheel but rather to retain a celebratory feel while upping the ABV alcohol by volume because, well, 2020 has earned it.