I have a theory on how the humble little quick bread became everyone’s favorite homemade holiday gift: no one has time for anything in December. Life goes from busy to absolutely chaotic. I’m supposed to be where, when? You’re on your way over…um, great! Throw in shopping, pre-entertaining deep-cleaning, the fact that you must double the amount of time it takes to go anywhere, and you get the picture. If you’re going to have something in homemade in hand when you show up at that party, the only viable option is a loaf of quick bread.
Thankfully, quick breads are among my favorite baked goods to give and receive. On a giving end, I love making them for the obvious reason of being quick, but they’re also versatile and forgiving. Don’t have the cranberries the recipe is calling for? No biggie–use the dried cherries from the cupboard. Slightly over-baked because you were singing in the shower and didn’t hear the timer buzz? Don’t sweat it, just add extra glaze. You get the picture; it’s easy, relaxed baking. On a receiving end, it’s always such a pleasure to wake in the morning, knowing a breakfast-able is ready and waiting on the counter. And, of course, you can always pop a loaf in the freezer and save it for, say, when you’ve run out of Christmas cookies and you need to shake the middle of January blues.
This is a great quick bread–tender and cakey, made with cornmeal and buttermilk, bursting with winter citrus and bejeweled with tart cranberries. It’s perfect to give as a gift, but if you want to bake a loaf just for yourself and enjoy in a dark, quiet room away from the hustle n’ bustle, that’s cool, too.
A few days ago, I waited on a woman who warned me of her severe cinnamon allergy. Cinnamon?! I’ve been in the service industry for a loooooong time and that was a new one for me. I was immediately struck by how tragic it would be, especially this time of year. I’m sneaking cinnamon into everything I make, from chocolate cookies to my latest braised beef, and loving every moment of it.
Yes, another salad. I’m still coming down from all the rich eating I did while traveling over the Thanksgiving holiday (I promise we’ll talk about that food one of these days).
There were 6 pears, sitting on my kitchen table, just begging to be eaten–scratch that–made into dessert. I decided on a making a simple crisp–you know, just baked fruit, with a buttery, oatmeal topping. Then I started thinking about ginger and that bag of cranberries I bought only because they were front and center in the produce department and they were just so darn pretty. Then I remembered this amazing crisp my mom made for my birthday a few years ago that had almond paste crumbled into the topping. And then I decided to let myself get completely carried away and roll all of those elements into 1 showstopper dessert.