Delicious gifting

Often, a present is opened, consumed or played with, enjoyed briefly and then quickly forgotten.  If you hope to give a gift that will remain in your friends and family’s memories for years, give the gift of an experience.  A gift certificate for a cooking class will offer not only a fun diversion during the slow Sonoma winter season, but will also provide skills that will remain with someone for a lifetime.  A few favorite options can be organized through Ramekins Cooking School at 933.0450, the Depot Hotel Restaurant at 938.2980, and the swanky new Williams-Sonoma at 939.8974.  Sadly dining out at a restaurant is sometimes relegated to special occasions or only very sporadically.  Many local Sonoma restaurants offer gift certificates and I couldn’t think of a gift I would rather receive!  Not only is this a treat for the receiver of the gift, but a wonderful boon for restaurants during the sluggish off-season.

Procuring your holiday provisions: Oxbow Marketplace

Whether you’re browsing through their unique selection of local, artisan-produced provisions or dining on the diverse selection of scrumptious food and wine offerings — can anyone say, “Oysters!” — downtown Napa’s Oxbow Public Marketplace is the absolute ideal spot for deliciousness this winter season.  The main hall is beautifully bedecked in a plethora of sparkly holiday decor and many of the vendors are offering festive specials.  The Kitchen Door has a gorgeous menu of items that you can special order for your holiday gatherings so you won’t have to lift a finger.  Choose from a whole roasted duck a l’orange, lovely sounding soups, a fancy duck liver mousse garnished with a white port gelée, strawberry and blood orange jams, homemade pickles and much more.  If you need a ridiculously beautiful stuffed quail, crown roast or juicy leg of lamb, The Fatted Calf will most certainly be able to assist.

In addition, browse the gourmet butcher’s amazing selection of meat-centric cookbooks, bacon-filled sweets and other meaty goods, the ultimate gift for the dad or grilling enthusiast on your list.  For me?  A certificate to attend one of their hands-on classes would be beyond awesome! Looking for a festive Christmas dessert?  Sweeten your season with the December flavor of the month at Kara’s Cupcakes!  The bakery’s “Peppermint Twist” cupcake is soft white cake, finished with a decadent white chocolate ganache and candy cane sprinkles.  Find many more yummy gifts at the always entertaining and always delicious food hall located at 644 First Street, in downtown Napa.  Visit oxbowpublicmarket.com or call 226.6529 for more information.

In the market now: Straus Organic Eggnog

I happen to know that all eggnogs are not created equal.  Often, store-bought varieties are filled with strange thickeners and artificial colorings, or fake sweeteners and questionable egg sources.  This year I have taken the guesswork out of choosing the ideal nog to nip while decking your halls and smooching under the mistletoe.  Easily the most decadent local choice is the glass-bottled version from Straus Family Creamery.  The purest of all bottled versions, there isn’t anything in Straus’ nog except for organic milk, cream, egg yolks, and nutmeg.  The flavor is fresh and creamy, super milky, with only a delicate egginess.  The cream is heavily speckled with grated nutmeg and screams for a good glug of brandy, which I add, of course.  Available at Whole Foods and Sonoma Market.

My favorite gift: Local cookbooks

As I slowly crack open a cookbook for the very first time, I can’t hide my obvious anticipation.  My excitement level must be near to a little kid in a candy shop, a teenager behind the wheel for their first spin around the block.  I imagine the hours that I will spend leafing through its glossy, picture-filled pages over my morning coffee, reading it cover to cover by candlelight with a glass of wine, drinking in the stories of each dish or ingesting the experiences, the life and kitchen lessons the chef has lived and yearns to share.  As I turn that first, satiny page, I do a happy dance.  For sure.

My cookbooks are simply more than books that sit on a shelf until I need a recipe for hollandaise or that perfect roast chicken.  They are like old friends that I turn to endlessly for companionship or to escape in their adventure-filled pages to faraway places like Morocco — thank you, Paula Wolfert — or China, or Jerusalem.  Places that I may not have been yet in reality, but feel like I have thanks to a book’s vivid images and their fantastical descriptions of lavish meals, spice-filled marketplaces, and other food-obsessed characters met along the way.

I will more than likely open that cookbook a thousand times over the years, possibly to just lazily gaze at a favorite, beautifully photographed dish or to reread a technique that I wish to perfect.  I might never even cook from a specific recipe, following the instructions line by line, but I will undoubtedly be inspired by it, it will most certainly influence my future meals.  I treasure each book that is added to my collection, would probably grab a towering stack and nothing else if my house ever were to catch fire.  Anyone who knows me, knows that there couldn’t be a more perfect gift than a cookbook, especially if that book were authored by one of our amazing local chefs.  This holiday season, consider gifting a book that will help bring years of great meals to your friends and loved ones.

What I am sipping now: Milk punch

You say eggnog… I say milk punch!  I’d been living in New Orleans for only a couple of months when I woke up one morning, not having any idea that from that day on my Christmases would be forever changed.  That’s the day when I was introduced to my first milk punch.  It was holiday season in the French Quarter and I was sipping on a lovingly prepared, creamy cocktail of happiness, with a dusting of nutmeg.  A traditional New Orleans milk punch is a potent combination of milk, sugar and cream, with a tiny splash of rose water and a not so tiny splash of brandy, although I prefer bourbon.  I was immediately enamored and now there isn’t a holiday season where there isn’t a whole delicious jug of it sitting in the fridge waiting for a fire and friends.  And, maybe a little rocking around the Christmas tree.  Find the recipe here.

 Hooker’s House Bourbon Milk Punch

This festive beverage is as decadent, but easier to prepare than eggnog.  It keeps well in the fridge for weeks, simply shake vigorously before serving. Makes one gallon.

• 1 quart whole milk
• 1 quart half and half
• 1 quart whipping cream
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 cups Hooker’s House Bourbon (found locally at Sonoma Market)
• Freshly grated nutmeg for garnish

In a large bowl, pitcher or jug (I like to use a milk jug) place all the ingredients, except the bourbon or brandy and whisk well until the sugar has dissolved.  Taste and if the mixture needs to be sweeter add a little more sugar.  Whisk again until very frothy and add the bourbon or brandy.  Serve over ice and garnish with nutmeg.  Keeps well in the refrigerator for a week or more.