Waiting for it

One of the things about this time of year that comes up more often than not, is the odd time of eating at holiday gatherings. Your main meal and time dedication to eating for the day is over often by 7 pm, the time that you'd normally eat dinner. Hence the need for an after-the-gathering snack.

Unless you're the type who hits the hay at 9 pm, and we are most definitely not, I suspect it's a commonality. Growing up in my family, it was cereal. Our cereal cabinet was stocked like Jerry Seinfeld's and was the learned go-to if such noshing was to occur.

I've begun taking this question of 'what's for snack' as an opportunity to make something I love but don't make nearly enough: popcorn!

Shallot + garlic roast ocean trout

Ocean trout has become my new favorite fish. A little leaner and a little less expensive than king salmon, but similar in looks, its taste is sharp yet mild and it's easy to mistake for salmon. Brook trout, the thinner white variety, is a different venture (though no less delicious) and not to be confused with its meatier cousin of the sea. I've been picking up a cut of the ocean variety once or twice a week from our fishmonger. I bite the bullet and buy a piece larger than would feed us for that day, even if it means spending extra because the leftovers are fabulous flaked, brought to room temp and repurposed with salad the next day for lunch (though we are of course, never left with as much as I thought we would have...). This garlic-shallot roasted fish is a winner.

Something In Between

I bought a cake plate/ cake dome this week, and a few Williams Sonoma coupons later, it's here and I can't stop looking at it (that's Smitten Kitchen's red wine cake under there, which is an extremely tasty use for the last of a bottle). Now, if my kitchen, which can't even support a pot rack, is of evidence, it doesn't take having certain pans and platters around for me to turn on the oven--- but I can say with confidence that having a cake dome around is a definitive push to have something under it at most times. In addition to that cake, it also housed some of these for a few days. It brings comfort, instills a welcoming spirit, and makes you feel a little bit fancy. And sometimes, we all need some of that to keep us going.