OK, kids, here is the one-step way to use up all the rest of your bird after you are done with making soup with the frame and eating sandwiches all day Friday. Finally, we can turn our attention away from the bird and look forward to what you are going to put under my menorah this year. I need socks.

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Tonight on Travel Channel is the Maine episode of Bizarre Foods, marking the television debut of both my son and my dad, and we all get to eat together. Amazing. Plus, a culinary death match with dozens of local Portland chefs, a day of lobstering with Linda Greenlaw, and, of course, plenty of moose and beaver. I love this episode and hope you do, too. For the record, the food at Hugo's, 555, Back Bay Grill, Evangeline, and at Fore Street (if they opened here in our town) would automatically make them top-ten eateries. For anyone looking for a great food vacation, Maine, and the Portland area in particular, is an incredible destination.

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Here are some great holiday treats for everyone looking to celebrate the Festival of Lights. Hanukkah is a great time to share food with friends and family, and I have received dozens of e-mails asking for some great recipes, so here you go. I should tell you, the potato pancakes are so good that posting this recipe alone is a mitzvah of the highest order. Bubbelah, you should always trust me with this stuff. The chopped liver is the version I have been making for years and have named it after my grandmother who always made me a to-die-for chopped-liver dish every holiday.

Sephardic Eggplant Salad

3 large eggplants at 2–1/2 lbs.
2 T. olive oil
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
2 c. flat parsley leaves
2 t. dried oregano
4 chopped scallions
2 T. lemon juice
2 large garlic cloves
2 T. salt packed capers, refreshed and drained
2 ripe, diced, skinless, seedless tomatoes
6 pita bread discs cut in 1/8s and toasted

Brush the eggplant with the tablespoons of olive oil, and broil on a baking sheet for 25–30 minutes, turning often until skin blackens and eggplant is cooked.

Let it cool. Peel and chop meats, and reserve to a colander to drip off the excess liquids.

Place the oregano, scallions, garlic, and half the parsley in a food processor, and pulse until well processed. Fold into the drained eggplant, season with the oil, lemon, and vinegar.

Add the tomatoes.

Chop the remaining parsley and capers, and fold into the salad.

Season with salt and pepper, and serve with toasted or grilled pita.

Henriette’s Chopped Chicken Liver

2 lbs. fresh chicken livers
1/4 c. rendered chicken fat (schmaltz)
1 t. minced parsley
2 hard-boiled eggs
1 large yellow onion, minced
1 box matzo

Drain, and pat dry the livers.

Sauté onions in 1 T. schmaltz over medium heat until lightly caramelized (just past beige). Reserve.

Fry livers to medium (pink) in 1 T. schmaltz in the same pan over medium high heat.
Reserve livers.

Grind the liver and onions through a food mill by hand, or pulse in a food processor.
Add the parsley, grate the eggs, and fold in those as well. Add remaining schmaltz, or more, to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

Chill the chopped livers.

Serve with the matzo.

Potato Pancakes

3 large russet (Idaho-style, baking) potatoes
3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, cooked, and diced
2 eggs, beaten
2 t. sea salt
1/2 t. ground white pepper
1/2 c. matzo meal
1 large yellow onion, grated
2 c. applesauce
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. crème fraiche
1/2 lb. sliced, smoked salmon (I like the Ducktrap line.)
Oil for frying

Peel and grate the Russet potatoes. Rinse with cold water, and drain, gently pressing to relieve excess moisture. Mix half the potatoes with the mashed potatoes. Pulse the other half of the grated potatoes with the onions in the work bowl or food processor to form a paste. Do not over work.

Combine the two mixtures; season with the salt, pepper, eggs, and matzo meal.
Heat enough vegetable oil, in a large skillet over medium heat, to come up the sides of the pan 1/4 an inch.

When oil is 350 degrees, or a small pinch of batter instantly sizzles when dropped in, fry small 2- to 3-inch sized patties in batches until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towel.

Serve as a side dish or as a snack or appetizer. I think it is great to serve them with applesauce, sour cream, smoked salmon, and other treats on the side.

Noodle Kugel

1 lb. extra-wide egg noodles
4 c. cottage cheese
3 c. milk
2/3 c. melted butter
1 T. cinnamon
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
6 eggs
2 t. salt
1–1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. minced, dried apricots
1/2 c. sliced almonds

Cook, drain, and cool noodles.

Combine all the ingredients, reserving the almonds, brown sugar, and 1 t. of the cinnamon for sprinkling on the top of the casserole.
Butter a large pan or 2 small brownie pans.

Sprinkle kugel with the reserved ingredients, and bake at 350 degrees for 50–60 minutes until set and golden brown. Serves10–12

Stuffed Cabbage with Veal, Currants, and Pistachios

The Filling
3 lbs. ground veal
2 eggs
1–1/2 c. matzo meal or bread crumbs
1/2 c. currants
1/2 c. plain yogurt
1/2 c. minced parsley
2 T. ground cumin
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/3 c. toasted pine nuts
1 minced onion
1 lb. cooked, chopped spinach, drained very, very well
3 large heads Savoy cabbage, cleaned, leaves blanched and cooled

Combine all the ingredients except the cabbage. Roll 3 oz. of this stuffing mixture into the cabbage leaves, burrito style. Place all of the rolls 1/2 inch apart into 2 ovenproof dishes. Reserve.

The Sauce
24 oz. diced tomatoes in juice
4 T. minced, preserved lemons
2 minced cloves of garlic
1 t. saffron
1 c. white wine
2 minced shallots
6 leaves basil
2 diced carrots
2 pinches of chili flakes
1/2 c. orange juice
1 T. ground celery seed
1/2 c. toasted pistachios
2 T. butter

Place the butter in a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the shallots, lemon, garlic, carrots, and saffron, and sauté until glassy. Add the wine, and simmer to reduce by half. Add the herbs, spices, and tomato with the juices. Simmer for 15–20 minutes until almost dry.

Divide over the cabbage rolls, and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. Uncover, and bake for 10 more minutes.

How was everyone’s Thanksgiving? My bird was outstanding, thank you for asking, and the stock is made and in the freezer. Huge props to my wife, who has mastered a citrus cranberry sauce that we all are happily addicted to. We’ll get back to our regularly scheduled blogging on Thursday; there is a lot to talk about as we move into December, but here is a great book idea for you to think about either for yourself or as a gift.

It is that time of year—no, I’m not thinking shopping, in-laws, or little twinkling lights. I’m thinking of recipes with histories. Holidays are thick with recipes we dig out from the back of our collections, especially sweet ones that the whole family adores. Grandma’s lime Jell-O? Fruitcakes? No one really likes these, do they? And yet, they endure, feeding our hearts with warm memories. It isn’t often we stray from the particulars of our personal holiday repertoire, but this year you should start some new traditions, and you can find them in an amazing new book, Gail Monaghan’s Lost Desserts, which provides a feast of desserts.

The first thing you’ll notice is the stunning photography by Eric Boman, and if that wasn’t enough to get your sweet side cooking, Monaghan provides a story for each dessert that will easily become yet another tale in your own family history. Monaghan pulls these stories from a collective gastronomic consciousness—from the history of bananas Foster to the 1940s tale of La Pyramide’s pruneaux au pichet (prunes in a pitcher), which is a wonderful story of chef Fernand Point’s regular customer, the Aga Khan III. This book reads as well as it cooks. You can even reconstruct Ultra Violet’s chocolate and chestnut torte that had Andy Warhol addicted. Each bite you take of a dessert made from Monaghan’s book is rich with history; it will delight the taste buds of your family, and have a good story, too.

Let’s not forget the recipes. Each dessert varies in difficulty but is accessible to the home cook. True, Escoffier’s recipe for peach Melba might look a little daunting— precise plating directions of embedding a silver timbale filled with the dessert into an ice sculpture and then adding spun sugar to the top—but Monaghan provides modern suggestions that wouldn’t diminish this recipe in the eyes of the father of modern cuisine.

There are many cookbooks out there to tantalize and teach, but with the gastronomic knowledge that Monaghan imparts in this book, merely reading it will catapult any weekend cook into a food historian of the highest order.

In last Wednesday’s Star Tribune, Kevin Diaz reported on Hormel and Cargill CEOs testifying about the modified atmosphere packaging that allows for storing meat and other foods in an oxygen-depleted environment, then pumping the meat with carbon monoxide, making it shelf stable for up to twenty days, and it retains all it’s original bright red color. I have all the respect in the world for many of the local politicians on all sides of this issue, but if you take the position that the process preserves freshness and minimizes contamination as Cargill and Hormel do, and if you really believe this is a positive step for food safety as they do, then the least you could do is stick a BIG FAT LABEL on the meat that tells everyone how old the stuff is. I happen to think the practice is deceptive and is a scarily, but weakly, disguised attempt to get us to relieve the giant food companies of old meat that otherwise ends up in the garbage. You can say as many times as you like that it’s about preserving freshness, but it is simply a matter of baiting consumers into buying old meat that looks fresh and keeping meat shelf stable without freezing it. Why not simply sell fresh meat as fresh meat; then freeze the stuff before throwing it away in the supermarkets and sell that at a discount? And if you believe in the product and the new science so much, why not simply label it as “CO gassed” with large “made-on” dates? Hormel and Cargill have offered to label the product with a “color is not an accurate indicator of freshness” warning. Why create a process like this and then label it as such? Isn’t this an obvious mea culpa? Thoughts?

Speaking of freshness . . . for those looking to make do-ahead gravy for the holidays:

Do-Ahead Gravy
3 lb. poultry wings and backs
2 c. chopped onion and celery
4 c. chicken or turkey stock
3 T. flour
3 T. butter
1/2 c. cream (if you like)
salt and pepper to taste
herb sprig as needed

Chop the onion and celery, and place in a large brownie pan. Roast the poultry wings and backs on top of the chopped onion and celery. Season and cook at 350 degrees for 75 minutes. Remove from stove, pour off any accumulated liquid/fat, and return to oven for 10 minutes. Onions under the bird bits should be golden brown around edges, and poultry should be crisp-gold. Skim fat from liquid and discard, returning the liquid to pan along with the chicken or turkey stock. Simmer on a stove top for 10 minutes to loosen the sticky bits, pour contents of the pan into a small pot, and simmer covered for 50 minutes. You can add an herb sprig here if you like. Uncover, strain well, discard solids, and reduce liquid to 2-1/2 cups.

Set aside, and place the flour and butter in a saucepan, and cook for a few minutes over medium heat. Add the hot gravy liquid in thirds, whisking, and bring to a slow boil. Cook for 3–5 minutes, add cream, if you like, or season with salt and pepper, and serve as is. I do mine ahead to make life easy on Thursday. Happy Thanksgiving.

My pal Lucia Watson made this recipe for me the other day—a breakfast treat that she has been serving in the restaurant for years. It is awesome, and the perfect easy-bake X-mas–morning treat that allows for plenty of time to open gifts. I have made this recipe of Lucia's several times now, subbing leftover roasted vegetables for the spinach, crumbling bacon in it, adding strips of ham or prosciutto to the ramekin, or some grated cheese. No matter what you do to this dish, it still works. and earns rave reviews every time.

Shirred Eggs with Spinach and Croutons
About 1 T. butter for the ramekins
1 c. cream
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 t. fresh thyme, chopped
1 t. chopped rosemary
Salt and pepper

1 c. cubed (crouton-size) bread
2 T. olive oil

1 c. raw washed spinach
4 eggs

Generously butter 2 12-oz. ramekins and preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put cream on the stove with half the garlic, half the herbs, and some salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Let cook for about 4-5 minutes or until reduced by almost half. Taste the cream, it should be well seasoned. Set aside.

Make the croutons: Toss cubed bread in olive oil, the rest of the garlic, and salt and pepper. Toss thoroughly together. In a hot skillet, fry bread until crispy and browned, about 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning and set aside.

Put about a fistful of the spinach into each buttered ramekin. Break two eggs on top of the spinach. Place half the croutons on top, then ladle cream over to just cover everything. Bake eggs for about 12-15 minutes (depending on how soft you like your eggs) and serve at once. Serves 2.

It's Hanukkah time, everyone!!! Here are two of my favorite recipes for this time of year. I kid you not, the pancakes is the best recipe of its kind I have ever tried. For years I used my grandmother’s recipe, until someone else’s bubbe told me to use some mashed potatoes in my recipe . . . Kenahora! What a mitzvah that was! Enjoy.

Potato Pancakes
3 large Russet baking (Idaho) potatoes
3 medium-sized Yukon Gold potatoes . . . peeled, cooked, and riced
1 large yellow onion, grated
2 t. sea salt
1/2 t. ground white pepper
2 eggs, beaten
2/3 c. matzoh meal
2 qts. vegetable oil for frying . . . I like to add a cup of rendered chicken fat for flavor

Peel and grate Russet potatoes. Rinse with cold water and drain, gently pressing to relieve excess moisture. Mix half the potatoes with the mashed potatoes. Pulse the other half of the grated potatoes with the onion in work bowl of food processor to form a coarse paste. Do not over work. Combine the two mixtures, season with salt, pepper, eggs, and matzoh meal. If your mixture is too wet, add another tablespoon or so of matzoh meal—remember, you can always run a test batch. In a large skillet over medium heat,  heat enough vegetable oil to come up the sides of the pan 1/3 of an inch. When oil is 350 degrees, or a small pinch of batter instantly sizzles when dropped in, fry small 2- to 3-inch-sized patties in batches until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towel. Sprinkle with sea salt and try serving with apple sauce and sour cream on half the cakes and smoked salmon and crème fraiche on the others.

Almond and Orange Cake with Poached Plum Compote
Serves 6-8.

The Cake
2 c. sliced almonds
12 T. flour
1-1/2  c. sugar
2 T. orange zest
4 eggs

In a food processor, combine 1/3 of the almonds with the flour. Reserve. Combine the remaining almonds and 1/3 of the sugar and pulse well. Reserve. Beat eggs until foamy with an electric beater and add remaining sugar and zest. Beat until light and thick. Beat in the other two mixtures. Pour into a greased and floured 10-inch spring-form pan and bake at 350 for about 50 minutes until cake is done (inserted toothpick withdraws cleanly, etc.). Cool, unmold, and dust with confectioner's sugar and serve with the compote.

Poached Plums with Red Wine and Rum
12 plums, firm and ripe but not mushy, halved
2 cinnamon sticks
3 T. brown sugar
1 T. lemon zest
1 T. orange zest
1 bud star anise
1/4 vanilla bean, split
1/4 c. dark rum
2 c. red wine
6 cloves
1 T. lemon juice
2 c. blueberries and strawberries

Place all ingredients except berries into a 14-inch sauté pan. Add warm water to come up halfway on the plums. Bring to a simmer and continue gently simmering for 10 minutes, turning plums every 5 minutes. Move plums to a serving platter. Reduce sauce until almost glazey. Stir in berries and toss. Pour over plums and chill.

All the recipes you need for Thanksgiving are just a click away, on mspmag.com's recipe database.

Oyster Stew
Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey, Stuffing, and Gravy
Puree of Peas and Watercress
Root Vegetable Pan Roast with Brown Butter Sauce
Sweet and Sour Beets with Pearl Onions
Steamed Green Beans with Toasted Almond-Mushroom Pesto
Pumpkin Pie
Pecan Tart

Anyone planning on cooking for Monday night’s ‘break the fast’ meal to mark the conclusion to Yom Kippur will love these easy, do-ahead recipes. Anyone who is not observing will also love them—you don’t have to be Jewish to love great food, but it helps. Order a side of salmon and some bialys from Barney Greengrass and you will be set for the night.

Eggplant Salad
3 large eggplants, 2-1/2 lbs. each
2 T. olive oil
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
2 t. dried oregano
4 chopped scallions
2 c. flat parsley leaves
1 T. lemon juice
2 T. red wine vinegar, or more to taste
2 ripe, diced, skinless seedless tomatoes
2 large garlic cloves
2 T. salt-packed capers, refreshed and drained
6 pita bread discs, cut in eighths and toasted

Brush eggplant with the tablespoons of olive oil and broil on a baking sheet for 25-30 minutes, turning often until skin blackens and eggplant is cooked. Let cool, then peel and chop meats and reserve to a colander to drip off excess liquids. Place oregano, scallions, garlic, and half the parsley in a food processor and pulse until well processed. Fold into drained eggplant, then season with oil, lemon juice, and vinegar. Add tomatoes. Chop remaining parsley and capers and fold into the salad. Season with salt and pepper and serve with toasted or grilled pita.

Henriette’s Chopped Chicken Liver
2 lbs. fresh chicken livers
1 large yellow onion, minced
1/4 c. rendered chicken fat (schmaltz)
1 t. minced parsley
2 hardboiled eggs
1 box matzoh

Drain and pat dry the livers. Sauté onion in 1 T. schmaltz over medium heat until lightly caramelized (just past beige). Reserve. Fry livers to medium (pink) in 1T schmaltz in the same pan over medium high heat. Reserve livers. Grind liver and onions through a food mill by hand or pulse in a food processor. Add parsley, grate eggs, and fold into mixture. Add remaining schmaltz (or more to taste). Season with salt and pepper. Chill chopped livers. Serve with the matzoh.

Noodle Kugel
1 lb. extra wide egg noodles
4 c. cottage cheese
3 c. milk
2/3 c. melted butter
1 c. sugar
6 eggs
2 t. salt
1-1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. minced dried apricots
1/2 c. sliced almonds
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 T. cinnamon

Cook, drain, and cool noodles. Combine all ingredients, reserving almonds, brown sugar, and 1 t. of the cinnamon for sprinkling on top of the casserole. Butter a large pan or two small ‘brownie pans.’ Sprinkle kugel with reserved ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes until set and golden brown. Serves 10-12.

Zakuska are Russian tapas—oh, I hate that word but it works so well here—and in celebration of May Day, everyone should exercise their Constitutionally guaranteed right to make their opinion heard by making a call to their congressman and weighing in on the impeach/don’t impeach the president issue. Next step, go buy a bottle of Stoli, ice it down, and eat plenty of these classic Zakuska.

Marinovannye Griby (Pickled Mushrooms)

20 oz. cider vinegar
1 c. water
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 T. black peppercorns
6 cloves
2 bay leaves
4 garlic cloves, bruised
4 dill sprigs
4 thyme sprigs
1 T. salt
Red chili flakes to taste
2 lbs. whole cremini mushrooms, trimmed and wiped clean with a damp cloth

Combine all ingredients except mushrooms in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add mushrooms. When liquid returns to a simmer, cook for ninety seconds, stirring once or twice. Cool mushrooms in the liquid. Discard cloves and bay leaf. Mushrooms can be eaten right away, but I like to place them in a tight-fitting container for a few days in the refrigerator before serving. Serves 8-10 as an hors d’oeuvre.

Rassolye (Herring and Potato Salad)

Salad
2 lbs. pickled herring, rinsed and patted dry
6 beets, roasted, cleaned, and diced
2 lbs. “red b” new potatoes, boiled until just cooked through, and diced
1/2 c. sliced cornichons
1 large onion, minced very fine
2 T. minced parsley

Dressing
3 T. brown mustard
1 T. hot English mustard
3 T. white vinegar
1-1/2 c. sour cream
6 oz. grated, prepared red horseradish

Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl, sprinkling with the parsley at the end. In a separate bowl, combine mustards, vinegar, and sour cream. Season dressing with horseradish to taste, and set aside. Serve salad, passing the dressing at the table.