Innholdsfortegnelse for December/January 2025 i Food & Wine

2019 RAMÓN BILBAO EDICIÓN LIMITADA GARNACHA ($20) This versatile, medium-bodied Spanish red from Rioja popped up in our tasting room (wines have a way of doing that) and more than held its own against several more expensive bottles. Full of dark strawberry-raspberry flavors and sleek tannins, it’s juicy and eminently drinkable. 2021 FEUDI DI SAN GREGORIO RUBRATO AGLIANICO ($24) I recently wrote about the remarkable hospitality program at Feudi for Food & Wine Italia— the winery is architecturally stunning, and its restaurant is stellar. That reminded me how fond I am of this elegant, ruby-hued red; the Aglianico grape is often a bruiser, but not in this case. 2022 CHATEAU ST. JEAN CINQ CÉPAGES ($125) I poured the current vintage along with the 1996 vintage of this wine at the…

RECIPE FROM MARGOT Brooklyn BEANS DESERVE MORE. They deserve the same level of care, technique, and reverence that we give to meaty proteins and other mains. I found proof of this in a sumptuous dish of butter beans at Margot in Brooklyn. Encompassed by a spicy, savory sauce and accented with a simple but unexpected garnish of sweet, bright lemon peel, it cemented my belief that legumes can be not just lovely, but transcendent. As an avid bean aficionado, I’d say I’m biased, but when a bean-averse friend tried it, they were converted, too. But you don’t have to travel to Brooklyn to believe me. The recipe, by executive sous chef Luis Miguel Lising, is easy to make at home. The beans are treated almost like pasta—instead of draining…

GREECE AND ITALY BY THE GLASS Food & Wine Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle curates wine selections for five Mediterranean sailings on board Lindblad Expeditions’ National Geographic Orion through 2025 and 2026. Embark on an eight-day Greek Isles Odyssey with a stop in Santorini, known for its minerally white Assyrtiko wines, or a 13-day Mediterranean Wonders cruise that spends time in fascinating wine regions like Corsica, as well as two days in wine-rich Sicily, where you can explore Taormina and Siracusa. Savor the terroir of each region on the ship, one glass at a time. (National Geographic Orion Mediterranean Expeditions from $5,620, expeditions.com) SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD In October of last year, Holland America Line launched its Global Fresh Fish Program, a serious commitment to serving sustainable, wild-caught, and responsibly farmed fish on…

Get the cover look with royal icing tinted green for a piped-on garland, along with plain white icing accents around the windows and door. Cover the roof with sliced-almond shingles, and erect a bricklike chimney from gingerbread baked with whole almonds. Light it all up with fairy lights inside and out. THIS HOLIDAY SEASON, elevate your gingerbread game with a modern take on a classic gingerbread house: our A-frame gingerbread chalet. Unlike traditional gingerbread houses that often require intricate piping and a steady hand, our recipe starts with strong yet fragrant and tasty gingerbread, a smart design, and a clever approach to decorations that makes creative use of everyday ingredients, making it perfect for bakers and decorators of all skill levels. Because making gingerbread houses is a fun group…

SHAB-E YALDA, OR YALDA NIGHT, marks the longest night of the year, and in a tradition that goes back to around 500 B.C., Iranians stay up until dawn to see the new sun that is born in the morning; yalda means “birth” in Persian. To get through the many hours, people gather together and tell stories, seek guidance in the poems of the celebrated Persian poet Hafez, drink hot tea, and, of course, eat. The ceremony of staying up all night goes by the wonderfully descriptive term “night-grazing,” or shab-chera in Persian. Indeed, grazing and snacking is the best way to stay energized, and the holiday table is set up with that in mind. Picture a candlelit spread with all manner of dried fruits and nuts, bite-size pastries, and glittering…

FROM EASTERN EUROPE’S POTATO LATKES to rustic Moroccan doughnuts called sfenj, Jewish communities around the world celebrate Hanukkah by frying foods in oil. The oil commemorates the Hanukkah story of the Maccabees, a small Judean army that recaptured the Temple in Jerusalem from the ancient Greeks and used olive oil to rededicate the Temple’s menorah. (As the story goes, the Maccabees found enough oil to light the menorah for only one night, but it miraculously lasted for eight.) You won’t find potato latkes on Hanukkah in Italy. Instead, in Tuscany, Hanukkah traditionally means pollo fritto—chicken pieces that are battered and fried in oil. Classic pollo fritto recipes tend to be quite simple and spare, consisting of little more than flour, egg, chicken, oil, and salt. But that crunchy canvas offers…

Gather Together ONE THING I’VE COME TO REALIZE as I enter my 46th holiday season on earth is that no matter what else might be going on in the world, and no matter how many forces seem hell-bent on pulling us apart, we share a powerful, universal urge to gather and celebrate—especially during this time of year. Gathering illuminates our spirits during darker days and longer nights. That’s one reason why we created this double issue and the 64 recipes in it—to support your holiday cooking, hosting, and gift-giving endeavors for the season ahead when time seems to speed up and your talents are most needed at the stove and behind the bar. I’ve included some highlights at right to help you navigate all the good stuff in the pages…

IF YOU’VE EVER HAD a ho-hum bowl of lentil soup, you could be forgiven for thinking lentils are boring. But “if they’re cooked well, they can be luxurious,” says 2024 F&W Best New Chef Karyn Tomlinson, whose stewed lentils draw in rave reviews at her St. Paul restaurant, Myriel. It’s something chefs around the world have long known. These affordable, protein-rich legumes are the base of a staggering array of global dishes. Red lentils are cooked down into a pureelike texture for Indian dals or misir wat (recipe p. 56), a spiced stew that Ethiopian Israeli chef Fanta Prada serves with fresh injera. Chef Ana Sortun simmers them, adding bulgur during the final few minutes to steam and soften, then forms the mixture into Turkish-inspired kibbeh (pan-fried patties) for her…

FOR YEARS, Danny Garcia had wanted to apply to be a chef-testant on Top Chef, but the timing was never right. “Being a chef, you never have time to have breakfast, let alone to step out of your restaurant for several weeks just to go compete on a show,” he says. Garcia was formerly the executive sous chef at Crown Shy in New York City, a restaurant from his friend and mentor, the late James Kent. But in 2023, Garcia and Kent began developing the concept for a new, seafood-centric restaurant, Time and Tide, giving Garcia the space he needed to finally compete in the Bravo competition series. Garcia jumped into study mode—he binge-watched all 20 seasons of Top Chef and researched the Wisconsin culinary scene. For every theme or…

STEEPING IN THE KITCHEN at New York City’s beloved Italian American restaurant Don Angie are glass urns filled with fruits, herbs, spices, and mysterious liquids, their hues ranging from fluorescent yellow to dark chocolate brown. For co-owners Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli, making digestifs like nocino, a centuries-old Italian walnut liqueur, is part mise en place for their cocktail program and part ritual. “I was drawn in by this thing only being available in a very brief window,” says Rito, referring to unripe green walnuts, the liqueur’s core ingredient, which can only be harvested between late May and early July, depending on climate. (Rito and Tacinelli source their green walnuts from Grower Direct Nut Company, a fourth-generation family-owned farm in California’s Central Valley.) The two of them treasure their…

I’m SITTING ACROSS from Mashama Bailey at her restaurant, The Grey, in Savannah, Georgia, in front of what used to be the ticket window of a segregated Greyhound bus station. I can’t help but imagine the people who used this space before—and that is intentional. Bailey, with her partner and The Grey co-owner John O. Morisano, restored the 1938 Art Deco building to pay homage to its place in American Civil Rights history and to celebrate the foodways of the region. That was 10 years ago this December—in the past decade, Bailey has taken home two James Beard Awards, and the duo has cowritten a book chronicling their story and started the process of opening another location of The Grey in Paris. The milestone has Bailey musing about how the…

YOU CAN’T HELP BUT FEEL a bit romanced by the picture of a young couple driving around France, searching for adventure. And the story behind how that trip happened for Ina and Jeffrey Garten, featured in Garten’s new memoir, Be Ready When the Luck Happens, is fully as idyllic as that image. In the late spring and summer of 1972, after Jeffrey had completed his military service in Colorado Springs and before he planned to start graduate school in Washington, D.C., the couple had four free months to kill. They debated their options, took a hard look at their limited budget, and decided to embrace the trend of traveling through Europe on $5 per day. Ina recalls being somewhat shocked by the circumstances as she and Jeffrey settled into their…

GROWING UP IN SWEDEN, Emma Bengtsson was always a gingerbread man in the early-morning train of children walking house to house each December 13, never the candle-crowned St. Lucia selected to head the celebratory procession. “I wasn’t trusted with open flame,” the Aquavit chef remembers, but she still thrilled in the ritual of assembling at school very early on one of the darkest days of the year and bringing music, warmth, and light to neighbors in honor of the feast’s namesake martyr. Unlike some, Bengtsson doesn’t personally mind the minimal sunlight at this time of the year in her native country, explaining, “We get to light candles and cozy up on the couch, and you don’t have to go out. For introverts, it’s really nice.” For Bengtsson and her fellow…

To shop these pages online, tap here. Be a Pasta Prepper ALL-CLAD STAINLESS STEEL MULTI-POT WITH STEAMER INSERT This set’s thoughtful features include an easy-to-grab handle on the strainer as well as ergonomic handles on the pot and insert. While the pot is tall, it’s easy to reach into and stir, and food doesn’t stick to the bottom. ($180, all-clad.com) GREAT JONES HOT DISH This ceramic casserole dish is oven-safe up to 500°F and maintains heat throughout, ensuring an even cooking experience. With four color options, it’s an affordable piece that is built to last and a joyful addition to any kitchen. ($90, greatjonesgoods.com) VIVAANT CHEESE GRATER This highly effective rotary grater comes with a fine blade that can shave mozzarella into thin strands and a coarse blade better suited to…

Cola-Braised Short Ribs ACTIVE 1 HR 15 MIN; TOTAL 4 HR; SERVES 6 Nothing is cozier than a Dutch oven filled with fall-off-the-bone-tender short ribs. This version, which has a surprising addition of cola in the braising liquid, is based on a dish made by chef Sydney Adamu in the television show The Bear. 4 lb. bone-in English-cut beef short ribs (about 10 ribs)2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste1 tsp. black pepper3 Tbsp. olive oil1 yellow onion, chopped (about 2 cups)4 carrots, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces (about 1½ cups)4 celery stalks, cut crosswise into ½-inch pieces (about 1½ cups)6 garlic cloves, finely chopped (about 2 Tbsp.)2 Tbsp. unsalted tomato paste2 cups (16 oz.) dry red wine2 cups cola soft drink (such as Coca-Cola)2 cups unsalted beef…

LIKE KLEENEX, Tupperware, or Ziploc—brand names that have become synonymous with an entire category of products—people often use the word Champagne to describe sparkling wine from anywhere in the world. The French, however, are not so keen on that (and have launched several legal campaigns to protect the term) because actual Champagne comes only from the northern French region of Champagne; its unique character is created by the region’s terroir and its signature winemaking techniques. So when it comes to using Champagne in cocktails, we’re here to tell you that any old bottle of fizz might not be the answer. “Champagne has a specific flavor profile and set of aromas that need to be tailored to the drink you’re using it in, whereas sparkling wine as a larger category is…

8 FUN ITALIAN SPARKLERS Champagne from France may be the classic holiday-party choice, but in recent years, Italy has seen a remarkable lift in the quality of its sparkling wines—and there’s much more to be had than just Prosecco. Here are some great choices from throughout the country for all your gift-giving or guest-pouring needs. (All are nonvintage blends except where indicated.) ADAMI GARBÈL PROSECCO ($18) Founded by Abele Adami in 1920, Adami remains one of the top wineries in the Prosecco region, and while they’ve garnered acclaim for their single-vineyard bottlings (the family was the first in the region to create one), this fresh, citrus-accented basic cuvée is a serious steal. FERRARI TRENTO BRUT ($39) The sparkling wines of Trentino in the north of Italy are both impressive and…

I HAVE STOOD IN UNTENABLE NEW YORK CITY holiday lines, waiting for a glimpse of a very large tree. I have battled tourists for a look at poinsettias, pushed my way toward a better view of the Saks windows, and waited outside in extreme cold for a chance to buy a drink at Rolf’s, just so I could take a selfie at the most Christmassy bar in the world. I love the holidays, which is why I am here to extol the virtue of Boston over New York, because in Boston, you can have your nog and drink it, too. Our restaurants skirt the line between establishment old-school and up-and-coming. You can get a superlative shrimp cocktail with a view at the coolest new hotel or have Taiwanese dumplings…

I COME FROM A TINY BEACH TOWN IN KERALA, India, where I woke up to the sounds of church bells tolling and fishermen chanting folk songs as they pulled in the haul from fishing all night. Christianity has deeper roots in this part of South India than almost anywhere else in the world—the story goes that the apostle Thomas landed in Kerala in A.D. 52—and for Christmas, my family pulled out all the stops. The festivities started weeks ahead of time. My amma and her kitchen crew (yup, Mom had a little crew) would spend weeks making sweet treats that would be given out as gifts to all our family and friends. For the month before Christmas, our home smelled like a bakery. The week of Christmas, my three brothers…

I GREW UP IN A BIG, BUSY CITY called Mito, north of Tokyo. The week before New Year’s, my mother would prepare assorted cold dishes for sharing with relatives and friends dropping by to wish us a happy new year. But on the first day of the new year, nobody drops by—it’s a day families spend together. And it’s on that first day that you make something hot: ozoni, a special New Year’s soup with a dashi or miso broth, vegetables, and a little meat or fish cake, topped with grilled mochi. My mother did most of the cooking, but my father always made the ozoni. He was an accountant and had his office attached to the house; in it, he had a gas space heater. He would grill the…