Tausi Insider

Sorry about the stained tea towel. I am only human. Photo : Claire Lower Yams and sweet potatoes are sweet. No one can dispute this. There’s a reason they’re just as at home in a pie as they are as a side dish. Even so, a lot of people insist on adding brown sugar, candied nuts, and marshmallows to the orange tubers, because sugar tastes good. Marshmallows are a bit too cloying for me, however . In the past, I’ve made my own marshmallow fluff to cut down on the sugar and add a little spicy ginger , but I should have just made a Swiss meringue. It’s easier to make and work with than marshmallow fluff , and it browns and crisps in a way that marshmallows simply cannot . If you’ve never made a Swiss meringue before, it’s just like making any other meringue, with one extra step: Instead of whipping raw egg whites with super fine or powdered sugar, you combine the whites with table sugar, then heat the mixture over a double boiler until the sugar dissolves . (Rub a bit between you...

Photo : Wollertz ( Shutterstock ) Walk into any Italian bakery and, no matter what your original intention was, look for the pignoli cookie first. It may not be as flashy as the rainbow cookie, but that knobbly little blob is a secret crowd favorite, with good reason. Pignoli cookies are soft, chewy, and utterly almondy. The price tag might seem a little high, but there’s a reason for that too. The ingredients are almond paste, sugar, egg whites, and pine nuts. They’re not ingredients I would spring for on a regular basis, but the holidays are a special time of year where I manage to find the extra 10 bucks. Chewy, light, and brimming with almond flavor, with a light resin aroma, pignoli cookies are unlike any other cookie out there. https://www.tausiinsider.com/12-holiday-cookie-recipes-with-5-ingredients-or-less/?feed_id=328410&_unique_id=6424b6b2e5083

Photo : A.A. Newton Cranberries are often the only source of precious, richness-cutting acid on the Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner tables, which is why I’ve always insisted that they belong on the equally rich dessert table, too. This year, I finally gave in to a recurring pie-based intrusive thought: What if I made lemon meringue pie, but cranberry? If you have a bag of Thanksgiving cranberries taking up freezer space, trust me: Cranberry meringue pie is their highest possible calling. (And if you don’t have leftovers, it’s worth picking up an extra bag just to make it.) Your family and friends will ooh and ahh over the bright magenta filling and pretty swirls of toasted meringue—and they’ll only love it more when they take a bite. The tart, perky cranberry curd perfectly offsets the crisp, buttery crust and marshmallowy Swiss meringue. It’s nothing like any of the usual holiday pies, and that’s exactly why you should make it. Best of all, cranberry meringue pie is not at ...

Photo : Wollertz ( Shutterstock ) Walk into any Italian bakery and, no matter what your original intention was, look for the pignoli cookie first. It may not be as flashy as the rainbow cookie, but that knobbly little blob is a secret crowd favorite, with good reason. Pignoli cookies are soft, chewy, and utterly almondy. The price tag might seem a little high, but there’s a reason for that too. The ingredients are almond paste, sugar, egg whites, and pine nuts. They’re not ingredients I would spring for on a regular basis, but the holidays are a special time of year where I manage to find the extra 10 bucks. Chewy, light, and brimming with almond flavor, with a light resin aroma, pignoli cookies are unlike any other cookie out there. https://www.tausiinsider.com/12-holiday-cookie-recipes-with-5-ingredients-or-less/?feed_id=324738&_unique_id=63b25f79f1a95