Brighten up your festive season with 5 easy Christmas-themed recipes - YP

This Christmas, delight your loved ones with these delicious, healthy recipes from Kat-Spirit Nutrition Centre, a nutrition healthcare and counselling service based in Hong Kong. Their senior nutritionist, Kathy Ng Yiu-fan shares recipes for dishes that require six ingredients or less and minimal effort.

From a festive salad to adorable snowman rice balls, these dishes are the perfect way to celebrate the holidays.

Christmas wreath salad with beetroot, oranges, feta cheese and pecans. Photo: Shutterstock

Christmas salad

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 1 small bundle of lettuce, washed and chopped into small pieces

• 1 mandarin orange

• Seeds from half of a pomegranate fruit

• 50 grams of crumbled feta cheese

• 1 tablespoon of honey

• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

• Handful of pecans (optional)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine your chopped lettuce. Spread it out evenly to create a circular shape, resembling a wreath.

2. Arrange the mandarin orange slices on the lettuce base and scatter the pomegranate seeds in the centre.

3. In a small jar or bowl, whisk together the honey and apple cider vinegar.

4. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese on top.

5-minute listening: You’ll go nuts for these miso peanut butter cookies

Two toasts or bruschetta with strawberry and mint on cream cheese. Photo: Shutterstock

Strawberry Santa toast

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Toast the bread slices and cut them into 4 squares each.

2. Spread a thin layer of yogurt on the bread slices.

3. Cut strawberries into halves and place them on the bread upright.

4. Finish by adding some mint leaves to taste.

New year sandwiches made of bread, cheese and cucumber in the form of a Christmas tree. Photo: Shutterstock

Christmas Tree Toast

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Toast the bread and cut it into 4 triangles.

2. Spread a thin layer of cream cheese on toast.

3. Cut the cucumber into small crescent slices and put them on top of toast to resemble leaves.

4. Place cherry tomatoes on top of cucumber slices to resemble baubles.

5. Sprinkle some coriander or almonds on the empty parts of the bread.

5-minute listening: Easy banana pudding recipe to satisfy your sweet tooth

Rice balls made in the shape of snowmen. Photo: Shutterstock

Snowman rice balls

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 4 cups of cooked rice

• 2 tablespoons of sesame oil

• half teaspoon salt

• 1 small carrot

• 2 pieces of seaweed

• Handful of chopped kimchi

• (Optional) halved cherry tomatoes or cucumber slices can be hats for your snowmen

Directions

1. Cut seaweed into thin, long rectangles for the snowman’s arms and scarf, and small, round circles for the eyes, mouth and buttons.

2. Peel and slice the carrot into tiny triangles to make snowman nose.

3. Season cooked rice with sesame oil and salt.

4. Wet your hands a bit to keep the rice from sticking to your palms. Take a large handful of rice, place a spoonful of kimchi into the centre and roll it into a ball. This will form the snowman’s body.

5. Take a slightly smaller portion of rice and add a small scoop of kimchi into the centre, before rolling it into a ball. This will form the snowman’s head.

6. Use the seaweed strips and dots to create the snowman’s features and scarf, and gently attach the tiny carrot nose using a small piece of seaweed or a toothpick.

Make a Christmas tree using pancakes and fruits. Photo: Shutterstock

Kiwi strawberry Christmas pancakes

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Combine pancake mix and water in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.

2. Prepare 1 large, 2 medium and 2 small pancakes according to the instructions on the packaging.

3. Slice the kiwi and strawberries, reserving one strawberry for decoration.

4. Place the largest pancake on the bottom of the stack. Spread yogurt on top and decorate with strawberry and kiwi slices.

5. Repeat with the remaining pancakes, layering smaller sizes on top and finishing with the reserved strawberry.

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A preview of the Christmas meals some airlines will be serving - NPR

Can holiday travelers expect a festive meal on the plane? To find out, we hear from the CEO of one of the largest airline caterers — and a food blogger who's had Christmas dinner at 30,000 feet.

ASMA KHALID, HOST:

It's the most wonderful time of the year and the busiest for air travel.

(SOUNDBITE OF PLANE TAKING OFF)

KHALID: If you're among the millions of passengers traveling over the holidays, maybe you'll get to enjoy a meal on board.

JENS KUHLEN: It's super important to connect the traveler to their families and to support that connection with a flavor that reminds them about memorable times of the past, of their childhood and of their family gatherings.

KHALID: Jens Kuhlen is the president of Gategroup North America. It's one of the largest airline catering companies in the world. He says some carriers are offering festive menu options throughout the holidays, such as...

KUHLEN: Roasted sliced turkey breast with a rosemary gravy, but then (ph) chestnut stuffings, glazed baby carrots, the Brussels sprouts.

KHALID: And sure, holiday meal planning can be a long process. But have you ever thought about the airline's chef?

KUHLEN: To just create one particular menu, it takes usually, from the beginning to until it flies, six to eight months.

KHALID: Farm to plane?

DENNIS LITTLEY: Emirates does prawns and salmon. You know, things like that occur over the holidays.

KHALID: Chef Dennis Littley is a food blogger who knows what it's like to have a holiday meal at 30,000-plus feet.

LITTLEY: On British Air, we had roast turkey or a choice of that and mince pie. Also, on Swiss Air, I had quite an incredible meal. A lot of times, they'll wow you with desserts. They'll come out with a chocolate mousse or a yule log. One smaller airline I flew on actually baked cookies in the sky. Just the smell alone was worth the experience.

KHALID: While in-flight meals can occasionally be as delicious as terrestrial dining, passengers are advised to go light.

LITTLEY: The low pressure and high altitude changes how your body reacts. So you could get bloating. You could have, you know, stomach issues.

KHALID: Chef Dennis recommends steering clear of salty and gassy foods, as well as things that can dehydrate you, like coffee and alcohol. Of course, the kind of meal and whether you actually get one depends on where you're seated.

LITTLEY: Business class and first class always gets better-quality food or a more - I don't want to say appetizing, but they're getting something that's a little special, where the regular passengers, you know, get the standard fare.

KHALID: If you're flying coach but have been nice this year, maybe you'll get a yule log, too.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "CHRISTMAS AT THE AIRPORT")

NICK LOWE: (Singing) It looks like Christmas - Christmas at the airport.

Copyright © 2023 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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Brighten up your festive season with 5 easy Christmas-themed recipes - YP

This Christmas, delight your loved ones with these delicious, healthy recipes from Kat-Spirit Nutrition Centre, a nutrition healthcare and counselling service based in Hong Kong. Their senior nutritionist, Kathy Ng Yiu-fan shares recipes for dishes that require six ingredients or less and minimal effort.

From a festive salad to adorable snowman rice balls, these dishes are the perfect way to celebrate the holidays.

Christmas wreath salad with beetroot, oranges, feta cheese and pecans. Photo: Shutterstock

Christmas salad

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 1 small bundle of lettuce, washed and chopped into small pieces

• 1 mandarin orange

• Seeds from half of a pomegranate fruit

• 50 grams of crumbled feta cheese

• 1 tablespoon of honey

• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

• Handful of pecans (optional)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine your chopped lettuce. Spread it out evenly to create a circular shape, resembling a wreath.

2. Arrange the mandarin orange slices on the lettuce base and scatter the pomegranate seeds in the centre.

3. In a small jar or bowl, whisk together the honey and apple cider vinegar.

4. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese on top.

5-minute listening: You’ll go nuts for these miso peanut butter cookies

Two toasts or bruschetta with strawberry and mint on cream cheese. Photo: Shutterstock

Strawberry Santa toast

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Toast the bread slices and cut them into 4 squares each.

2. Spread a thin layer of yogurt on the bread slices.

3. Cut strawberries into halves and place them on the bread upright.

4. Finish by adding some mint leaves to taste.

New year sandwiches made of bread, cheese and cucumber in the form of a Christmas tree. Photo: Shutterstock

Christmas Tree Toast

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Toast the bread and cut it into 4 triangles.

2. Spread a thin layer of cream cheese on toast.

3. Cut the cucumber into small crescent slices and put them on top of toast to resemble leaves.

4. Place cherry tomatoes on top of cucumber slices to resemble baubles.

5. Sprinkle some coriander or almonds on the empty parts of the bread.

5-minute listening: Easy banana pudding recipe to satisfy your sweet tooth

Rice balls made in the shape of snowmen. Photo: Shutterstock

Snowman rice balls

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 4 cups of cooked rice

• 2 tablespoons of sesame oil

• half teaspoon salt

• 1 small carrot

• 2 pieces of seaweed

• Handful of chopped kimchi

• (Optional) halved cherry tomatoes or cucumber slices can be hats for your snowmen

Directions

1. Cut seaweed into thin, long rectangles for the snowman’s arms and scarf, and small, round circles for the eyes, mouth and buttons.

2. Peel and slice the carrot into tiny triangles to make snowman nose.

3. Season cooked rice with sesame oil and salt.

4. Wet your hands a bit to keep the rice from sticking to your palms. Take a large handful of rice, place a spoonful of kimchi into the centre and roll it into a ball. This will form the snowman’s body.

5. Take a slightly smaller portion of rice and add a small scoop of kimchi into the centre, before rolling it into a ball. This will form the snowman’s head.

6. Use the seaweed strips and dots to create the snowman’s features and scarf, and gently attach the tiny carrot nose using a small piece of seaweed or a toothpick.

Make a Christmas tree using pancakes and fruits. Photo: Shutterstock

Kiwi strawberry Christmas pancakes

Ingredients (serves 2)

Directions

1. Combine pancake mix and water in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.

2. Prepare 1 large, 2 medium and 2 small pancakes according to the instructions on the packaging.

3. Slice the kiwi and strawberries, reserving one strawberry for decoration.

4. Place the largest pancake on the bottom of the stack. Spread yogurt on top and decorate with strawberry and kiwi slices.

5. Repeat with the remaining pancakes, layering smaller sizes on top and finishing with the reserved strawberry.

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23 Most Viral TikTok Food Trends And Recipes Of 2023 - BuzzFeed

If you're not as neck-deep in all things #PickleTok as I am, this one will require some explanation. First: spicy pickles. Second: chamoy, which is a popular, sweet-and-spicy Mexican condiment that TikTokers cannot get enough of. Third, fourth, fifth, and so on: the toppings, which usually include a mixture of Takis, sour candy, Tajín, tamarind, and anything candy-adjacent you could dream up.

TikTokers hollow out the core of the pickle with a spoon, stuff it to the brim with various toppings, occasionally even wrapping it in Fruit by the Foot, and crunch. Mukbang videos of people tasting them are fascinating, deliciously gruesome, and absolutely everywhere; like, the #chamoypickle hashtag on TikTok has over 1.5 billion views.

Anyway! Santa, if you're reading this, I'm clearly hoping for a chamoy pickle kit in my Christmas stocking this year. 🤞 (This is Ross, BTW.)

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I’ve spent years tasting dishes on MasterChef. Now it’s my turn to put on the apron - The Guardian

There is only one thing more stressful than cooking with a raging deep-fat fryer: cooking with a raging deep-fat fryer while being watched by Gregg Wallace, John Torode and three TV cameras. I attempt to look nonchalant as I shake the basket filled with crispy spare ribs, while reminding myself that this extremely testing situation is all my own stupid fault. A year ago, I came across my neighbour David Ambler, the executive producer of the MasterChef franchise, in our local park. What viewers would really love to see, I said casually, is the critics cooking off against each other.

And now here we are, some months later, doing exactly that. To my right is my Guardian colleague Grace Dent, hair up, head down, prepping her favourite high street curry house dish. Behind her is William Sitwell of the Telegraph making chicken kyiv. Further down the room is Leyla Kazim, of BBC Radio 4’s Food Programme, constructing a Turkish Cypriot dish of pasta and labneh, and next to her is Jimi Famurewa of the London Evening Standard, knocking up his homemade fish finger sandwiches.

And me? It’s braised then deep-fried spare ribs with cumin, salt and chilli. Our first challenge is to cook our “guilty pleasure”. I’d rejected the premise. If I start feeling guilty about food, where do I bloody stop? But I don’t get the deep fat fryer out often, so this qualifies. In the second round, we are to cook our top two dishes to be served to a special panel of judges; in short, to a version of us. No idea who. I’m trying not to think about that.

Earlier, as we awaited our appointment with destiny, or John and Gregg as they’re known, we all agreed this had been an offer we could not refuse. We’d played the role of critic on the various MasterChef shows for years, in my case for 18 of them. It was surely reasonable for us now to prove whether we could cook?

In my pre-contest interview I tried to sound relaxed. “Some people cook some stuff and nobody dies,” I said airily, before adding, “although our careers might be ruined.” After all, how would it look if someone like me, who has spent years rolling his eyes at the best efforts of some very skilled chefs – professional, amateur and celebrity – turned out to be a total klutz in the kitchen?

Hence the wired mood in that green room. No one is being laid-back about this. We share our anxieties; bond over our vivid nightmares about dishes going wrong. William has been consulting chef friends of his. I’m using recipes I have been working on meticulously for another project. Many of us have brought kit from home, in my case a pressure cooker for those ribs and an electric whisk. I won’t sacrifice cooking time staring dumbly at an unfamiliar gadget. This is going to be death or glory. And possibly lunch.

To add to the swivel-eyed mood I have packed my unruly hair underneath a piratical bandana. I am doing this both for environmental health reasons, and in the hope of getting cast in a pantomime next Christmas. It’s not only Grace who can accessorise.

Happily, we do have some advantages over previous contestants. For a start, we all know this kitchen intimately, an impressive semi-permanent set built inside a TV and film production lot close to the Olympic Park in east London. In recent years we’ve set challenges for contestants – make me a pie, cook us something involving rice – and have swanned about this kitchen questioning the poor startled souls as they try to complete their dish. Now we are the poor startled souls. We’re also familiar with the nuts and bolts of TV production and, in this case, know everyone operating the cameras. Plus, of course, John and Gregg are not exactly strangers off the telly to us.

Ah yes, John and Gregg, less colleagues today than tormentors. I mean judges. Two decades ago, when they were partnered up, Torode was cast as experienced chef while Wallace played man in the street. Except that after 20 years, Wallace seriously knows his stuff too. As we come to the end of the first round, it becomes blindingly obvious that we all crave their approval. I have two rules where TV is concerned: never be drunk on camera and never cry on camera. The first is easy. It’s not like we’re hitting the bottle, however much we might wish to steady our nerves. As to the second, faced by John and Gregg’s comments, some of my fellow critics prove unequal to the task.

Then it’s my turn. I stand before them as they start to strip the meat from one cumin-crusted rib each. And then another. And then a third. They are silent. I think I know what’s going on here. Sometimes when we judge dishes on MasterChef in the critic’s room we simply taste. Then we say smartarse things. And sometimes, when it’s good, we just eat and purr. John and Gregg appear to be eating, but I need to hear what they have to say. As they give me their feedback I nod, desperate not to say too much unless I accidentally break my no crying rule.

In any case there will be more than enough time for that. We have the much more challenging round two to come. No spoilers; to see what happened, you’ll just have to watch. It seems that cooking really does not get tougher than this.

MasterChef: Battle of the Critics 2023, is on BBC One at 8pm on Thursday 28 Dec

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9 warm and mulled drink recipes for winter, with and without alcohol - The Washington Post

Even in a season full of baked goods, bubbling casseroles and brothy soups, there’s something particularly life-affirming about a warm drink. Wrap your hands around the mug, inhale the spice-laden aromas, sip and savor. A hot beverage practically begs you to slow down and enjoy.

That holds true whether you’re at a bustling holiday party or reveling in the peace of a quiet house. We’ve collected some of our best warm beverage recipes, many spiced and all delicious, including a variety of zero-proof options. Need more ideas? Be sure to visit our newly enhanced Recipes experience.

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Bringing back forgotten dishes - The Star Online

FOOD has always been a big part of Malaysian culture.

Inevitably, with some of the modern interpretations making its way into the local food repertoire, there are others that are slowly being forgotten.

In an effort to keep food heritage alive, Resorts World Awana in an exclusive collaboration with Chef Wan Lifestyle will be hosting a year-long culinary series to reintroduce these “lost” recipes to the public.

As brand ambassador Datuk Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, will lead an exciting culinary journey through “A Lost Recipes Affair with Chef Wan and Friends” which will make its debut on Jan 27.

The Gala Dinner will take place at The Great Lawn, Resorts World Awana, a lush green space with a majestic view of the misty rainforest.

Chef Wan said the team took inspiration from the 152 Malaysian dishes detailed in the Endangered Heritage Food recipe book.

“There are dishes like Nasi Kebuli, which is a name that has been shortened from Nasi Ke Bawah Duli. This was typically served during royal ceremonies.

“But many people may not have even heard of it, much less tasted it.

“This is the kind of food that we want people to experience and hopefully, carry with them to the next generation,” he said, adding that the buffet spread would include not just Malay cuisine but also dishes from the Peranakan and Kristang communities.

Chef Wan said he even took inspiration from dishes that he grew up helping to cook in Pahang.

“From an early age, I would join others who gathered to cook during kenduri events. This was also how recipes were passed down.”

In what will be one of his first major events since battling lymphoma, Chef Wan said, “I am excited to be back in action and now, more than ever, I believe it is important to unite people together and spread love.

“And this begins with the food and flavours of the past.”

Chef Wan will be joining forces with Resorts World Genting assistant vice-president of culinary Supachai Saisoigeon, Resorts World Awana executive chef Ahmad Rosnie and Ayu Awana outlet chef Gianini Donadoni.

Rosnie said many of the herbs that would be used came from the resort’s own herb garden.

“Hard-to-source herbs such as halia hitam and pucuk pegaga are among the 32 herbs that we have at the garden.”

He added that they admired Chef Wan’s resilience and effort in wanting to preserve heritage recipes, and looked forward to collaborating on this culinary journey.

“A Lost Recipes Affair with Chef Wan and Friends” will make stops at Resorts World Kijal and Resorts World Langkawi with each location promising a distinct chapter in the rediscovery of lost recipes.

Further dates are to be announced.

The inaugural Gala Dinner limited to 350 guests will immerse diners in a pre-dinner nostalgia session featuring interactive traditional games and an opening show with renowned personalities.

There will be performances by celebrated comedian Harith Iskander and Malaysia’s acclaimed Aseana Percussion Unit, presenting an ensemble of diverse musical elements.

The Gala Dinner experience is priced at RM792 per pax for Genting Rewards members and RM880 per pax for non-Genting Rewards members.

For an elevated experience, guests may choose from one of four stay-and-dine packages.

Starting at RM1,798 for Genting Rewards members and RM1,998 for non-members, this package includes a two-day-one-night stay in a Superior Deluxe room at Resorts World Awana, Gala Dinner experience for two and buffet breakfast for two.

Tickets can be purchased until Jan 24.

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