Celebrate New Year's Eve with the Flourish of a Sword Trick

This year at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, you'll score a great big kiss and belt out "auld lang syne." As the song winds down, get your sword ready because you're going to open the champagne with it! Worst-case scenario, you injure yourself and others. You decide, is the stunt worth it?

Erik Liedholm, Wine Director for Washington's Seastar Restaurant & Raw Bar, tried it once upon a time and now has, at least, a great story. Mr. Liedholm recounts a time when he was the sommelier at a grand opening party for a cutting-edge new restaurant and "little did I know how 'cutting edge' this opening was to be." The who's who of the Seattle food scene was invited and "part of this grande fete was to have me saber off the top of a bottle of Champagne. I had plenty of experience whacking the tops off bottles of a regular (750ml) size but the crazy Food & Beverage Director who looked and acted like a cross between Schultz from Hogan’s Hero’s and Truman Capote, insisted I saber the top off of a Jeroboam (about 3 liters of wine). I was always told that one needs a large floor cradle when dispatching the tops of big bottles but he thought it would take away from the drama if I had one. He was right!!"

"After several unglamorous attempts hacking at the mammoth bottles 'sweet spot' I let out one last heave of the saber and then the Food & Beverage Director got his drama. Wine went everywhere, glass went everywhere. The crowd let out a big cheer and as I looked around, everyone had smiles…except the General Manager who looked at me with horror. The bottle had exploded in such a way that the broken half I was holding decided to engage itself into my thumb and was slowly removing it from my hand. It seems as though during my many failed attempts holding this freezing cold, giant bottle my hand became anesthetized."

"I did not realize that my entire hand and arm had become a bloody mess. I was off to the hospital and in no time, I was the talk of the ER wing at Virginia Mason hospital. All the docs and nurses wanted to lay their eyes on the fool who tried to open a bottle of Champagne with a sword. After twenty stitches and a hurt pride I was back to work that night!" (Thanks to Mr. Liedholm for sharing this story with us.)

So you've read the cautionary tale but still want to try it? You can use a special tool like the Laguiole Champagne Sabre or a solid and trusty knife. Wired Magazine has tips on everything from bottle temperature to the angle for holding the bottle.



Don't forget to prepare some lovely snacks to go with your champagne. Luckily, champagne goes with mostly everything from popcorn to rose petals. Paul Abercrombie's Organic, Shaken and Stirred: Hip Highballs, Modern Martinis, and Other Totally Green Cocktails has a delightfully delicate cocktail recipe mixing champagne and rose petals.

For cheese, try an easy to serve brie on crackers such as this one from President Cheese. It has an accessible taste that will appeal to most people and is easy to prepare. It'll be great with champagne!

And now some useful tips from Food Maven Ahmet A. about champagne:

Champagne is something to be enjoyed for more than special occasions, New Year's Eve or a wedding toast. It's practically the perfect drink: refreshing, delicate and complex. With so many to choose to from and with a such great range of prices where does one begin?

First, to be called champagne it has to be French. Nothing else will do. Yes, there are plenty of substitutes from Spain, Italy, New York and California. While those concoctions may appeal to some palates, champagne only comes from....you guessed it, the Champagne region of France.

Second, it doesn't have to be expensive or vintage to be delicious. We may all think that Dom Perignon or La Grande Dame is the only way to enjoy this delightful drink, but those of us who live within driving distance of a Costco are in for real surprise. Costco's own Kirkland brand has added a champagne to its lineup of high quality products priced sensibly. Currently $19.95 gets one a fruity, slight yeasty dry champagne that competes with bubbly costing five to ten times the price.

Lastly, make sure the bottle is properly chilled (43 to 48 degrees F.). Don't just throw it into the freezer 30 minutes before serving. Once opened, there's no rush to finish, but don't even think about re-corking. At these prices you can afford to have a several bottles in your fridge waiting to be consumes for the best reason of all: for the taste. à votre santé!

On the first night of Hanukkah, my true love gave to me...Lox, bagels, and cream cheese

May I be blunt and just say it? I never met a Jew that didn't love lox (including me) but I have met a lox that I didn't love. I've made an effort this year to find my favorite lox and here's what I've come up with so far.

In their November issue, Details Magazine published their list of the "Most Delicious Mail Order Food," in which they recommend NYC's Russ and Daughters. (When I first heard about this old New York City gem, I thought people were saying "Russian Daughters" and even found some chowhounds with the same misunderstanding.) Their main competitor is Zabar's, which I have yet to try.

I finally tasted R&D's lox in September 2009 and was disappointed with their bestsellers but did enjoy their Scottish and Pastrami lox. While Details Magazine recommends the Gaspe Nova, I feel that the Scottish and Pastrami varieties are by far the best lox that Russ & Daughers has to offer and I sent them to my grandmother for her birthday. At first, I was reluctant to try the pastrami flavor because it just sounded gimmicky but I actually loved the added flavors as well as the fish itself. If you're not in NYC, you can have it shipped.

On the West Coast, I found my favorite lox at the San Francisco's farmer's market at the ferry building/terminal: Cap'n Mike's Northwest Style Lox. Ingredients: wild red King salmon, alderwood smoke, sea salt, honey, brown sugar. Truly heavenly: smooth, meaty, flavorful, and perfectly balanced on the sweet/salty scale, so it's no wonder their website is "Holy Smoked Salmon".

Cap'n Mike's lox is available for shipping and I have shipped their lox as Hanukkah gifts in the past and will continue to. I can't imagine a more tasty Hanukkah gift that goes well with latkes, boiled potatoes (my preference: smashed Russian Banana Fingerling Potatoes), bagels, or biayls (Elizabeth Falkner's current obsession).

I've also tried two lox offerings at Trader Joe's, two at Safeway, and Charlie Trotter's lox products at Whole Foods. None of these came close to the taste and quality of Cap'n Mike's and frankly I would have preferred to have no lox than to have eaten any of those. Suprisingly the Safeway offerings were my favorite and some of the cheapest. The others were too salty, fishy, or just didn't taste right. If you happen to be part of the huge Jewish community in Michigan, there is good lox at Hiller's Market on Orchard Lake Rd that is packaged by the store itself. It's labeled "Ma Cohen's Lox" and is a thicker slab than normal lox cuts but the flavors are good. Just make sure it's fresh by the date on the container.

Q. What is lox? How does one find the best lox?
A. Ultimately, it's subjective but here are some pointers.

1. Of course, the main ingredient - salmon - is going to be the biggest factor in lox taste and quality. Sally Hiebert of Cap'n Mike's says that most people are used to King salmon lox, although most lox is farmed and not wild. "Farmed salmon does have a nice oily texture, but is VERY mild in flavor -- sort of tasteless to those of us used to the wild salmon." She says that Sockeye Salmon, "the very red, smaller species of salmon," has a huge, bright salmon flavor and also a slightly more buttery texture than the red King. Cap'n Mike's also has a wild white King salmon lox that is "delicate in flavor and more buttery in texture than the red King." From my experience, if you like only extremely mild fish like halibut (I personally can't relate to that), don't get a strongly flavored salmon. There may also be some differences in contaminants between farmed and wild salmon.

2. Cut: Most lox is made from salmon filets, but one can also buy cheaper salmon trimmings from near the fins called lox wings (oilier), which I ate a lot of growing up because we couldn't afford the fancy lox. It turns out that those lox wings probably are the tastiest option (see below about oil) but cheaper because they're not as pretty and much messier to eat. There's also the fish head prepared in lox style, which is also very tasty and my father still loves to eat. If you're laying out a beautiful buffet, don't get wings or the head. Check out the barn-warming party that Barefoot Contessa (aka Ina Garten) held buffet-style with smoked salmon and herbed butter.

3. Oil content: Generally, you will maximize the fish flavor by getting the package of fish with the most oil in it. You should be able to determine the juiciest fish by just looking through the clear packaging and seeing the oil flowing around.

4. To smoke or not to smoke?  Only cold-smoked salmon is "lox" because hot-smoking leads to a completely different texture (flaky). Lox has a smooth and silky texture, very close to raw salmon, because it is cold-smoked. Some lox is not smoked at all, but simply cured at home with various spices (usually just salt and sugar). My mom has created her own lox by simply curing salmon at home but it's tough to get just the right mix of salty and sweet.

5. Curing: Lox is prepared with a mixture of salt, sugar, and sometimes other spices. If the curing mixture includes water, the process is called brining or wet-brining. Know your personal taste when it comes to choosing lox that has been cured with spices because taste profiles range widely. "Nova Scotia lox" is a term denoting a certain kind of preparation (not fish origin) that usually involves a mild traditional brine whereas Gravlax typically adds dill, juniper berries, and is a bit on the sweeter side. I did enjoy the Gravlax at Russ & Daughters which seemed to have nothing but dill added to it.

If you're at Russ & Daughters, they will give you a sample when asked, even though it may come with an annoyed look. Below are photos of some of the other varieties that they carry.

Common Beauty Supplies Serve Double Duty in the Kitchen

I gathered these tips from Cook's Illustrated magazines. Everyday personal items that you already have at home can help you out in a pinch while you're cooking.




1. Dental Floss: If you're out of kitchen twine, use unflavored and unwaxed dental floss to tie up your meat, poultry, or bouquet garni. (From Cook's Illustrated Winter 2008 Issue)

2. Spray Bottle: Fill with distilled water and use to rinse your wine glasses after washing. Distilled water won't leave spots when you air dry the glasses upside down. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 82). Also, before putting colored sugar on your cookies, spritz them lightly with water so the sugar doesn't fall off. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 83)

3. Exfoliating Cloth: Use the rough texture of exfoliating cloths for fast and easy scrubbing of potatoes, carrots, and beats. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 38)

4. Hair Dryer: Use your hair dryer's No Heat setting to dry washed foods if a recipe calls for dryness, such as strawberries before chocolate dipping. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 82). Also, to remove sticky price tags from items like dishware, point the blow dryer at High Heat onto the label. When the glue softens, lift it off. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 84)

5. Toothbrush: Where does that roll of plastic wrap start? Rub toothbrush bristles along the roll while rotating it until you loosen the hidden edge. (From Cook's Illustrated Issue 85). Also, instead of specialty brushes, use toothbrushes to clean mushrooms. Use soft-bristled brushes for delicate work. (From Cook's Illustrated Free Issue)

6. Sweatband: To keep your oil bottle from staining your pantry shelves, place a sweatband around the bottle to catch drips. Just toss it in the washing machine when it's too dirty. (From Cook's Illustrated Free Issue)

7. Heated Neck Wrap: Warm it up in the microwave and wrap it around a bowl of dough. The extra heat helps the dough rise faster, in about half the time. (From Cook's Illustrated Free Issue)

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