No-Fuss Festivities

The meal is the center of holiday get-togethers, but you need not stress over what to serve. Simple yet thoughtful— and delicious—dishes will always win over any crowd. Here are five easy-to-make recipes to mark the occasion.

FIVE-ONION SOUP

Makes 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 4 Tbs. butter • 4 shallots, roughly chopped • white part of 1 leek, roughly chopped • 1 red onion, roughly chopped • 2 onions, roughly chopped • white parts of 1 bunch green onions, roughly chopped • 2 quarts chicken stock • 1½ cups heavy cream • ½ tsp. salt • ¼ tsp. ground black pepper • 16 thin slices French baguette, buttered and toasted • 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese, firmly packed

DIRECTIONS

In a large, heavy stockpot over medium-high heat, melt the butter. When the foaming has subsided, add the shallots, leek and onions. Turn the heat to medium-low and stir the mixture frequently, until the onions are soft and have turned deep golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Add the chicken stock and simmer the mixture, uncovered, until the onions are very soft, another 20 minutes.

Transfer the soup to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, and puree it until it’s smooth. This may need to be done in batches. Return the soup to the stockpot, add the cream, salt and pepper, and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the soup for another 20 minutes until the soup has thickened.

When it’s time to serve, preheat the broiler. Divide the soup into eight individual oven-proof ramekins. Add 2 toasted baguette slices to each ramekin, overlapping them slightly if necessary, and top them with 2 tablespoons of Gruyère cheese. Broil the soup on the top rack until the cheese is brown and bubbly, 3 to 5 minutes, before serving.

BUTTER LETTUCE SALAD WITH CAVIAR AND SMOKED SALMON

Makes 1 serving

INGREDIENTS

For the salad:

• 1 head butter lettuce • Secret “Gravlax” Sauce, see below • 4 oz. caviar • 4 oz. smoked salmon, sliced • 1 hard-boiled egg, finely chopped • 1 shallot, minced • chopped chives, to garnish

For the Gravlax Sauce: Makes about 2 cups • 1½ cups mayonnaise • 1 cup sour cream • 3 Tbs. Dijon mustard • 1½ tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice • ½ tsp. ground white pepper • ¾ tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS

To make the Gravlax Sauce, mix all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl and set aside.

To make the salad: Tear off the lettuce leaves from their core and arrange them on the plate. Add a dollop of the sauce in the center and top the sauce with the caviar. Surround the caviar mound with rolled-up slices of smoked salmon, the egg and shallot. Garnish the salad with chives.

Every holiday, we put up simple poinsettia kitchen curtains that my late mother-in-law made for our first apartment 38 years ago. We hang them in the pass-through from my kitchen to dining room.”

—Brenda Calandrillo, Mahwah

EASIEST-EVER ROASTED BALSAMIC CHICKEN WITH SHALLOTS

Makes 10 to 12 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 5 lbs. bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs • 8 shallots, quartered • 1½ cups balsamic vinegar • 2½ tsp. salt • 1¼ tsp. ground black pepper • Tomatoes Provençale, for serving

For the Tomatoes Provençale:

Makes 8 tomato halves • 4 ripe tomatoes • 1 ¼ tsp. salt, divided • ½ cup breadcrumbs • 2 Tbs. minced shallots • 2 cloves garlic, minced • ¼ cup minced flat-leaf parsley • ¼ cup olive oil • ½ tsp. ground black pepper • 2 Tbs. grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

To make Tomatoes Provençale: Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally and remove the seeds. Season the halves with ¼ teaspoon of the salt and turn them upside down on a rack to let them drain for at least 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the remaining teaspoon of the salt, the breadcrumbs, shallots, garlic, parsley, olive oil and pepper, and stir them together to combine. Stuff equal amounts of the mixture into the drained tomatoes and place the tomatoes on a heavy quarter-sheet pan.

Top the tomatoes with the Parmesan cheese, and put them in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes until they are fully heatedthrough and their tops are golden brown.

To make the chicken: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Add all of the ingredients, except the Tomatoes Provençale, to a large mixing bowl, and toss them thoroughly so that the chicken is fully coated with the shallots, vinegar and seasonings.

Place the chicken in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the remaining shallots, liquid and seasonings from the sides of the bowl into the baking dish, and put it in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes until the skin is browned and the chicken is thoroughly cooked through. Remove the chicken, shallots and the sauce to a warm serving platter, and let chicken rest for at least 10 minutes before serving it.

I was in elementary school when I first tried (and fell in love with) struffoli at a friend’s house. We started making it in my house every Christmas since: My mom made it for us, and now I’m doing it for my own family—and we’re not even Italian! It’s so easy to make, and it smells and tastes so good.”

—Jocelyn Dunphy, Waldwick

ABSOLUTELY PERFECT BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Makes 50 (1½-inch square) biscuits

INGREDIENTS

• 2 sticks (16 Tbs.) plus 4 Tbs. butter, divided, plus more for the pan • 3 cups White Lily self-rising flour • 2½ teaspoons salt • 1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. sugar • ½ cup plus 2 Tbs. whole buttermilk • ½ cup plus 2 Tbs. milk

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut 2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons of the butter into small cubes and place them in the freezer for at least 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt and sugar, and whisk them together. Add the cold butter and incorporate it into the flour by breaking up the cubes with your hands. Continue working the butter and flour together until coarse crumbs form. Pour in the buttermilk and milk, and gently stir the mixture with a rubber spatula until a very sticky dough forms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, place it on a floured board and knead it only a couple of times—do not knead it more than this or the biscuits will be tough and not delicate. Press the dough to a ¼-inch thickness using your hands and cut it into 1 ½-inch biscuits.

Line the biscuits on the prepared pan so that they are touching—this will help them rise when they are baked. Brush them with half of the melted butter before putting them in the oven for 7 minutes. After 7 minutes, turn the pan and cook the biscuits for another 3 to 4 minutes until they are golden brown.

Remove the biscuits from the oven, and brush them with the remaining melted butter before setting the pan on a counter or a rack to let them cool.

OOEY-GOOEY OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES

Makes 24 cookies

INGREDIENTS

• 2 sticks (16 Tbs.) butter • 1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed • ¼ cup sugar • 2 eggs • 1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract • 1 Tbs. molasses • 1½ cups flour • 1 tsp. baking soda • 1½ tsp. ground cinnamon • ½ tsp. salt • 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats • 1 cup raisins

DIRECTIONS

Add the butter and both sugars to the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, turn the mixer to medium and beat them together until they are smooth, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue to beat until they are just combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Turn the mixer to low, and stir in the vanilla and molasses. Set the mixture aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add them to the butter-sugar mixture and turn the mixer to low until everything is just combined. Stir in the oats and raisins, still with the mixer on low speed. The dough will be very thick and sticky.

Cover the bowl and set it in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or up to two days, before baking.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.

Using a 1-inch cookie scoop (or any size you like, but adjust the baking time accordingly), scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, and set them in the oven 10 to 12 minutes until they are lightly browned.

Note: Under-baking is the key to the success of these cookies.

Recipes courtesy of Occasions to Celebrate by Alex Hitz, Rizzoli New York, 2022. Photographs © Iain Bagwell.