By Louise Hudson, Dallas Morning News

The bubbly allure of beer and Champagne is being adopted by ski resorts around North America — with an educational twist.

The latest après ski is beer and distillery tours, private in-room liquor tastings, Champagne toasts on the slopes, and beverage and food pairings. 

At Aspen, it’s Vive La Veuve at the Ajax Tavern’s Veuve Clicquot bar. One local throws a 100-bottle Veuve party on the patio on his 100th ski day each season. Dotting the slopes are vibrant Veuve pop-up bars. And at Highlands on sunny afternoons, Cloud Nine is a riot of music, tabletop dancing and Champagne spraying. 

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By Bart Chambers

Cooking is the leading cause of home fires and fire injuries and Thanksgiving Day is one of the peak days for home cooking fires.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated 1,760 home cooking fires on Thanksgiving in 2015. Unattended cooking was the leading contributing factor in cooking fires and fire deaths.

No matter how many years you’ve been cooking or how many Thanksgiving feasts you’ve served, you always need to make safety your main ingredient.

Follow these tips for a fire safe kitchen and home during the holidays

•             Check smoke alarms to ensure they are functioning properly by using the test button.

•             Never leave food that is cooking unattended and use a timer.

•             Have a safe cooking area. Clear items away from the stove area that can catch fire. Position pot handles so that they can’t be bumped or knocked over.

•             Be prepared. Keep a large pan lid or baking sheet handy to smother pan fires. Have a properly functioning fire extinguisher and know how to use it.

•             Stay alert. If smoke or grease starts to boil in a pan, turn the burner off.

•             Keep the floor area clear to prevent tripping.

•             Wear short sleeves or roll sleeves up while cooking. Don’t lean over burners. Use potholders and oven mitts to handle hot cookware.

•             Keep children at least three feet away from the stove.

•             Keep knives and other potentially dangerous objects out of the reach of children and secure appliance cords so they do not dangle from counters.

Deep-frying a turkey has many fire safety risks. Do not attempt to fry a frozen or partially frozen turkey as they will cause oil to splatter which can start a fire. Do not overfill the fryer with oil. Use a fryer with thermostat controls to manage the  oil temperature. The fryer should be placed on a flat surface that cannot burn and is positioned away from anything that can catch fire. Keep children and pets clear of  the fryer and have a responsible adult attend to the fryer while it is in use.

Bart Chambers is the Nevada fire marshal.

By Peter Fish, San Francisco Chronicle

There you are, you and friends on a fall afternoon, gathered in a Napa Valley tasting room. You’re primed, pumped, ready to savor the world’s best Cabs, Chardonnays and maybe a Fume Blanc or two. As you swirl and sip, you focus all your brainpower on the wine terms you’re supposed to remember: malolactic, tannin, terroir. And the flavors you’re supposed to recognize: blackberry, mocha, tobacco leaf.

At this point, one of your friends pipes up to ask the person pouring behind the bar: “Do you have any vegan wines?”

Pause. You feel a moment of panic. You wonder if, this whole time, for centuries, the deep merlot color of the world’s red wines has been more a function of sheep’s blood than grape juice. Is animal testing a new wine variable you have to know? You’ve spent hours trying to memorize Robert Parker’s wine scores. Now you have to worry about Gwyneth Paltrow’s?

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By Kathryn Reed

When I was in Greece in my 20s I lived off gyros. They were easy to come by, super cheap – and oh, so incredibly delicious.

They were sold on the street. (Not sure if this is still true.) Vendors would shave off thin slices of lamb from the large spit. The meat was so tender. This was my introduction to tzatziki, which is usually made with yogurt.

This recipe allows the vegetarians and vegans in the world to get a glimpse of what a gyro is all about. I’ll admit the tzatziki with the silken tofu is every bit as good as ones with yogurt.

Vegetarian Gyros

1 8-ounce package tempeh or baked tofu

1 T olive oil

½ C water

¼ C minced yellow onion

2 T sodium soy sauce

1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary

1 tsp chopped fresh oregano

8 garlic cloves, minced and divided

¼ tsp black pepper, divided

1 package silken tofu (about 6 ounces)

½ C peeled and grated English cucumber

1 T fresh lime juice

1 T chopped fresh dill

½ tsp white wine vinegar

¼ tsp kosher salt

4 flatbread wraps

½ C vertically sliced red onion

1 medium tomato, thinly sliced

Cut tempeh or baked tofu lengthwise into 8 slices.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium. Cook tempeh/tofu until golden brown or heated through.

In bowl, mix water, onion, soy sauce, rosemary, oregano, 4 minced garlic cloves, and half of the pepper.

Add mixture to tempeh/tofu in pan. Cover, and reduce heat. Braise tempeh/tofu, turning occasionally, until liquid has mostly evaporated.

In blender, combine silken tofu and remaining 4 garlic cloves. Pour mixture into a bowl. Then add cucumber, lime juice, dill, vinegar, salt, and remaining black pepper.

Divide tempeh/tofu evenly among flatbreads, and top each with tzatziki. Divide onion slices and tomatoes evenly among gyros.

Little Roots is proving farming at high elevation is possible. Photo/Todd Karol

By Ally Gravina, Moonshine Ink

Little Roots Farm, occupying a half-acre of land in Truckee’s Prosser neighborhood, is the only commercial farm within a 50-mile radius. Owned and operated by Todd Karol and Stacie Schultze, graduates of Sierra Nevada College, Little Roots focuses primarily on eight varieties of microgreens and also carries 10 to 20 other types of produce depending on the season.

What makes these guys so interesting is that they are the only commercial farm to tackle the industry in a climate many would consider hostile.

After graduation, the couple knew they wanted to work in the food industry while continuing to build their community in Tahoe, but they weren’t too keen on the idea of working in restaurants, and thus Little Roots Farm was born.

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By Kathryn Reed

This is going to be my new go-to recipe when I need to take an appetizer someplace or when I have friends over.

I made it recently for a tennis match. Even the opposing team wanted the recipe.

The only labor intensive part is actually roasting the peppers. I’m sure using jarred roasted peppers would work, but doing the roasting yourself really isn’t that big of a deal.

The flavors together are outstanding; almost to the point you might want to eat it with a spoon instead of using crackers.

Roasted Red Peppers and Feta

4 red bell peppers
1 T, plus ¼ C olive oil
½ medium shallot, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 T red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt
6 ounces feta, crumbled
4 tsp fresh thyme, plus more for serving
Pita chips (for serving)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place bell peppers on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Roast peppers, turning every 15 minutes for at least an hour, until collapsed and tender. Let cool.

Whisk shallot, garlic, vinegar, black pepper, and remaining quarter cup oil in a small bowl. Season with salt.

Remove stems, skins, and seeds from bell peppers. Finely chop peppers. Place in a bowl.

Pour marinade over peppers. Gently toss in feta and thyme.

Cover and chill dip at least 15 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Garnish with thyme sprigs.

Serve with pita chips.

Can make up to a day in advance.

By Christopher Mims, Wall Street Journal
 
If you have ever ordered a burrito or a Hawaiian poke bowl through a food-delivery app, you may have been the patron of a virtual restaurant.

No, you don’t need to put on a VR headset to experience one, and the food is quite real. What makes these new restaurants virtual is that you only find them online.

Tucked inside industrial parks, commissary kitchens and refitted basements in cities like New York, Chicago and San Jose, these restaurants have no dining room, no wait staff, no takeout window and no signage. (They still have to pass inspections from health boards, though.) Many don’t take orders over the phone and are accessible only through online services like Grubhub , GRUB 2.24% DoorDash or Postmates.

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By Kathryn Reed

It’s the season for comfort food. This completely fits that description.

Shepherd’s pie is something I don’t order at restaurants because it’s usually made with meat. Like a lot of recipes, mushrooms are a good way to make a dish vegetarian friendly.

I made this recipe last weekend with the help of my mom and two of my sisters. While I have a small kitchen, it was fun to have three sous chefs. It’s not that this recipe needed four people, but it did speed up the chopping, helped with taste testing (aka seasoning), and meant I didn’t have to make the mashed potatoes.

It didn’t surprise me that the flavors melded overnight to make for an even more delightful lunch. I love leftovers.

Consider making this after Thanksgiving and using the leftover mashed potatoes for this.

Portabella Shepherd’s Pie

3 C mashed potatoes
3 T olive oil
8 large portabella mushroom caps, gills removed, halved and cut into slices
2¾ C yellow onion, chopped
2 C carrots, peeled and chopped
2 T fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
5 garlic cloves, chopped
½ C dry white wine
3 T flour
1½ C vegetable broth
Finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

If starting potatoes from scratch, start cooking them so they will be ready to be mashed when the vegetable concoction is done.

Heat oil in large pan over medium-high. Cook mushrooms until softened and ­liquid has mostly evaporated. Add onion, carrots, rosemary, salt, and pepper; cook until onions and carrots are tender. Stir in garlic. Add wine and cook until completely evaporated. Sprinkle vegetables with flour; stirring constantly. Gradually add broth. Cook until thick.

Pour vegetables into 9 x 13 pan. Spread mashed potatoes over vegetables.

Broil until lightly browned. Sprinkle with parsley.

By San Francisco Chronicle

When it comes to navigating the myriad grub spots and watering holes that pop up on your phone when you visit Truckee, there’s no better guide than professional snowboarder Danny Davis. The 29-year-old is a two-time Winter X Games gold medalist (in halfpipe), has lived in the snowboarding mecca for the past decade, and is widely respected in the snow sports community for his laid-back style on and off the mountain.

Davis put the town — specifically his house, near Donner Summit — on the map last winter when he dropped a video of himself riding and performing tricks on top of and around his snow-covered home. “Snowed in,” he wrote in an Instagram post of the video. “I feel like such a kid walking around the yard building as many things as possible.”

Now Davis’ eyes are set on the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, where he hopes to parlay his X Games success into victory on the global stage. He’ll represent the United States in the snowboarding halfpipe event.

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By Kathryn Reed

Fall – that’s what this tastes like.

It is so hearty that this dish is a meal unto itself. I was full and wanted more. The next day the flavor profile was even better.

On top of that, it’s pretty. Don’t hesitate to serve this to guests.

While it will seem like there are a lot of ingredients, most of it is spices. And many of these the average cook will have on hand. A trick I do now with tomato paste is to freeze what I don’t use. A tube is another solution, but even then I wasn’t using it fast enough.

The only thing that takes any real time is peeling and cutting the squash, but you’ll be glad you did.

Butternut Squash and Chickpea Stew

1½ T olive oil

1 medium red onion, chopped

6 garlic cloves, minced

½ tsp kosher salt

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp cumin

¼ tsp ginger

¼ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp black pepper

1  T tomato paste

3  C butternut squash, peeled and diced

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained

1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes

1½ C vegetable stock

2 C cooked quinoa

2 C spinach

¼ C Greek yogurt, plain or vanilla

Cook quinoa according to directions.

In large pan, heat oil over medium-high, then add onion and garlic. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the spices. Stir. Add tomato paste, cook another minute. Stir in squash and chickpeas. Add tomatoes and stock. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until squash is tender.

Divide quinoa into four bowls. Top with squash concoction, then spinach. Place dollop of yogurt on top. Sprinkle with fresh pepper.