Holidays with Heidi. Ho, Ho, Ho

Anyone can cook, this year, let Heidi Billotto show you how to make it fun...

Early December Cooking Class -  Vegetarian Dinner for Four

Tuesday Evening,  December 4, 2012

At Home with Heidi

6:30-9:30 pm
Cost is $65 per person

My  recent On The Farm classes at Windcrest and New Town farms have offered a bountiful harvest of fresh from the farm fall veggies - enough to inspire anyone to create a fabulous dinner. Then we had so much fun in the Veggie burger class a week or two ago, that I decided to do another vegetarian class - this one as an evening class with tasty dinner menu perfect for entertaining family and friends.

 

On the menu for this Vegetarian Dinner -Mediterranian goat cheese stuffed mushrooms;

Roasted beet 'n Blue salad on local greens;  Butternut squash and local spinach lasagna; and lemon and sweet cranberry meringue tarts for dessert.

My favorite wine guru, Josh Villapando will handle our wine pairings - the evening promised to be great fun!  A perfect from the farm dinner, come and join in on the beautiful and bountiful harvest
Email Heidi to make your reservations

Give the gift of a cooking class gift certificate for all of your Holiday and Birthday Gift Giving - Always the right size and color, and oh so easy to purchase, my cooking class gift certiticates are good for any class I will offer as a part of my At Home with Heidi series or my On the Farm series of cooking classes in the upcoming year.

I type the certificate up in a cute note and wrap it up in a small individual casserole dish tied up with a bow - the perfect gift for your favorite gourmet or gourmand, long time or novice cook and you can make it for any dollar amount you'd like. Gift certificates given this holiday season will be good now through November 25, 2013. My winter cooking class calendar will be out and posted here the first week of December 2012.

 

Holiday Catering and Private Cooking Classes - Looking for some help with your holiday party, dinner lunch or brunch? If you are int he Charlotte NC metropolitan area, it's still not too late to call to book a party or private cooking class as I still have some dates available and would love to work with you this holiday season. Simply email me at hlnc@carolina.rr.com and we can work out all of the details

My husband Tom Billotto and I are happy to help you make this year's entertaining season a breeze! And talk about one-stop-shopping! While Tom provides the entertainment, I can take care of all the food and drink for every occassion from seated dinners to cocktail buffets; so between the two of us, you'll have all the Food & Mood you'll need to celebrate and Mingle and Jingle your way into the holiday season in style.

 

Music for the Holidays - Why not Jazz up your holiday party with LIVE guitar music and vocals by my talented husband TOM BILLOTTO.

While Tom regularly appears at many local restaurants, you'll be happy to know that he is also available to perform at your private or corporate holiday event.

Tom has an extensive vocal and instrumental repertoire of traditional and popular holiday tunes and can offer you a solo performance or can team with a number of other talented musicians for a duo, trio or quartet.

It's the perfect finishing touch to any holiday happening!

Contact Tom to discuss your private party or holiday entertaining musical needs at tbillotto@carolina.rr.com

And here's another great gift idea - Tom and our dear friend Jimmy Bookout have just finished their very first CD!!

Called Two and A Half Guitars ( for the two guitars and the ukulele they usually play when this talented duo performs together), we should have it in our hands this week or next and then it will be available for sale for you to wrap and place under the tree, beside the Menorah, or stuffed into a stocking.

 

Heidi's Cooking on TV!!

Lots of fun this past week cooking with my good friends on TV.

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving I was on WCNC's Charlotte Today sharing lots of quick tips and culinary "secrets" to help make your holiday cooking fun and a bit faster.

It was a great segment with lots of laughs, but in case you missed it here is the link -

 http://www.wcnc.com/charlotte-today/inside/Heidis-kitchen-tricks-180378521.html

 

Then, on the Saturday morning after Thanksgiving I was on WBTV's The Morning Show with Kristen Miranda cooking up some fun with leftovers. This is actually a recipe from my Tacomania class - great for this time of year. No more Thanksgiving leftovers? - No worries, the original recipe calls for marinated chicken, but works equally as well with leftover roasted or grilled chicken and roasted butternut squash - delish!

Here is the link to the video

http://www.wbtv.com/story/20174161/a-mexican-twist-on-your-turkey-leftovers

and here is the original recipe...

Chicken and Roasted Squash Tacos

Recipe by Charlotte Culinary Expert Heidi Billotto

hlnc@carolina.rr.com

4 bone-in chicken breast halves

1 cup liquid from your favorite pickles

1 butternut squash, over roasted

Sea salt and pepper

2 Tbsp. Your favorite Pour Olive extra virginolive oil

1/4 cup fresh minced cilantro

Chopped fresh tomatoes or your favorite chunky salsa

Shredded lettuce or baby spinach leaves

1 avocado, sliced

lime wedges

shredded mixed cheese

8 flour tortillas

Marinate chicken breast halves in pickle relish for 40 minutes to an hour.

Meanwhile roast the butternut squash until tender as shown in class.

Remove chicken from relish and pat dry. Season with sea salt and pepper. Pan saute in olive oil or grill, 6 minutes per side. Slice grilled chicken in to long thin strips.

Sooct the pulb aout of the dquahs and mash, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Place tortillas in oven or microwave just long enough to warm and soften. Spread tortillas with cheese, then add squash, chicken, avocado, lettuce or spinach, tomatoes and black beans. Dress with a squirt of lime juice. Roll tortilla up and over filling and serve.