Poster Chestnut trees line snowy pathways.
Chestnut trees line snowy pathways at Badgersett Research Farm in Canton, Minn.
Alex Kolyer for MPR News

Taste of the Holidays

Classical MPR's Steve Staruch airs selections from Taste of the Holidays, Vol. 7 — a collection of seasonal offerings performed by some of the region's finest artists.

Playlist — A Winter Supper

Prelude
Ola Gjeilo
South Dakota Chorale

Two Noels
Jean Bouvard
Ancia Saxophone Quartet

Bogoroditse Devo
Sergei Rachmaninov
Vox Nova

Spirit Moving Over Chaos
David White
Bella Voce Young Women's Chorus

Coming Home
Eva Beneke

Dialogues on In Dulci Jubilo
John Zdechlik
Minnesota Symphonic Winds

In the Sky of Winter
J. David Moore
Lumina

What 'Cha Gonna Call
Spiritual
National Lutheran Choir

The Birthday Party
Peter Mayer
One Voice Mixed Chorus


Included in the CD is great holiday music, and even a collection of complete recipes. Here's a sample:

Candied Chestnut Parfait
by Lynne Rossetto Kasper

If you think you don't like chestnuts, you have to try this. Besides being a cinch to make after a big dinner, it is delicious excess. In our house, the parfait is a holiday classic — a sweet we first tasted in France and have shamelessly copied for years.

I fiddle with it sometimes, adding hot fudge or candied nuts, or butterscotch sauce. Yet the joy is what happens when chestnuts in vanilla syrup meet up with the richest vanilla ice cream you can find.

Cook to Cook: Chestnuts in syrup can be difficult to find. French brands like Clement Faugier are what you want. If whole chestnuts in syrup are not to be had, use this brand's pureed sweetened chestnuts. Scoop the thick puree up so it forms little balls and dot those on top of the ice cream and between the ice cream and cake.

Serves 10, multiplies easily

Ingredients

10 small squares of pound cake, cut 1-1/2 inch squares about a 1/2 inch thick

A half-gallon of rich vanilla ice cream

20-30 ounces chestnuts in syrup (see note above)

3 cups cold heavy cream whipped with sugar to taste

2/3 cup cocoa nibs

Directions

1. Early in the day, line up 10 wine glasses and cover the bottom of each with the cake. Then, to save time at the end of dinner, scoop 10 balls of ice cream into a shallow container and freeze.

2. To serve, have all the ingredients handy. Break up a little of the chestnuts and spoon a few pieces on the cake.

3. Top with a teaspoon of whipped cream, then a ball of the ice cream.

4. Spoon over each portion a generous amount of chestnuts and their syrup.

5. Top with dollops of whipped cream and scatter cocoa nibs to finish off the dessert.

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