Giada's Holiday Handbook (2015–…): Season 1, Episode 1 - 'Tis the Season Open House - full transcript

Yeah!

GIADA: I love the holidays,
and I also love to entertain.

Thank you!

In fact, over the years,

I've gathered together
my favorite recipes and ideas

to create a one-of-a-kind
holiday handbook.

It's filled with pages and pages
of cherished recipes and menus,

unique party themes,

cocktails for every occasion,

and some really
fun decorating ideas.

Whether it's a classic
Thanksgiving dinner, open house,



or Christmas with the kids,

I have everything you need
to make the party truly sparkle.

Cheers, you guys.

So, today, I'm kicking off
the season with an open house

and making
a special holiday menu

of cocktail-style comfort food.

Plus, I'm digging
into my handbook

to share
some tried-and-true tips

for making guests
feel right at home.

It's my 'Tis the Season
open house,

and you're invited.

The 'Tis the Season party's
a kickoff to the holidays,

and I always like to do
sort of an open house,

so people can come, and they go.



The key
to a successful open-house party

is to make the guests feel
very at home.

If you make your guests feel
at home,

they relax and laugh
and have a great time.

So I really want to make
every part of my open house

feel warm and inviting

and make food that feels homey
and comforting.

And I always like to have
something warm,

something that I'm finishing
at the last minute

so it makes the house
smell good,

and then, of course,
got to have some chocolate.

So, it's casual,
but it tells people,

"Hey, my house is open to you."

That's it!

That's a fun, inviting,
comfortable open house.

I'm making my cocktail-style
comfort food --

My chai chocolate truffles
are great,

because you make them
a few days ahead

and pop them in the fridge.

They're always decadent,
and they always look beautiful,

and I think people associate
them with something special,

and they associate them
with the holidays.

In my opinion,
chai is very warming.

It's like a giant hug.

We're gonna start
with 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream,

and to it,
we're gonna add 7 chai tea bags.

You can buy these
at the grocery store.

And I put them all together
and made a little knot,

just so it's much easier
to pull them out later.

What we're gonna do,
similarly to making tea,

is we're going to infuse
the heavy cream

with the chai flavor.

So we're just gonna let
that steep

for a couple of minutes.

While that's happening,

I'm going to chop up
some chocolate.

I'm using dark chocolate --
70% dark chocolate --

and about 9 ounces of it.

And since I'm huge
on desserts and chocolate,

nothing is better than this,

on top of the fact that I can
make this way in advance --

several days in advance
if I want to.

Remember, the smaller the chunks
of chocolate,

then the faster it's gonna melt
with the warm cream.

And we're basically making
what's known as a ganache.

So, what happens to a ganache,

it's very thick
and very decadent, creamy.

What we're gonna do is
we're gonna melt the chocolate

with the warm cream, right?

And then we're gonna set it
in the fridge to chill

and harden a little bit

so that we can make
little truffle balls out of it,

and then roll it
in a little cocoa powder,

and then dust it
with a little gold leaf

to make it look really pretty.

It's the perfect little decadent
bite during the holidays.

That's the fun part
of chopping chocolate

is that you can eat
a little bit of it.

Nobody will miss it.

The cream is infused.

I'm gonna add
a little bit of salt,

just to kind of balance
out all the sweetness

and give it a quick,
little stir.

Mmm.
Cinnamon, cloves.

It smells so good.

What I'm gonna do is
I'm gonna take the tea bags out.

And, see, that's why I like
putting them in a little knot.

It makes it a lot easier
to take them all out

instead of taking them all
one-by-one.

Let them drip a little bit
of that chai flavor

into the tea,

and there we go.

Then, we take the hot cream

and pour it over all the chopped
chocolate, just like that,

and take a little whisk

and start
just melting the chocolate.

And you just want to make sure
that all the chocolate

is completely melted

and it sort of just
turns the cream

this deep, chocolate color.

See?
Nice and thick.

Nick and thick and shiny.
That's what you want.

All right, so,
we're gonna cover this

with a little bit
of plastic wrap.

So, I'm gonna pop
this in the fridge

for a few hours
so it can harden,

and then I'm gonna scoop it
and finish this off.

Another tip for helping
your guests feel at home

is in the way
you decorate the space.

You don't have to spend
a lot of money

to create a cozy
and relaxed vibe.

For a holiday open house,
I'm inspired by nature.

I have a collection
of animal mugs and platters

that I'm using to create
some seasonal warmth.

Decorative acorns, little
pumpkins, and fresh flowers

are also easy ways
to bring the outdoors inside.

Paper napkins are great, too,

because you can have some fun
with the design,

and they can be
a conversation starter.

I think that the special touches
are always in the details,

and that's what makes
the holidays so much fun.

So, my ganache has hardened,
and look at the chocolate now.

And what you want to do

is just scoop out
about a tablespoon measure

so that all the truffles
are exactly the same size.

Make a little ball out of it,

and just roll it
in some cocoa powder,

and then we'll land it
in this container.

So you just leave it
until you're ready to serve it.

What I like to do
right before I serve it,

just to make them extra festive,

is to sprinkle them
with a little bit of gold dust.

But this part can all be
done several days in advance.

Just keep it in an airtight
container in the fridge.

Another way to make people feel
at home is in the presentation.

I like to create
a "wow" factor --

something that pulls guests
over to the table

and gets them talking.

And, then, what I like to do
is assemble the truffles

on a platter
on little pieces of gold,

as if it was a string of pearls
so that it looks really pretty.

I just think
that that makes it feel elegant,

and it makes
it feel very holiday-like.

Coming up, I'm digging
into my holiday handbook

to share
another favorite recipe.

Nothing will make your friends
feel more at home

than my comforting
white velvet soup.

GIADA: I'm opening up
my holiday handbook

to share some
of my favorite recipes, ideas,

and time-tested tips for
a 'Tis the Season open house.

My secret to success
is making guests feel at home,

so I've started on a menu
of cocktail-style comfort foods.

My chai chocolate truffles
are chilling in the fridge,

and now I'm starting on
my comforting white velvet soup.

What I like to do is make a cup
and pull out my slow cooker

and allow that
to keep the soup warm,

and then have lots
of different toppings.

It's like a soup bar in a way,
which I think is kind of homey.

I'm peeling my parsnips
for my white velvet soup,

and I've already
chopped an onion.

I'm peeling
my fourth parsnip here.

There's something
very comforting about
soup during the holidays,

and this soup
in particular is so good.

What we want to do
is cut the ends off the parsnip.

We're just gonna dice it up,
just like you do carrots.

And it's very similar
to a carrot.

It looks like a carrot,

but it's sort of denser
and a little bit starchier.

So, what we want to do

is just dice it up.

Parsnips done -- now we're gonna
do two celery stalks.

And the celery's sort
of a neutral flavor,

but it adds nice body.

It's sort of an essential
in most soups.

Onion, carrot, and celery

is the flavor base
of a soup.

Okay, and now one of my favorite
vegetables -- fennel.

Again, fennel has a little bit
of a licorice flavor,

so it's really yummy.

And for the holidays,
I really like it in here.

And, again, it adds nice body

and adds flavor and freshness
to the soup.

We use it a lot in Italy,

and we make all sorts
of things with it,

and it's just one
of my favorites.

Even just raw in a salad,
it's fantastic.

Great.

Now I'm gonna start cooking up
all my vegetables here.

A little bit of olive oil
at the bottom of the pan.

Turn on the stove.

We'll just add all the veggies
in here --

the onion, the parsnip.

And you can make this soup
in advance

and just keep it in the fridge
and just warm it up the day of,

which is so fantastic.

The trick to good entertaining
is to make as much of the meal

and as many of the dishes
in advance as possible.

And then a little bit of salt.

And we're just gonna
give this a nice stir.

And you kind of just
want the vegetables to cook down

just a little bit first
before you add the liquid.

Great.

I'm gonna grab some fennel
and some bay leaf.

I want to add
some flavoring agents.

And 4 cups of water.

And then we're gonna flavor it

with the bay leaf
and some fennel seeds

to kind of reinforce
that licorice-y flavor.

We're gonna add 1 bay leaf.

It's very herby.

It will help give flavor
to the soup,

especially since we used water
instead of chicken broth.

And we're gonna use 1/2 teaspoon
of fennel seeds.

And fennel seeds you can buy
at the grocery store.

They're just like this.
They're little seeds.

And they're dried,

and they have a nice sort
of licorice flavor to them.

So, 1/2 teaspoon right in there.

So, now I'm gonna
put the lid on,

and we're gonna let this cook

until the vegetables
are nice and tender.

If you ask me, there's
nothing homier than a soup bar,

and that's another little trick
of mine

to making guests feel
right at home.

What I like to do with the soup,

because it's a white soup,

is I want to have lots
of different colorful toppings.

So we do bacon.

You do little cornbread
croutons.

You do some cheese.
You do some herbs.

And what I like to do
is make a little gremolata,

which sort of brightens up
a dish.

That's what we use it
in Italy for.

I just chop parsley, some
lemon zest, some pomegranates,

and some salt,
and I mix that together.

The gremolata's sort of
the freshness

that goes on top of the soup.

For a real homey
and casual feel,

I like to serve the soup
in mugs.

A lot of people
have a collection of mugs,

and you can do a combination
of different types of mugs,

and you can put them all out
during the holidays

and use those as a way
to serve the soup,

which I think is kind
of nice and fun.

I'm finishing up pureeing
all the vegetables for my soup.

So, what we want to do
is add some almond milk --

unsweetened almond milk --

about 3/4 cup
for the entire batch.

And this will give it

sort of that velvety thickness
that I love.

So, we're just gonna
put the lid on.

You want to make sure
and puree the soup

when it's cooled down
a little bit.

You don't want to do it
when it's piping-hot.

There we go.

You want it pureed
until all the vegetables

are nice and smooth

so you get this nice,
white, thick soup.

Look at that!

It's so pretty!

Okay.
So, my soup is done.

My gremolata is done.

I'm just gonna chill my soup

until I'm ready to put it
in the crock pot for later.

And up next,
I'm gonna get started

on these cute, little, puff
pastry-wrapped sausage bites.

And the bar is open.

A festive cocktail
to get the party started.

GIADA: Welcome to
my 'Tis the Season open house.

I'm sharing my holiday handbook
of favorite tips, ideas,

and recipes
for the perfect holiday party.

My make-ahead menu
is coming together.

Time to start working
on a very special appetizer --

a little twist on a classic.

I like to do my version of pigs
in a blanket with a lamb sausage

and puff pastry so it makes
the house smell good.

And I like to bake them off
periodically throughout the time

of the open house,

because it makes the whole house
smell like puff pastry,

which I think is a very warming,

very comforting, very inviting
scent and aroma in the air.

So, I've just cooked
five lamb sausages

for my spicy sausage bites.

I really love lamb,

and these lamb sausages
are so good.

I just cook them
for about six minutes.

Get a nice, golden color
on them.

And I want them to cool
completely before I cut them,

because I'm gonna roll them
in some puff pastry.

I'm gonna set these over here.

We're gonna let those cool.

In the meantime,
I'm gonna make my dipping sauce.

Very easy.

We're just gonna use
1/2 cup of sour cream,

and we're gonna chop up
some fresh mint.

Mint and lamb work
so well together.

And, then,
with the tang of the sour cream,

it creates sort
of this luscious,

velvety dipping sauce,

which I think is gonna
be really great.

Super, super fast.

So, we add the mint right
in there, a little bit of salt,

and we're just gonna
mix it all together.

And that is our dipping sauce.

I make it in advance.

Just allow the mint to sort
of infuse in the sour cream

so it has a lot more flavor
later on.

Okay.

So, the sauce is done.

Now, before we cut the sausage,
let's grab our puff pastry

and stick this in the fridge
to chill.

Okay.

So, this is my puff pastry.

Just use store-bought
puff pastry.

Super, super simple.

You want to keep it chilled
until right before you use it.

And what I want to do
is just take my sausages,

and I'm gonna
cut them into quarters.

So just cut them,
just like this,

so you have four pieces.

You could use
any sausage you want.

You could use
chicken apple sausage.

You could use turkey sausage.

It kind of just depends on you.

It's the holidays.

I love the flavor of lamb.

I like the warmth of it.

I like all the flavoring
inside of this sausage.

So you just have to use
your favorite type of sausage.

We'll set that over here.

And here is the puff pastry.

I love working with this.

It's the perfect texture.

Sometimes,
there's just no reason

to make something from scratch,

just because
some of the products

and ingredients you can find
at the store

are just so good,
there's no point.

So, I just want to add
a little bit of flour.

And we're just gonna roll it out
just a tiny bit -- not a lot.

Ever so slightly.

Then, I'm gonna take my handy,
little pizza slicer.

And this is a really great way
to get even, little strips.

And we're just gonna
do 10 strips down.

Just make sure that your pizza
slicer is nice and sharp.

See how easy this is?

And these are so decadent.

And, then, you just want
to cut them in half, like that.

I want to grab my baking sheet
and my caraway seeds,

which we're gonna add on top.

So, we're gonna grab
a strip and a sausage.

We'll roll it like this

so each one is the perfect,
little bite, just like that.

Then, we brush the top
with a little bit of egg wash,

just to give it a nice,
golden color when you bake it,

and it puffs up beautifully.

An egg wash is basically
just a couple of eggs beaten.

It also helps
because I want to add

some caraway seeds
right on top.

And caraway is a seed that has
a very strong, herby flavor,

and it has a little bit
of sort of a minty flavor, too,

which works really well
with the lamb

without the sweetness of mint,

so it's just really pretty.

And, then, we just land it
on the baking sheet like that.

So, here we go.

Grab a strip.

Place the sausage
right on one side of it,

and then roll it up
like a jelly roll.

I'm gonna finish off
the rest of my sausage bites,

and I'm gonna place
them in the fridge

and let them chill a little bit
before I bake them.

I want to bake them
right before my friends get here

so the house smells
like buttery goodness.

And up next,
I'm gonna do

my little fun bubbles
and cocktail bar.

This is gonna be a great party.

My holiday handbook
is filled with a collection

of signature cocktails,

and I know just the right one

to make the open house
extra-special.

GIADA: I'm digging
into my holiday handbook

to share my collection
of tried-and-true tips, ideas,

and recipes
for a festive open house.

My key to success
is making guests feel at home,

so I've created a menu
of elevated comfort food.

Now it's time
for a festive cocktail.

Because it's the holidays,

I don't want
to just do beer and wine.

I want to do something
a little more festive.

So I did a little jam cocktail,

and it's always
a great conversation starter.

I reduce down
some raspberry jam.

I add a little bitters.

Mix it up.

Put a little into the glass,

and then
they can choose their alcohol.

Either you want a little bubbly,
a Prosecco, or vodka,

or you just want
to make a mock cocktail

and just do
a little sparkling water.

And you can kind
of create your own cocktail,

and it helps people to kind
of get to know each other

in case they didn't.

♪ Slam that! ♪

The last step is to make sure
that the room is set up in a way

that makes guests feel at home.

Whenever you have a party
that is an open house,

where people are coming
and going

and mingling
over a period of time,

it's always a good idea
to list what the dishes are

so you're not going to have to
repeat yourself 100 times over.

You have to think
about the movement in the room.

Rather than putting the food out
on one table,

I like to spread things out

so people
mingle and move around the room.

I like to stagger food.

Do one platter.
Do a little cake stand.

Like, kind of change
the elevation of the food.

And it almost feels
like you've made more variety

than you actually have.

And, then, I pop a batch of
spicy sausage bites in the oven,

get the house smelling
like buttery puff pastry,

and we're good to go.

GIADA: How is it?
Woman: All right.

MAN: I love all
the little garnishes.

Right?
Awesome, right?

Yeah, it's so fancy.
Yeah.

Make it fancier, and, also,
just make it more fun.

Like a meal in a bite.

Mmm!

Awesome, right?

The whole idea here is
that you make your own cocktail.

But I'm gonna
show you how to make it.
Okay.

It's a jam cocktail.

Put a little bit
of lavender bitters in.

I would like to feel
festive with some Prosecco.

Some Prosecco.

Jam and Prosecco.
Gonna go
straight to Italy.

Let's do it.

Yep.
Feeling festive.

Well, I think
a little bubbles

is always a nice choice
during the holidays, right?

This is why I open your cute,
little napkins.

Julie, there you go.
I know. My fox napkins.

I might have to take
one of these home,

just as a little memory.

Cheers! Here, I'll give you
a little toast.

[ Laughs ]
Yeah.

They're chai,
like a chai latte.

That's insane!

I need to get
a chocolate truffle

with some sparkle
on there.

Oh, no.
They're not any good.

Don't come near them.

A little to-go container.

GIADA: I'll give you
some Tupperware to-go.

WOMAN:
Everyone likes the drinks.

The jam cocktail?
The jam cocktails.

You have to make sure
and stir it a lot,

'cause the jam will settle
to the bottom if you don't.

That's why I put
the stirrers.

Oh, that's why
I need a shorter glass.

[ Laughter ]

One of my secrets
for holiday entertaining

is to always have a little
take-home gift for my friends.

And for my 'Tis the Season
kickoff party,

I have a gift
that's always a winner.

I always like to do
survival kits for my friends

where they have
all the little things

that you could run out of
for making a great gift

for the holidays,
like tags, fun tape,

some fun little wrapping paper,
little bows.

All the things you might need

are all in this little
survival kit.

Everybody that you love
to invite to your house

is special to you
in one way or the other,

so it's a little token
of thanks.

And it can be something
as little

as a cute, little pen
and a little notepad.

I mean, it doesn't have
to be an expensive gift.

It's just a thought.

And people love
those little tokens of thanks.

GIADA: Here are some...

WOMAN: Thank you so much.
MAN: Thank you.

...little gifts to help you
with the holiday season.

Little survival kits
for the holiday.

Thank you so much.

Here.
Watching Brian open it.

"Buy one festy."
What?!

What's this say, Giada?
I don't speak Italian.

"Buone feste."
Oh, is that what it says?

Happy holidays,
basically.

You've got
the jam cocktail.

Oh, good, good.
We need that.

My gosh,
these are so cute.

Happy holidays, everybody.

ALL: Thank you!