Giada's Holiday Handbook (2015–…): Season 2, Episode 5 - Christmas Sing Along - full transcript

-Got it.
-Brava!

GIADA: I love the holidays.
Yeah!

And I also love to entertain.

[ Laughter ]

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.

-Cin cin.
-Cheers.

Everybody ready to sing
"Jingle Bells"?

Jade and I are getting
into the holiday groove

with a Christmas sing-along.
♪ Jingle all the way ♪

We've got festive music,
crazy-fun props,

and kid-friendly treats.

-So good.
-I know.

GIADA: Plus, I'm digging
into my handbook

to share some of my favorite
recipes, tips,

and ideas for making the party
a rocking good time.



Nice job!
Nice job, nice job!

It's my Christmas sing-along...

♪ And a happy new year ♪

...and you're invited.

♪♪

Jade loves to sing and perform.

And Julian, my nephew,

loves to play the piano.

So they're both
very musical kids.

And Jade, for the longest time,
has asked me

why we don't go door to door
singing carols.

I thought, well, if she loves
to do all that,

why to just do
a sing-along "holiday" party,

Christmas party,

and invite all her friends
and the parents

and do something
really festive and fun

that the kids would enjoy,
and so would the adults,

and create another
Christmas memory?

My secret for success

is making it
all about the music,

with holiday songs, instruments,

and decorations that blend
harmoniously with the theme.

And that goes
for the menu, too --

finger foods
for the kids to enjoy

while singing their hearts out.

So, I thought, "Okay,
so I want to create a menu

that Jade's gonna like the food,

but that the adults
can enjoy, as well,"

finger food, because we all
just want to sit around

and sing and play
and enjoy music together.

And I've got a little
something for everyone.

Crispy chicken taquitos,

my colorful noodle salad,

chocolate dipped chips,

and apple pie soda.

We make chicken taquitos
once a week.

Jade loves the crispy crust.

I just get rotisserie chicken,

I season it with a little cumin
to give it some warmth,

and some tomato
and some cheddar cheese.

And then I put it
in the flour tortillas,

and I pan-fry them,
shallow fry them.

And then I just had sour cream

and tomato sauce
for them to dip in.

All kids like. It's great.

So, I'm just grating
1 cup of cheddar cheese.

And we're gonna put it
right on top

of 2 cups of rotisserie chicken.

So, I just got a regular chicken
from the grocery store,

and you could also make
your own chicken

if you want to.

1/2 teaspoon of cumin.

And cumin just kind
of warms up the dish.

So...
[ Sighs ]

It gives it
sort of a holiday warmth,

and it's really good in here.

And it's kind of traditional
in taquitos or flautas.

Depending on what part of Mexico

or Central America
or South America

you're from, they have
different names for it.

Sometimes it's taquito,
sometimes it's flautas,

and they stuff them with pork,
with beef, with veggies.

Then we're gonna add

1/2 cup of some salsa,
plain salsa.

You could also use tomato sauce.
In fact, a lot of times

I switch between the salsa
and the tomato sauce for Jade,

depending on what
I've got in the house.

Here we go.

And you just need a little bit
to bind the chicken

and the cheese together.

And I've already started
heating up my vegetable oil.

You want to get it nice and hot

before you stick
the taquitos in there.

Get a nice, crispy crust.

Okay.

So, now...

I'm gonna grab
a flour tortilla --

nice and soft, nice and light,
and very pliable.

So you want to make sure
you get those kind.

Then I take some
of the chicken filling --

Nice rotisserie chicken here.

And, really, you could use
any meat you have left over.

You could even make
seafood taquitos if you want to,

with a little shrimp
or some salmon,

really anything you want.

Okay, so, just lay it out
like that.

Try not to overstuff it.
You don't want to overstuff it,

'cause otherwise, it'll just
kind of squirt out the sides.

And then you take it...

Wrap it.

Grab a toothpick,
and what you do is,

you just stick
the toothpick through

so that it holds
the flour tortilla together.

Right?

The vegetable oil
is nice and hot,

and we're just gonna
put this right in here.

And they start to fry up.
[ Sizzling ]

And they take about
two to three minutes,

and you want to rotate them
depending on

how much oil you
put in your pan.

But that's the kind of sizzle
you're looking for.

And the great thing about these

is that you can make them
in advance if you want to,

and you can even
keep them heated in the oven

or you can just reheat them
in a 250-degree oven

for a few minutes,
just to kind of bring them back.

And you can serve them
with tomato sauce,

with more salsa, guacamole --

It kind of depends.
Whatever you want.

Look at that gorgeous baby.

Ooh, this one's good, too.

Look at that.

I'm sorry, but it smells
really good in here.

All right, so,
I want those to cool.

I'm gonna continue to fry
the rest of my taquitos.

And, up next, I'm gonna get
started on my noodle salad.

It's a playful twist on pasta.

And later, a take-home gift
that truly rocks.

GIADA: It's almost time
for my Christmas sing-along.

♪ Fa-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la ♪

My secret for success is
making it all about the music.

So I created a menu
of finger foods

that are easy to eat
while singing

and playing instruments.

My make-ahead taquitos are done
and staying warm in the oven.

Time to start on
my colorful noodle salad.

I took sweet-potato noodles

that are gluten free,
and I cooked them,

and I tossed them
with fresh vegetables,

and I made a nice,
sweet honey mustard sauce

that the kids could enjoy, too.
Then I thought,

"I could put them
in little paper cups,

make it really easy."

Something light,
something festive,

something fun but easy to eat.

I'll start with
my honey mustard dressing.

I combine 1 1/2 tablespoons
of honey

with 1 tablespoon
of Dijon mustard.

I add a little Greek yogurt,
apple cider vinegar,

and whisk all together.

So, I'm spiralizing my carrot
for my noodle salad,

and these things are fun.

You get these fun,
little spaghetti-like noodles,

and they're made
out of carrots.

You can do it from beets.
You can kind of do it

with a lot of different
vegetables.

Zucchini's really popular,
summer squash.

And it just kind of
does it for you.

♪♪

Look how cute these are.

They are little
carrot noodles.

I think the kids are gonna
like these. They're super fun.

It's become very popular.

Okay. So, I'm gonna get
all the carrot noodles

on top of
my honey mustard dressing,

which is gonna be nice
and sweet and tangy,

which is perfect
for all the veg.

And we're also gonna add...

Look at these.
Oh, yeah.

Sweet-potato noodles.

So, this is a gluten-free
noodle dish.

This is a Korean noodle

that they use a lot
in Korean soups and stuff --

perfect for any kid
with a gluten allergy.

And you can use
any noodle you want.

We are going to

cut a red pepper.

So, lots of colors.

It's the holidays. I want them
to enjoy eating vegetables,

but I want to make is as fun
as possible for them.

So I'm gonna do
a little red pepper.

Jade loves them.

It's sweet,
and it adds great color.

So, we're just gonna
julienne this.

So, everything is sort of
in a noodle shape.

Right? Nice and raw.

Great.

Red pepper in.

Super pretty.

Next, cucumber.

So, I'm trying to use
the vegetables

that Jade really likes.
So, she loves cucumbers.

She loves red peppers.
She loves carrots.

And that's sort of
the trick to this,

is using lots of colors
of vegetables,

but you want to stick to stuff

that your kids are gonna eat.

And this is really refreshing,

so that's kind of
the thought behind it.

You just want
to peel the cucumber.

Then we take the peeler,
and here we go.

You make long,
little strands just like this.

Super easy.
Again, looks like spaghetti,

and you just go all the way
around the cucumber

until you get to the core,
and then you're done.

Okay.

A little bit of salt
to season everything

and, last but not least,
cranberries.

Sweet cranberries.

Jade eats these
as her snack sometimes.

So, we're gonna use
a bunch of cranberries.

Cranberries remind me
of the holidays.

They're like little gems
and jewels, and they glisten.

And, so...

I love them on anything.

Anytime I'm looking for, like,
some fun sweetness with a bite,

I go to cranberries
or pomegranates.

They're, like,
my two go-to ingredients.

And then you just toss it
all together with the dressing.

And you've got this
fantastic, little noodle salad

full of fun colors
and fun flavors.

Mix it all together.

Everything's got a little
coating of the dressing.

Let's see here.

Mmm. Sweet and tangy.

Super fun.

Okay.
So, my noodle salad's done.

I love clever cups and napkins,
especially for a kids' party.

For my sing-along, I found
inexpensive paper napkins

that hit the perfect note.

And my musical-themed paper cups
are perfect for the noodles.

It allows the kids
to eat, sing,

and easily move around the room.

Up next...
Ho, ho, ho!

...Santa Claus
is coming to town.

And he's bringing potato chips
dipped in chocolate.

Oh, yeah.

And later, the beat goes on
with my apple pie sodas.

GIADA: I'm opening up
my Holiday Handbook

to share my favorite ideas,
recipes,

and tips for a Christmas
sing-along with the kids.

♪ Good tidings for Christmas
and a happy new year ♪

My secret for success is
making it all about the music.

I'm doing that with a festive
playlist, fun instruments,

and a menu of easy-to-eat
finger foods.

I've got crispy
chicken taquitos,

a vibrant noodle salad,

and everyone's favorite --
my chocolate-dipped chips.

Something that,
every time I make,

that people just fall
madly in love with

are my chocolate-dipped chips.

So, I take different
types of chips --

potato chips, pretzel chips,

and I dip them
in melted chocolate.

You could do dark chocolate,
milk chocolate.

Then I take colorful
Christmas sprinkles

that you would use for cookies,

and I just sprinkle them on them
when they're still wet

and then let them set
in the fridge.

Kids freak over them.
They absolutely love them.

It's such a fun play
on sweet and savory.

Kids just think
it's just a blast.

"How could you dip
a chip in chocolate?"

Like, "That's just
revolutionary."

So, again, something
that's so easy

but just lights them up.

♪♪

Look at this chocolate.
See how beautiful that is?

Melted over a double boiler.

In order to keep
the chocolate nice and silky,

even when it hardens, I add
a little bit of vegetable oil.

So, a couple tablespoons
of vegetable oil.

Yeah, that's kind of the trick.

You mix that right in there.

And remember,
when you melt chocolate,

you want to do it low and slow,

and you don't want
the bottom of the bowl

to actually touch
the simmering water.

You just want the heat
of the water

to melt the chocolate.

That way, the cocoa

and the butterfat
of the chocolate chips

stays intact, and it gets shiny,
just like that.

Okay, I'm gonna
turn this off now.

So, I have different
varieties of chips.

You can use and kind of chips
your family likes.

I've got some
regular potato chips,

I have some pretzel chips,

and then I have these,
like, little, light,

crispy, like, rice chips.

So, you can kind of do
whatever you like.

So, you take the chip,

you dip it
in the melted chocolate,

let the excess chocolate
kind of just drip off,

and then you put it
on a baking sheet.

I lined the baking sheet
with parchment paper,

'cause we're gonna pop these
in the fridge afterwards

to let the chocolate set.

So, you want
to dip them gently.

And I just do a half a chip.

This is fun for kids to do, too.

Jade enjoys doing this.

She also enjoys licking all
the chocolate out of the bowl.

So -- But you've got
to be careful,

'cause it is warm.

Nice and glisteny.

Yeah.

All right, so, once you do that,

then you can
kind of sprinkle them

with whatever kind
of decoration you want.

So, I have red and green,
some fun things.

And anything you sprinkle on top
of the chocolate will stick,

as long as it hasn't set yet.

So, you have to do it
while it's still warm.

That's kind of the ticket.

Then, we can do
a little flake salt

right here.

Make it pretty.

These little stars
are really cute, too.

So, you just have to see
what you can find.

All right, so, I'm gonna dip the
rest of my chips and pretzels.

Then I'm gonna pop these
in the fridge to let them set.

And all I have left to make now
is my apple-pie sodas.

It's a drink
and dessert all in one.

And later, we're rocking
around the Christmas tree

with some of my
favorite holiday tunes.

GIADA: I'm digging into
my Holiday Handbook

to share some of my best ideas

for a Christmas sing-along
with the kids.

And one of the best ways
to get into the holiday spirit

is by dressing for the occasion.

I asked everybody to sort of
wear their Christmas-wear,

whether it's, like,
just a red t-shirt

or, Jade has these fun,
like, snowman pants,

Christmas sweatshirt -- whatever
it is they wanted to wear.

Then, I got
a bunch of accessories

that you can get pretty
inexpensively online

and fun glasses

that I made my sister wear.

Reindeer ears,

Christmas lights
that light up as necklaces --

I think those are
always super fun.

Conversation starters,

things that make kids
really have a great time

and allow them
to sort of indulge

in their creativity.

JULIAN: I can't reach it.
Can someone pass me a chip,

pretzel or a chip?

Let me pass a chip to Juju.

Juju and a chip!

It's a chip and choc--
Oh, wow.

Yeah.
It's chips and pretzels

dipped in chocolate
and decorated.

Delicious.

Jade, do you remember
doing this with me?

-Yes.
-Yes. Yes.

All right, I want a --
I want a taquito.

What about eating
some noodles?

-I'll have some.
-Noodle salad.

-I'm doing it with you.
-What?

Oh, you guys can dip it
in the salsa or the sour cream.

Do it all the way
around, too.

Who needs
the sheet music?

-I just have one for fun.
-Okay.

Lulu, help us.
Mom, ready?

-These are very good.
-Oh, good. Oh, good.

Everybody ready
to sing "Jingle Bells"?

-♪ Jingle bells ♪
-♪ Dashing through the snow ♪

♪ On a one-horse open sleigh ♪

♪ O'er the fields we go ♪

Who's a good singer?

-♪ Laughing all the way ♪
-Ha!

♪ Bells on bobtails ring ♪

Are you singing?

♪ Making spirits bright ♪

♪ What fun it is to ride ♪

♪ And sing
a sleighing song tonight ♪

♪ Oh, jingle bells ♪

Come on, why am I
the only one singing?

♪ Jingle all the way ♪

♪ Oh, what fun it is to ride ♪

♪ In a one-horse open sleigh,
hey ♪

♪ Jingle bells, jingle bells ♪

♪ Jingle all the way ♪

♪ Oh, what fun it is to ride ♪

♪ In a one-horse open sleigh ♪

Bravo! Nice job!

Nice job, nice job!

-Bravo, Julian.
-Yay!

Jade and I have
certain holiday songs,

Christmas music, we love.

I burned everybody
a little CD of our playlist

that I thought would be fun
for everybody to listen to.

And then, because I can
never remember all the words

in all the Christmas songs,

a book with all the lyrics from
all the famous Christmas songs

that everybody could
follow along and take home.

So that, when you're
just humming the song

'cause you don't
remember the words,

you can actually refresh
your memory with those books.

♪ Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la, la-la ♪

♪ 'Tis the season to be jolly ♪

♪ Fa-la-la-la-la la-la la-la ♪

♪ Don we now our gay apparel ♪

♪ Fa-la-la la-la-la la-la-la ♪

♪ Troll the ancient
yuletide carol ♪

-♪ Fa-la-la-la-la la-la la-la ♪
-Thank goodness for Devin.

-La!
-Yay!

Then I make
my apple pie sodas.

So, I use caramel ice cream

and then I do
a little apple juice

and a little bit of club soda
to give it some effervescence.

But I thought the caramel
ice cream was a little richer

and very much
the holiday spirit, you know?

It gets them super excited,

but it's just fun
and festive and casual.

I started with
the whipped cream.

1/2 cup of heavy cream,
sugar, and cinnamon

that I whip up
until light and fluffy.

Then a scoop of salted
caramel ice cream...

...a splash of apple cider,
club soda,

and a dollop of whipped cream.

To make it look really pretty,

I garnish it with
a few apple slices.

All right.

-Thank you.
-Yeah.

-Oh, yeah, sure.
-I'll come in.

Ah, there we go.
There we go.

Jadie wishes myself
a merry Christmas

Can you hand one
to Sonny, please?

There we go.

-Thank you.
-There we go. Who's missing?

Oh, Ella, I'm coming, baby.

Yep, there you go, Ella.

How is it?

-Good.
-It's delicious.

Wait, is there apple cider
in this?

What does it taste like?

-Cinnamon.
-Apple pie.

Apple pie, yay!

Very good.
Yes.

Caramel ice cream, apple juice,

a little soda,
a little soda water,

and whipped cream
that has cinnamon in it.

-Yum.
-That's what I tasted.

Yeah, right?

It makes it
taste so good.

One, two, three.

♪ We wish you
a merry Christmas ♪

♪ We wish you a merry
Christmas ♪

♪ We wish you
a merry Christmas ♪

♪ And a happy new year ♪

It's fun. I think they love
sharing their own talents

with each other.

-See these three fingers?
-Delilah? Delilah!

♪ Good tidings to you
and all of your kin ♪

♪ Good tidings for Christmas
and a happy new year ♪

And watching each kid

sort of take their turn
at the keyboard,

watching everybody sing,

it makes you feel
like a family, you know,

and that's what the holidays
are all about.

♪ We wish you
a merry Christmas ♪

♪ And a happy new year ♪

[ All cheering ]
Whoo!