Ingredients:

2 pounds ground sirloin
3 tablespoons red wine
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup Brie cheese

Directions

Handling the meat as little as possible, mix the sirloin with the red wine, salt and pepper. Gently form it into eight 1 inch thick patties. Using your thumb, or the end of a wooden spoon, make a small pocket in the center of the burger. Add a tablespoon of the Brie to each hamburger and then pinch the meat around the top to seal the burger. No cheese should be showing. Grill over medium high heat for 4-6 minutes per side, or to the desired doneness. Serve hot.

Ingredients:

6 bratwurst, fresh
1 large onion
12 ounces can of beer

Preheat grill. Peel onion and slice thin.


Combine bratwurst and onion in a heavy skillet over medium heat.  

Cover bratwurst and onion with beer and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 10-12 minutes, turning bratwurst frequently. Add additional beer if needed. Onions should become soft and golden brown in color.


Place bratwurst on grill over medium heat for 15 minutes or until browned, turning frequently.

Use tongs for turning to prevent piercing the skin of the bratwurst.


If not serving immediately, return to onion and beer mixture on stove and simmer until ready to eat. Serve the onions with the bratwurst.

1 cup dark brown sugar
2/3 cup bourbon
1 cup light soy sauce
4 cloves garlic
3 pounds country style pork ribs

DIRECTIONS

1. Process brown sugar, bourbon, soy sauce, and garlic in a food processor or blender to mince garlic with other ingredients.
2. Pour over ribs, and marinate for several hours in the refrigerator.
   
3. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat, and lightly oil grate.
   
4. Place ribs on grate, and cover.
5. Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour depending on thickness of your ribs.
6. When finished, the internal temperature of the ribs should be 160 degrees F (70 degrees C when taken with a meat thermometer.

Ingredients

4 maraschino cherries
2 teaspoons white sugar
1 (1.5 fluid ounce) jigger rum (dark or light)
1 cup ice cubes
1 cup cherry vanilla carbonated cola

Directions

Place the cherries and sugar in the bottom of a 12 ounce glass, and mash with a spoon or muddler. Add the rum and ice. Pour in the soda, stir, and serve.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon gin
1 tablespoon light rum
1 tablespoon vodka
1 tablespoon tequila
2 tablespoons creme de menthe liqueur
2 tablespoons Galliano
1 cup ice cubes
1 slice lemon

Directions

Combine the gin, rum, vodka, tequila, creme de menthe, Galliano and ice in the container of a blender. Cover, and blend until slushy. Pour into a glass and garnish with a slice of lemon.

Ingredients

1.5 ounces Three Olives Vodka
4 ounces Club Soda
1 Splash of Cranberry juice

Directions

1. Mix Three Olives Vodka and club soda in a glass filled with ice. 
2. Add a big splash of cranberry juice.
3. Garnish with a lemon or lime wedge and serve.

Ingredients

1 bottle (750 mL) vodka
1 cup fresh unpitted cherries
2 cinnamon sticks

Directions

Combine vodka, cherries, and cinnamon in a large, wide-mouthed jar. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 4 days (or up to 1 month). Serve cold.

Ingredients

1 1/4 quarts apple cider
3 tablespoons firmly packed light-brown sugar
1 whole cinnamon stick, plus 6 for garnish
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup Calvados

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, whisk together cider, sugar, spices, and salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.
2. Remove from heat; pour in brandy.
3. Remove cinnamon stick and transfer cider to a pitcher. Serve immediately, garnished with cinnamon sticks.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
1 cup fresh cranberries
1 ounce Charbay ruby red grapefruit vodka
2 ounces Champagne
1 ounce cranberry juice
1 ounce black currant juice

Directions

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, dissolve sugar into 1 1/2 cups water. Add cranberries and simmer for 5 minutes, or until softened. Remove from heat and let cool. Strain, discard liquid, and place cranberries on a tray in the freezer for at least 2 hours. Chill vodka, Champagne, and juices, then mix in a champagne glass. Garnish with skewer of 4 or 5 frozen candied cranberries.

:

3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup chopped pecans, a couple of handfuls
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 ounces bourbon
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper

Directions

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and cook 12 to 15 minutes until very tender. Drain sweet potatoes in a colander. Return pan to medium heat. Add butter to the pan. When butter melts, add nuts and toast for 2 minutes. Add sugar and let it bubble. Add bourbon and cook out alcohol, 1 minute. Add orange juice and the cooked sweet potatoes. Smash with a masher and season the sweet potatoes with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Ingredients:

Turkey
1 twenty- to-twenty-one-pound fresh whole turkey, giblets and neck removed from cavity and reserved
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 750-ml bottle dry white wine
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Classic Stuffing
1 cup dry white wine, for gravy
Giblet Stock

Giblet Stock
Giblets, (heart, gizzard, and liver) and neck reserved from turkey
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 celery stalk, with leaves, stalk cut into 1/4-inch dice, leaves roughly chopped
1 small leek, trimmed, washed and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf

Giblet Stock

1. Trim any fat or membrane from giblets. The liver should not have the gallbladder (a small green sac) attached. If it is, trim it off carefully, removing part of the liver if necessary. Do not pierce the sac; the liquid it contains is very bitter. Rinse giblets and neck, and pat dry.
   
2. In a medium saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add chopped onion, celery and leaves, and leek. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper, and cook 5 minutes. Add 4 cups water, bay leaf, gizzard, heart, and neck (do not add liver; it needs to be cooked separately or it makes the stock bitter). Bring to a boil, then reduce to a high simmer. Cook for 45 minutes, or until gizzard is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.
3. Meanwhile, chop liver finely. Melt remaining tablespoon of butter in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add liver, and cook, stirring constantly, until liver no longer releases any blood and is fully cooked, 4 to 6 minutes. Set aside.
4. After the 45 minutes of simmering, the liquid should reduce to about 3 cups. If it has not, increase the heat, and cook 10 to 15 minutes more.
5. Strain stock. Chop gizzard and heart very fine, and add to strained stock along with chopped liver. Pick meat off neck, and add to stock. Set aside until needed for gravy.

Turkey

1. Rinse turkey with cool water, and dry with paper towels. Let stand for 2 hours at room temperature.
   Place rack on lowest level in oven. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine melted butter and white wine in a bowl. Fold a large piece of cheesecloth into quarters and cut it into a 17-inch, four-layer square. Immerse cheesecloth in the butter and wine; let soak.
2. Place turkey, breast side up, on a roasting rack in a heavy metal roasting pan. If the turkey comes with a pop-up timer, remove it; an instant-read thermometer is a much more accurate indication of doneness. Fold wing tips under turkey. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper inside turkey. Fill large cavity and neck cavity loosely with as much stuffing as they hold comfortably; do not pack tightly. (Cook remaining stuffing in a buttered baking dish for 45 minutes at 375 degrees.) Tie legs together loosely with kitchen string (a bow will be easy to untie later). Fold neck flap under, and secure with toothpicks. Rub turkey with the softened butter, and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and pepper.
3. Lift cheesecloth out of liquid, and squeeze it slightly, leaving it very damp. Spread it evenly over the breast and about halfway down the sides of the turkey; it can cover some of the leg area. Place turkey, legs first, in oven. Cook for 30 minutes. Using a pastry brush, baste cheesecloth and exposed parts of turkey with butter and wine. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. and continue to cook for 2 1/2 more hours, basting every 30 minutes and watching pan juices; if the pan gets too full, spoon out juices, reserving them for gravy.
4. After this third hour of cooking, carefully remove and discard cheesecloth. Turn roasting pan so that the breast is facing the back of the oven. Baste turkey with pan juices. If there are not enough juices, continue to use butter and wine. The skin gets fragile as it browns, so baste carefully. Cook 1 more hour, basting after 30 minutes.
5. After this fourth hour of cooking, insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. Do not poke into a bone. The temperature should reach 180 degrees.(stuffing should be between 140 degrees.and 160 degrees. and the turkey should be golden brown. The breast does not need to be checked for temperature. If legs are not yet fully cooked, baste turkey, return to oven, and cook another 20 to 30 minutes.
6. When fully cooked, transfer turkey to a serving platter, and let rest for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make the gravy. Pour all the pan juices into a glass measuring cup. Let stand until grease rises to the surface, about 10 minutes, then skim it off. Meanwhile, place roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 cup dry red or white wine, or water, to the pan. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the pan until liquid boils and all the crisp bits are unstuck from pan. Add giblet stock to pan. Stir well, and bring back to a boil. Cook until liquid has reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Add the defatted pan juices, and cook over medium-high heat 10 minutes more. You will have about 2 1/2 cups of gravy. Season to taste, strain into a warm gravy boat, and serve with turkey.

Cake
Nonstick vegetable cooking spray
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 cup red wine, such as cabernet sauvignon
1/3 cup whole milk
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup (10 2/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 large eggs, slightly beaten
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 box (.3 ounce) sugar-free black cherry gelatin
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Wine Glaze
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup red wine, such as cabernet sauvignon
1 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for serving
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Prepare the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 10-cup Bundt Pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
2. Melt chocolate in a small bowl placed over a small saucepan of simmering water. Let cool 5 minutes. In a small bowl, combine wine and milk; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and the granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs; beat for 2 minutes. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. In a large bowl, whisk flour, gelatin, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Add to mixer bowl, along with the wine mixture, and beat on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Spoon batter into prepared pan.
5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Using a plastic knife, carefully loosen cake from the pan; invert onto a wire cooling rack. Let cool completely.
6. Prepare the glaze: Combine the butter, wine, and confectioners' sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Set aside until ready to serve.
7. Dust cake lightly with confectioners' sugar. Slice cake and drizzle with glaze.