Tis the season to eat yourself sick in front of the television. Well, you can do that any time of year, but you'll get less tsking for it during December. Here are seven holiday film and food pairings for you. So strap on the feedbag, click on the menorah or tree lights and settle in for a long winter's food coma.


PG 2003 97 minutes

"The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!" It's also a good way to get punched in the head if you don't happen to be dressed as a 6-foot elf, a la Will Ferrell. In this playful comedy by Jon Favreau, an orphan raised at the North Pole discovers (at age 36) he's not actually an elf. Buddy sets out for New York City to find and connect with his real dad (James Caan), meet a cute girl (Zooey Deschanel), do battle with a short-statured writer (the incomparable Peter Dinklage) and eat the gum under every chair he can find.

To get into the spirit, before you watch the movie, follow Buddy's list of activites: First, make snow angels for two hours, then go ice skating, then eat a whole roll of Tollhouse cookie dough as fast as you can and, then, snuggle. If you're not too sick by then, why not try this Buddy-inspired recipe ...

Noodle Kugel Buddy likes his spaghetti with maple syrup. You can try a noodle kugel made with apples and maple syrup. Just don't tell Buddy there's fruit in it. Alternatively, make an anti-Buddy choice: a cheeseburger. In the film, he tells the fake Santa he smells like beef and cheese (and sits on a throne of lies).

"A Christmas Story"

PG 1983 93 minutes


Yes, this movie's on 24 hours a day probably for the entirety of December, but there's a reason for that: It's awesome. Young Ralphie (Peter Billingsley, who grew up to be uber-good looking) is desperate for a Red Ryder BB gun, but his parents are worried he'll shoot his eye out. It's a fair concern, since during the movie eyeglasses are broken, the infamous leg lamp is shattered, the family's turkey dinner is trampled and eaten by a pack of wild dogs ... Christmas is nearly ruined and then, with some help from good-natured servers at a Chinese restaurant and a few hidden presents, the holiday becomes everything a person could hope for: memorable.

Peking Duck Ralphie's dad asks the restaurant to remove the duck's head, but you can find the birds, head and all, at the Pacific Ocean Market in Broomfield. Alternatively, make a Peking chicken, capturing the flavor of the movie without the bird "staring at you."


PG 1984 106 minutes

Don't have any gingerbread cookies around? That's probably good, since gremlins will eat them and then trash your kitchen before ruining your microwave and fancy mixer. In the campy, cult classic horror flick "Gremlins," Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) receives a strange, cute "mogwai" as an early Christmas present. Unfortunately, Billy breaks the three simple rules he was given (don't expose it to light, don't get it wet, and don't feed it after midnight) and soon the tiny, holiday light-laden town becomes a war zone. Directed by Joe Dante, written by Chris Columbus and starring a young Phoebe Cates and an even younger Corey Feldman.

Chicken drumsticks: Keep your hydration to a minimum if you get a mogwai on Christmas morning unless you want a town full of them. And don't let them get hold of those chicken drumsticks in the fridge after midnight. Lucky for us, Colorado has 300 days of sunshine a year. The sun might be needed if you mess up Steps 1 and 2.

"The Hebrew Hammer"

R 2003 85 minutes

There aren't a lot of Hanukkah movies out there at all, let alone one without an animated Adam Sandler ("Eight Crazy Nights") or a pack of alien puppets ("Chanukah on Planet Matzah Ball") so we were thrilled to discover this R-rated, grindhouse-wannabe flick about a Jewish private detective (Adam Goldberg) who must save Hanukkah (and help to save Kwanzaa) from the evil plotting of Santa's patricidal son, Damien (Andy Dick). The Hebrew Hammer drives a blue Cadillac with fuzzy dreidel dice, works for the Jewish Justice League and threatens to beat his mother with whitefish if she doesn't stop nagging. It's "Bad Santa" meets "Shaft" meets Hanukkah. The world needs better Hanukkah movies. L'Chaim!

Smoked whitefish and crackers. What else?

"Trading Places"

R 1983 116 minutes

Two old rich dudes (Ralph Bellamy and Don Ameche), who own a commodities trading company, decide to make a morally questionable holiday bet to determine whether it's nature or nurture that creates a man's sense of well-being. To that end, they relegate one of their more promising partners (Dan Aykroyd) to the streets and pluck a foul-mouthed hobo (Eddie Murphy) from a corner and give him nice clothes and a job. Then they sit back and watch the fireworks. You, too, can enjoy sitting back and watching Aykroyd fall as Murphy rises. Directed by John Landis, whose previous credits include "Animal House," "The Blues Brothers," "Spies Likes Us" and several other super awesome '80s flicks.

Smoked Salmon and Blood Orange Mache Salad Commemorate Aykroyd's desperation as he crashes the company's party dressed as Santa and hides lox in his beard to be eaten later. Add that to his and Murphy's sweet revenge as they fool the rich traders into believing they've cornered the orange juice market.

"Home Alone"

PG 1990 103 minutes

"Gremlins" writer Chris Columbus later directed "Home Alone" -- written by John Hughes of "Breakfast Club" Fame and then, several years later, directed a couple of "Harry Potter" films -- you might have heard of 'em. Anyhow, in this seminal Christmas classic, young Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) is left alone in the house over Christmas when his entire family leaves for France, forgetting he's asleep in the attic. ("Say goodnight, Kevin." "Goodnight, Kevin.") How'd he go missing in the first place? A temper tantrum over cheese pizza got ol' Kev a timeout longer than anyone expected. Don't let a little thing like cheese pizza tear apart your family this holiday season.

Cheese Pizza of course, delivered just as it was in the movie.

"Die Hard"

R 1988 131 minutes

Nothing says Christmas like a standoff between a crotchety New York cop (Bruce Willis) and a dozen terrorists (including Alan Rickman), right? Maybe not. But this classic action flick takes place on Christmas Eve, and it could be just the ticket for folks not feeling all warm and gooshy inside.

Creme Brulee Bruce Willis doesn't use a kitchen torch to take down the baddies, but we'd recommend using one over C-4 or jet fuel to caramelize the sugar on your pastry cream. Yippie-ki-yay ...

Caramelized Apple and Currant Kugel

For the kugel:

8 ounces medium flat egg noodles

1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan

1/2 cup currants

3 large eggs

1/3 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups well-shaken buttermilk

For the topping:

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons chopped pecans

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Pinch of salt

4 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

5 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and each cut into 10-12 thin wedges

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (from 1 small lemon)

2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

Directions: Oil or butter a 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a large pot, add noodles to boiling salted water. Cook according to directions. Drain pasta and immediately return noodles to pot. Stir in melted butter and currants.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and buttermilk. Add mixture to noodles in pot and stir to incorporate.

Spoon mixture into prepared dish and bake kugel for 50 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

While kugel bakes, make topping:

Combine brown sugar, flour, pecans, cinnamon, cloves, and salt in a medium bowl. Scatter butter over mixture and, with a fork or pastry blender, or your fingertips, press butter into ingredients until crumbly. Cover bowl and refrigerate overnight.

In another bowl, combine apples, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Cover bowl and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove kugel, apples, and brown sugar topping from refrigerator.

Uncover kugel and arrange apples in rows on kugel. Crumble brown sugar topping over apples and place kugel into oven. Bake kugel for 30-40 minutes, or until topping is bubbling. Transfer kugel to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Source: Adapted from "Jewish Holiday Cooking," by Jayne Cohen via stljewishlight.com

Peking Chicken

5 cloves garlic, minced (5 teaspoons)

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

1 cup hoisin sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup honey

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, thinly sliced across the grain

12 scallions

1 tablespoon sesame oil

12 flour tortillas

Directions: Combine the garlic, ginger, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, and honey in a small bowl. Whisk to mix. Set aside half of this mixture to use as a sauce. Marinate the chicken in the remaining mixture for 1 to 2 hours, stirring several times.

Meanwhile, make the scallion brushes. Cut the roots and greens off the scallions. (Reserve the latter for another recipe in this book.) There should be 3-inch pieces of scallion white remaining. Make a series of 1-inch lengthwise cuts in each end, gradually rotating the scallion, to form the individual "bristles" of the brush. Soak the scallions in a bowl of ice water for a couple of hours to swell the ends of the brushes.

Just before serving, heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan. Cook the chicken over medium heat for 2 minutes, or until done. Set aside and keep warm. Lightly brush each tortilla with water and toast in a nonstick frying pan over high heat (or warm in a steamer). Divide the reserved marinade among 6 small ramekins or dishes.

Mound the chicken in the center of a platter. Arrange the tortillas (fold them in quarters 'or halves) and scallion brushes around the chicken. Invite guests to use a scallion to brush a tortilla with hoisin sauce. Have them place a spoonful of chicken and the scallion brush in a tortilla and roll it into a cone.

Source: Steven Raichlen via cookstr.com

Smoked Salmon With Caramelized Fennel and Blood Orange Vinaigrette

Sections from 2 blood oranges or 1 pink grapefruit

Sections from 2 tangerines

3 baby fennel bulbs (or 1 large fennel bulb), trimmed, fronds reserved for garnish

1 tablespoon grapeseed or mild olive oil

Juice from 1 lemon

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 teaspoon ground toasted fennel seeds

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 cups mache

18 slices smoked salmon

Directions: Using a large chef's knife, peel the oranges or grapefruit and the tangerines. Working with 1 fruit at a time, slice off both ends. Stand the fruit on 1 end, then slice downward, following the curve of the fruit, cutting away both the skin and pith but leaving as much of the fruit as possible. Using a paring knife and working over a bowl to catch the juices, cut between the segments to detach each piece from its surrounding membrane. You will need 12 segments of both orange and tangerine. Set the segments aside; squeeze the empty membranes and reserve the juice.

Halve the fennel bulbs lengthwise. Using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, thinly slice the fennel. Set aside.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the 1 tablespoon grapeseed or olive oil. Add the fennel to the pan, being careful not to crowd the skillet (cook in batches if necessary). Cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn and cook for 3 to 4 minutes longer, until evenly softened. Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain. Cover to keep warm.

In a small bowl, whisk together any reserved juice from the oranges and tangerines with the lemon juice, 1/3 cup olive oil and ground fennel seeds. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, in a large bowl, gently toss the mache with the vinaigrette. Place the fennel in the center of individual plates. Divide the mache mixture evenly among the plates and place 2 segments of orange and 2 segments of tangerine on top. Arrange the salmon on top and drizzle any remaining vinaigrette on top. Garnish, if desired, with fennel fronds. Serve at once.

Note: You can substitute watercress or baby arugula for the mache.

Source: Chef-restaurateur Todd Gray, Washington Post, Dec. 31 2003