Is it your year to host the dinner? We rounded up some of the best recipes from the foodie community to help you create a full and delicious spread that’ll be talked about for years. Yes, that says “Turducken”, and don’t worry, we wanted to lick the spoon, too.

Turducken (Turkey/Duck/Chicken)

Tony & Vikki, Simple Bermuda

 Ingredients

1 whole chicken

1 whole duck

1 whole turkey

Seasonings to taste (salt, pepper, Creole blend)

3 cups sausage and oyster dressing

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lay the chicken skin-side down on a platter and season with salt, pepper and Creole seasoning. Repeat with duck. Cover and refrigerate.
2. Lay the turkey skin-side down on a flat surface. Cover with a layer of sausage and oyster dressing pushing it into the leg and wing cavities.
3. Lay the duck on top of the turkey skin-side down and cover it with a layer of dressing. Lay the chicken on top of the duck skin-side down and cover it with a layer of dressing.
4. Bring the edges of the turkey skin up and fasten them together with toothpicks. Lace kitchen string around the toothpicks to help hold the stuffed turkey together. Carefully place the turducken, breast up in a large roasting pan.
5. Roast covered for 4 hours or until the turducken is golden brown. Continue to roast uncovered for 1 hour or until a meat thermometer inserted through the thigh registers 180 degrees F. Check the turducken every few hours to baste and remove excess liquid. There will be enough pan juices for a gallon of gravy. Carve and serve.

Spicy Stuffing

Betty Azzario

Ingredients

1 bag of stuffing mix

1 pound of spicy Italian stuffing

5 cloves of garlic

4 pinches saffron

1 yellow onion

5 sprigs fresh time

1 teaspoon African cayenne pepper

salt

pepper

4 sage leaves

1 1/2 cup vegetable broth

1 teaspoon turmeric

Olive oil

1. Brown onions and fry spices in oil. Add sausage.
2. Cook until sausages are cooked through.
3. Add spices and garlic then add one bag of Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix.
4. Lastly, add vegetable broth. Enough so that the cubes of stuffing are moist but do not lose shape. Set aside.
5. Enjoy!

5-Cheese Mac and Cheese

Cal Furbert 

Ingredients

1 stove-top and oven proof dish

4oz stick butter

4oz all-purpose flour

2 1/4 cup whole milk

1 egg yolk (scrambled)

ground mustard to taste (Optional)

1 teaspoon cracked black pepper to taste

1/2 tsp kosher salt

8oz Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp Cheese (shredded)

8oz Cracker Barrel Vermont Sharp-White Cheese (shredded)

8oz gruyere (shredded)

6oz parmesan (block preferred) (shredded)

8oz pepper jack cheese (shredded)

box of Cellentani pasta

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

1. Prepare in one stove-top and oven proof dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and set a large pot of water to boil on the stove. Add salt to taste, then add pasta. Cook about 6-7 minutes – to al dente. Drain, and set aside. Bounce pasta to remove any retained water. While pasta is cooking, add butter and flour to large saucepan and set to medium heat. Stir constantly until the roux begins to brown just slightly.
2. Add milk, whisking well. Continue to cook on medium-high heat for about 5-6 minutes, stirring constantly. Once the sauce has thickened, reduce to a very low flame, remove some of the sauce mixture, and temper the egg yolk with the sauce (whisking constantly), then mix the egg yolk into the saucepan. Add in cracked black pepper, salt and any optional ingredients to taste.
3. Add the cheese (saving some for the topping) and occasionally stir until completely melted.
4. Stir in the pasta, mix until covered with sauce. Sprinkle the panko bread crumbs over the top to make a thin topping, and then cover with the remaining cheese.
5. Place the dish onto the middle rack of the oven, for about 30-35 minutes until the crust is nicely browned. Enjoy.

Eggnog Cheesecake Bars

Chef Damian Simmons 

Graham cracker crust

1 box graham crackers

4 tablespoons sugar

12 gingersnaps

4 oz melted butter

 Filling

3lbs cream cheese

8 large eggs

4 egg yolks

3 cups eggnog

3 cups sugar

4 tbsp. + 6 tbsps. all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons + 4 tsp brandy (black rum)

4 teaspoons vanilla

2 tsp nutmeg

1lb sour cream

Rum Caramel glaze

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup black rum

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon butter

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Crush gingersnaps and graham crackers in a robot coupe and grind. (If you don’t have a robot coupe, you can place items in a napkin and use a kitchen hammer to grind.) Combine 4 oz sugar, melted butter and graham cracker mix. Grease a hotel pan and spread the mixture evenly on bottom of the pan. Place in oven and bake for 10 mins.
2. In a mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs 1 by 1 on a slow speed. Add the remaining ingredients (sugar, egg yolks, eggnog, flour, rum vanilla and nutmeg: beat until smooth.)
3. Pour filling over crust. Place pan on a flat sheet tray. Add enough water to cover the tray. Bake until just set about 50 – 60 minutes. Remove from water bath and let cool. Refrigerate overnight.
4. For caramel glaze, heat sugar in a medium pot until it starts to caramelise. Take a spoon or whisk and spread sugar evenly. Add black rum and reduce for 1 minute. Add heavy cream and whisk together. Add butter and remove from heat.
5. Cut cheesecake into even squares and serve with glaze and fresh berries.

The post The Ultimate Christmas Dinner Spread appeared first on RG Magazines.

Bing Crosby may have famously sung about a white Christmas, however for Bermuda we’re unlikely to ever see such a phenomenon. Ours is a green Christmas – however, how many of us go a step further and aim for a “green” Christmas in the sense of environmental sustainability?

There are many options that the environmentally conscious can chose to aim for a greener Christmas, such as focusing on experiential gifts rather than wanton consumerism with packaging and pretty paper; focusing on recycled wrapping – even newspaper (pro-tip, use this article for bonus points!) – or reusable gift bags, or even giving two gifts in one, such as using clothing (scarves?) as wrapping instead!

And of course, you can give a gift back to the Earth and give green gifts like a composter, a donation to an environmental charity. Or focus on recycled or upcycled gifts, energy saving technology (just think save money and it’s the gift that keeps on giving throughout the year!), homemade gifts, gifts to support outdoor activities or growable gifts such as seedlings or trees.

And on that last note, have you considered the environmental impact of your Christmas tree and what is the most environmentally friendly option?

From a “green” perspective the best option is to get a living Christmas tree. That is, quite frankly, a live tree, in a container, that will grow and thrive in Bermuda which you can plant out after Christmas. In Bermuda we’re quite lucky that the endemic Bermuda Cedar resembles, in its juvenile stage, a traditional Christmas tree. It may not be quite as large as a traditional Christmas tree, however it makes up for it by not leaving needles all over the floor (less clean-up, score!); enhances biodiversity (it’s berries provide food for many native and endemic species); aids in carbon sequestration (helps offset your carbon footprint); protects the soil; drought resistant; and hurricane resistant.

It can also be part of a family tradition – planting a “Christmas” forest over time, as a family. Of course, not everyone has the land to plant a tree in. That’s okay. Reach out to schools, the Bermuda Audubon Society or the Bermuda National Trust and see if they might welcome such trees and later the whole family can go and picnic at such a Christmas forest.

Of course, you don’t have to go for a Cedar or even a tree resembling a traditional Christmas tree. Why not go for a palmetto, an olivewood, a bay grape, a pomegranate or a citrus?

Still want a traditional tree and you’re wondering if you should get a real tree or an artificial one, and wondering which is the greener option?

Good question.

If you already have an artificial tree, use it. You already have it, so keep using it. The carbon footprint of artificial trees reduces the longer they’re used. So, keep at it.

Now it’s an interesting question whether to buy an artificial tree or a cut tree. It’s not clear cut. Yes, the artificial one is likely made of plastic, however it’s not single-use and you can use it for decades. The real tree looks bad – it’s a tree that’s been cut down, and then there’s the carbon footprint of transporting it here. Surely we want to keep trees growing rather than cutting them down, right? Well, yes and no.

Christmas tree plantations can provide habitats for other plants and animals if managed properly, which can be a good thing for ecological resilience. And trees tend to sequester carbon (that is, absorb carbon from the air and “lock” it into the soil and the tree itself) at greater rates when young (so from growing until harvesting). And the carbon can be returned to the Earth through composting, or if used in the incinerator, offsets the importation of fossil fuels for power generation in Bermuda.

In general, with all things being equal in terms of transport carbon footprint (both artificial trees and real trees available in Bermuda come from the US northeast and Canada), the available literature on carbon footprint seems to indicate that an artificial tree has a lower carbon footprint if used consistently for at least nine years versus an annual real tree purchase. This of course doesn’t consider the biodiversity impact.

My own personal leaning based on the literature and factoring in biodiversity, would be that an annual real tree is the greener option. Additionally, some charities benefit from selling Christmas trees, so if you do decide on the real tree route, support a charity in doing so.

However, due to the carbon footprint of importing to Bermuda (including transport from harvesting or manufacturing, then from port to port), neither option is ideal from a ‘green’ perspective.

The gold standard really is a living tree that you can plant after.

Transport costs are minimized, it enhances our island in terms of biodiversity, hurricane resistance (if using a cedar) and keeps on giving throughout its life time, as well as sequestering carbon. Perhaps this could be a national drive going forward, with annual ‘Christmas forests’ being planted (in national parks and elsewhere) – and charities can benefit from this too by selling living cedars instead of imported pine trees. It’s a win-win for all.

What do you think?

The post Artificial vs. Real: How Green is your Christmas Tree, Really? appeared first on RG Magazines.

A few tips:

1. The aim is to provide a range of alternatives that will appeal to your guests both as individuals and as a group; should underpin a convivial and relaxed setting; and are designed to surprise your snobbish uncle who thinks that only vintage champagne, Vega Sicilia, first-growth claret, or Romanée-Conti will do.
2. Remember that higher alcohol levels do not equate to enjoyment. In fact, one could argue that it is counter-productive. Your bar should be stocked just so to avoid anyone laying flat on their face come 2 AM.
3. Not everyone drinks alcohol, so you should ensure that you have a range of water, soft drinks, juices, and, perhaps, a non-alcoholic punch available.
4. Please do NOT drink and drive- – car or bike. It is irresponsible, dangerous and socially unacceptable. No excuses!
5. While there are hundreds of potential alternatives in each category, we’ve listed some modest suggestions that should not disappoint. Take this list to the store with you, simply hand to the clerk, and you’re all set.

G = Gosling’s; M = Miles Market; MM = Milan Milan

White Wines:

Hugel Pinot Gris or Riesling or Gewürztraminer (M)

Wente Chardonnay (various regions) (G)

Terlan or Bollini Pino Grigios (MM)

Dog Point Sauvignon Blanc (M)

Red Wines:

Peter Lehmann Portrait Cabernet Sauvignon (M)

Donnafugata Tancredi (MM)

Kaiken Ultra or Catena Malbec (M)

Butterfield Pinot Noir (M)

Layer Cake Primitivo (M)

Bonterra Zinfandel (G)

Sparkling Wines:

Santa Margherita Brut Rosé (MM)

Piccini or Lamarca Prosecco (MM)

Fortified/Sweet:

Dow’s 20-year-old tawny port (M)

Dow’s LBV Port (G)

Cossart-Gordon Rainwater Madeira (G)

Geografico Vin Santo del Chianti (MM)

Spirits:

Courvoisier VSOP Cognac (M)

Tito’s Handmade Vodka (M)

Bombay Sapphire Gin (M)

Patron Silver Tequila (M)

Bacardi 8-year Gran Reserva Rum (M)

Glenmorangie Single Malt Whisky (G)

Monkey Shoulder Scotch Whisky (G)

Cointreau Liqueur (G)

Gosling’s Black Seal or Family Reserve Rums (G)

Amaretto Liqueur (MM)

Digestifs/Bitters:

Campari or Aperol Bitters (M, MM)

Grappa (various) (MM)

In case anyone would like a traditional seasonal warmer, try this. Guaranteed to bring a glow to one’s surroundings:

Austrian Glühwein

Ingredients

2 bottles of good-quality red wine

570 ml water

Juice of 2 lemons

5 oz (140 g) sugar

6 cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

2 oranges – cut into bite-size pieces

Preparation:

• Put all ingredients in a pot and bring it close to boil.
• For additional taste, cut 2 oranges into bite-size pieces and add to the wine. Let simmer but not boil.
• Remove clove and cinnamon stick before serving it into lightly pre-warmed glasses.
• Decorate glasses with an orange slice.
• Of course, for a Bermudian touch, adding a liberal splash of dark rum would not go amiss!

The post 5 Tips to stocking your holiday bar appeared first on RG Magazines.

Holiday merrymakers lined the streets of the City of Hamilton  for the annual MarketPlace Santa Claus Parade.

The post What You Missed at the MarketPlace Santa Claus Parade (video) appeared first on RG Magazines.

The post Episode 1: ’12 Days of Christmas appeared first on RG Magazines.

Borrowing from the boys this Christmas with a classic tuxedo is an instant win. A tailored look can take you from day to night, lunch or a cocktail party. Add some lace and a pair of stilettoes and a chic tux will take you through the festive season in both style and comfort.

Elegant velvet is the fabric of the season. Couple this with a luxe rich hue and you are onto a party hit. This season crank up your style factor in an asymmetric little number in the season must-have velvet, such as a bodycon midi dress which has just the right amount of head turning wow factor.

If you want to be timelessly elegant in a classic little black dress, then add a twist to make it your own. Try embellishments, brocades, textures or a geometric lace to really lift the traditional LBD from a traditional staple to a modern party stunner. Add a pop of colour with your accessories.

A sparkly shoe is a must for the season that glitters. A satin festive stiletto will take you comfortably from daytime occasion to all-night dancing, beautifully lift tuxedo tailoring and bringing a modern finesse to a trusty LBD. In fact, you won’t need to over-think the rest of your look with a party-perfect pair of bejeweled heels, as they will do all the talking.

Don’t forget the finishing touches to ensure your party outfit looks seamless. Shapewear can be key to making your party outfit look its best. Whether it’s a figure-sculpting body, waist cincher or multi-way bra, these added assets secretly give your look its final seamless finish.

Happy partying!

Lorraine Shailer is Head of Clothing & Home for Marks & Spencer Bermuda. She has worked with the company for almost six years with a focus on buying and merchandising the Ladies and Lingerie department. Her regular trips to buying events keeps her up-to-date with the global fashion market and trends, along with her personal love for all things style related.

The post Party in style appeared first on RG Magazines.