Cupcakes
Sometimes all it takes to keep the family reined in and gathered round is a curveball. When it's your turn to bring dessert to the party, instead of pumpkin pie, give them seasonal red-velvet cupcakes with cream-cheese frosting or gingerbread cupcakes iced with lemon buttercream from Cupcake Royale (1101 34th Ave., 206-709-4497; 2052 N.W. Market St., 206-782-9557). Dense, moist, and wonderfully flavored, these little babies could get your brood talking about the deep South, Hansel and Gretel, or the tryptophan levels of creamy, rich icing. LAURA CASSIDY
Stylish settings and fun gifts keep friends and family in their seats.
Related Content
More About
Sake
File this one under curveballs, too. Instead of showing up with a bottle of wine in a red Mylar bag, why not bring a bottle of sake and pair of masu? Wooden boxes originally designed to measure portions of rice, masu were so plentiful in ancient Japan that they were eventually employed as sake vessels. Most good Japanese restaurants and sushi bars serve sake in these sturdy little cubes, and Uwajimaya (600 Fifth Ave., 206-624-6248; 15555 N.E. 24th St., Bellevue, 425-747-9012; www.uwajimaya.com) carries at least two different styles (plain blond wood and black lacquered) for about $7 to $10 each. As for the juice: Many chefs, especially on the West Coast and in Hawaii, are experimenting with food pairings for sake, so don't rule it out as a holiday dinner drink. Forest Grove, Ore.'s Momokawa is the premier stateside sake brewer; their newest blend is called G. At about 20 bucks a bottle, it's light and just a little spicy and goes well with lots of American dishes. LAURA CASSIDY
Sushi classes
Sometimes you do have to resort to trickery to keep your family around the table, so you might as well resort to trickery that yields delicious results. In January and April, the local cooking academy NuCulinary (www.nuculinary.com) offers three one-night sessions ($60 each) of Sushi I, Basic Sushi Rolling. Sign up yourself and someone you love to eat and hang out with, and voilà! You've started your own slow-food tradition. Additionally, there are any number of sushi texts on the market. Start off with Sushi for Dummies (For Dummies, $16.99), and by next year, when they're ready to prepare avocado egg pudding and salmon skin rolls, give them the recent Nobu Now (Clarkson Potter, $45), by esteemed sushi chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa. LAURA CASSIDY
Locally roasted coffee
Sure, you're feeling sad because Starbucks gobbled up the great local Torrefazione Italia chain and is now shutting its cafes. Have no fear. Not only can you continue to get Torrefazione coffee at grocery stores, but you can buy beans that are possibly even richer and more complex, thanks to Torrefazione founder Umberto Bizzarri's son Emanuele. The Torrefazione scion is a co-founder of the Georgetown roaster Caffeè Umbria. Though some glitzy places like the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas now serve Caffeè Umbria, not that many consumers know about it yet. Expensive but not prohibitively so at about $10 for a 12-ounce bag, it can be found at stores including DeLaurenti Specialty Food and Wine (1435 First Ave., 206-622-0141, www.delaurenti.com) and the Ballard Market ( 1400 N.W. 56th St., 206-783-7922). A nicely packaged gift of these beans is a great way to let someone feel in the know, and a freshly brewed pot will go well with dessert. Call Caffeè Umbria, 206-762-5300, for a full list or to order directly, or shop online at www.caffeumbria.com/shop.html. NINA SHAPIRO
info@seattleweekly.com
