Whether you're fancy or casual, we have all the hottest looks for this holiday season! Large selection now 25-50% off. ` ( ktin u u from Diane and the girls ARE YOU DRESSED YET? U d a lilH iilh h l By Consignment . 1 115 IjK ta le Result Ladies Wear ir Rd. tiu stN .ol'L atehorci 338-3474 -TM - F o n iiS it ^ " Get the Facts. Find out about the choices it provides. " Glen Oaks Memorial Gardens 3164 9th Line, Oakville Call 257-1100 Official Media Sponsor Editor: Wilma Blokhuis Phone: 905-845-3824 (ext. 250) Fax: 905-337-5567 e-mail: blokhuis@haltonsearch.com W K D X K S l )AY, D E C E M B E R IS. 2 (X )3 · \ W g c C l Decorate sweet potatoes for Christmas dinner By Julie Dykeman SPE C IA L T O T H E BEAVER A s the temperature drops, snow makes its tentative appearance and lights flicker on around the city bright ening our landscape and our mood. This is the time of year when hearts grow three sizes and we gather to celebrate family and friends. The climax of the season is, of course, the dinner. For weeks leading up to Dec. 25, mothers, fathers, and bachelor-types around the globe enter into the spirit of meal planning. Joyously flipping through cook books we search out ever more dramatic sounding dishes to accompany the traditional turkey or ham. And rightly so - it has been my experience that the best food memories result from the side dishes rather than the main course. Sure, everyone "oohs"and "ahhs" when the bird is brought to the table, but it is the accom paniments that receive the most accolades and form the tradi tions begged for year after year. My favourite side dish is a very simple one that requires no special talent in the kitchen, no fancy tools (although if you've been looking for an excuse to buy the latest stainless steel food mill, be my guest), and can be started a day ahead of time, reheated, and finished while the gravy thickens. Sweet potatoes are versatile, nutritious, and deli cious - especially mashed. Whether it's with goat cheese and truffle oil or studded with mini-marshmallows, your fami ly will come back for seconds. This large, edible root is a member of the morning glory fam ily and readily available from October to March. High in Vitamin A and C, it also contains potassium and is a good source of fibre. Choose sweet potatoes that are small to medium in size, smooth, firm, and unblemished. Stored in a dry dark place (1213°C or 55°F) they will keep for 3 - 4 weeks, otherwise eat them within one week. Never refrigerate a sweet potato and never store them in plastic bags; like tomatoes and apples, these roots give off gases that hasten their demise. Never buy a potato that looks as though it has been trimmed. A well-intentioned grocer may have cut aw ay a `bad' spot unfortunately once a small blem ish has developed, the taste of the entire vegetable is compro mised. (See `Potato' page C2) Variations of sweet potatoes prepared by Julie Dykeman. For garnishing suggestions see the Flavour Chart follow ing the Mashed Sweet Potato recipe on page C2. Peter C. McCusker · Oakville Beaver Food expert to tempt your palate Julie Dykeman loves food and writing. She's a graduate of the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts Institute in Ottawa, admits to being "obsessed with reading cookbooks and food maga zines," and has studied jour nalism at Sheridan College. Her food articles will appear regularly in The Oakville Beaver. Dykeman has also studied at the University of Toronto and in Melbourne, Australia. "I am currently writing a cookbook based on a small catering business I ran during the past two summers," she wrote. "Through these endeavours, I have acquired a vast knowledge of ingredi ents and their uses." She has worked with a number of prominent Toronto chefs. "I envision articles that provide basic information on various ingredients, includ ing purchasing and prepara tion," she wrote. Each article will include a recipe. "The readers of The Oakville Beaver are an intel ligent, informed public with an eye on trends, and cook ing has most certainly become the trend of the mil lennium, with the advent of Food TV, Emeril Live and our national obsession with all things culinary." She can be reached at juliedykeman @yahoo.ca. I Peter C. McCusker · Oakville Beaver Julie Dykeman in her kitchen. Think Mink for Christmas y " ) e/e A/ '(f/f/f < j c) / //cirr-s i/i ( h t / n i / f e FINE O U T E R W E A R S IN C E 1815 Downtown Oakville 209 Lakeshore Road East (905) 845-2031