People throughout Central New Jersey will be saying good bye to 2015 with dinners, parties, and casual get-togethers. Whatever way you choose to mark “out with the old and in with the new,” be it large and noisy or quiet and intimate, add a finishing touch to your celebration with a nice dessert. This jelly roll is easy to make and will ensure that dessert is as festive as the rest of the party. It also makes a nice New Year’s Day celebration dessert as well.
 
Holiday Roll Cake (adapted from “500 Fabulous Cakes and Bakes”)
Makes 1 cake – serves approximately 8
 
Ingredients:
For the cake:
 4 eggs, separated
¼ cup superfine sugar
1 tablespoon water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
 
Some suggestions for the filling: (choose one or more; layer the fillings on top of one another)
 
1 small jar peach or strawberry jam
 2 cups of prepared whipped cream
1 container of chocolate icing (apply thickly)
1 cup of finely chopped walnuts mixed with 3 tablespoons cinnamon and 3 tablespoons sugar and drizzled with honey
1 small jar of hazelnut-chocolate spread
 
Directions:
 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees; Grease a 13 X 9-inch jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet). Line the bottom with parchment paper (or wax paper) and grease the paper.
 
Whisk the egg whites until stiff. Beat in 2 tablespoons of the superfine sugar.
 
Beat the egg yolks with the rest of the superfine sugar and 1 tablespoon water for about 2 minutes. The mixture should be pale, and if a bit of the mixture is poured from a spoon, it should leave a thick ribbon trail.
 
Sift together the flour and baking powder. Carefully fold the beaten egg yolks into the egg whites. Next, fold in the flour mixture.
 
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Use a spatula to gently smooth the surface. Bake in the center of the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the cake starts to pull away from the edges of the pan.
 
Turn out onto a piece of wax paper lightly sprinkled with superfine sugar. Peel off the lining paper. Trim cake into neat edges, if needed. Spread with filling of your choice.
 
Gently roll the cake, starting with the short side that is closest to you.  Ice and decorate after cake has completely cooled.
 
Like the idea of a rolled cake but don’t have enough time to make one from scratch?  Check online to find an easy rolled cake you can make from a cake mix.

Many people think they are one and the same, but yams and sweet potatoes are different vegetables. Although they are both tubers, they aren't even related according to a Sweet Potato Fact sheet put out by the U.S. government and published on the Internet . Whatever their differences, either can be a satisfying side dish, not only for holiday dinners, but all year round.
 
Here's a recipe for a truly delicious side dish made from canned yams. Since canned yams are already peeled and cooked, this recipe is super simple. Allow just fifteen minutes to get this side dish to the table.
The dish is sweet, which is a nice contrast to the savory dishes often served with turkey and ham.
 
Ingredients:
 
1 large can (40 oz.) canned yams
About ¾ cup dark brown sugar (more or less) to taste
¾ cup orange juice
1 generous T cinnamon
½ T ground cloves
½ cup raisons
½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
A sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice
 
Directions:
 

1. In a small saucepan, dissolve the brown sugar into the orange juice. Cook until it bubbles and starts to thicken. (To hasten thickening dissolve 2 TB cornstarch in ¼ cup of water and add to orange juice mixture)
2. Add cinnamon, cloves and raisons and stir until spices are incorporated into the orange juice
3. In a separate pot, heat jams, then transfer to a serving bowl
4. Pour orange juice mixture over warmed yams
5. Sprinkle chopped walnuts and pumpkin pie spice on the top