recipes

shell yeah! Celebrate the Italian American Christmas Eve feast-minus the marathon cooking-with seven kinds of seafood in one dish.

- MIKE GARTEN.

Salad of the Seven Fishes

ACTIVE 20 MIN.

TOTAL 50 MIN.

SERVES 6

½ Tbsp finely grated lemon zest, plus 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons) and lemon wedges for serving

1 small clove garlic, pressed

Kosher salt and pepper

3 Tbsp olive oil

8 oz small squid, steamed

8 oz large cooked peeled shrimp, tails removed

1 lb mussels, steamed

12 littleneck clams, steamed

6 oz cooked octopus tentacle (about 1 tentacle)

4 oz bay scallops (or sea scallops, cut into ½-in. pieces), steamed

1 small bulb fennel, very thinly sliced

½ small red chile, very thinly sliced

1 stalk celery, very thinly sliced

½ cup pitted Castelvetrano olives, sliced

4 oz cooked lump crabmeat, picked

½ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

1 In large bowl, whisk together lemon zest and juice, garlic, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp pepper. Whisk in oil.

2 Thinly slice squid bodies. Cut each shrimp into 3 pieces. Shuck mussels and clams. Cut octopus tentacle into ½-in. pieces. Transfer squid, shrimp, mussels, clams, octopus, and scallops to bowl with lemon vinaigrette and toss to coat.

3 Fold in fennel, chile, celery, olives, crabmeat, and parsley. Serve immediately with lemon wedges if desired.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies

ACTIVE 20 MIN.

TOTAL 35 MIN. PLUS CHILLING, COOLING, AND DECORATING

MAKES ABOUT 15

FOR COOKIES

2¾ cups all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp kosher salt

1 cup unsalted butter

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1½ tsp pure vanilla extract

FOR DECORATING

¼ cup meringue powder

4 cups confectioners' sugar

Food coloring and sprinkles, for decorating (optional)