December 13, 2006

Purdue chef makes holiday gift-giving inexpensive, easy, tasty

The "Gifts of Good Taste from Chef Grace" recipe collection includes Boilermaker Cookies, which are popular with the students, staff and alumni served by Grace Brutsman as a University Residences' production chef. The treat takes its name from the school-spirited colors of its key ingredients: nearly black chocolate chips and golden-hued butterscotch chips.

When Brutsman gives the homemade cookie mix as a gift, she layers all of the ingredients, including white and brown sugar, flour, salt and baking soda, in a canning jar. She says the colorful display can serve as décor until it's time to eat it. Then, add an egg, stick of margarine and a splash of vanilla, stir and bake, to make nearly three dozen cookies.

"The secret is the two types of chips, but we put lots of oatmeal in there so it's healthy," Brutsman says.

Her recipe series offers several other decorative, quick-fix meal and beverage mixes, including creamy wild rice and mushroom soup, tuna noodle casserole, hot spiced tea, homemade cappuccino and caramel rum fondue. She says the ingredients are affordable, easy to find and have a long shelf life.

Because presentation is a large part of the gift, Brutsman hits after Christmas sales to stock up on holiday-themed fabrics. She cuts the fabric into round pieces that she screws in place with the canning lid rim, trims it with a raffia or ribbon bow and attaches the recipe.

"I never give a gift that I have not first prepared, tasted and enjoyed myself," Brutsman says. "And I never give a gift that the recipient can't replicate and pass along."

Brutsman also prepares several different potpourris. Her favorite holiday blend, Christmas Essence, includes orange and lemon rind, bay leaves, ground cloves and a cinnamon stick.

"Cinnamon gives it a special smell, and ground cloves permeate the room faster than whole cloves," she says. "I typically use spices that are at least a year old; they've lost their full flavor but not their full smell."

She peels the lemon and orange rind in long, thin strips, being careful to only peel the colored outer layer. She packages her potpourris in fine tooling net she buys on clearance or in a porringer bowl wrapped in cellophane. The potpourri is boiled in three cups of water then simmered for another 15 minutes to release the aroma throughout the home.

"Keep it in a small decorative pan or teapot on the stove and simmer whenever you want to fill your home with the fragrance of Christmas," Brutsman says.

Her recipes can be downloaded online. Brutsman also conducts several holiday-themed cooking seminars throughout the year.

Brutsman is one of five chefs employed by Purdue's University Residences to ensure the quality and innovation of its meals, many of which are prepared to order for students. Before joining the University Residences staff, Brutsman co-owned Lafayette steakhouse Sarge Oak on Main Street for 23 years.

Writer: Jim Schenke, (765) 494-6262, jschenke@purdue.edu

Sources: Grace Brutsman, (765) 494-6060, gabrutsman

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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