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BY GEORGE DICKIE 'THE CHEW'S' Carla Hall on avoiding holiday disasters Nothing can inspire fear in the newbie holiday chef quite like cooking a turkey. In addition to being a large, physically imposing dish, it's such a high-profile meal that if you over or undercook it, the day could be ruined – which, of course, your family will never let you live down. It's why Carla Hall of ABC's weekday culinary series "The Chew," created a video that was packaged with holiday dinners sold by the Fairway Market chain that walks cooks through the process. "It was step by step," Hall says. "I said, 'This is what you do on Wednesday.' And so I had them do a dry brine, put the veggies in the cavity, put the butter under the skin. I'm like, 'OK, that's 15 minutes of work. That's what you do on Wednesday.' And then the next part, 'OK, it's Thursday. You're going to pull your turkey out. You need five hours from this point until you want your turkey. " 'Pull it out but leave it out for at least 45 minutes on the counter. Turn the oven on, put that baby in there.' And I just stepped them through it. And I think having a video of someone telling you exactly what to do, it was as if I was there ... . And they all said that it turned out. But it was scary – a lot of pressure." As for common holiday meal mistakes, Hall says, "The biggest mistake (people) make is they don't plan according to the space in the oven," she says. "So I would say that you plan a meal based on what can be done on top of the stove. And literally get the pots out and put them on the stove. And then aside from the meat, which can sit out and rest, put everything else in the oven and see what space you have and have some room-temperature things. If you have to do a crockpot ... do that. Timing is what people get messed up, in terms of everything coming out on time and hot – or cold." What book are you currently reading? "I just finished 'Pilgrim.' And I just got another ... 'Unstuff Your Life: Kick the Habit of Clutter.' (Laughs) It's really great going into the new year." What did you have for dinner last night? "I actually went to the Plaza Food Hall (in Manhattan) ... and I had Peking duck buns, prosciutto and fig pizza, some octopus and some salad." What is your next project? "I am working on opening a restaurant here in Manhattan, and it's Carla Hall's Southern Kitchen, Nashville's Hot Chicken and Southern Sides. So fingers crossed that it's late spring/early summer." When was the last vacation you took, where and why? "Canyon Ranch (in Tucson, Ariz.). It was the summer, and that trip was about every day doing something I'd never done before. So I did the climbing wall, I did the high ropes challenge, I did a level four hike, I did Zumba. (laughs) ... It was scary but it was something that was so awesome about being scared and then doing it anyway." BEST 'A CHRISTMAS STORY' MOMENTS The opening scene There isn't enough space here for everything we love about this 1983 movie – which gets its annual 24-hour marathon from both TBS and TNT starting Wednesday, Dec. 24 – but we'll start at the beginning, with youngsters' faces pressed up against the front window of a department store as they marvel at the holiday display. The maternal warning "You'll shoot your eye out," says Mom (Melinda Dillon) to Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) about the Red Ryder air rifle he wants so desperately. The too-tight snowsuit Ralphie's little brother Randy (Ian Petrella) has a tough time keeping up with the older kids, then in just trying to get up when he falls down. The malfunctioning furnace Ralphie's dad (Darren McGavin) engages in a classic battle with the household heater, with plentiful smoke – and what sounds like swearing – emanating from the cellar. The mashed potatoes Reluctant eater Randy becomes "Mommy's little piggy" by plopping his entire face in his plate, then laughing and snorting like a you-know-what. The tongue stuck to the flagpole Flick (Scott Schwartz) can't turn his back on being "triple-dog- dared," and any fan of the film knows what happens next. The dream sequences In Ralphie's mind, the Western outlaws who raid his family's home prove how valuable his having the air rifle would be. The leg lamp So popular that you actually can buy a working replica of it, this fishnet-stocking-clad contest prize is cherished by Ralphie's dad and despised by his mom. The schoolyard fight Ralphie finally strikes back against bully Farkus (Zack Ward), and the result is one of the movie's most touching moments ... truly with no pun intended. The visit to the department- store Santa Ralphie makes every nanosecond count in telling an impatient pseudo-Kris Kringle what he wants for Christmas, the result being a very famous backward exit. The pink bunny outfit Well, Ralphie's aunt made it for him, and Mom insists that he wear it. The ultimate gift for Ralphie (Spoiler alert, but most people probably know already ... ) Things turn out as they should for our young hero that Christmas. The Chinese restaurant Or, what happens when the planned turkey dinner at home meets with disaster. The closing scene The shot is so perfect, idyllic and heartwarming, you can't wait for the movie to start again. Which it does, 11 times, during its holiday marathon. BY JAY BOBBIN Ian Petrella Peter Billingsley Peter Billingsley 8 The Goshen News • TV Spotlight • December 22 - 29, 2014

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