Peace, Hope, Love and Joy!

The Baklava and Spanikopita are out of the oven and cooling. I am adding the final bows and such to the wrapped presents and look to be in bed by midnight!


Have a great holiday, even if you only celebrate it as a day off. Merry Christmas!

NaBloPoMo Day XXVI: T-day dinner plus 3 hours

Family just left, one more load of dishes to wash, but I'm getting a bath first. As soon as the hot water heater fills again.


Too tired for much else. Everything turned out great, though had to do a last minute brussel sprout substitute for green beans that went fuzzy. Gonna go put my feet up and start mentally composing tomorrow's post. 


Happy Thanksgiving!

NaBloPoMo Day XXV: T-day dinner minus 16.5 hours

The turkey is in the brine!

Anybody that has attended a major event with me knows that I make lists and try to prepare for any disruptions with a contingency plan. T-day is no different. I spent the last hour calculating how much prep and execution time each step of each recipe required. Then I lined them up to make the best use of time. Now I am off to bed, because I actually have to set alarm and get up earlier than usual tomorrow. Amazing how your body clock resets when you are unemployed!

Bread crumbs for stuffing becoming croutons?

Check.

Starting with the pan, clockwise: sausage drippings for the roux, stuffing wet stuff, eggs for stuffing, dough for apple tartlets,  giblets, butt & neck, freshly squeezed lemon juice, kitty food from stock discards, dinner rolls, butter rub for turkey, stock?

Yeppers.

Temporary prep table with cat-safe foods (like veggies), roasting pan and v-rack ready & waiting, salad spinner for cleaning veggies, pile of fruits, apron?

Ready and waiting for me in 9 hours. 
Off to bed now, but first a soak in a tub brimming with salts and aromatics...ummm...gobble gobble!

NaBloPoMo Day XXIV: T-day minus 2 days

Turkey stock: check

Homemade dinner rolls: in the fridge for a long 1 1/2 day rise

Rustic Apple Tartlets: crust is ready to roll out and be topped & baked

Stuffing: 
a) sausage is browned, celery, onions, carrots & apples are sauteed, pan was deglazed with sherry and is now in the fridge
b) challah and hearty white bread cubed and drying in no-heat oven

Groceries: all purchased

Flowers: lovely!

House: was pretty clean, but items 1-5 above have made it a mess once again! Off to soak in tub with good book (Bite Marks, a Jaz Parks novel by Jennifer Rardin) and candles, then to bed. Night, night!

NaBloPoMo Day XXIII: Thanksgiving Day Menu

Appetizers - Cousin Rachelle is taking care of this, and no clue!

Cocktails - I have Asti and sparkling grape juice to be poured over fresh pomegranates & cranberry-pomegranate juice.

Turkey - pick up on Wednesday from Seibert Meats in Soulard. Brine overnight, then get up early to rinse, pat dry and air dry in the fridge before heading into the oven - makes a nice crisp crust and moist meat. Only a 12-14 pound bird, as it will be me & hubby, Ma & Pa, Aunt Jan, Cousin Rachelle & her boyfriend Kris. We have room for one more at the table, if anybody is hungry. We could also set up a kiddie table if a bunch of you are interested.

Gravy - I started a turkey neck (from Souldard) & veggie stock, now in the fridge, ready for makin' gravy! Will make a roux and generally follow Cooks Illustrated instructions (hereafter known as CI.)

Sausage & Apple Stuffing - an amalgamation of my MIL's recipe, my best friend's mother's recipe, and CI.

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes - This version is less fat than the classic mashed 'taters. Last time I made it to go with Christmas Prime Rib and included leeks. Credit: CI

Roasted Sweet Potatoes - I've been making single servings of this by peeling the sweet potato, cutting into 1/2" dice, tossing with EVOO, kosher salt & fresh cracked black pepper and roasting until the edges are Carmelina. Drizzle just the slightest bit of real maple syrup, and you have a wonderful alternative to the version that is mashed & smothered with marshmallow goo.

Sauteed Green Beans with garlic & herbs - a lighter alternative to the traditional green bean casserole (which I personally can't stand, even though I was raised Lutheran!) Credit: CI

Dinner Rolls - one component that is actually better prepared ahead and stored in the fridge. I'll take them out in the morning to let rise 6-8 hours, then pop in the oven for that wonderful yeasty aroma. Credit: CI.

Cranberry Relish - Mum is taking care of this one, from a recipe she begged off of ??? (completely slipped my mind at the moment.) I will have a can of the gloppy stuff on standby, if anybody insists.

Pumpkin Cheesecake - Cuz Rachelle is preparing this one, and I am very excited, as I came close to choosing to make it myself!

Rustic Apple Tartlets - Another CI recipe I have used in the past, to great success. I starting the crust this evening, as it will keep, wrapped well, in the fridge for a few days.

Whipped Cream with a hint of orange zest - To top the tartlets (or the cheesecake, or coffee)

Decaf Coffee - my favorite coffee place, Foundation Grounds in Maplewood, carries Goshen Coffee Company - 100% organic and sustainable farmed. Current favorite: Venezuelan.

NaBloPoMo Day XXI: Farmers' markets

I woke this morning determined to hit the local farmers' market to try and find purveyors of local and/or organic produce.

After filling up my travel mug with coffee from Foundation Grounds in Maplewood ( I was waylaid and had to try a new baked goodie: Blueberry & Lavender cheesecake -- yum!) I walked down the street to :

Maplewood Farmers' Market at Schlafly Bottleworks. I got some yummy locally grown granny smith apples and some sweet looking sweet potatoes (they had real dirt on them!) but I think I overpaid. I had lots more on my list, so headed to:

Kirkwood Farmers' Market had very little, as they kicked off their Chrismas Market & Holiday Walk.

<-- So instead of this


It was this -->




And this:

So I finally headed to Historic Soulard Market and struck gold. First, I found parking within a block. Next I walked through most of it, scouting prices and availability. 

I picked out 3 calla lily blooms and 6 spikey red/green things and a bunch of small white/red flowers. Of course I asked the names of each, but promptly forgot them.


All of the fruit & veggies for Thanksgiving dinner are purchased. I found fresh pork sausage for the stuffing and turkey necks for a stock I will start tomorrow. 


My turkey dilemma is solved! I ordered a 12-14 pounder from a poultry booth who gets them from a farmer in Illinois. I will pick up on Wednesday, then prep and start the brining.


All I have left are a few things from the grocery store, and then --oh yeah-- all the cooking and prepping!

NaBloPoMo Day XX: Gobble, gobble

So.

Let's talk turkey.

The last (and only time) I cooked at turkey, I think I had a national brand mammoth. I have no great memories of it, but no horror stories, either.  Thanksgiving for my side of the family is at my house this year, and I have been contemplating the poultry. I would love to find a fresh turkey from a local farm, but that is looking unlikely at this late point. But at $3+ per pound, can I really justify it versus a 57¢ per pound conglomerate-grown hen?


I've been doing a bit of research, and have found places that offer "heritage" turkeys that are closer to wild than the lab-modified triple-D cup turkeys that are available at the major grocery stores. (See, Dave - I did work boobies into the conversation, though anybody that knows me know that I scoff at a DDD being considered large!) 

I have a $1.99/pound turkey reserved from Baumann's Fine Meats, but I have been told that it is an Arkansas bird, and not particularly heritage or free-range, or anything special. Should I just pick up the cheapy at Schnucks? Shoudl I spend $2.99/pound for the free-range one from Whole Foods?


Maybe I should just give up at cook a nice ham, as I don't even really like turkey!

NaBloPoMo Day XV: las semillas de calabaza

Mexican-Spiced Pumpkin Seeds 

Adapted from:

 

About 2 cups raw pumpkin seeds (I had seeds fresh from a small pumpkin. As they were still wet, they took a bit longer to toast.)

Mexican Spice Mix

1     tbsp granulated sugar

1     tsp kosher salt

1/4  tsp ground cinnamon

1/4  tsp ground cumin (I toasted 1/2 tsp whole seed then ground myself)

1/4  tsp ground coriander

1/8  tsp cayenne pepper

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

Simple Glaze

2     tbsp water

1     tsp brown sugar (light or dark)

1     tbsp unsalted butter

 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread pumpkin seeds in even layer. Toast until fragrant and color deepens slightly, about 4 minutes. Transfer cookie sheet with nuts to wire rack.

2. For the spice mix: While seeds are toasting, stir together sugar, salt, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, cayenne, and garlic powder in medium bowl; set aside. I used a plastic storage container shook to mix.
 
3. For the glaze: Bring water, brown sugar, and butter to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisking constantly. Stir in toasted seeds and cook, stirring constantly with wooden spoon, until seeds are shiny and almost all liquid has evaporated, about 1½ minutes.

4. Transfer glazed seeds to bowl with spice mix; toss well to coat. Return glazed and spiced seeds to parchment-lined cookie sheet to cool (can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days). Transferring to plastic storage container with spice mix, you can shake to coat, then cool for a few minutes and return to container!

Yummy! Would be muy bueno with una cerveza or mexican hot chocolate like Abuelita!

NaBloPoMo Day X: Now we're cookin'

I just finished watching two DVR'd episodes of Iron Chef America and it got me thinking about food shows. Food shows are every where these days. Rachel Ray has enough shows to have her own network and is now on daytime network tv. Leno has celebrity chefs on to poke fun at food. PBS has been long time home to Saturday cooking shows among the home and garden fare. The travel channel has five food shows that I counted. Even Julia Childs was recently featured in a movie starring Meryl Streep.  And last but not least, Food Network: all food, all day. 


Lots of entertainment and inspiration available in all this, but the two shows I turn to most when I want to actually cook something edible are America's Test Kitchen and Good Eats. 

Before dish tv, all I had was network tv and America's Test Kitchen.  From their website:

"Each episode features recipes we've carefully developed to make sure they work every time. Christopher Kimball and the test cooks solve everyday cooking problems, test equipment so you never have to waste money on things that don't work, and taste supermarket ingredients to save you time in the store. It's a common-sense, practical approach you won't find on other cooking shows."

I liked the premise and started subscribing to the magazine behind the show, Cook's Illustrated. I enjoyed the magazines but have now switched to a web subscription, which gives me access to all of the articles, recipes, reviews, tastings, etc. They are my #1 go-to site for recipes, even if I know I have it in a magazine somewhere. My most-used "cookbook" is mostly their recipes printed out and in sheet protectors in a binder. Christmas dinner the past two years has turned out great the past two years, and I'm depending on them for Thanksgiving this year, too. Many of our wedding registry items and my Christmas present lists have been based on their recommendations.

Also on the cerebral side of cooking shows is Alton Brown's Good Eats. Alton (he pronounces AL-ton, not All-ton like the nearby town) is a wonderfully geeky guy that likes to explain how things work, and why foods behave as they do. I find this gives me a better understanding of the chemistry at work in food, which makes me a better improv cook instead of just having to follow a recipe. I've used his recipes and techniques, and like that the FN website has recipe ratings and reviews.

His rants about the evil of "unitaskers", and does not allow any in his kitchen except the fire extinguisher. I certainly take that into account when I kitchen shop!

Alton brings his obscure food trivia and dry wit to Kitchen Stadium as Iron Chef America's host/commentator. That brings up back to the beginning of this post and where I find my food inspiration. Where do you find yours?