Brudding

We found this to be good, but a bit bland. Try using more cheese and sharper cheese.

Bread Pudding

8 oz slightly stale bread, torn into 2 inch pieces

3/4 cup grated cheese, such as Swiss or cheddar, or a combination of mild cheese and hard grating cheese

1/2 cup finely chopped mixed fresh herbs, including scallions or chives or basil

1/4 cup chopped smoked ham

3 cups whole milk

5 extra-large eggs

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Preheat the oven to 350°. Place a rack at the middle level. Butter a 9 by 12 inch gratin dish.

In a large bowl, toss the bread pieces with the cheese, herbs, and ham, then spread in the gratin dish.

In a large bowl, whisk the milk eggs, salt and pepper, then pour over the bread.

Bake the bread pudding for 45 minutes or until golden brown and the custard is set.

Thanksgiving pt 3

Whoa, thanksgiving was awhile ago... I was too devastated by how much I ate, that I just couldn't bear to get this posted. But after a week in NYC/DC, here it is. The sweet potato biscuits should certainly be made even if its not thanksgiving. Very good.


This was everything. As you can see, we also had gravy, succotash, sweet potatoes, rice, and mashed potatoes, thanks to Michael and Jimmy. Not that those aren't worth putting up, but it was just too much.


This was everyone.

I heard some people had issues with the turkey making, and so did we. It ended up cooking fairly unevenly, and took much longer. We did however have an 18 pounder. So, if you are going to flatten it out, use smaller turkeys.

Here is how Turkey ended up:

Pre-op.


Post-op.


Smoosh

Seasoned


Partly cooked?

Sweet potato biscuits

makes 24

5 cups flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 Tbsp baking powder

1.5 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground allspice

1 cup shortening (or margarine)

2 cups cooked and cooled mashed sweet potatoes*

1 cup whipping cream

Preheat to 350°.

Stir together the 5 cups flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and allspice in a large mixing bowl.

Cut in the shortening or margarine with two knives or a dough cutter until crumbly. Add the sweet potatoes and mix well with a spoon. Add the cream and stir just until moistened.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll it out to a thickness of 1.5 inches. Cut out biscuits a wine glass rim. Place biscuits 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes.

* to cook the sweet potatoes, bake them while in a 400° oven on a sheet of aluminum foil to catch the drips. They should be done in about 1 hour, depending on their size. They are ready when they are very tender. To get 2 cups, you'll need to bake 1.5 lbs of sweet potatoes.

Creamed Leeks

4 large leeks (about 2 pounds total; white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise and chopped

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup chicken stock or store-bought low-sodium broth

Pinch freshly grated nutmeg

Salt

Pinch of white pepper

Wash leeks in a large bowl of cold water, then lift out and drain well. Heat butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides. Add leeks and stir to coat with butter. Add cream and stock and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring, then reduce heat to moderate and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until leeks are tender and sauce is thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in nutmeg, salt to taste, and white pepper.

Stuffing

a loaf and a half of french bread (about 2 lbs), cubed

2 sticks butter

2 medium onions, chopped

1.5 cups celery, chopped

2 tsp dried thyme

2+ cups broth

2 eggs

Salt and pepper to taste

Saute the onions and celery with a stick of butter until translucent or browned. Add thyme and salt and pepper for a minute or so. Transfer to a large bowl and mix with the cubed bread. Melt the other stick of butter and mix it into the bowl of bread. Put into buttered baking dishes (whatever size, probably makes enough for two 9x13 inch ceramic dishes).

In another bowl beat two eggs into two cups of broth (turkey, chicken, vegetable, whatever). Pour over bread mixture in baking dishes. You do not want it to be soaked, but you want everything to be moist, so add more broth if needed.

Bake at 350° until it looks done, brown on top, maybe 30 minutes.

This recipe is pretty much done with guess work by my mom while doing it, so the exactness of the amounts is unclear and unnecessary.

Apple Pie

Painfully Full

Corn and Wild Rice Soup with Smoked Sausage

12.5 cups broth
1.25 cups wild rice
5 Tbsp veg. oil
10 oz smoked sausage, preferably turkey kielbasa, cut into 1/4-inch dice
2.5 cups chopped onions
1.25 cups diced carrots, 1/4-inch diced
10 ears fresh corn, boiled until tender, scraped clean
or
2.5 lbs frozen kernals, defrosted
2.5 tsp salt
1.25 tsp pepper
1.25 cups half and half
2-3 Tbsp chopped fresh chives or flat-leaf parsley for garnish (optional)

Place 5 cups broth in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. When it just begins to simmer, add wild rice. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until all liquid is absorbed, 20-30 minutes. Remove from heat. You should have 3.75 cups cooked rice
Heat oil in a large, deep-sided pot over medium-high heat. When hot, add sausage and saute, stirring , until golden, 4-5 minutes. Add onions and carrots and cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes more. Add 6 cups broth and bring mixture to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare corn broth: Set aside 2.5 cups fresh or frozen corn. In a blender or a food processor fitted with a metal blade, puree remaining 1.5 cups broth. Puree well to produce a thick, opaque broth.
Add cooked wild rice, corn broth and reserved corn to pot and stir well. Cook 10-15 minutes more. Season with the salt and pepper. Stir in the half and half. If soup is too thick, thin with additional half and half. Taste and adjust seasonings.


Simmered Cabbage and Spinach with Peanuts

1/4 cup raw peanuts
2 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
6 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, stems removed, thinly slicedcrosswise
2 tsp mustard seeds, ground
2 tsp coriander seed, ground
2 tsp cumin seeds, ground
2 tsp coarse kosher or sea salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 lbs cabbage, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1 lbs fresh spinach leaves, well rinsed and coarsely chopped
Juice of one medium lime

Pulse the peanuts in a food processor until they have the consistency of fine breadcrumbs

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the peanuts, ginger, and chiles, and stir-fry until the mixture has a light honey-brown color, 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle in the mustard, coriander, cumin, salt, and turmeric, and stir once or twice to cook the spices, about 15 seconds.

Pile in the cabbage and stir to coat with the spices. Add 1 cup water and heat to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pan and braise the cabbage, stirring occasionally, until it is fork-tender, about 15 minutes.

Add spinach, cover pan, and cook until it has wilted, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the lime juice, and serve.


Spinach and Cheese Strata

Chill for 10 hours
1 (10-oz) package frozen spinach, thawed
1.5 cups finely chopped onion
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
8 cups cubed (1 inch) French or Italian bread
6 oz coarsely grated Gruyere (2 cups)
2 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 cup)
2.75 cups milk
9 large eggs
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

Squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, then finely chop.
Cook onion in butter in a large heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and nutmeg and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in spinach, then remove from heat.
Spread one third of bread cubes in a buttered 3 quart gratin dish or other shallow ceramic baking dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice (ending with cheeses).
Whisk together milk, eggs, mustard, and remaining salt and pepper in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata.

Chill strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 8 hours.
Preheat 350°. Let strata stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45-55 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.


Cornbread Muffins

Preheat 425°.
Butter muffin tin (makes 10 or 12).
Mix together:
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
Pour into a 2 cup measuring cup:
1 cup milk
Whisk in:
1 egg

Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour in the egg and milk mixture, and whisk or stir until well mixed and smooth.
Stir in:
4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, melted
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the muffins are brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.


(To make buttermilk muffins, use 1.25 cups buttermilk instead of milk and instead of 1 Tbsp baking powder, use 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp baking soda.)

Easy

Grilled Marinated Chicken Breasts

3/4 head of garlic, pressed/minced
2 Tbsp ginger, grated
1.75 cups soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey

Mix together.
In a bowl, marinate the chicken in this mixture for one hour before grilling.




French Bread

5 cups white flour
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp yeast (I use instant yeast, if you use active dry yeast, you must proof it first.)
2 cups luke warm water

First still together dry ingredients together in a bowl, then add and stir in the water.
Once the mixture is mostly stuck together put it on the counter and knead it for 10 minutes. Use extra flour to keep the dough from sticking to you and the counter.


Place the kneaded dough into a clean, oiled bowl, and cover.
Let it rise (at least 1-2 hours, but may go for longer).
PUNCH it, because it's fun, then divide it into two long loaves.
Using a knife, make slits in the loaves.
Brush with eggwhite if you want to get a browned top of the bread. Or don't.
Place in the pans.


Then into a COLD oven.
Set to bake at 400° and timer for 23-25 minutes


Baked Rice

For four people:
2.5 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp minced onion
1/4 tsp minced garlic
1 cup uncooked rice
1.5 cups chicken broth
2 sprigs parsley
1 sprig thyme or 1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2 bay leaf
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 400 °.
Melt the butter in a heavy oven proof saucepan and cook the onion and garlic, stirring with a spoon, until the onion is translucent. Add the rice and stir briefly over low heat until all the grains are coated with butter.
Stir in the broth, making sure there are no lumps in the rice. Add the parsley, thyme, bay leaf, and cayenne. Cover with close-fitting lid and place in the oven.
Bake the rice exactly 17 minutes. Remove the cover and discard the parsley and thyme sprigs.


The usual salad as well.