Chritmas Dinner In August

Not too long ago at work we had an entire Christmas dinner in August. We had a feast with all the fixings and afterwards felt happy and stuffed. Our Christmas dinner consisted of Challah bread and butter, different pickles, chutneys, and preserves, honey thyme carrots, peas, creamy mashed potatoes, stuffing, a brined turkey breast with gravy, pumpkin pie, and homemade vanilla ice cream.

fresh Challah bread

mustard pickles, cranberry sauce, red pepper jelly, and pickled peppers

brined turkey breast

gravy

honey and thyme glazed carrots

creamy mashed potatoes

the entire feast

stuffing

Turkey And Dumplings

Turkey And Dumplings
VEGETABLES
oil
1 large onion, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
1 package (8 ounces/250 grams) button mushrooms, chopped
1 can peas (save liquid)
2 cups diced cooked turkey (or use chicken)
SAUCE
1/4 cup butter or hard margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
1 can (370mL) evaporated milk
liquid from can of peas
garlic powder, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
DUMPLINGS
2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons granulated (white) sugar
1 teaspon salt
2 Tablespoons butter or hard margarine
1 cup milk

 VEGETABLES: Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and mushrooms, cover, and allow the vegetables to sweat, without browning, until just beginning to soften. Stir in the peas and the chicken.
SAUCE: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Quickly whisk in the flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in the milk, then the pea liquid. Bring to a light boil and cook until thickened, then season to taste.
DUMPLINGS: In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Stir in the milk to form a soft dough.

ASSEMBLY: Stir the sauce into the vegetable mixture in the pot. Spread evenly. Drop the dumplings by spoonfuls onto the vegetable sauce mixture. Cover with a tight-fitting lid or cover and bake at 375◦F for about 30 minutes, without uncovering, until the dumplings are cooked. If you would like to give the dumplings a bit of a crisp top, turn the broiler on for a few minutes at the end of cooking - keeping an eye on the dumplings until they are golden.

Turkey Broth Risotto

Turkey Broth Risotto
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, small dice
1 small shallot, minced
1/2 cup Arborio rice
3-4 cups turkey broth
salt and cracked black pepper, to taste
chopped parsley
chopped cashews

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and shallots and sauté for a few minutes without browning until translucent.
Stir in the rice and cook for two minutes to toast kernels. 
Add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, allowing the rice to almost fully absorb it before adding more. Stir often. Cook to desired consistency, risotto usually tends to remain al dente. If you prefer a thinner risotto, use more broth.
Season to taste, and garnish with parsley and cashews. 

Risotto has a reputation of being a fancy, time-consuming dish but really it is quite easy and a family favorite. The flavor is so much richer when you use a homemade broth. Feel free to add in other ingredients - butternut squash, turkey meat, beans; and use any type of broth you wish for a different flavor each time.

Turkey Broth

Recently I made broth from scratch for the first time. I used the carcass from our New Year's turkey. Broth/stock making is a very economical way to use otherwise inedible leftovers from meat and vegetables scraps and herbs that are past their prime. Of course quality stock derives from quality ingredients, but there is no reason the tops and bottoms of good carrots cannot be used. Broth and stock are terms often used interchangeable, but typically broth uses meat whereas stock uses just bones. Since the bones I used had some meat on them, I am calling this broth. The measurements need not be exact, just ensure there is sufficient water to cover the bones but not too much water. The onion, celery, and carrot mixture is the mirepoix, and the herbs and spices can be placed in a cheesecloth bag to be fished out at the end if preferred. 

Turkey Broth
2 kg (7-8 pounds) turkey carcass (bones, neck meat, skin) trimmed of as much visible fat as possible
4 L (4 qt) cold water
175 grams white onion, medium dice
85 grams celery, medium dice
85 grams carrots, medium dice (if you would like a perfectly clear white stock, use leek whites instead, but I like the flavor carrot gives)
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 parsley stems

Use bones that are as fresh as possible. Cut into 3-4 inch pieces if possible then rinse under cold water.
Place the bones in a large stockpot and cover with the cold water. Slowly bring to a boil, then gently skim off any scum and impurities that rise to the surface, taking care not to stir them back into the stock. 
Add the vegetables and seasonings, reduce to a simmer, and simmer for about 2 hours, skimming scum from the surface often while leaving as much of the vegetables as possible. Strain the stock through a fine sieve or cheesecloth and use immediately or cool.

During cooking, if the water level dips below the bones, add enough cold water to cover. The stock may be simmered longer, allowing more water to evaporate, and producing a much more concentrated stock. This is useful when freezing stock because it takes up less room and water can be added as needed. It is also beneficial for creating flavorful sauces. Stock should be transferred to smaller containers to cool and put in an ice bath and stirred often before being refrigerated. It will keep for up to one week, or longer if frozen.

Some key tips for successful stock:

Always use cold water.

After the initial boil, reduce to a simmer immediately and do not allow the stock to boil.

Never cover a stock during cooking.

Degrease and skim the stock often. 

Turkey Stuffing

This post may be coming a little late, considering turkey dinners with stuffing and all the trimmings tend to be most popular during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season. But here is the stuffing I made for our New Year's turkey feast. Stuffing is a good, basic dish to know how to make, and can be used in a wide variety of dishes - chicken, turkey, goose, duck, even pork and fish. It can also take on a range of flavors - add some cranberries, nuts, or other vegetables. Stuffing is an incredibly easy dish to make, almost as easy as those box mixes, which seem to be popular, but just cannot beat the flavor of homemade. Some homemade recipes just don't seem to turn out great, so it is important to find a really good one. This is a really good one, in my opinion anyway. I'm not really a stuffing fan, I never eat the boxed mixes and have tasted and not really cared for some homemade versions, but this one I love. It's definitely got the typical stuffing seasons, along with a few vegetables and plenty of bread - and it is a bit on the wetter side, just the way I like it!

Turkey Stuffing
1/2 cup clarified butter
1 medium white onion, small dice
2 stalks celery, small dice
one pound stale white bread, in small cubes (use baguette, French, Italian, sandwich, rolls, or a combination)
1 egg, beaten
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon ground thyme
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
salt and pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups turkey or chicken stock (use less if you like a drier stuffing)

Heat the butter in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and sauté, without browning, until onion is translucent and vegetables are quite soft.
Meanwhile, toss together the bread, egg, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and seasonings together in a large bowl. Stir in the vegetables and butter from the pan. Pour the stock over top and mix in.
Place mixture in a buttered 9x13 inch rectangular dish or casserole dish of similar size and cover with foil. The stuffing can then be refrigerated if prepared in advance. 
Bake covered at 350◦F for 45-60 minutes until hot. Stuffing is pretty forgiving if you put it in a little late or need to keep it in longer while the main course is still being prepared. It also reheats well. Makes approximately eight servings. 

Roast Turkey

This past weekend I cooked something I have never cooked before, which actually happens quite often considering I always like to try new things; however this is something I am particularly proud of. I prepared, roasted, and carved my very first turkey! Of course I have had turkey before, and maybe even helped in preparing it, but I have never made a whole turkey from start to finish. To do this, I placed a medium-sized turkey, about six kilograms or so, in a large roasting pan, and poured in a little bit of chicken stock and cranberry juice for moisture and flavor. Then I seasoned the turkey liberally, with salt, ground black pepper, thyme, sage, and whatever other ground spices I happened to find that appealed to me. I just sprinkled them all over the top of the turkey, like a dry rub. Then I cut up two onions into small wedges, and put them in as well. I then covered the roasting pan in tight plastic wrap and foil. The turkey didn't take too long to bake, only a few hours, and then of course it must rest in the pan, outside of the oven, before carving. Slice it tenderly, and then it can be put back into another pan with the juices and heated gently again to be really hot. Be sure to use some of the pan drippings for a rich gravy, and save some of the onion to eat as well - it is tender and flavorful. A bit of the spice flavor comes through the turkey and the turkey is moist and juicy, either white or dark meat, but the turkey is not overly spicy. Of course it is great served with carrots, peas, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, and to make it extra special like Christmas dinner, stuffing!

Unfortunately, I forgot to snap a picture of the whole turkey after baking, but here it is all carved up!

Turkey Pot Pie

Turkey Pot Pie
1 large carrot, sliced
2 medium sweet potatoes, in small cubes
1 tablespoon margarine
1 small onion, diced
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup skim milk
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups cut-up cooked turkey
1 can peas
CRUST
1 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon margarine
1/3 cup sour cream
3 Tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350◦F. 
Boil the carrots and sweet potato until tender. Alternately, use frozen vegetables. 
In a small saucepan, sauté the onion in the butter until tender. Mix 1/4 cup of broth with the cornstarch, then add remaining broth and milk, salt, and pepper. Boil for one minute. Stir in the turkey and vegetables. Spoon mixture into an 8x8-inch square pan.

CRUST: In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the margarine. Mix sour cream and milk until smooth and stir into mixture. Knead dough lightly on a floured surface. Pat into an eight inch square, then cut into four equal squares. 

Place crust over turkey mixture. Bake for about 30 minutes, until mixture is hot and biscuit is golden. 

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone! We had our big turkey dinner yesterday, and decided to make a turkey pot pie with the leftovers today for a little something different  - homey and comforting. The vegetables may be varied as you wish. Chicken would work for this recipe as well. The crust is really easy to put together and the pie is simple to assemble because it only has a top crust, but it is very flaky and delicious. 

Crocker, Betty. "Turkey Pot Pie." Recipe. Low-Fat Low-Cholesterol, New York: MacMillan, 1991. 89.

Turkey Roll With Stuffing

This is a little something different, a recipe I came across in a low-fat cookbook that looked yummy and intriguing. The outside is just like a meatloaf, but made with ground turkey instead. The inside is just like stuffing, and together they are like a savory jelly-roll. You could use white wine in place of the water in both the pan juice and to make the sauce if you prefer.

Turkey Roll With Stuffing
1 teaspoon oil or margarine
1 cup chopped white onion
1 cup grated carrot
1 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1 chicken bouillon cube
3/4 cup boiling water
herbs and spices, as desired, if breads crumbs are not seasoned
1 pound lean ground turkey
1 large egg
1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
salt, pepper, and garlic to taste
1 cup water

In a large frying pan over medium heat sauté the onion and carrot in the oil for about ten minutes until softened. Remove from heat and stir in bread crumbs. Dissolve the bouillon in the water and add along with seasoning. 

In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients except water. Spread out this mixture evenly onto a large sheet of waxed paper to a rectangle 10x14 inches, with no gaps. Cover this meat with the stuffing mixture. Roll up tightly from a short side, removing the waxed paper as it is rolled. Place roll in a greased roasting pan. 

Cover and bake at 350◦F for an hour. Pour the water into the pan and bake for an additional 30 minutes, basting twice with juices. Remove to a platter and let stand briefly, tented with foil.

To make a sauce or gravy: use the pan drippings, extra chicken broth, and cornstarch to whisk together to form a gravy while the loaf is resting. 

Cheesy Turkey Pasta Casserole

This is a casserole my mother invented. I believe she just sort of got a bit of inspiration and threw all of the ingredients together one night. It turned into a delicious supper that she turns to when she needs something easy and foolproof, or needs leftovers for the next day. It is simply a mixture of chopped, cooked chicken or turkey, pasta (usually rotini, but penne also works well), mozzarella cheese, and pasta sauce.  It is a pasta sauce that reminds me a bit of lasagna, but it is quicker to make. My mom used turkey this time, because we had some leftover pieces that were already cooked on hand in the freezer. Normally though, my mom would use chicken breast. If we don't have any leftovers, she will pre-bake the chicken breasts before cutting them up and adding them to the casserole. The pasta is also pre-cooked, then drained, and the chicken, cheese, and sauce are added to the pot. The mixture is then placed into a casserole dish and sprinkled with more cheese. It is then covered with foil and baked until piping hot. This recipe has no real amounts, and it is easy to make as much as you need. If you need a lot, just cook a lot of pasta, use more chicken breasts, add some more cheese, and use two bottles of sauce. We have baked two casserole dishes full at once. You could also add something else to spice up the casserole a bit, the addition of chopped onion or peppers, a different kind of cheese, extra spices, or anything else you can think of would all be good. This dish is also very good as leftovers, it will keep in the refrigerator for a few days and it reheats well. The dish is a huge crowd-pleaser at our house. It would be nice served with a simple side salad and garlic bread, but it is even satisfying enough to be eaten as a meal alone.

Turkey Noodle Soup

Even though the weather is starting to get a bit warmer, and there are no longer snowy, cold days, it is still nice to have soup. Today was actually a pretty good day for soup, as it was miserable and rainy outside, with a slight chill and some dampness in the air. We also made this soup to use up the leftover turkey from Easter that we had in the freezer. This soup is basically just a standard chicken noodle soup recipe, but we used turkey because that is what was on hand. The soup contains chicken broth, ground black pepper, chopped onion, sliced carrots, potato, peas, turkey pieces, and spaghetti noodles. It is a nice, classic soup, hearty, but not too heavy, and is a great treatment for colds and the flu. This soup could be served with any hearty bread, biscuit, sandwich, or crackers, weather homemade or store-bought. Basically all you need is a little something for dipping and enjoying on the side, which could be anything from pita bread, to a croissant, to cheese crackers, to a grilled cheese sandwich. When we have the time, we like to serve our homemade soup with homemade biscuits, which I will feature tomorrow.

Christmas Leftovers

It is entirely possible that some of you are still finding yourselves knee-deep in a pile of leftovers from Christmas dinner. Meat, vegetables, breads, desserts; you name it, there's probably some left. Christmas leftovers appear to be inevitable. So, what can you do with them all? You can certainly freeze many aspects of Christmas dinner, especially turkey and sweets. They will keep in the freezer, well-wrapped, for a few months or so. Vegetables may be a bit more difficult, as they don't tend to freeze as well. Here are some ideas for leftovers.

TURKEY/CHICKEN: Chop or shred and use now or freeze for later use. Good for soups, stews, stir-fries, casseroles, sandwiches, salads, meat pies.

HAM: Chopped cooked ham keeps a bit longer than turkey or chicken in the fridge, but it may also be frozen. It can be added to soups, stews, stir-fries, casseroles, pot pies, sandwiches, and omelettes. It is also great with cheese and crackers.

POTATOES: Use for Shepherd's pie, potato bread/rolls, and potato fudge. Mashed sweet potatoes can be baked into sweet potato pie, loaf or biscuits.

VEGETABLES: Most precooked vegetables will do well in quick soups, stews, stir-fries, pot pies, and casseroles. They are also good for making ragus or ratatouille. You can also puree vegetables and freeze in small portions to sneak into baked goods to make them healthier. There are several cookbooks around devoted to this process.

BREAD/ROLLS: These can easily be frozen, or be used fresh in the following dishes. French toast, bread pudding, and stuffing (if you don't already have enough). They can also be pulsed into breadcrumbs, which are used in a variety of dishes such as meatballs, hamburgers, coatings for chicken and fish, macaroni and cheese, etc. It is best to dry out the bread either on the counter or in the oven beforehand for these ideas.

GRAVY: Great for hot turkey sandwiches, Shepherd's pie, beef stroganoff, and meat pies. Adds some flavor to any dish, and will keep for a while in the fridge. It is also easy to reheat.

CRANBERRY SAUCE: This can easily be frozen or used in another way. It can be used as is, sweetened up a little, or flavored with something else. It makes a good sauce for desserts, and can be used as a filling for cranberry oat squares. It is also excellent on turkey and even ham sandwiches, and makes an alternative spread for toast and bagels in the morning. 

EVERYTHING: You can throw all (or at least most) of your leftovers together into one big dish. You can make a soup, stew, meat pie or pot pie, casserole, or stir-fry. Add in some new ingredients and flavors, and you won't have to eat a plain old turkey dinner for days in a row. Bring some variety to the table!

Christmas Dinner

Here is a picture of one of the plates of the amazing Christmas dinner my family and I had the great privilege of enjoying yesterday. My grandmother prepared most of this delicious food. She did have some help, as it would be nearly impossible to prepare such an excellent meal alone, but she did a lot of the work herself, and always made sure everyone's plate was full and everyone was satisfied. Our Christmas dinner included: peas, carrots, coleslaw, sweet potato, mashed potato, pickles, cranberry sauce, rolls, stuffing, gravy, and of course, turkey. This dinner was prepared for nearly twenty people. That's no small feat! The coleslaw, the gravy, and the cranberry sauce were all homemade from scratch by my grandmother. The vegetables were freshly prepared, cooked, and seasoned. And the turkey was freshly roasted.  We certainly indulged in a divine Christmas dinner, and I haven't even said a word about the delicious desserts...

Turkey Soup With Oat Dumplings

What could be better to warm you up on a crisp fall day other than a hearty bowl of soup? I got this recipe from a cooking magazine, although it used chicken. Since we had some leftover turkey pieces in the freezer and a few cups of stock I made with that turkey, I decided to make turkey soup. This is basically a traditional soup recipe with onions, carrots, and potatoes. Here, you also get the bread and soup all in one dish with the oat dumplings. The soup gets added flavor and tenderness from initially sauteeing the vegetables in butter, instead of just adding water/stock and boiling them. This also makes for quicker preparation, so the soup doesn't have to be simmering on the stove all day. Only for an hour or two. The soup turned out warm, spicy, and delicious; and the dumplings were tender and fluffy.