Giving Thanks

I am currently too pregnant to travel so, my husband, daughter and I will be spending this Thanksgiving at home, just the three of us (with our two dogs salivating all over the sliding glass door no doubt). I managed to find a turkey under twelve pounds and today made most of the dishes that have popped up on the pages of this site as of late. My daughter was gracious enough to take a really long nap which gave me the opportunity to spend some me-time in the kitchen reflecting on all of the things I have to be thankful for: my husband who balances me, my daughter who makes me feel like a kid, my other daughter who keeps kicking me in the ribs just to make sure I know she’s there, my German Shepherd who protects us and our little lab mutt who has found a super-secret hole in the fence and brought a potted ivy plant to me this morning and set it beside my car with someone else’s paper and the next door neighbor’s wallet (how sweet).  I have been truly blessed in this life with the kind of family love everyone deserves to experience. I consider myself very lucky. I will miss my family terribly tomorrow and relish in the creation of Skype, so at least I’ll be able to say hi in person. My home is now quiet and the pumpkin pie just came out of the oven.  I’ll fall asleep reflecting on all of the people , experiences and  things  who have made me who I am today. I hope they all know how much I truly love them. And as I expected, (or, more accurately, as Mom predicted) the ‘best rolls ever’ did not come out of this evening wholly intact and so, I’m thankful the recipe serves eighteen. Good night and happy Thanksgiving.

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Mom’s Cranberry Chutney

I have to be honest, I’m not all that big on cranberries. I can only take them in small doses and the cranberry sauce that comes out of a can just gives me the willies. (I don’t like gummy bears either.) But, this is delicious. Mom told me that this sauce is perfect for canning, something I’ll have to investigate as I know nothing about canning food safety so I’ll take her word for it. Without further ado, Mom’s extra special Cranberry Chutney.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 small onion cut into 8 wedges

1 large clove garlic minced

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

4 whole cloves

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 roasted habanero or serrano chile, stem removed and de-seeded

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup brown sugar

2-3 cups whole cranberries, rinsed and drained

 

Place all ingredients up to the roasted chile into a 4 1/2 quart saucepan and bring to a low boil. Boil for for 5 minutes. Add pecans, brown sugar and cranberries, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries begin to pop.

 

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Chiles Asados

Tortilla Warmer with Serranos Roasting

 

Another staple in the Kauachi house. These are good on anything. They are especially good on a big fat juicy steak but they are, honest and for true, good on anything. I lived off of them in college. Chiles asados and a sleeve of saltines were routine fare for me. I had more important things to spend my money on like clothes, and beer. I know it’s crazy talk but it’s true.

 

Ingredients:

 

5-6 chiles, serranos or habaneros (or jalapenos if you’re a sissy)

2 really fresh limes

salt to taste

 

Roast your chiles until they are about 70%-80% charred. Cut off the stems and cut the chiles up in a small bowl. Squeeze the juice of both limes into the bowl. Add salt to taste. Take a fork and smoosh the chiles around in the lime juice. Serve as an accompaniment to anything: meats, veggies, eggs, pastas, tortillas, you name it.

 

 

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Timing Your Turkey Day

We all have those people in our lives who, no matter what, are always able to make a huge meal for several friends and have everything ready all at once. With practice, it can be done. There are a few ‘Type A’ personalities in my family and each person’s OCD behaviors manifest themselves differently. My brother: books, cd’s, movies all organized by genre and then alphabetized. Even his freezer looks like a library. (A library of Mexican frozen goodness I’m sure he would say.) Mom and I lean toward a more organized chaos and focus our OCD on specific tasks like spring cleaning or ironing pillow cases. Mom’s less OCD than I am since we get it all from Pop, but no one is as obsessive compulsive, I mean organized, as my sister. I will never, ever forget arriving at her house for Thanksgiving one year and as I walked through the dining room I noticed post-its in all of the serving dishes and a time table, down to the minute, of to-dos for lunch to be ready on time and all at once. So that’s how she does it. She must have forgotten to hide all the notes.

 

If you can make it a day or two ahead, go for it. Then all you have to do is heat it up. Make up to two days ahead: desserts, cranberries, hot sauces. Make a day ahead: creamed corn, stuffing, rolls, herb butter. Things that are best left to T-Day: the turkey obviously, chiles asados and the gravy. Since the turkey will be tented after being removed from the oven for at least 30 minutes, that gives you ample time to throw the stuffing, creamed corn and rolls into the oven all at once to heat up. I keep the oven at 350 degrees and put the stuffing and corn in right after I remove the turkey and then about 15 minutes later, I’ll put in the rolls. By the time you’re ready to carve the turkey, everything else will also be ready to go.

 

Good luck and Godspeed.

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Pumpkin Pie

As I perused the paper this evening a daunting headline caught my eye, Nestle Apologizes for Canned Pumpkin Shortage. Oh no. Not the pumpkin. It’s one of the few pregnant lady cravings I don’t feel completely guilty indulging. Not to worry, canned pumpkin certainly makes life a lot easier but cooking a pumpkin pie from scratch really isn’t all that difficult. Just give yourself an extra hour to cook and mash your own pumpkin. You want to look for a small ‘sugar’ or ‘pie pumpkin. They’re smaller and denser than a decorative pumpkin and actually have flavor. Look for one that’s a deep orange color. I’m a huge fan of Penzey’s Spices and always use their Extra Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon in all of my recipes that call for the spice. You can use a little less than the recipe calls for because it is very strong and I highly recommend all of their spices.

 

How to Prepare a Pumpkin for Pie Making:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut pumpkin in half and scoop out seeds and all of the stringy bits. Place pumpkin flesh side down in about an inch of water in a baking pan and cook for about 50 minutes or until flesh is really tender. Remove from oven and scoop out pumpkin flesh. If it’s a really good pumpkin, the flesh will mash easily with a potato masher but you may have to puree it in a blender. (You can freeze any extra.)

 

Ingredients:

 

1 9 inch pie crust (I have a personal preference for graham cracker)

2 cups pumpkin

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp allspice

pinch cloves

1 2/3 cup milk

 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and blend until smooth. Pour into crust and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake for 45-50 more minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

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Serrano Cornbread Stuffing

You can’t have Thanksgiving without stuffing. This recipe is kind of an all inclusive side dish type stuffing and it’s completely irresistible. If you want to lower the heat index, use jalapenos instead of the serrano chiles.

 

Ingredients:

 

2 onions, chopped

2 cups celery, chopped

1/4 cup (or less) chopped serranos or jalapenos

olive oil

1-2 links of your favorite sausage

pepper

1 package wild rice, cooked according to directions

1 big bag Pepperidge Farm Cornbread stuffing mix prepared according to directions (use chicken stock instead of water)

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Over medium high heat, saute onions, celery and chiles in 1-2 tablespoons olive oil until onion begins to turn transparent. Add sliced sausage and saute a few minutes more, then crack fresh ground pepper over it and saute for another minute.  Mix together the onion mixture, cooked wild rice and stuffing in a big bowl. Transfer to greased baking dish and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until heated through and browned on top.

 

 

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Apple Tarte with Pastry Creme

During our many travels through France, I noticed just how many desserts where made with a pastry creme. We do it stateside too but our pastry creme tends to be thicker, stiffer. This is one of two desserts I developed while living with my parents. I had taken to cooking because there really isn’t a whole lot to do in Vail other than hang out at home or go down to ‘The Club’ and play Foosball. Don’t get me wrong, I played plenty of Foosball but our home was much cozier. And who cooks at midnight anyway?

 

The Pastry Creme

Ingredients:

 

1 cup sugar

5 egg yolks

2/3 cup sifted flour

2 cups boiling milk

1 tblsp butter

2 tsp vanilla

3 tblsp Calvados (see ‘A What?’ tab)

Powdered Sugar for dusting (will be used last)

 

Beat sugar and egg yolks for 2-3 minutes until thick and pale yellow. Beat in flour. While beating constantly, slowly pour boiling milk in a thin stream of droplets into egg mixture. Once combined, pour into saucepan and set over moderately high heat. Stir with balloon whisk until it reaches a boil. Reduce heat to low for 2-3 minutes to cook the flour. Do not scorch. (Pastry Creme will reduce in volume and thicken.) Remove from heat and beat in butter, vanilla and Calvados. Dot top with softened butter to prevent from skinning and place in refrigerator.

 

The Apples

Ingredients:

 

4 crisp green apples, cored, peeled and sliced (set aside about 12 apple slices for decoration)

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

1 tblsp cognac

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

 

Pate Sucree (Sweet Pastry Tart Shell)

Ingredients:

 

3 1/3 cups flour

13 tblsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2 egg yolks

1 tsp salt

1 tblsp + 1 tsp sugar

1 tblsp Calvados

5 tblsp cold water

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift flour into a well. In the center place butter, yolk, salt, sugar, Calvados and water. With fingers, mix together ingredients inside well and gradually draw in flour from the sides. Work in flour until coarse crumbs form. Gather dough into a neat ball and knead vigorously for 1-2 minutes. Shape dough into a ball, wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes or until firm. Working quickly, roll out on generously floured surface to about 1/8 inch thick.  (You will have a substantial amount of pastry left over, you will use this for decoration.) Place a 10 inch tart pan with a false bottom on a baking sheet. Line the  pan with dough making sure to pinch into corners (don’t forget to pick it up by the sides if you move it.)   Pinch off excess dough at the top of the pan, roll into a ball and refrigerate. Line bottom of pastry shell with parchment paper and dried beans. Bake for 8-9 minutes. Remove lining and beans, prick bottom of shell with a fork a few times to keep it from rising. Bake an additional 2-3 minutes more.

 

Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees. Line bottom of tart shell with coated apples. Bake in upper 1/3 of the oven for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. While apples are cooling, make pastry roses and leaves with remaining dough: Roll out dough on floured surface. Cut 4 squares approximately 3×3 inches in size. Layer and pull corners together in one hand. Cut a ‘+’ shape in the top of the rose with a knife and arrange petals. Trim bottom. Cut out a few leaves.  Pour custard over apples and return to oven for 10 minutes until creme begins to puff. Decorate with apple slices and pastry roses and leaves. Dust heavily with powdered sugar and return to oven for 15-20 minutes more then broil on high for 1 minute. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely in the refrigerator. Place tart pan on a large coffee can to separate tart sides from pan.

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Laura’s Best Rolls Ever

Whenever my sister sends an email addressed solely to my brother and me and the subject line simply reads, “Best. Rolls. Ever.”, and there is no other text in the body of the email, I pay attention. So here they are, the best rolls ever. And the best thing about them, no kneading.

 

Ingredients:

 

2 cups warm water

2 packages active dry yeast

1/4 cup sugar

4 tablespoons butter, melted plus more for pan and brushing

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/2 tsp salt

6 cups flour plus more for shaping dough

 

Pour warm water into large bowl and sprinkle yeast over the top. Let stand until foamy about 5 minutes. Add sugar, butter, eggs and salt and whisk to combine. Add flour and mix until sticky dough forms. Brush top of dough with melted butter and cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place until dough has doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Turn dough onto a well floured surface. With floured hands roll dough into a thick log and cut dough into 18 equal pieces. Brush a 9×13 baking pan with butter. One at a time, flatten each piece of dough and then fold edges to the center, pressing to secure until a smooth ball forms. Place balls in baking pan, smooth side up…3 rows of 6. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled 30-40 minutes. In the meantime, preheat oven to 400. Remove plastic, brush rolls with butter and place in oven and bake 35-40 min. Tent with foil if browning too quickly. Brush with butter 1 more time and serve.

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Herb Butter

This is another one that makes for a pretty presentation. I like to use those ceramic butter molds shaped like cows or you can make individual pats of butter using flexible candy molds found at baking or craft stores.

 

Ingredients:

 

1/2 cup English butter, softened

1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, minced

1 tsp fresh sage, minced

 

In a small bowl mix together all ingredients. Press into ceramic mold, candy mold or dish. Refrigerate until hardened. To release from ceramic mold, dip into really hot water for a few seconds before turning out onto plate. To release from a candy mold, just wiggle it around a little bit to loosen pats.

 

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Roasted Cornish Games Hens

Their title is deceiving, they are hens but they are not game birds. Also called the Poussin or Rock Cornish, it’s really just a small chicken. These are great if you are not into the whole turkey thing and want something easy to cook for Thanksgiving. They also make for a really pretty presentation. There are a lot of things you can do depending on the flavors that are striking your fancy. You can go citrusy or savory, sweet or spicy; any recipe you see for turkey can be adjusted to fit the size of your bird be it a full sized chicken or a game hen.  In sticking with the rest of this menu, we’ll go with a little rosemary garlic stuffing. The ingredients will be measured per hen in this recipe.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 Cornish game hen

2 cloves of garlic

1/4 of an onion

1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

3 fresh sage leaves, chopped

olive oil

poultry seasoning

salt and pepper

a sprig or two of fresh rosemary and some fresh cranberries for garnish

 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash hen in cold water inside and out and pat exterior dry with paper towel. Give the little hen a mini rubdown with a generous amount of olive oil. Place in the cavity: peeled garlic cloves, onion, 3/4 of the rosemary and sage. Sprinkle the outside of the hen with poultry seasoning, salt, pepper and remaining herbs. Arrange in a roasting pan on a rack (or small aluminum foil ‘s’ shapes) and roast for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and roast for an additional 25 minutes or until juices run clear. The same principles apply here, the less disturbed the oven, the juicier the bird. Be sure to tent the birds with foil for at least 10 minutes upon removal from the oven before serving. Garnish with rosemary sprigs and cranberries.

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