Food goodness

Best way to use our leftover smoked turkey from Thanksgiving. Adapted from this recipe .  Sauté 2 cloves garlic and 1 chopped onion in olive oil until translucent.  Add 1t each of poultry seasoning or thyme, garlic powder, and onion powder, plus some salt & pepper. Add a few rough-chopped carrots and celery stalks. Cook for a couple minutes. Cut the meat off of 2 smoked turkey legs — making sure to avoid the gross parts — and add it to the pot. Cook 3-5 minutes. Stir in one can of white northern beans, drained & rinsed.  Add 4-5c of chicken broth and bring to boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Cover with lid and simmer 45 minutes or longer (in slow cooker on high, or in regular stovetop pot).  Serve with cooked rice or pasta.

ha! right? This recipe (their title, not mine) was in the Sun back in July and it sounded perfect for a special occasion breakfast. K & T made these this weekend, though it wasn't even a special occasion. I just had the puff pastry dough burning a hole in my freezer and I thought about these every Sunday morning that went by for weeks. We marveled at the gooeyness. We exclaimed over the cinnamon nutty-toastiness. We were then an hour late to an actual special occasion (kid birthday party) and felt like we had a secret. I'm not even going to pretend this is a healthy recipe. Butter or cooking spray for (pans) 1/2 C chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted and cooled [We used 1 C walnuts, toasted in the toaster oven] 1/2 C sugar 1 1/2 t ground cinnamon 1 t finely grated orange zest [lemon worked great] 1/4 t salt 1 package all-butter puff pastry, defrosted Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prep: Butter or spray a 12 cup muffin tin. Mix: In a small bo...

Duh, right? Cranberries, sugar, water, cook, done. But this year, I tried a slight variation on Pioneer Woman's cranberry sauce , and I liked it better than my usual. A little more tart and a little more cranberry-y, because the water is replaced with juice. 2 14-oz bags of cranberries 2 cup cranberry juice 1 cup real maple syrup 1 cup white sugar 1/4 cup orange juice (she says lemon juice or any citrus zest would also work) Wash the cranberries and put them into a large-is saucepan. Throw in all the other ingredients, stir them together, and turn on high until it comes to a boil. After a minute or two, turn the heat down to medium and wait for it to reduce. PW says this should happen in 10 minutes; it took me more like 20 or 25. Stir occasionally. Remove from heat and pour immediately into a bowl or jar. Let cool before covering and refrigerating until whenever you want to eat it.

From: Brown Eyed Baker , who adapted it from Smitten Kitchen These are Guinness chocolate cupcakes with an Irish whiskey ganache filling, and Bailey's Irish Cream buttercream frosting.  BEB called these Irish Car Bomb cupcakes (after the same-named cocktail) and got totally flamed in her comments for the offensive name.  It looks like Smitten may have also called them car bomb cupcakes, but changed the name at some point, probably after protests.  So, call them what you want.  I took these to a St. Paddy's Day party last night and they were a big hit with the adults. For the Cupcakes : 1 cup Guinness stout 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature ¾ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups granulated sugar 1½ teaspoons baking soda ¾ teaspoons salt 2 eggs 2/3 cup sour cream For the Whiskey Ganache Filling : 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate 2/3 cup heavy cream 2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature 2 teaspoons Irish whiskey (...

Adapted from Piece of Cake . Makes about 2 lbs of candy and is rather addictive. Chocolate-y and peppermint-y deliciousness!  24 oz dark chocolate, either good quality chips (Ghiradelli 60%) or bar (I used TJ's Belgian dark chocolate), chopped 15 Peppermint Jo-Jo's from TJs or Oreos, crushed 3 oz. white chocolate 3/4 C crushed candy canes or Starlight mints (use 1 C if using plain oreos) Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil and set aside. In a large glass bowl, place chopped dark chocolate and microwave at 30 second intervals until chocolate is melted and smooth. Stir in cookie crumbs and pour onto baking sheet. Use an off-set spatula to spread chocolate mixture into an even layer. Sprinkle crushed candy cane bits all over chocolate in an even layer. In a small bowl, melt white chocolate in microwave in the same manner as dark chocolate. When melted, drizzle over chocolate and candy. Place baking sheet in fridge to firm up for at least 30 minutes. When fi...

We had our annual Christmas party this past weekend. I had lots of help in the kitchen this year (special thank-you shout-out to Kelly and Grg!) and we churned out some tasty treats! I had lots of people asking for recipes, and I directed them here, so I wanted to include a list of all the recipes they may be looking for. Here is what we served: Savory: Bacon-wrapped water chestnuts Pizza Bites Caramelized Onion and Apple Tarts Onion Dip from Scratch w/ crudites and honey-wheat pretzels Skinny Artichoke Dip with bruschetta pita chips Spanish Fig and Almond Balls , served with cheese board Cheese: brie, sharp cheddar, manchego, toscano, stilton w/cranberries variety of crackers, grapes, fig-orange marmalade, honey Sweet: Kahlua-Spiked Pecans Chocolate-covered Matzah Soft Molasses Cookies Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Apple pie (not homemade, ahem, sorry) Peppermint Crunch Bark

Adapted From: King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion Kelly used spiced rum-soaked raisins in this recipe - just pour some spiced rum over the raisins and heat briefly in the microwave so the raisins soak up the rum. Drain any excess liquid before you throw the raisins into the dough. You can skip that step - it wasn't part of the original recipe, but we thought it would be good. 2 1/4 cups (9 1/2 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking soda 3/4 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/2 cup vegetable shortening 4 tbsp butter 2 tbsp vegetable oil 2 1/4 cup brown sugar 2 large eggs 1/2 cup yogurt, plain or vanilla, reg, low-fat or nonfat 2 tsp vanilla extract 3 cups rolld oats 1 1/2 cups raisins spiced rum, optional, for plumping the raisins Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside. If you want to plump the raisins, put them in a large mug and cover with hot water, or pour a bit of spiced rum over the raisins ...

From: BBC Good Food I really liked this. Makes a delicious addition to your usual cheese board. I think many of our guests didn't know what to do with it (despite my helpful signage suggesting people try it with cheese and honey). My suggestion is to start with a cracker, top with a slice of cheese (manchego, perhaps), a slice of the fig cake, and then a drizzle of honey. Yum! These also make a nice gift - just tie up a couple in a cellophane bag. Please note that you need to make these in advance because you have to let them dry for about a week before you serve - otherwise they will be a sticky mess. Ingredients 100g whole almonds , toasted 500g pack dried whole figs , hard stalk and centre of base removed 85g dried apricots , chopped into small pieces 50g dried cranberries 1 tbsp brandy 1 tbsp clear honey 1 tsp ground cloves 100g sesame seeds , toasted Directions: Whizz the almonds in a food processor until most are finely chopped, then tip into a large bowl. Roughly ch...

Happy new year, friends! My old friend M first found this recipe and I've made it a few times over the last few years, and decided it's basically foolproof. J and I made it last night, and it was massive -- far bigger than a dinner plate -- and wildly delicious. Thanks, Diana ! She recommends plumping the raisins beforehand by covering with hot water or brandy or fruit juice and letting sit for 3 to 5 minutes. (She also has bread machine variations and a few others on her website.) Ingredients : 1 tsp. granulated sugar 1 1/2 cups warm water 2 packages (1/2 oz./4 1/2 tsp./14g) instant yeast or bread yeast 7 to 8 cups bread flour (approximately) 1/8 tsp. powdered saffron or a pinch of saffron threads (optional) 2 tsp. salt 1/4 cup honey 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup (4 oz./8 tbsp./113g) butter or margarine, melted (or 1/2 cup vegetable oil may be used) 3 whole eggs 2 egg yolks 1 1/4 cups golden raisins, plumped *(See below on How to Plump Raisins) Egg Wash: 1 egg yolk...

From: The Commissary Cookbook So, once upon a time in Philadelphia, there was a restaurant called The Commissary. Their carrot cake was famous. People still talk about it, even though the restaurant is long gone. If you search the interwebs for the best carrot cake recipe out there, you will probably find at least a few people talking about the Commissary carrot cake. Two years ago a friend mentioned to me that he really likes carrot cake, and asked if I had carrot cake on my agenda any time soon. I didn't, but I remembered the request, and when that person's 40th birthday came around a few weeks ago I made this cake for him. It's not SO different from any other carrot cake recipe, but it is very tasty and delicious. The cake itself is very moist and flavorful, and the pecan filling and cream cheese frosting are the perfect complements. Of course, my supervisor Karen (who gives me all the best baking recipes) directed me to this recipe, and she makes it ...

From: New Jewish Holiday Cookbook I made two versions of haroset for a seder on Thursday night. The first was a combination of apples, cinnamon, walnuts, honey and wine. It was good, but this version was better. Everyone loved this stuff and several people asked to take some of the extra home. I have a container of leftovers in my fridge (I made a double batch of both versions and it was way too much), and I had some for breakfast this morning, scooped up with pieces of matzoh. I also had some as a snack yesterday, spread on a rice cake. It makes a great snack. This version is easy to whip up in the food processor. 15 pitted dates, cut in half 1 large apple, peeled, cored, cut into eighths 1 medium navel orange, peeled, cut into chunks 1 cup any kind of raisins 1/2 cup walnut or pecan pieces 1/2 cup slivered almonds about 2 Tbsp sweet red Pesach wine (any type) additional navel orange slices for garnish, optional Put the dates, apple, orange, raisins, walnuts and almonds into a ...

From: The New Jewish Holiday Cookbook 4 cups bread flour 2 to 3 cups unbleached flour, divided 2 packets (4 1/2 tsp) fast-acting dry yeast 1/3 cup sugar 2 tsp salt 4 large eggs, divided, or 8oz egg substitute 1/3 cup canola oil 1 1/2 cups hot water (120 to 130 degrees- no hotter) approx 1 tsp poppy or sesame seeds, optional Mixer Method: In the large bowl (5 qt or larger) bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer (ie, KitchenAid or similar) with a dough hook, put the bread flour, 1 cup of the unbleached flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients by holding the hook in your hand and using it to stir. Measure out 3/4 cup of the egg substitute, or use 3 eggs, lightly beaten. Add the 3 eggs (or egg sub) and oil to the flour mixture and stir in with the hook. It is not necessary to mix well at this point. Finally, add the hot water to the bowl and stir in. Set the bowl into the mixer and attach the dough book. Turn the mixer to kneading speed. As the dough kneads, lightly sprin...

Adapted from: Joy of Baking This was gorgeous! I will definitely make this again when I want a dessert with great presentation value. It wasn't too difficult, but it looked like a bakery purchase. I actually used a different recipe for the crust, because I had to make this gluten-free. I made a crust of crushed pecans, sugar, cinnamon and melted butter and pressed it into a tart pan. I used a gluten-free all-purpose flour in the pastry cream, also, but it all turned out well. I think this tart would also be good with a shortbread-cookie type crust, or a crust with ground almonds, too. Or just a regular tart/pie crust. Use any kind of fruit you want. I made concentric rings of different fruit - halved strawberries around the outer edge, then alternating raspberries and blueberries, then mandarin oranges, with kiwi in the middle. I really like the color combination of the red berries, oranges and bright green kiwi, but use whatever kind of fruit you want. (Click on the lin...

From: Serious Eats Yum! This is a tasty, sweet alternative to mashed potatoes. I still have a ton of carrots from the CSA that I wanted to use up, and this will go well with the pork chops on the menu for tomorrow. I think it would also be a good side dish for fall/winter holidays. 16 ounces carrots (about 4 medium)peeled and cut into 1/2-inch rounds 12 ounces sweet potato (about 2 medium), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces Kosher salt 2 tablespoons butter 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 1/3 cup unpacked light brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or allspice 1/2 cup raisins Place carrots in medium pot and just cover with salted water. Over high heat, bring to a boil. Add sweet potatoes. Once boiling again, reduce heat to a rolling simmer and cook until carrots and sweet potatoes are tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain. When carrots and sweet potatoes have 3 minutes left to cook, melt butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add brown sugar and applesauce and quickly stir to combine...

Geoff and I made this for Thanksgiving, and it was a hit. Bonus #1: it's done in the crock pot, which frees up your oven. Bonus #2: it makes the house smell really good. Source: Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker: Recipes for Entertaining, by Beth Hensperger Serves 6-8 Size of slow cooker: medium or large round or oval (Hensperger defines medium as 3-4.5 quarts and large as 5-7 quarts). Setting and cook time: Low for 6-7 hours * 2 pounds yams, peeled and sliced 1/2 inch thick * 2 medium-size tart cooking apples, such as Fuji or pippin, peeled, cored, quartered, and sliced 1/2 inch thick * one 12-ounce bag fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems * 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar * 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon * 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg * 1/2 cup unfiltered apple or pear juice (see note below) * 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits 1. Coat the inside of the crock with butter or nonstick cooking spray. Alternate slices of the yams and apples in the crock,...

Yum! Yuuuuuuummmmmmmmm! These were really super awesome good. Very easy, take no time at all to make, and your house will smell amazing. Adapted from: Culinary in the Desert 1 cup granulated sugar (a little less would probably be fine, too) 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 large egg white 4 tablespoons Kahlua 4 cups pecan halves Preheat oven to 325 In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, cinnamon and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together egg white and Kahlua. Add pecans and stir well to combine. Sprinkle half the sugar mixture on top - mix well. Pour the rest of the sugar on top and stir until completely combined. Scoop the mixture onto a large baking sheet lined with foil and coated with nonstick spray. Spread the pecans to an even single layer. Bake until pecans are lightly toasted and browned, stirring every 10 minutes - about 20 to 25 minutes total. Remove from the oven and scoop the hot pecans onto wax or parchment paper to cool completely.

adapted just slightly from: Annie's Eats My first attempt at a recipe that requires a candy thermometer! These were actually very easy to make, and I am going to put them in the goody boxes that I give to my coworkers on Friday (along with a couple of kinds of cookies). I used fleur de sel from Williams-Sonoma, because I wasn't sure if the regular coarse sea salt that I already had in my cabinet would be too salty or not. I even had to substitute some of the sugar for turbinado, because I was inexplicably out of sugar. I ended up using about 1/2 regular and 1/2 turbinado, and it still turned out just fine. Yield: 64 caramels Ingredients: 1 cup heavy cream 5 tbsp. unsalted butter ½ tsp. vanilla extract 1 vanilla bean pod, split lengthwise and scraped 1¼ tsp. fleur de sel, plus more for sprinkling 1½ cups sugar ¼ cup light corn syrup ¼ cup water Directions: Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly butter the parchment. In a sma...

I could use some expert counsel from my favorite expert cooking counselors. This year, we're going to DC for our annual friends-and-fun Thanksgiving meal (after the real holiday instead of before), and there are some unusual constraints: 1. Driving down on a Saturday for a wedding, staying overnight in a hotel, making the meal on Sunday. The hotel does not have a refrigerator. This means that the before-the-fact prep has to be pretty limited... I think we might buy and brine the turkey and bring it down in a cooler (in fact, last year we brined the turkey overnight in the trunk of my car anyway to keep it away from critters, so that's actually not unprecedented). But everything else is a little more of a challenge -- I don't have enough cooler space for dishes with dairy products, for example, and that would make me too nervous anyway. I obviously don't want the meal to end with a nice bout of food poisoning for all my favorite people. 2. We'll probably have six hou...

For Christmas this past year, I gave my husband the book, Lidia's Italian American Kitchen , which is a collection of recipes by beloved restaurateur and PBS TV chef, Lidia Bastianich. I gave him 12 post-its and the promise that I'd make the recipes he marked, one for each month. These calzones were his Father's Day dinner along with stuffed zucchini, which I'll post later. My notes are in italics. I think filled foods are extremely festive. I love making potstickers, pupusas, samosas, and now these. I make recipes like these only for special occasions -- probably because of the time commitment -- because I think they say "I love you" in their own little pocket of delicious surprises way. I'll post the pupusa and samosa recipes soon too. Calzones Makes about 15 4” calzones ( at LEAST! ) 1 lb fresh ricotta or one 15 oz. container of whole-mild ricotta Pizza Dough ( see below ) 2 medium leeks, white and light-green parts only, trimmed and cleaned 3 T extra-v...

Sorry for all the Passover dessert recipes, but it's that time of year (and I was in charge of dessert for our mini-seder). I'd never made a cheesecake before and felt a little absurdly proud of myself about this one... there is a definite leap of faith involved, because it's impossible to tell if it's done or not, but I followed the directions exactly, and it set just fine. And no one got salmonella. That I know of, anyway. For the crust, I Passover-ized it by taking 2 c coconut macaroons and mixing them with 3 T melted butter, and then pressing it into the pan. You don't have to go up the sides; the cheesecake adheres to itself and you don't need any crust on the outside. A graham cracker crust would probably be even more delicious. Make crumb crust as directed. Preheat oven to 350°F. Make filling and bake cake: Beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until fluffy and add eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla and sugar, beating on low speed until each ingredient i...