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Archive for the ‘Thanksgiving’ Category

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Carrot-Ginger Soup, St. Peter’s Abbey, Salzburg

In Recipes, Soups, Thanksgiving on November 29, 2014 at 3:02 PM

Carrot-Ginger Soup Stiftskeller St. Peter

Carrot-Ginger Soup at Stiftskeller St. Peter

(Preparation and cooking time, about 2 hours; makes 2 quarts)

Last month, traveling with friends up the Danube River on a Viking River Cruise we had some great meals in the different cities and towns that were on the tour. One such meal was at St. Peter Stiftskeller, the restaurant of St. Peter’s Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in the heart of Salzburg, Austria.

Stiftskeller St. Pter

Stiftskeller St. Peter

The restaurant bills itself as the oldest one in Europe, having served travelers for more that 1200 years. The décor was just what you would expect, cozy and inviting. It was, in all, a serendipitous discovery, the service was impeccable and the food was outstanding. If you go to Salzburg, do not miss it.

Europe's Oldest Resturant

Europe’s Oldest Restaurant

The weather that day was rainy and chilly and the first course, a bowl of outstanding carrot-ginger soup was the perfect antidote. Our waiter was kind enough to inform us of the main ingredients, but would not share the proportions or and other directions. We served this soup as a first course on Thanksgiving this year, having re-constructed it by trial and error. I think this very closely matches St. Peter’s Stiftskeller Carrot-Ginger Soup. Gut Essen!

Ingredients:

2 lbs. of carrots, peeled and sliced into ½ inch disks
1 bulb of fennel (anise) trimmed, halved and quartered
2 quarts of vegetable stock
3 Tbsps. of caramelized ginger*
•  3 Tbsps. unsalted butter
• A 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped fine in a mini food processor.
8 oz. of Crème Fraîche

Procedure:

1. Place the carrots and fennel in a 5-quart pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil; cook on high until carrots are fork tender.
2. Transfer the carrots and fennel to a food processor in batches, pulse until finely chopped. Dump the water from the pot and return the chopped carrots and fennel to the pot.
3. Add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Cook until reduced by about ¼, approximately 30 minutes.
4. With a large slotted spoon, transfer the solids, in batches, to a blender, add a few scoops of the stock and puree until smooth.
5. Add the caramelized ginger and puree again.
6. Return the pureed vegetables to the stock, whisk well and bring to a boil on low heat.
7. Whisk in the crème fraîche and heat thoroughly.
8. Serve hot, or let cool and refrigerate overnight.

For the caramelized ginger:

1. Melt 3 Tbsps. of unsalted butter in a non-stick skillet.
2. Add 3 Tbsps. of chopped ginger and cook on medium heat until well caramelized.

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With Thanksgiving but a Week Away…

In General Articles, Recipes, Thanksgiving on November 15, 2012 at 10:01 AM

…if, you are still planning your Thanksgiving menu, perhaps we can be of assistance. Last year we posted our traditional family Thanksgiving recipes; here we link them in this update, which we hope that you will find helpful.

Ready and Waiting for the Carving Knife

This year, as our long-time close friends, Marge & Dan, as well as their 3 children and their families will be joining us, we will have 22 at table. Accordingly, we will be doubling up on the Roast Stuffed Turkey with Dorothea’s Italian Sausage and Mushroom Stuffing, and tripling up on the sides of Fresh Cranberry Sauce, Bourbon Sweet Potatoes and Brussel Sprouts Roasted with Hazelnuts.

Fresh Cranberry Sauce

Roasted Brussel sprouts with Hazelnuts

In addition to sharing this special meal with special friends, we will enjoy the added bonus of a double quantity of Turkey Soup after the feast is but a happy memory.

Turkey Soup with Cheese Tortelloni

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our subscribers and readers!

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Bourbon Sweet Potatoes

In Recipes, Thanksgiving, Vegetables on December 4, 2011 at 4:04 PM

Ingredients:

3 lbs. sweet potatoes
1 cup light brown sugar
½ stick sweet butter
¼ cup orange juice
½ cup bourbon

Preparation:

1.    Par-boil sweet potatoes for 15 minutes until fork can gently pierce them, remove the skins when cooled and slice them into  1/2 inch  thick pieces.
2.    In a separate pot, mix together the sugar, butter, orange juice, and bourbon and simmer for 5 minutes.
3.    Place sliced sweet potatoes in a baking pan.
4.    Pour the mixture over them, cover with aluminum foil and bake in oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees, remove foil and bake additional 15 minutes.

Please also see: The Turkey that Keeps Giving

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Dorothea’s Italian Sausage and Mushroom Stuffing

In Recipes, Thanksgiving on December 4, 2011 at 4:02 PM

Preparation time: 1 hour with 2 people preparing the stuffing. Makes about 6 qts., which is enough for a 20 lb. turkey with several cups leftover.

Ingredients:
2 14oz. bags of Herb Seasoned Stuffing
3 lbs. of Italian sausages, casings removed and discarded, meat crumbled up*
4 large onions, coarsely chopped – about 6 cups
2 lbs. Crimini mushrooms, sliced – about 10 cups**
¾ cup of chopped fresh sage
¼ cup chopped fresh thyme, stems removed and discarded
½ lb. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 tbsps. Bell’s Poultry Seasoning
2 tbsps. ground black pepper
8 cups of boiled water

Preparation:

1.    In a large non-stick skillet, fry the crumbled sausage meat on medium heat until all of the pink color is gone.
2.    Empty stuffing bags into an 8 qt. bowl or pot.
3.    Add 5 cups of boiled water and mix well.
4.    Remove the cooked sausage meat with a slotted spoon, leaving the rendered fat behind in the skillet. Add the sausage meat to the stuffing and mix well.
5.    Melt 1 stick of the butter in the sausage fat and sauté the onions for about 5 minutes on medium low heat.
6.    Add the sage and thyme to the onions, stirring well and continue sautéing until onions are translucent. Transfer the onions to the stuffing and mix well.
7.    Melt the remaining stick of butter in the skillet, add the mushrooms and sauté on high for about 10 minutes until the mushrooms give off their liquid and it evaporates. Transfer the mushrooms to the stuffing and mix well.
8.    Add the remaining 3 cups of boiled water to the stuffing mixture, so that it is easily mixed.
9.    Add the Bell’s Seasoning and pepper and continue to mix well.
10.    Set the stuffing aside until ready to stuff the turkey.

Timesaving hints:
*If you can find it, buy loose sausage meat
**If you can find them, buy pre-sliced Baby Bella mushrooms

Please also see: The Turkey that Keeps Giving

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Roast Stuffed Turkey

In Recipes, Thanksgiving on December 4, 2011 at 4:01 PM

Ingredients:

20 pound Fresh Free Range Turkey
Dorothea’s Italian Sausage and Mushroom Stuffing
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 cups of dry red wine

Preparation:

1.    Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and packaging about 2 hours before ready to cook.
2.    Remove the neck and gizzards from the turkey cavities.
3.    Rinse the inside and outside of the turkey and pat it dry.
4.    Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees and position the rack so that there will be a couple of inches above the turkey for the air to circulate.
5.    When the oven temperature reaches 450 degrees, stuff both turkey cavities with the stuffing, being careful to not pack it too tight so that the heat circulates inside the cavities. Secure the stuffing in the neck cavity with the skin flap, using two small skewers.
6.    Sprinkle the skin with salt and pepper.
7.    Place the stuffed turkey on a rack in a large roasting pan and place in the oven.
8.    Roast at 450 degrees for 20 minutes to seal in the juices.
9.    Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and set timer for 1 hour and 40 minutes.
10.    After the two hours in the oven, pour 2 cups of wine over the turkey and rotate the pan 180 degrees. Continue roasting for 1 hour, then pour 2 more cups of red wine over the turkey and reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. At this point the turkey will have been roasting for 3 hours and should be ready in about another 60 to 90 minutes. So set the timer for 30 minutes and then baste the turkey with the pan drippings every 30 minutes until ready to remove from the oven.
11.    The turkey is done when a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 175 degrees, probably 4 & ½ hours
12.    Remove the rack from the oven and place it and the turkey on a large platter, cover with aluminum foil and prepare the gravy.

For the Gravy:

1.    Make a broth from the neck and gizzards. Place them in a 3 qt. pot, add 4 large whole shallots, 1 tablespoon of whole peppercorns, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and cover with water. Bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer. Cook until reduced to 2 cups. Strain and remove the liquid to a container and wash out the pot.
2.    When the turkey has been removed from the roasting pan, strain the drippings into a fat separator. Combine the de-fatted, strained drippings and the 2 cups of broth in the roasting pan. Place the pan across two burners on the stove and bring to a boil add 1cup of red wine and  whisk in 3/8 cup of Wondra flour. Stir and boil down to desired thickness.

Please also see: The Turkey that Keeps Giving

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Turkey Soup

In Recipes, Soups, Thanksgiving on December 4, 2011 at 4:00 PM

Turkey Soup with Cheese Tortelloni

Ingredients:

Reserved turkey carcass, skin, bones and meat scraps, as well as any stuffing and gravy that you don’t want to save for leftovers
2 large onions, peeled and quartered
3 stalks of celery, including leaves, cut into thirds
4 carrots, skin left on and cut into quarters

Preparation:

1.    Place all of the ingredients in a 16 qt. pot, cover with water and bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer covered for 1 hour.
2.    Remove cover and continue simmering for 2 more hours or until the meat falls of the bones.
3.    Strain the soup out and discard all of the solids.
4.    When cooled, place soup in refrigerator overnight.
5.    The next morning skim off and discard all of the gelatinous fat that has formed on the top.
6.    Heat the soup; add any cut up leftover turkey and gravy.
7.    Serve with separately cooked tortelloni, tortellini, ditalini, ditali, elbow macaroni or pastina, whatever is your choice, as well as grated Pecorino – Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Please also see: The Turkey that Keeps Giving

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The Turkey That Keeps Giving

In General Articles, Recipes, Thanksgiving on December 4, 2011 at 3:59 PM

Here it is nine full days after Thanksgiving and we are still enjoying the gifts given up by our 21 pound Plainville Farms Thanksgiving turkey. The turkey dinner and its side dishes are but a memory.  The leftovers of hot turkey sandwiches smothered in gravy, accompanied by re-heated stuffing and the counterpoint of tart cranberry sauce, as well as cold turkey sandwiches on rye bread slathered with homemade Russian dressing disappeared days ago; and now the last of the Turkey Soup is gone as well. I have had my fill of Tom Turkey and if I don’t meet him again until next Thanksgiving, that will be just fine with me. But it is remarkable how many meals one can squeeze out of a single bird.

Our Thanksgiving feast this year started out with a gift of more than two dozen deliciously sweet and briny East Dennis Oysters™ compliments of John and Stephanie Lowell of the East Dennis Oyster Farm and our mutual friend Serge. I first became acquainted with these briny delights in Biloxi, Mississippi while on the payroll of Uncle Sam and stationed at Keesler AFB. Having had a long established relationship with another hard-shelled creature of the sea, Cherrystone clams, I never felt the need to meet their cousin. But clams were not readily available on the Gulf Coast, while oysters were in abundance, thus began a long-standing conflict; clams or oysters or both!

I am an able-bodied clam shucker, but never developed the skill of oyster shucking, so have always had to depend on the kindness of strangers. Our son-in-law, having grown up on the North Shore of Boston and on Martha’s Vineyard, is a skilled oyster shucker. He was assigned the task of prying these creatures from their shells, and as you can see from the picture, did a remarkable job in doing so.

Original East Dennis Oysters™

My wife, bravely tried her first raw oyster, but happily for the rest of us, demurred from having a second. As a result, our two daughters, son-in-law and I finished them off in a flash, washing them down with a well-chilled bottle of Crémant de Loire.

By the time we finished off the oysters, the main meal was ready. The Roast Turkey, having been filled with Dorothea’s Italian Sausage and Mushroom Stuffing, was waiting to be carved.

Ready and Waiting for the Carving Knife

I dutifully performed that task while my wife readied the delicious Bourbon Sweet Potatoes and the additional side dishes of Brussel Sprouts Roasted with Hazelnuts and Cranberry Sauce. The latter was prepared by following the recipe on the bag of fresh cranberries, as opposed to opening a can.

Fresh Cranberry Sauce

Sitting around our harvest table, with no gift-giving, or tinsel, or Christmas music to distract my thoughts, I reflected upon how fortunate I was to be surrounded by the love of our ever-growing family, which over the past 40 years has grown from two to seven.