Friday, November 26, 2010

Mushroom Leek Stuffing

Yield: Serves 10 to 12 (serving size: 3/4 cup)

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound cremini mushrooms, quartered
2 leeks, halved lengthwise and sliced (light green and white parts only)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chopped celery
1 pound day-old sourdough bread cubes
1 1/2 to 2 cups reduced-sodium mushroom broth
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 350°. Heat oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Cook mushrooms, leeks, garlic, and celery until softened and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Put mixture into a large bowl; add bread.

Mix broth, eggs, salt, pepper, and parsley in a small bowl and pour over bread. Toss until bread is soaked, then turn into a greased 9- by 13-in. baking dish.

Bake stuffing until it feels firm to the touch and is starting to brown on top, about 45 minutes.

Cranberry Pomegranate Sauce

Prep Time 2 Minutes
Cook Time 15 Minutes Servings 12

Ingredients
1 bag (about 12 To 16 Oz) Fresh Cranberries
16 ounces, fluid Pomegranate Juice
¾ cups Sugar, More Or Less To Taste

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Mixture will thicken as it cooks, and will thicken more as it cools. I found this to be a thinner sauce than what I am used to but delicious- I would recommend adding a little bit of cornstarch to the mixture as it cooks to thicken a little.

Cool in a jar or bowl in the fridge. Serve with Thanksgiving turkey.

Turkey Brine


(thanksgiving a long long time ago...) In this photo: Mike, a hottie Grandma Schneider and I think part of Grandpa Tom's face

Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 15 Minutes

Ingredients
3 cups Apple Juice Or Apple Cider
2 gallons Cold Water
4 Tablespoons Fresh Rosemary Leaves
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
1-½ cup Kosher Salt
2 cups Brown Sugar
3 Tablespoons Peppercorns
5 whole Bay Leaves
Peel Of Three Large Oranges

You will need a mega pot for this!

Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve. Bring to a boil, then turn off heat and cover.
Allow to cool completely, then pour into a large brining bag or pot. Place uncooked turkey in brine solution, then refrigerate for 16 to 24 hours.

When ready to roast turkey, remove turkey from brine. Submerge turkey in a pot or sink of fresh, cold water. Allow to sit in clean water for 15 minutes to remove excess salt from the outside.

Discard brine. Remove turkey from clean water, pat dry, and cook according to your normal roasting method.

Cook turkey at 350, 15 minutes per pound (or until temperature reads 155 taken from thigh area). Cook covered in foil for first few hours. Take foil off for last hour brushing periodically with a little bit of butter. Take out and let sit at least 30 minutes before carving.

Pot Pie


This is one of the best pot pie recipes ever made- great with turkey or chicken

1 lb skinless chicken breast cubed (or turkey leftovers)
1 c sliced carrots
1 c frozen peas
1/2 c sliced celery
1/3 c butter
1/3 c chopped onion

1/3 c all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp celery seed
1-3/4 c chicken broth (veggie is also good)
2/3 c milk

2 unbaked pie crusts (I use the Pillsbury pre-made ones)

Preheat oven 375

In sauce pan over medium heat cook chicken, celery, carrots and peas. (recipe actually calls to boil them all but I prefer to use leftover meat so I just cook with a tablespoon of butter until slightly tender) Once cooked- set aside. You can also add diced cooked potato and corn for some variety.

In sauce pan over medium heat cook onions in butter until tender and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over med-low until thick. Remove from heat- set aside. *I like to double the sauce portion but it is a personal preference. Not all of it fits but add as much as you like.

Place chicken mixture in bottom of pie curst. pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust- seal edges, cut away excess dough. Make tiny slits in top to allow steam to escape.

Bake 35-45 minutes until top is golden brown and filling is bubbly.
Cool 10 minutes before serving.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Thanksgiving!

Looking forward to Thanksgiving! Lets hear about everyone's Thanksgiving adventures...
Lets not let the family blog fade away! Facebook isn't the same.