A Vintage Recipe for Left Over Turkey

The World's Cutest and Smartest Goats:  Poppy & Willow

I can only hope that all of you had as wonderful a Thanksgiving as we did!  Spending time with our dear friends at their beautiful Farm and B n B in the Lehigh Valley (www.larkenspringsfarm.com) is definitely the best anecdote for whatever may ail us or have us stressed out. Cooking a huge feast together, walking in the woods, watching the chickens and the goats frolic, and sleeping in total silence (well, except for the roosters!) is pure bliss.  And, with every visit to the farm, I learn a little bit more.  We are always so grateful and I always return tinkering with ideas for applying what I learn in the country to our urban homestead.

This year we had a beautiful organic, heirloom turkey from the Koch's  Family which we purchased through Fair Food Farmstand in the Reading Terminal Market. Our Turkey weighed in at 22 pounds!  We had a fabulous dinner with all of the fixins, including some "traditional" dishes that my better half and I have foisted upon our friends over the years. Of course, our Friday after Thanksgiving dinner consisted of turkey sandwiches piled high. As you may have guessed, each of our freezers currently has a good deal of sliced turkey, stuffing, and fabulous turkey stock waiting for our "next round" of turkey cravings.

Along with Turkey Noodle Soup, the one recipe that I will be doing and soon - possibly this weekend - is Turkey Tetrazzini.  The recipe I have been using for years is originally from the Betty Crocker Cookbook (1969 edition), given to me by my Grandmother when I moved out on my own.  I still refer to this great old cookbook for a number of old standards, along with this recipe.

Recipe:  Turkey Tetrazzini

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter - original calls for butter OR margarine!  It's old I told you!
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup turkey stock
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sherry - although not specified in the recipe, dry sherry works best
7 ounces cooked spaghetti
2 cups cubed turkey
3 - 4 ounces of sliced "button"mushrooms - the original calls for 1- 3 oz can of sliced mushrooms but I just can't!
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

Heat oven to 350 degrees
Melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat; blend in the flour, pepper and salt.
Cook over low heat, stirring until the mixture is smooth and bubbly (it's a roux basically)
Remove the sauce pan from the heat; Stir in the turkey stock and the heavy cream.
Heat the mixture to boiling, stirring constantly - Boil and stir for one minute
Stir in the sherry, spaghetti, turkey and mushrooms

Pour the mixture into an ungreased 2 quart casserole.
Sprinkle the cheese all over the top.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
If you wish to brown the top, place it briefly under the broiler.

Makes 6 servings

There is absolutely no need to change anything - well maybe the mushrooms, but you can still used canned if you want to be a purist!  I have doubled this recipe many times; it's a crowd pleaser!

Enjoy!

Shop Small Saturday - The Start of Something Big!

This is the day, folks!  Today we can all start to show big box stores, chains, and "outlets" and the like that we appreciate and would rather support our friends and neighbors and their businesses and their products!  It starts today with Shop Small Saturday - but let's make it a growing trend and an option for shopping all of the year 'round. The advantages are big!  You will support people in your own area/neighborhood to sustain and grow their businesses; you will have access to quality goods and services;  you will  be spending your money on more items produced in the U.S.; and you will be sending a clear message to chains and big box stores that their foreign made, cheap products and, in some cases, that their practices towards their workers are not acceptable. As Granny used to say, "Don't be one of those who knows the price of  everything and the value of nothing".  Consider whether you really are "getting a deal" - in the long and the short run. We all win when our small, locally owned businesses win!  Happy Shopping! Thank You!

The Imperative for Local - Let's Start Now!

AND THIS THANKSGIVING TOO!

This will be a topic we will return to a lot over the upcoming holidays.  Of course, for me, this is a pledge that drives many of our buying decisions all year around.  But, let's face it,  the holidays are a good place to start.  Going forward, I propose that we share good local purveyors and store owners - let's educate each other as to how we can shop locally! Who's your favorite?  Also, we will talk about considerations for  "Shopping Small" in an upcoming Blog.  But for now, let's talk Turkey!

If you are The Cook for Thanksgiving Dinner, please check out turkeys that are raised by local farmers and are cage and hormone free.  Try buying a fresh turkey - once you go there, you can't go back!!! They are wonderful! You do have to order them and if you are going that route, you should do so very soon.

But along with the Turkey, think about your small local vendors and Farmers Markets as a source of veggies, fruits, pies and other items you will need.  If your Thanksgiving Dinner involves family and friends bringing dishes, gently suggest where they might shop for what they need.  Also, consider the small housewares' store owner for decorative items and linens for your table.  Find a local florist for flowers. And, if you are really dedicated, there are always local wines!

Remember, the definition of "small businesses" are NOT business with net incomes of over six million dollars annually - as we have unfortunately been hearing recently.  Small business are just that:  bricks and mortar, family owned, local businesses, who are not clearing millions a year!

Let's start the season off right. By supporting those who are making a living in our own neighborhoods!

Some of Our Local Favorites for Thanksgiving Shopping & Preparation (here in Philadelphia Obviously; Your Challenge is to Identify Places in Your Area).

Reading Terminal Market
Fair Food Farmstand
Head House Farmers Market
Downtown Cheese in the Reading Terminal Market
Otolith Seafood
Ippolitos Seafood
Green Aisle Grocery
Metropolitan Bakery
Olde City Coffee

Homemade To Go Breakfast: Easy, Versatile Muffins

As promised, here's the recipe for Basic Breakfast Muffins.  The basic and the variations all go very well with coffee - and as I have learned, they don't make a bad late night snack either!

As I am want to do, these muffins are more indicative of a technique - you can vary the recipe depending on your cravings, likes, and what's in the larder, freezer or refrigerator.

Recipe:  Basic Breakfast Muffins
(Makes 1 dozen muffins)
                      
           Ingredients
#1 - 2 cups of flour
#2 - 1 Tablespoon of baking powder
#3 - 1/4 cup of sugar (with some fruit muffins, you can skip the sugar; more about that later)
#4 - 3/4 teaspoon of salt
#5 - 2 eggs
#6 - 1 cup of milk OR 1 cup of buttermilk (if you are making your own butter, you know that you always have great buttermilk in the 'fridge; there's nothing better for baking)
#7 - 1/2 cup of canola oil
#8 - 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract (the good stuff; avoid the imitation; make your own if you can!)

           Technique for Basic Muffins
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
Coat a 12 muffin tin with canola oil; coat well - especially if you are using sugar! You can also use muffin tin liners - but they are just more trash!

Combine ingredients #1 - #4 in a medium sized bowl.

Beat ingredients #5 - #8 in a large bowl for 1 minute on medium speed

Add the dry mixture into the large bowl with the wet mixture

Beat - but not too long - you just don't want to see any streaks of flour; you want it all incorporated

Spoon or pour the batter into the coated muffin tins
Bake for 18 - 20 minutes OR until the the tops of the muffins spring back when pressed lightly

Transfer the muffins to a rack to cool


The basic muffin is delicious and takes to butter and/or jam beautifully.  But so far we have tried some variations that are also delicious.

Some Potential Variations

The first addition we tried was a cup of finely diced apple and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon into the batter.

For the second batch we blended a cup of local blueberries (from our freezer, defrosted and drained) into the batter. I left out the sugar from these but I did sprinkle the tops of the hot muffins with a bit of regular sugar.  That seemed to be just right.

For another recent  batch, I found that we had some Pear Jam.  It was very basic, no sugar added to the jam. We had made it from some pears that were getting soft, but were very sweet.  I blended the jam into the batter, but here I left out the sugar from the basic recipe. I did sprinkle some confectioners' sugar on the finished muffins.

Pear Jam Muffins with a sprinkle of Confectioners' Sugar

All of the above variations are delicious, moist and hold up well for the week.  It's important to note that for all of the variations I used the basic recipe.  But as I am a huge fan of Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, I wanted to try a version of that as well.

For Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, leave the pure vanilla out and substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice - I really don't like lemon extract!) - along with 2 Tablespoons of poppy seeds.  These were wonderful - and again - so easy!

The batter is so easy and so versatile that you can truly just use your imagination.  I am considering chocolate chips as well as oatmeal raisin right now!

Enjoy.

Today's Food Rule:  "Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it."

"Food Rules" Redux; New Cookbook; A Fall Recipe

Just for the thought provoking fun of it, I decided it would be useful to occasionally post a Food Rule from Michael Pollan's amazing little book, "Food Rules". I refer to it constantly; love it for its facts, its honesty and its sense of humor.  Lately, I have heard some friends talking about doing this or that fad diet or something called a Fall Cleansing, which is a scary thought all by itself for someone like me.  What troubles me is that people put themselves and their bodies through a lot - without noticeable positive outcomes.

So today's Food Rule:  Avoid food products with the wordoid, "lite" or the terms "low fat" or "nonfat" in their names.   We are far better off eating real food in moderation than binge - eating so called lite food products packed with sugar, salt, and other chemicals.

Finally after days and days of chilly, gray, and wet, today the Sun made an appearance and it seems we all immediately feel a bit better. Look at it this way, those days of gloomy weather helped locally grown - perhaps even your - radishes, arugula, and lettuces get well established.  They like that weather!

I continue to be amazed at the fact that I daily harvest a few sungold tomatoes, a pepper or two and a continuing supply of herbs for cooking.  But the supply is most definitely waning.  Today I finally pulled what I am pretty sure is going to be the last of the beautiful heirloom, "Chocolate Pepper"  from Seed Savers.  A delicious pepper - and a beautiful one.  I believe that I am trying to put off some of the garden prep jobs I should be doing in anticipation of colder weather.  A beautiful, sunny afternoon like today, after a few days of rain, is not helping my procrastination. How is your garden doing?  How are you prepping for the coming cold weather?

At Headhouse Farmers Market recently, we were pleased to meet April White, author of "Philadelphia Chef's Table:  Extraordinary Recipes from The City of Brotherly Love".  This is a great book - an especially great gift idea.  All of the photographs in the book are by Jason Varney - an extraordinary photographer.  Pick up the book and you'll see what I mean.  The book is well done, user friendly, and the side stories are just great.  Highly recommended.

Now is a great time to get pasture raised, hormone and chemical free Lamb from our local ranchers and farmers.  At Fair Food Farmstand last week, we got a lamb shoulder from Sweet Stem Farm (a favorite of ours, a great family owned farm with amazing products).  This is a reasonably priced cut of meat and when cooked correctly is delicious. The following is more technique than recipe.  We did some mashed potatoes and carrots and sauteed greens with it this past Sunday.  It was the perfect thing for a rainy, chilly Fall day.

Recipe:  Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder

Turn your oven up very high - 450 or so.

Rub a 4-5 pound lamb shoulder all over with good extra virgin olive oil; generously salt and pepper the meat.

Lay the shoulder into a high sided roaster on top of several sprigs of fresh rosemary and 3 - 4 large cloves of garlic, unpeeled.

On top of the meat, place more fresh rosemary sprigs and another 3 - 4 large cloves of garlic unpeeled.

Cover the roaster tightly with foil.

Put the roaster into the oven; immediately turn your oven temperature down to 325 degrees.  Leave the lamb alone.  Enjoy the aroma that will fill your home in a few hours.

If it's bone in, leave it in the low oven for about 4 hours.  If it is boneless, 3 hours should do it.

It's done when the meat is just falling apart when touched with a fork.

Let the meat rest on a cutting board, covered with foil and a clean towel over the foil.

Drain off most of the fat from the roaster, place the roaster over medium flame on your stove top and make a roux with a tablespoon of flour and the remaining fat; scrape up the bits and pieces in the bottom of the pan;  stir in 2 cups of hot stock (we used beef, but you can use chicken or veg stock); add two tablespoons of red wine vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer and let the gravy thicken.  Pour the gravy into a gravy boat and serve at the table with the lamb.

It's unbelievably delicious and any left overs will be great with pita bread and Greek yogurt and shredded lettuce for an incredible Gyro sandwich OR heat the meat and gravy together and pour over cheesy polenta OR make a Shepard's pie OR just make hot lamb shoulder sandwiches.  It's all good.

Enjoy!

The Joys of Fall Planting

It's time for Fall Crops!  I have been very clear of my love of hot weather, summer sun, the ability to float in water for hours on end . . . yes, I know I have.  But I must say that the Fall crops really make me happy. They are more resilient; I don't worry them so.  And I love Arugula and Radishes and Leaf Lettuces and Beets and Broccoli   All of which are planted in our garden.  And our Swiss Chard and Kale and Mustard Greens have made a lovely comeback from the hottest of the summer. The peppers are still going strong and I am still harvesting sungold tomatoes every morning, but in place of some the other warm weather crops who's time has come and gone, we have planted both plants and seeds of all of our favorites.  Now - all that we need is some Fall weather and some luck with my chicken wire "covers" over and around our planters.  Our squirrels think we are a shopping destination, so provided we slow down our "sharing" with them, we should be harvesting some really wonderful things from very soon until November.

Black Seeded Simpson and Red Leaf Lettuces (planted in a number of places)

Baby Arugula - 2 Kinds - Just getting started

French Breakfast and Philadelphia White Radishes (one of two big pots)

These Fall crops are so versatile.  Don't feel limited by "old" approaches. As a kid, I hated beets, for example, because, they, along with lots of other veggies, were cooked into a mushy, flavorless consistency.  Roasted Beets and fresh mild goat cheese is always amazing, but raw beets, shaved nearly see through thin, are delicious over hot greens or cold salad greens.   A pasta with broccoli, beets, and great grated cheese will surprise you. Arugula, just harvested, sprinkled with great extra virgin olive oil, a splash of good vinegar and salt and pepper makes an amazing partner to a simple baked potato. And radishes with some fabulous butter, sea salt, great bread and a couple of hunks of cheese is so much more than a snack. Actually, every thing I have mentioned is great raw as well as cooked. All are very healthy as well as being delicious when harvested for immediate use.

Cold crops are definitely worth extending the growing season for; I hope you consider making them part of your edible garden!

Growing & Cooking with Sprouts; Heavenly Soup from Leftover Collard Greens

Hello All!  It's good to be back.  As promised, today I wanted to start a conversation of what I know so far about a really delicious, healthy and easy food source that is going to be my new learning experience for Fall:  growing and cooking with fresh sprouts.

At the PA Horticultural Society's Fall Garden Festival a week ago, we met a man who was selling seeds & beans to sprout. We struck up a conversation with him, saw the wide variety of sprouts that are out there, learned the many ways that they can be used, and got started on sprouting our own the next day.

First of all, "sprouts" are not just the thin, squiggly entities with a brown tiny bean on the end that most of us are familiar with - there are, in fact, tons of varieties.  We started with a pretty traditional mix of Broccoli, Radish, Red Clover, & Alfalfa seeds (Spring Salad Sprouts), along with a less well known and much larger mix of Garbanzo Beans, Marrowfat Peas, and Lentils Beans (Crunchy Bean Mix).  The process is pretty simple and rarely varies, except for the time it takes the sprouts to be ready. You place a couple of tablespoons of seeds or beans in a 1/2 quart glass jar (canning jar), you top the jar with cheese cloth secured with a rubber band.  Then add cool water and soak the beans for 2 - 3 hours - some, like the Garbanzo mixture, require longer soaking - usually 4 - 8 hours.  In my case, I fell asleep and forgot about the two jars so they soaked overnight and seemed to be none the worse for the longer time!  Pour off the soaking water, keeping the cheese cloth in place, and shake to get as much moisture as possible out of the jar and off of the beans.  Invert the jar and prop at an angle in a bowl; twice a day refill the jar with cool water, swirl, and drain - and again, give it a good shake -  excess moisture during growing will kill off sprouts.  I used an early morning and last thing at night schedule. At day three, this is what we had:

Crunchy Bean Mix on the left; Spring Salad on the right

Today - day four - I took the cheese cloth off of the Spring Salad mix, put the lid on it and refrigerated it.  The jar is packed.  I am giving the Crunchy Bean Mix another day in "growing" mode.  I used a nice layer of the Spring Mix for a sandwich of Cashew Butter (from Green Aisle Grocery) on multi-grain bread.  It was an amazing, delicious, satisfying combination.  I have found a number of recipes for the Crunchy Beans too.  They make a great appetizer and snack, especially when you add a tiny bit of oil and your own favorite seasonings - sea salt, good pepper, oregano, basil, and thyme, with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese makes a crunch mix that will stand alone or go with cocktails.  You get the idea - a mix of whatever flavorings are in your pantry and fit your mood will work. There are entrees and soups and breads using various types of sprouts that I will be trying out as I learn more and get my technique perfected.

Sprouts can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

My source for all things Sprouts right now is:  www.sproutpeople.org.   If you are interested, it's a great place to start. There's lots of useful information, recipes, and a wide variety of sprouts that you can purchase.  I will be searching out more sites and information, of course, and I'll keep you up to date on what I learn.

Sprouts of all sorts are incredibly useful to the human immune system - they detoxify and rejuvenate.  And they are delicious and very, very versatile.  Perfect!

A Simple Recipe for Leftover Collard Greens

As some of you know from my Facebook page, I made a big pot of collard greens the other night.  I do a very southern traditional recipe.  Ham hock, smoked turkey wing, chunks of smoked bacon, onions, some chili peppers, salt and pepper and the cleaned greens.  I cook the meats in the water with the onions for about an hour before I add the greens - this contributes to the development of fantastic "pot likker" - the nectar of the gods broth that develops after the greens have cooked for hours.

So, I was wondering what to do with the left over collards - obviously, we love them and are very happy to just heat them up and pour them over rice, but I wanted something different.

I found a recipe that merely requires pouring a can of tomatoes, their juices, some more sliced garlic, some drained canned white beans - and frankly, whatever else you want, into a pot of the collards and let it slow simmer.  Top it with some homemade croutons and freshly ground black pepper.  That pot likker makes a damn fine soup - the flavor, the richness and the aromas are amazing.  I can't really compare it to anything - if you get a chance, do not hesitate to do this with your left over collards!

Hope your Fall plantings are doing well!
Keep in touch.