LEMON!!! Orzotto

A brief story:

Okay, so I was craving something bright, relatively light, but warm and saucy...weird, I know.  When I aquired a zester, I got pretty excited and figured that this was the route to take.  I had also recently discovered the awesome-ness that is orzo pasta.

I tried it with just a little zest one time and juice another...meh.   Not lemoney enough...

Then I decided to forgo subtlety and go for broke. 
(seriously, why do I bother trying to do subtle?  It's not my strong suit...)

Zest and juice = LEMON!!!

It was still missing a little something, so I added a bit of garlic. Done.




LEMON!!! Orzotto:

Half an onion (diced) or 1 decent sized shallot (diced)
1 or 2 lemons (zest THEN juice... it just doesn't work the other way around)

garlic minced (I use at least one big one, but figure out what's best for you)

1/4 cup to 3/4 cup dry orzo pasta

[WTF is Orzo?: it's a pasta, but it looks like bloated rice.  I like to substitute it for rice when I'm not in the mood for rice or there are ingredients that don't twirl well with longer pastas.]

Dry Basil

Kosar Salt

Hot water--I use a kettle, 'cause it's super useful and lives on my stove top

A bit of butter (maybe 1/2 Tbsp, depending on how much you make) and a little olive oil (to help the butter not burn)
-->It'll be fine if you just want to use olive oil

It'd been a while since I'd made it, and I forgot the onion/shallot.
My bad.
(figured it'd be better to post some pictures than wait till I make it again)

--I pretty much use medium heat the whole time

1. Start heating water
   -It's super friggin annoying to get to the point where it's needed, and then you have to wait
   -Get in the habit now
   -The same goes for pre-heating an oven
2. Melt butter in a medium skillet with a little olive oil
3. Saute onion/shallot till clear
   -Add some salt now
   -(You'll be adding salt as you go)

   
   

   

   Toasting the orzo...exciting.

   -pretend that you're seeing a lovely picture of minces onion/shallot being sautéed here. Thanks :) 

4. Add garlic
   -don't let it burn, but cook it for about a minute or so
5. Add DRY orzo
   -WTF? Why dry?
   -Well, like when making an actual rizzotto, it toast the orzo and adds another depth of flavor
   -I also use this method when making cous cous--you're welcome
6. Add lemon zest
7. 
   

   

   You should be able to see the orzo is nice and toasted

   When sufficiently toasted, add lemon juice
   -Again, WTF?
   -Well, since lemon is the main flavor I'm going for, I wanted to make sure that it was well absorbed into the orzo
   
   
8. When the juice is absorbed, slowly start adding hot water
   -Stir! Don't let that awesome burn or get too sticky
   

   -->You can also tell when to add more water by stirring and seeing how long the "line" stays
   -if it stays for a bit, add more water

   
   

   

   See the line?  Awesome. Now, add more water.

   
   
9. Test as you go
   -For taste
   -For done-ness
10. As you're approaching done, add basil
    -Too soon, and it might burn
    

     
    
    

    
    

The starch in the orzo makes it kind of creamy/goopy, so it'll stay together well on a fork.

 

 

Delicious...and, it's even more delicious when you don't forget the onion/shallot.
(I was wondering why it didn't fill the bowl as well as it normally does.
That's when I finally remembered about the onion/shallot.  Oops.)

 

Pea and Pesto Soup: Everything's Green

I could say that I was inspired by St. Patty's...but that'd be a dirty lie.
 
At this point, it's just a happy coincidence
 
I intended on having this done the weekend before last, but I'm accepting that it's taking time to adjust to my new job...and that means some things get put on the back burner...but I'm here, and I'm letting you know about this glorious soup.
 
It brings me great joy.
 

 
So, let's go.
 
 
A small story:
 
  I'm an odd creature, as many of those close to me can attest.  How this often relates to food is in the form of... interesting cravings.
 
  For some bizarre reason I was craving something that was green, savory, and bright.
 
  Yeah... even I was like, "Dude, WTF?!"
 
  Well, it was apparently put out into the universe, and it came back to me.  Huzzah!
 
 
  Thank you, Nigella Lawson.  This is exactly what I was wanting.  Oh, and it's super easy.
 
 
 
Pea and Pesto Soup:
 
You'll need a blender
  -one of those with a lovely removable center
  -there are some dangers with blending hot/very warm things*
     
3 cups Frozen Peas

(don't worry about fresh)

•  you could add a little more, if you're wanting a thicker soup
• ...or just add a little less water
• that's your deal 

4 Tbsp Pesto
(store bought is fine--I use Texafrance Garlic Pesto...LOVE garlic)
 
2 Green Onions
(trimmed of root)
 
A few squeezes of Lime juice
(I took her advice and used that weird plastic container of juice that lives with the lemons and limes)
 
1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
(She suggested 1 tsp, but I like a little more)
 

All the goodies...you may have noticed that everything involved in this is green....
 ...save the water and salt, but you get the idea.



 
To make:
 

• Add salt, onions, and lime juice to water
   
• Bring mixture to boil 
• Add peas
• Bring back to a boil
• Boil for about 7 minutes
•  While this is boiling
• add pesto to blender
• this is super small, but I hate to waste anything
• when you're done spooning the pesto in, go ahead and rinse in in the pot of peas
• get all of the flavor!

  

  Pesto--waiting for glory!

   
• Remove onions
• yeah, if you forget and buzz it up with the soup, it'll be slimy
• ...eww.
• ...just...eww.

  

  Blender--waiting...
  ...so it doesn't explode and scald my ass.

• Pour whole potful into blender
• Let sit for a few minutes
• Place lid on blender
• cover opening in lid with folded over towel
• hold down firmly 
•  some of the soup may get on the towel
• accept and move on
   
• Blend*
• well, duh, but it made me nervous blending a hot soup the first time
• ...that whole may-explode-thing
• if you're nervous, go ahead and start at a lower setting and work up to puree
• Pour into bowl
• you could put into a thermos, but that's your deal.
• Enjoy your very green soup

Dang, soup.  You're super friggin green.
(Oh, and that's a bottle of rum in the corner...Whoops!)

 
 

Creole Cream Cheese: ...the hell?

When I mention Creole cream cheese, the most popular response (aside from a confused look) is, "What's that?"

 

It's a cheese regional to the New Orleans area.

 

My first encounter with Creole cream cheese with through Baskin Robbins when I was in high school... I think.  They had a Creole cream cheese ice cream and it was delightful.  This was my last encounter with it until I found a recipe for it in my copy of Commander's Kitchen.

 

By God, I was on a mission. 

 

I was contemplating buying some, but it was nowhere to be found in Austin.  That left ordering.  The best reviews I've gotten are for Bittersweet Plantation and Dorignac's on Veteran's Blvd in Metairie, LA.

Psssh!  I wasn't wanting to order, and it was a long while till I was visiting back home.

"I'm making it!"

...one small problem--finding rennet.  It was a pain.

 

After going to HEB, Whole Foods (who USED to have it), and Central Market, we were finally able to find rennet at Austin Homebrew Supply. 

Oh, and you need to understand, unless you live in the NOLA region, it's not going to be exactly the same.  It's that whole weather thing--humidity FTW.  Conditions are ideal there... I'm in Texas... there's been a super-long drought... not ideal.

Accept this fact, move on, and enjoy the awesome that you'll still get.

-SO, it's actually a pretty simple recipe:

1 gallon skim milk

1/2 cup butter milk

2 tablets rennet dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water

(I halved the recipe, because I don't have a bowl large enough...yet)


-[Hardware--cause' Lord knows I didn't have most of this stuff when I set out to make this]

Cheese cloth

1 very large non-conductive bowl (glass or steel will work)

1 average sized colander

some clips to hold the cheese cloth in place

1 very large tupperware or some other container large enough to house the colander and the crap-ton of whey that's going to drain

A good bit of saran wrap


-For when you're done with the heafty part:
(Always good to know before getting everything else done--hopefully saving someone a second trip out to the store)

[This is the traditional way to eat it, but I'm not the law, make up your own mind as to how you'd like to enjoy this awesome]

half & half

sugar

whatever berry/fruit you might want to eat with it
(if you're in to that)



-SO, here's what you do:

-First, get all your dairy together

God, I love dairy...

-Pour all the skim milk into said bowl

• (Things tend to work better, if they're room temperature, but I'm historically impatient...and forgetful, and that's not good when dairy is involved)

-Pour in the butter milk

• -stir 

-Dissolve rennet tablet in water



(It's in the little measuring cup)
Looks gross, but it'll be okay... I promise

• -I suggest swirlling it just a bit before pouring it in
• this helps to lessen or prevent the dissolved bits from sticking to the bottom of the cup

-Have your spoon ready (seriously)
-Pour in the rennet-water solution

• Stir ONCE (seriously, once)
• The first time I made this, I stirred maybe three times, and it broke up the forming cheese. The WHOLE THING was off...WAY firmer than intended.
   
• Cover the whole damn thing in saran wrap and leave out somewhere where it won't be bothered by temperature variations or any other nonsense
• (My bad--totally forgot to take a picture after this--will repost once I make this again)

-After about 24 hours, you'll see a giant floating disk  that's separated from the edges

• That's cheese, my friend
• don't touch it
• seriously
• Wait another 12 hours

-Get your colander set-up together
  (OR, your cheese mold, if you're being fancy--not sure if you need the cheese cloth for that one)

• Dampen the cheese cloth
• you've got some options
• enough cheese cloth to fold over itself
• two pieces of cheese cloth
• I usually go for the former
• if the cheese cloth is not wanting to stay in place, this is where the clips come in
• Set the whole thing over the sink
• it's gonna be messy
• other folks say to spoon it into the colander
• it's not preferable to break up the mass
• so, I just dump the whole thing in
• as delicately as possible, of course
• good luck with that
• don't be tempted to pour off some of the excess whey before transferring it to the colander
• the draining is part of the process
• don't mess up the process!
• After a bit of the whey has drained out, put the whole damn thing into your container
• you won't be able to have all the whey drain out at once
• again, part of the process
• Cover that thing in saran wrap
• if you plan, you can use the same saran wrap that you used earlier
• it might look something like this:

Yeah, that.
It's not pretty, but it's effective.

• Oh, and do your best to get a good seal
• we have an open, glass pitcher for filtered water
• whey-flavored water is quite unpleasant first thing in the morning
• Now you wait, for 48 hours
  (Hey, I said it was simple, not quick...)
• Oh, and you're baby-sitting...a little
• every now and then, pour off the whey that drains

See that viscous looking stuff at the bottom there?  Yeah, that's whey.  Get rid of it.
(Or, you can save it--I've been told that there's other stuff you can do with it, but I don't remember what it is)

-After 48 hours...

• Have a tightly sealed container ready that can hold the solids comfortably
• I use a pyrex container
 
• I'll forewarn you that (if it lasts that long), you'll have to drain a little whey off every now and again
• Should last about 2 weeks if tightly sealed and kept refrigerated

-To Serve Creole Cream Cheese:

-Get out some sort of dish
  (Maybe one that makes you feel proper or fancy)

• Spoon some cheese into said dish
• Sprinkle some sugar over cheese
• Pour some half & half over the cheese and sugar
• Now, here's where you have a decision to make
• you can start eating it as is
• you can fold everything in for a minute
• it'll become one
• After making that decision, you actually have another one
• fruit?
• If so, CONGRATULATIONS! 
• You've made Creole Cream Cheese Evangeline
   (If you used a mix of at least 4 fruits...but still, you're at least very close!)
  
  
  [Again, my bad...I got excited and didn't actually take a picture of the final product.  I'll post it later.]
   
• I know there are other things you can do with it, but this is the only one I've tried so far
• Most importantly...you get to say, "I made cheese."
• Don't lie
• You're totally at least a little proud
• It's okay...
• ...enjoy it :)

Merry Happy Chrismachanukwanzakah: Starting a new job during the holidays is...interesting (I realize this is way late)

[Note:  I realize that this is WAY late, but it happens.  Some things are way easier to write, and sometimes I don't have the patience to deal with the pictures that I prefer to accompany a particular post...
...Also, I got pretty busy with that job-thing.  Ahh, well.]

A story of the holidays:

I started a job!:  I'll pause for your well-wishes... Aww, thanks.  You're pretty awesome too.

  Yeah, so I started this position just before the holidays, which was...interesting.  We're supposed to go out and find people in the community (not selling stuff...that crap makes me shudder and want to punch somebody), but during the holidays, people ain't out.  All that is its own stress, but that's not the focus of the posts I put out there.  It's just a little background.

  In order to get to my place of work, it's close to an hour there and an hour back... it is the suck, my friends.  When I get home, I'm super wiped, and that turns into me not being good about fixing my lunch for the next day.

  I quickly see just how expensive it can become when you eat out for lunch for a few days.

  Yeah, fuck that noise.  I was much better starting week 2.

  ANYhoo, this part leads into the next.

Chanuka PJ Party: My bad.

I get home after a long, but purposeful day, and I'm about to pass out on the couch.
  Picky-eater: "Aren't we supposed to be somewhere tonight?"

  Me:  "Fuck!  Hanukah!"

Yeah, my bad!  So, the party had already started, and there was NO time to cook.  Luckily, the picky-eater had asked that I pick up a pecan pie on the way home and we always keep a bottle of white wine in the fridge.

Non-chip party contribution FTW

Christmas Eve Day: STOCK! 

We decided to do our gift exchange early (probably because I'm an impatient creature), and the picky-eater got a Le Creuset stock pot for me!  It was one of the many items that remain on our registry.  I'm not complaining, though.  It's an easy go-to list for future gifts. 

The picky-eater is very difficult to shop for, so I went ahead and got a game that'd been mentioned.  Oh, word to the lazy, all new Wii games require the Wii motion plus attachment.  And, don't worry, they did not, in fact, stop making them... contrary to what folks at some Gamestops might say.

GoodEats!

Christmas Day:  Chill.

For the puppies?:  Oh, yeah, they get Dingos.  With a solid supply already in the closet, we decided to forgo our customary Dingo Candy Cane.

Epic garlic bread

I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty friggin' pleased with myself.

The picky-eater suggested that we get some garlic bread to accompany our butter-roasted chicken and veggies.  I, being stubborn, thought we could do better.  

CHALLEEENGE!

That's a happy oven.

I started prep when the picky-one was en route from work.  This meant that I was moving quickly and forgot to take pictures... but that will be remedied later (I only prepped one-half of the loaf).

Garlic Bread (at least MY garlic bread)

1 halved loaf of French bread
1 stick butter (softened and unsalted--so you can control the salt level)
1/2 bunch fresh parsley (chopped super fine... and get the stems out)
4/5 cloves garlic (minced super fine)
koshar salt (to taste)
rubber spatula (to do the mixing and the spreading)
bowl (to do said mixing in... and with sufficient space to contain everything)

-Essentially, I made a compound-butter and spread it on the bread

-Before making the compound-butter, you need to decide whether you want softer or crustier bread

• Softer--proceed normally
• Crustier--toast the bread first
• I'm not giving guidelines... that's your preference
• bake it till it's done

-To make the compound butter:

• Dump all the parsley and garlic onto the butter in a bowl
• It'll look like WAY too much parsley
• ...actually, it MIGHT BE, for you
• The picky-eater made some disparaging comments
• the bread didn't survive long...
• ...I win.
• Use the spatula to integrate the parsley and garlic with the softened butter
• I find it easiest to kind of fold it together
• You may choose to salt this during the mixing process
• not necessary, but that's your deal

-Half the loaf

• Investing in a long, proper bread knife was a happy decision
• you'll thank me

-Spread the butter onto a halved loaf of French bread

• If you only want half the loaf baked right now, stick the bread in the freezer
• There should also be about half the butter-combo left as well
• you can put this in parchment paper, roll, and secure it before freezing
• we don't have parchment paper, so we stuck it in a baggie
• allow to soften before using for this purpose
• there are other things you can do with it
• No, I'm not in the mood to get into that right now...
• ...I'll get to that later

 -Sprinkle salt over the spread

• Why? 
• It'll hit your tounge faster and allow the need for less salt overall
• Still doubt me?
• Fine, then sprinkle some on the bread before you spread the butter on there

The garlic bread was ready before anything else... (partly because I'm historically impatient)... and I ate the hell out if it.  I couldn't even finish a whole piece of chicken or all my veggies (and that's just not normal).

Oh, yes... you should totally be jealous...
and you should go make some yourself because it's easy...
and delicious

First Meal of the New Year: a solid start

Souffleed omelette with sauteed shallots and a homemade strawberry-banana-blackberry smoothie

It sounds way harder than it is.  Oh, I should mention that I was too excited to take pictures--my bad.  I'll make it again and post later.

My morning... and by morning, I mean a brunch kind of morning:

It was friggin' cold outside and in the apartment, so I took much longer to crawl out of bed than normal.

The dogs weren't moving, so they were no help.  I was supposed to have an earlier brunch with some friends, but that was postponed till people recovered from celebrating.

As a small, symbolic gesture of what I'd like to continue in the new year, I actually got formally dressed and made myself look presentable.  On a normal day, I would still be in slippers, a robe, and lounge shorts/pants.

I was needing to eat a little something and didn't want to think too much, so I picked two things I've made in the past that are pretty darn easy.

A souffleed omelette and a smoothie.


Smoothie:

The smoothie contents will vary based on what I actually have, but we picked up a giant bag of frozen strawberries from the store, and I had some left-over blackberries that I froze from a little ways back.

I don't have specific proportions, but I've found what works for me

1 Banana (frozen is preferred, but not necessary)
Oat flour*
Frozen fruit (I've only tried berries so far)
Milk
(Yogurt--if you have it/like it.  I did not have it.)

*(Why the hell are you using that?  Well, I like the idea of having some grain in my diet, and it helps thicken it some.)

Blender (ideally with a removable center in the lid)

• put banana, oat flour, and fruit (strawberries and blackberries) into blender
• I recommend adding any powder ingredients prior to milk and/or yogurt 
• add in enough milk for the other ingredients to mix 
• pulse on puree or crush ice 
• turn on mix and determine how thick you want the smoothie to be
• while on, take out the center of the lid and add additional milk till you achieve the consistency you prefer
• pour into a cup/glass/whatever
• for excess (which I make purposefully), I put it in small pyrex containers and freeze them as a cheap dessert for later or a no-fix breakfast
• set in fridge till you're done with whatever else you're fixing
• IF you're going to drink it pretty soon
• it might get a little thin, if left in the fridge too long

Souffled Omelette:

Okay, it is a little more involved than a regular one, but I prefer it to regular omelettes.

I first learned about this from Laura Calder on French Cooking at Home.  She added spinach, but I was just not feeling that.

The filling can be whatever you feel like, but shallots make me happy.


2-3 Fresh* Eggs
(separated into two medium bowls)
2 to 2 1/2 Tbsp butter
1 Shallot, minced
Salt

*You can tell a fresh egg is fresh by how well it stays together when cracked onto a flat surface and how high the yolk sits.  The closer and higher, the fresher the egg.

10-inch non-stick skillet
Fitting lid

Another pan to saute the shallots in

Large whisk
Small whisk (or another whisk, I think the smaller one makes life easier)

• Saute shallots
• set aside and cover
• Beat the whites
• to medium peaks
• Season the yolks
• Beat the yolks
• over heat until lightened in color and sticky
• over simmering water is recommended, but not necessary
• I was lazy and impatient, so I didn't do this today
• Stir in a little of the whites into the yolks
• Fold the whites into the yolks
• Pour into a heated skillet with melted butter
• medium high
• Cover with lid
• I prefer a glass lid, so I can see what's going on
• When semi-set on top
• scatter shallots across top
• Cover again till gently set and browned on bottom
• Slid half-way onto a plate and fold over
• Enjoy!

I hope you have a wonderful new year.

Oh, and I have recently started a job (yay, paying bills!), and I'm not sure how often I'll be on here.  I intend on continuing this, though.

Bacon Wednesday: The birth of a tradition

Yes, you read that correctly.  

Bacon Wednesday

A Brief-ish Story:

So, as you may not realize, up until a few months ago, I avoided most pork products. 

Por qua?! 

Well, I've always loved Biology and even had that as one of my majors as an undergrad (WTF? Yeah, that's a different story).  There have been a handful of times that I've actually gotten grossed out.  The most infamous for me was in 5th grade when I learned about trichinosis and the trichinosis worm (yeah, you can look that up on your own... I started to and got grossed out again).

As a result, I lost my taste for pork products... even bacon... and I LOVED bacon.

Cut to a few months ago.  I accepted that many of the cooking shows I was filling my time with used bacon, namely apple-wood-smoked bacon and maple bacon.  It was actually starting to sound appetizing again.  I had previously done research and been assured that it's only really in wild pigs that trichinosis might be a problem, so I was taking baby steps

So, one night, I'm watching Kelsey's Essentials, and she's making this epic looking mac & cheese with bacon, and topped with bacon soaked panko bread crumbs.  I texted the picky eater, who was working super late, I WANT APPLE-WOOD-SMOKED BACON.

I woke the next day and found that I had bacon waiting for me.  Huzzah!

Yeah, the picky-eater knew that this opportunity was likely fleeting and had to be jumped-on.  Well done!

I had my first bacon in years, and it was glorious.

After eating it throughout the week, I realized that this should not be an every-day event, so I had an idea.

We don't go out a whole lot since all of our friends are busy, working people.  So, we didn't always have event to look forward to.

Bacon Wednesday was born! 

We make the effort to either have breakfast or brinner* together without the TV or other electronics on.

*(breakfast for dinner; yes, I poached it from Scrubs; I liked it, move on)

Wednesday is perfect because it's the middle of the week, and that's the perfect pick-me-up to look forward to.

My Favorite Bacon Wednesday Dish: "Not Eggs-Benny"

-Bake bacon on a rack

Keep a close eye on it and cook to your preference

I like mine a little crispier

(save drippings if you're into that) 

Before = eww

After = delicious

-Start the hollandaise (that's right)

The makings: melted butter on stove, 1 egg yolk, salt
1tsp cold water and 1tsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp-ish cold butter
 (you'll also need 1 more Tbsp cold butter)

I am pretty stubborn and wanted to make it by hand using Mastering the Art of French Cooking
The first time I made it, I ended up making a pretty large batch.  The picky-eater ended up not liking it, so there was a LOT left over.

This was my first attempt at using only 1 egg yolk

• Melt 1/2 stick of butter and set it to the side

• Pour water and lemon juice into bowl with yolk
• beat until sticky

• Set over simmering water
• stir in bit of cold butte
• it'll be creamy
• beat until you can see the bottom of the bowl
• (yes, I realize that a glass bowl would be better, but I don't have one)
• (be prepared!)
• remove from heat and beat in cold Tbsp butter

• While beating, slowly pour in melted butter
• start with drops
• should be a very heavy cream
• don't add the milky stuff at bottom of melted butter

• Season with salt, pepper (if you like), and lemon juice
• some other folks add a dash of hot sauce, but I haven't tried that just yet
• keep warm...but not too warm, or it'll separate a bit
• it cooled a little too much, and it was reheated a little too quickly 
• the bowl needs to be well insulated
• (a glass bowl and/or heavy bottom non non-stick sauce pan is/are on the list of things to get)

• What about the rest of the lemon?
• If I have no pressing uses, I freeze it

-Fry an egg over-easy
  (it's actually super easy)

Sorry about the mess...

I learned a tip from Claire Robinson on 5-Ingredient-Fix.  I credit her with largely renewing my love of bacon.

Don't try flipping the egg
When the egg starts to turn white around the edges, pour a little bit of water into the pan and cover the pan with a lid (she used a metal lid). 

[This is also when I add the seasoning, it sticks]

... it was also cleaning day

She waits about a minute-and-a-half, but I don't like having to think about timing things.  Instead, I just use a glass lid so I can see when a proper film has been created over the yolk.





-Fry a piece of bread
(That's my preference, do whatever)

I like honey wheat.
Keep the heat on the pan going from the egg (wipe out any left-over egg if there is some... and you feel like it)
-->about medium to medium high, depending on your patience

Spray some olive oil directly onto the bread
(I have a refillable spray bottle that I keep it in)

Put the oiled side down onto the hot pan

Take this time to spray to other side of the bread

Flip when browned to your liking

Slide onto plate, top with bacon, then egg, then hollandaise

 Eat with fork and knife, so you can get all that awesome in every bite

You're welcome.

Thanksgiving Left-Overs: ...if you actually have any

Currently our little family is only two people... and two dogs.  SO, we can only handle so many left-overs.  Consequently, we don't make quite as much as some other folks when we have holiday meals.

Still, what we make is not subtle and quite hearty, so we STILL have left-overs around the holidays, namely that turkey.

What to do?  Well we take some steps to make life later more awesome.

1.  Save all drippings from cooking turkey
     -stick in fridge to separate the fat
     -freeze, if you're not going to use in a few days

2.  Save all bones and meat scraps (neck, and the stuff in that bag)
     -freeze and save for turkey stock later

     (there may have been veggie scraps, but I wasn't conscious for them)

3.  Save extra rolls... even if they didn't rise and got kind of messed up
     (oops, we forgot them on top of the fridge)
     -pulverize for bread crumbs
     -freeze and save for later


-Our second eating of the turkey was basically the same as our second eating of chicken.  Braise

Okay, so we don't do the exact same thing.  Rather than having the whole carcass sit partly submerged, we pick the meat of the bones and braise it in the drippings, some chicken stock (if you have other plans for the drippings), or a combination of the two. 

This was delicious on its own, but was awesome for sandwiches.  I put a little creole mustard on mine.


-For the drippings, we like to use it in potato soup.  If the fat freaks you out, stick it in the fridge and the fat will solidify on top, just take it off and/or strain it through a tea strainer/cheese cloth.

A little goes a long way, but add to your own taste.  Oh, and this will also make it take longer to finish the soup since the drippings add heft.


-After your done with the turkey carcass, freeze it until you're ready to make a stock.  You can simply prepare it as you would for a regular chicken stock.

Use it as you would chicken stock, and it will also carry over some of the Creole garlic Cajun injector (or whatever flavorings you use).


-As for the rolls, yeah, this hasn't happened before, so we're entering new territory.  I'll let you know what actually happens, but they'll either end up adding some body to meatballs/burger patties or breading some chunks of chicken that will either be fried or baked (but can be frozen for future use). 

Yay!  We still have turkey stock in the freezer, along with drippings, and the roll-bread-crumbs.

I'm not gonna lie; I love having one meal stretch and contribute to other meals, and whole chicken or, in this case, turkey does this beautifully.

Portal before eating is not a good idea: Thanksgiving 2011

Uuuuuggghh....

I do not throw up easily, but watching the picky eater power through the game Portal, I'm super nauseous.  It's really neat, and very entertaining to even just watch, but whoa, damn. 

For approximately half-an-hour, I was grumpy, did not move quickly, required dimmed lights and TV volume, and demanded ibuprofen and cold water.... This was also before dinner even started.


(Slightly) Earlier that day:

Before officially waking up, I would wake up for a minute or two at a time.  I was already trying to sort out a plan of attack for the day: make sure to use a bowl for the Cajun Injector, so the jar doesn't get contaminated this year (we were a little too excited last year and didn't think), prep for the roast vegetables, and I dozed off again.

When I officially woke: everything was already cooking, the jar was contaminated again (not a huge deal, we used it all any way), and I was rushed to get the veggies prepped.  The in-laws and the picky-eater figured that I needed the rest.  The Wednesday prior, I had two job interviews!  I woke up crazy early, like I do, and didn't get to sleep till way late.

Honestly, I can't complain. Seriously, waking up to a huge, delicious meal with little to no prep work is pretty awesome.



For my contribution, the roast vegetables, I forgot the butter (yes, I was that sleepy/out-of-it-from-portal still), but it was still quite tasty.  In a future potluck post, I'll include pictures and the recipe.  Oh, and for future reference, I'm not leaving cherry/grape tomatoes whole when I roast them any more. 

When halved, the juices reduce inside and provided a very concentrated flavor.  If, weirdly, you prefer them whole, I suggest poking them with a paring knife to help them reduce slightly... and also not explode when you jab them with a fork (ouch).

A small event, but awesome all the same.

We have, yeast rolls (we fight over them), turkey dressing, roast veggies, and Cajun injected turkey... and our standard wine.

Yeeeaaah, I wanted to show some of the prep work, but that didn't happen. Maybe I'll get better at taking pictures as I go, but I only have so many hands!

My big thing is that we were together and family came to visit when we were unable to travel.

The puppies were bitter that they didn't get more scraps (I blame the picky eater for the scraps they did get--just meat) but were on their best behavior in hope of someone dropping some delicious.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Potluck!: Rosemary Chocolate Chip Shortbread

4th Annual Pumpkin Party Potluck and Carving Extravaganza:

...we missed the first three, but that's okay.

Guests were asked to bring something with pumpkin (ingredient or theme).  Well... we went a different way.

We were slacking with preparation and have a limited budget, so I went to one of my go-to make-and-go recipes, rosemary-chocolate chip shortbread.  It's pretty amazing and works well during the holiday season.  So, I viewed it as having the ambiance of the season (don't judge; I didn't want to deal with pumpkin).  It's been a big hit, and friends have even requested it, which makes me happy.

I first learned of the recipe from Melissa d'Arabian, and it's really easy.  You can use a mixer to make this happen, but I find it simple enough to do by hand.  Also, it's a small arm workout, so that's always good.

Here's everything you'll need, sans an implement to cut the pieces.
Yes, that's a pizza pan, it works well for this purpose.

Rosemary Chocolate Chip Shortbread:

1 stick unsalted butter (softened)
*if you only have salted butter, lessen or omit salt, depending on your taste
[Note: If you don't have softened butter, cut it into pieces in the bowl you'll be working in and leave on or near the stove for a little while.  This speeds the softening process.]
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup chocolate chips (can use chunks and the like)
pinch salt (I use kosher)
pinch rosemary chopped finely (there's a bush in the courtyard, so we use fresh)
[Note: A little goes a long way]

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees
• Cream butter with sugar and salt
• Add rosemary
• Add flour 1/4 cup at a time
• Knead or work together
• I use the spatula to do this
• Flour baking sheet
• Put onto sheet

• press down to about 1/2 inch
• (I find it difficult to roll)
• form into a rounded shape
• (I find this easiest)
• Bake about 25 minutes
• Let cool
• you can put it on a cooling rack, but it's not necessary
• Slice into small pieces
• I prefer to use a pizza cutter to do this
• BONUS: you get to eat the funny little pieces that aren't big enough to present
• Put into an airtight container

People seemed to like them and complemented us.  When we packed up to leave the party, there were only crumbs left (not my doing, I only had 1 piece).  That says it all.

Stew!

STEW!


Welcome to part of our tiny-ass kitchen.  We set up an assembly line for the meat.

From the left: raw meat (cut into chunks, trimmed of most fat, and dried), meat that's browning, beef base in the back, meat that is browned, and a bottle of red wine... waiting for glory.

Mmmmm....stew.  It makes me very happy.  It's also one of the few things that will prod the picky-eater to actually consume vegetation, granted it's just carrots and herbage (there are onions, but those are "saved" for me).

Yay!  Look, even the wine is happy it's stew time.

(I know, I still haven't fixed the date-thing on the camera yet)

We'd made stew/brisket/Bavarian pot roast (I can't remember, but it's a recipe from their family cookbook) a ways back, and the other chunk of meat has been living in the ice-box since.  So, a few days ago, while making a "quick" trip, the picky-eater finally remembered about stew.  We were in the wine aisle looking for our preferred wine and ran across our standard red, ravenswood zinfandel (the cheap bottle from the grocery), that we only use for stew.  Neither of us is a fan of reds... unless it's a port (and that's just me).



As I was finally having my pea and pesto soup, the picky-eater was in charge of starting things.  In my informal culinary education, I've learned a few things, and I've taught, ahem, other people these things.  Whether certain people admit to this it their own business.

• Brown that meat!



Delicious Meeeat!

• in order to do this properly, listen to Julia Child 
• make sure the meat is dry
• don't crow the pan!  (it'll steam otherwise, ugh)
• don't fret about brown bits, that's flavor
• after browning everything, we sauted some sliced garlic and deglazed with some wine
• it's been a while since we made this, and we'll saute the onions with the brown bits next time
• (I'd already thrown them in the pot)
• (Don't fret if you didn't do this either, it'll still be glorious)

• Use stock (if you have it) instead of water
• broth is the next best
• (any time a recipe calls for water, replacing it with stock/broth will usually enhance the dish)
• in some things stock/broth would take away from the primary flavor of the dish
• pea and pesto soup is one--the water allows you to taste the bright flavors of the pea and pesto; stock/broth would mask this
• Use veggies/meat that make you happy

• I know that there are thousands of recipes, but remember that you can substitute where you want
• I live with an onion-hater (I'm reformed), so I just made them into bigger, easier-to-pick-out pieces
• there are potatoes, by the way
• realize that some flavors go better together, but you know what you like
• I accept the funny looks when I eat an orange, take a bite of pizza, and drink chocolate milk in one sitting
• (They are delicious!)
• Slow cookers are amazing



Go ahead, tip it all in

• seriously, you should get one
• we got ours during a special at our grocery store
• 6qt (I think) CrockPot for about $20, and a beef brisket
• FOR THE WIN!
• they are perfect for the lazy/busy home cook
• sleep, work, walk your puppies while cooking some delicious

Over the course of the day, we added various seasoning and herbs.  We favor kosher salt, fresh-cracked black pepper, sage, basil, thyme, and coriander (all dried; we're on a budget and don't have space or proper light to grow our own herbs).  We started with 2 tsp of each herb, save coriander; salt and pepper were to taste.

Someone was a little overzealous with the apple-cider vinegar, so we mellowed it with two installments of roux made of 3 Tbs of butter and flour each.  We love apple-cider vinegar in stew.  It adds the right kick and brightness that we look for, just be very careful when adding it.  A little goes a long way




24-ish hours later, we have some serious delicious.  You should be jealous and plan on making some yourself.