3 Reasons you should be my contact on Flickr:
1. You can see my photos close up and link directly to my blog posts (convenient for recipes)
2. I can “meet” you, see your photos, and make sure I’m blogging about things you’re interested in
3. You can get a sneak peak at photos I’m going to publish on this blog but haven’t yet
This weekend kicks off holiday decorating.
I enjoy making my home look festive but I’m opposed to buying a lot of things that I’ll either have to store somewhere until next year or, let’s be honest, end up throwing away.
The above windowsill is festively adorned with:
A glass salad dressing bottle, emptied, de-labeled and washedAssembled, you have a pretty Christmas decoration. Come January, each of its parts is easily re-used for another purpose.
Holidays inevitably involve a lot of talk about food, and much of it is guilt-ridden. “This is so bad for me,” “I really shouldn’t be eating this,” and on and on.
At these times I am reminded of what a different perspective I have than most people when it comes to what’s “good” and “bad” for us to eat.
Real Food by Nina Planck will likely convince you, as it did me, that bacon, butter, cream, beef, lard, and other animal fats can in fact be good for us…
…if they are organically/sustainably/humanely/locally raised and produced.
Indulgence by way of responsible consumerism. Works for me. (Yum, butter.)
I haven’t felt as conflicted about a political issue in quite a while. What’s your take?
Either way…
Happy Thanksgiving!
Gourmet Thanksgiving in Advance (described here) Recipe #7
I was worried this dessert was too pretty to eat until two of us ate the whole thing in one night. Luckily I got a photograph.
Devoe Pear Custard Tart
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine’s Seckel Pear Tart
What I changed (reflected below) and why: Baked a pie crust I’d assembled and frozen previously; Substituted sweet vermouth for dry white wine because it’s what I had on hand; Didn’t strain juice from Bartlett pear shreds because that seemed cumbersome, and everything turned out fine; Substituted succanat for sugar for nutrition and molasses flavor; Devoe pears because I could find Seckel pears and Devoe were the next smallest; Omitted poire William because it seemed hard to find and would have been expensive.
1. Put wine in a wide 4-qt pot. Finely grate Bartlett pears (including skin) into wine. Transfer wine mixture to a 2-cup measure and add enough water, if necessary, to bring total to 2 cups liquid, then return to pan and stir in sugar/succanat.
2. Carefully peel Devoe pears, leaving stems intact, then core through bottom with tip of vegetable peeler or a small knife to remove seeds.
3. Bring wine mixture to a boil, stirring until succanat/sugar has dissolved, then add pears, in 1 layer if possible. Simmer, tightly covered, turning occasionally, until tender, about 20 minutes. Carefully transfer pears with a slotted spoon to a rack set over a 4-sided sheet pan to drain and cool, standing them upright. Transfer pear syrup to cleaned 2-cup measure, adding any juices from sheet pan under pears (you will have 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups syrup), and reserve for custard and glaze.
4. Whisk together egg yolks and cornstarch in a small bowl, then whisk in 1 cup pear syrup. Transfer to a small heavy saucepan and scrape in seeds from vanilla bean, reserving pod for another use. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, then cook, whisking, 2 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in 1 Tbsp pear syrup (leftover from Step 3) and butter. Transfer to a bowl and cool completely, its surface covered.
5. Sprinkle gelatin over 2 Tbsp water in a very small bowl and let stand 1 minute. Bring remaining pear syrup to a boil in a very small heavy saucepan, then boil, if necessary, until reduced to about 1/3 cup. Stir in gelatin mixture until dissolved. Remove from heat.
6. Set out baked pastry/pie crust. Whisk cooled pastry cream to loosen, then spread in shell. Stand pears upright on pastry cream, arranging decoratively. When glaze has cooled and thickened slightly (to speed cooling, set pan in an ice bath), brush it on pears. (If glaze gels in pan, reheat very briefly.) Cut and serve!
Gourmet Thanksgiving in Advance (described here) Recipe #6
You will never eat bagged stuffing again. The chestnuts are a tasty but pricey addition; the stuffing would still be delicious if you decide to leave them out.
Chestnut Leek Apple Parsley Stuffing
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine’s Chestnut, Leek, and Apple Stuffing
What I changed (reflected below) and why: Used a combination of white bread and whole wheat bagels since I had both around; Did not discard crust because that seemed like a waste (and who wants to de-crust a bagel?); Halved the butter since it seemed plenty; Did not peel apple for nutrition; Lessened chestnuts since 14-16oz appeared way too many; Substituted half-and-half for cream; Increased parsley for nutrition and for stronger flavor.
6 cups (1/2-inch) bread cubes (mixture of types is fine) 3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), cut into 1-inch pieces (4 cups) 1/2 stick unsalted butter 2 celery ribs, sliced 1/4 inch thick 1 teaspoon chopped thyme 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes 2 cups bottled peeled roasted chestnuts (about 10 oz), halved 1 cup half-and-half 3/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley1. Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in upper and lower thirds. Bake bread cubes in a large 4-sided sheet pan in upper third of oven until dried slightly, about 15 minutes, then remove from oven. (Alternatively, leave out to dry at room temperature 8 to 24 hours.) Then increase oven temperature to 450°F.
2. Meanwhile, wash and chop leeks. Melt butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, then cook leeks and celery, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add thyme, apples, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until apples are just tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and toss with bread, chestnuts, half-and-half, parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spread in a 2 1/2-to 3-quart shallow baking dish.
3. (Stuffing can be assembled, but not baked, 1 day ahead and chilled and covered. Bring to room temperature before baking.) Bake, uncovered, in lower third of oven until heated through and top is golden, about 30 minutes.
What a gorgeous teapot! Practical, too: microwave/dishwasher/oven safe!
By San Fernando Valley, California-based Alina Hayes on Etsy.
Gourmet Thanksgiving in Advance (described here) Recipe #5
At the end of a big holiday meal (particularly one with the Gourmet Thanksgiving dishes I have been making), you’re probably going to be pretty full.
Nonetheless, you’re going to want dessert. And face it, no matter how full you are, you’re not going to want baked apples or fat free pumpkin frozen yogurt. You want a real Thanksgiving dessert.
Enter: Pumpkin Pie Mini-Soufflés. Richer and more flavorful than pumpkin pie, yet crustless and pre-portioned in individual ramekins. Have your soufflé and eat it too, and feel great afterwards.
Pumpkin Pie Mini-Soufflés
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine’s Spiced-Pumpkin Soufflés
What I changed (reflected below) and why: Half and half instead of whole milk because I never have whole milk on hand; doubled spices for enhanced flavor; succanat instead of white sugar for added nutrition and molasses flavor; skipped the confectioner’s sugar on top, whipped cream and bourbon molasses sauce to save time and because I liked how the soufflés tasted alone.
1/2 cup half and half 1 Tbsp cornstarch 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground allspice 1/8 tsp ground cloves 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon succanat, divided, plus additional for coating ramekins 3/4 cup canned pure pumpkin (from a 15-oz can, not pie filling) 10 large egg whites 1/4 teaspoon salt1. Whisk together half and half, cornstarch, spices, and 1 Tbsp succanat in a small heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking, then simmer, whisking, 2 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and whisk in pumpkin. Transfer to a large bowl and cool to room temperature.
3. Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in lower third. Butter ramekins and coat with succanat, knocking out excess, then put in a large shallow baking pan.
4. Beat egg whites with salt in another large bowl using an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. Add remaining 3/4 cup succanat a little at a time, beating, then beat until whites hold stiff, glossy peaks, 1 to 2 minutes more.
5. Fold one third of whites into cooled pumpkin mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly. Divide mixture among eight 6-oz ramekins, mounding it.
6. Bake soufflés until puffed and golden, 18 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately. Soufflés will deflate with time.
Spherical, heavy, crispy, yellow-ish green and often covered in bits of moldy cobweb.
That’s how I’d describe quince to someone who needed to buy some for a recipe.
Thankfully, here’s a picture which is probably a bit more appetizing to guide you in the market so you can cook up some holiday dishes… emphasis on cook since raw quince can be toxic.
I need to work on my sales pitch.
A great recipe to convince you how, once cooked, quince doesn’t make you wince and in fact makes you, finally, very happy: Cranberry, Quince and Pearl Onion Compote, a seasonal complement to turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing. I also tried some over vanilla ice cream which was delicious as a sweet-but-not-too-sweet treat.
Today marks the release of the 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau.
Many oenophiles say the quality of the 3rd-Thursday-of-November-spectacle doesn’t measure up to the hype. And this year’s crop is particularly weak.
Nonetheless, I’m planning to buy a bottle. The labels are pretty. It’s a fun way to celebrate the beginning of the end of the year. Also, I enjoy tracking where I’ve been when I’ve tasted past vintages of Beaujolais Nouveau. The first was in college.