This month’s Weekend Cookbook Challenge, (which I almost forgot about — oops!), is all about party food. So, to accomplish this, I turned to a book all about parties, entertaining and proper hostessing — I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, by Amy Sedaris. It’s very funny, kitschy, deadpan in tone and is sprinkled with hilarious photos of Amy and (quite honestly) some very unappetizing food photos. Ah, so what? I love this book. There’s also some handy and practical advice for entertaining:

A good trick is to fill your medicine cabinet with marbles. Nothing announces a nosy guest better than an avalanche of marbles hitting a porcelain sink.

or

Have toilet paper.

Genius!

While looking through the book I was tempted to make a cheese ball (one of her “famous cheese balls”), but figured another stick of butter is one of the last things jwa and I need right now. Instead, a recipe in the book submitted by Paul Dinello caught my eye. Paul’s Zucchini Fritters. The suggestion for serving these is at a “grieving party” but I say they just make a tasty breakfast, dinner snack or happy party snack! No one has to die!

The original recipe also included no measurements. Apparently Paul finds cooking without specific measurements, “exciting.” Huh. Okay. So, I’ve listed the measurements below that I used when making these. Help yourself. For the more adventurous, disregard those and just wing it like Paul. Oh and I added the mint and red pepper flakes and halved the amount of onion in my version. I just couldn’t help myself from making a couple of tiny changes, that is my way.

For a party, I’d make little fritters to serve as finger food. To make a meal of fritters, form larger patties, as I did, and serve three to a plate. The below amounts will serve about 3-4 as a meal. On the side, I whipped up some plain yogurt with garlic, tomato and cucumber. Excellent.

Paul’s Zucchini Fritters
2 medium zucchinis
2 cloves garlic, sliced or minced
1/2 a white onion, diced
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
2 eggs
6-8 tbsp flour
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 tsp fresh mint, chopped
Dash of red pepper flakes

Grate the zucchini. It’s important to get as much water out of the shredded vegetable as possible. It helps to salt it and then place a heavy lid on top it and press down. You can also wrap the grated zucchini in a tea towel and squeeze until you can’t squeeze anymore. Paul says, “When you think you’ve got all the water out keep pressing, because I can tell you, you haven’t.” He’s right about that.

In another bowl mix six tablespoons of the flour, eggs, onion, garlic, parsley, mint and feta. Combine with the zucchini and some salt and pepper. Add more flour if it seems too liquidy. Oh and don’t forget the red pepper flakes.

Coat the bottom of a hot frying pan in olive oil. For best results, make sure your pan is good and hot before adding fritters. Scoop a fist full of mixture from the bowl and shape into a small patty and place in skillet.

Let cook about 4 minutes on each side for larger fritters, 2 minutes per side for smaller ones.

I made medium-sized fritters and I got about 10 from this recipe, but if you made them slightly smaller (and depending on the size of your zucchinis), you could probably get 12. I’ve also doubled the original recipe (which said you could get 20-40 fritters from one zucchini) but I’m not really sure how that’s possible. They would have to be pretty damn tiny fritters.

I took two leftover ones today to work for breakfast and ate them cold. Wow. Still so very good. I think I’m going to definitely make these again. Thanks (as always) to Sara for hosting!

There’s something about the Fall and early Winter that makes me want to chop fresh herbs — specifically sage, rosemary and thyme. Oh hell, parsley too. And this raisin compote has them all.

We had this very recently with a roast chicken (sort of like a pre-mini-Thanksgiving) and it was quite good. The original recipe called for all raisins, but I used half golden raisins and half currants. I’m thinking of making this to go with our traditional Christmas Cornish Game Hens next month.

The recipe that I use for those is out of the same book that the raisin compote is in — The Cook’s Illustrated Complete Book of Poultry. This book is worth it’s weight in gold, if you ask me, even with the new name.

Raisin Compote with Rosemary & Thyme
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup dark raisins or currants
1 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup minced parsley leaves
1 1/2 tsp minced rosemary leaves
1 1/2 tsp fresh minced thyme leaves
1 tsp fresh minced sage leaves
salt & pepper

Bring the raisins, juices, sugar, cayenne, and 1 1/2 cups water to a simmer in a heavy-bottomed pan. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the raisins plump, about 15 minutes.

Add the herbs and simmer five minutes more to blend the flavors. Cool to room temperature, season with salt and pepper, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Quick Synopsis of the Cook’s Illustrated Roast Chicken
1 chicken
3 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp of that melted, the other 2 softened
salt & pepper

Set the oven to 375 degrees and preheat the roasting pan and oiled rack as well. Push softened butter up under the skin of the breast. Drizzle the melted tablespoon over the chicken, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast on a rack, wing side up for 20 minutes. Turn chicken over, other wing side up and roast for 20 more minutes. Turn breast side up. Return to oven and continue roasting until a thermometer inserted into the breast reads 160 degrees and the thigh reads 170 (25-30 minutes longer). Let rest for 10 minutes.

And I will definitely be posting about the Cornish hen recipe in the next couple of weeks as it really does make a wonderful holiday meal!

Wondering what to do with the leftover turkey and other side dishes from Thursday, I came across this recipe from Giada of Everyday Italian. Although this recipe was originally intended as a Thanksgiving meal for two, I figured it would work well enough with leftover, cooked turkey (as opposed to the raw, ground turkey she uses). It did. I made one other alteration to the original recipe — I added some ricotta cheese to make it a bit creamier. I was quite pleased with the way these ravioli turned out.

Oh and speaking of Everyday Italian, whenever I watch that show and she talks about her husband, Todd, I visualize him as The Todd from Scrubs. And then I laugh and laugh.

Turkey and Cranberry Ravioli
1 cup diced leftover turkey, a mix of dark and white meat (my turkey had fresh herbs — parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme under the skin, so I skipped the fresh parsley listed below)
3 tbsp cranberry sauce
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
3 tbsp grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp bread crumbs
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 egg
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
20 store-bought wonton wrappers

For the sauce:
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp parsley leaves, chopped
1 sprig fresh thyme

In a medium bowl, stir together the turkey, cranberry sauce, cheese, bread crumbs, parsley, egg, salt, and pepper.

You could also place all of those ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times. This will give you a smoother filling. It’s what I did. It’s really personal preference and whether or not you have a food processor.

Place a wonton wrapper on a work surface. Brush the edges lightly with water, using a pastry brush or your finger. Place 1 tablespoon of the turkey mixture on each of the wonton wrappers. Top with another wonton wrapper. Push out any air bubbles and press the edges tightly to seal.

Repeat with all the wrappers. These are very big ravioli and about five per person is a good serving. I used a whole package of wonton wrappers (about 30) and froze the extra ones. I also had some filling leftover. I popped it into the freezer to use in some butternut squash lasagna I’m going to make next weekend. Oh and also in the freezer? More diced turkey, goat cheese and potato soup, carrot & parsnip soup, extra stuffing, extra gravy and two pieces of pumpkin-orange-marscapone pie. I tell you, one day in February is going to be Thanksgiving II.

But, back to the ravioli. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.

Add the ravioli and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Be gentle with them and also just do this at a simmer. Meanwhile, in a small pot, heat together the butter, olive oil, garlic and parsley. Stir until warm and the butter is melted. Drizzle sauce over the cooked and drained ravioli and garnish with a little fresh thyme and Parmesan cheese.

A nice pre-dinner cocktail for this meal is the Grapefruit Cosmo, inspired by a drink I recently had at Wildwood.

Grapefruit Cosmo
1.5 oz really good vodka — Ciroc is awesome
1 ruby red grapefruit, cut in half and juiced
1 lime, cut in half and one half juiced
splash of cranberry juice
ice

Add ice to a cocktail shaker and add in the juice from the whole grapefruit, half the lime, the cranberry juice and the vodka. Shake and strain into a martini glass. Cut a slice of the remaining lime for a garnish. Ahhhh, refreshing.

***

Je Mange la Ville has a new holiday/Winter look. Also, I have added a spam-fighting device for comments. To post a comment now, please do the simple math problem you get when you add your name, email and comment. Sorry to have to add this feature but I am getting sick of deleting comments about tranny pics and viagra. Ew. Ew. Ew.

Leftovers, as taken by jwa to work on Friday morning.

Mostly pictures today, as I am mostly tired. I stupidly tried to go shopping with a bunch of other people and although the check-out line at Cost Plus was not bad, actually getting on the ramp to come home sucked.

The final basting. It went back in the oven for about a half hour more after this.

Oh well. I’m home now and making turkey stock. Tonight, we are taking jwa’s parents to Wildwood. As far as last night’s dinner went, I thought it went well. I will say that the brussels sprouts are better when I can give them more attention. I steamed them ahead of time and although that saved a bit of time, I think they suffered a bit for it. C’est la vie, I’m not going to dwell on it.

Starting the gravy the night before. Turkey parts, thyme, onion and chicken broth

Note to self: Next year, only one vegetable side dish. Okay, that doesn’t include the mashed potatoes. Or the sweet potatoes, butternut squash and garlic. That just means just stick to the carrots and parsnips in the honey lemon glaze. That will work fine. Are you reading this future-self? Trust me.

Pumpkin-orange-marscapone pie with amaretto cookie crust and bittersweet chocolate drizzle.

Rosemary cashews to snack on

Before we sat down, I put out some veggies and dip, cheese and crackers and these awesome rosemary cashews. The recipe is from Ina Garten and it’s so good. You will want to make some to snack on as soon as possible.

Rosemary Cashews
1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp dark brown sugar
2 tsp kosher salt (if you are using cashews that are already salted, reduce this to 1/2 a teaspoon or so)
1 tbsp melted butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the nuts on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until they are warmed through. Meanwhile, combine the rosemary, pepper, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Toss the warm nuts with the rosemary mixture until the nuts are completely coated. Serve warm.

They are slightly sticky when warm but you won’t care. As they cool, they get less messy. Just set out some napkins.

This was creamy and cheesy and squashy. The color makes it look like it’s a regular cheddar mac and cheese but that’s really the color of the roasted butternut squash. Sneaky! But, of course, there’s cheese in it too, so it’s not like the meal is completely healthy. On the other hand, it’s also not completely unhealthy. It’s a nice mix of good for you and gooey, melted cheese in a bowl.

Butternut Squash Macaroni & Cheese with Sage
1 lb elbow macaroni
2 tbsp flour
3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb peeled and cubed butternut squash (You can also use whole squash, just slice in half, remove seeds and bake it that way. Scoop roasted squash out and use that in place of the roasted cubes).
2 cups 2 % milk
1 tsp jarred rubbed sage (if using fresh sage, mince it and use a bit more)
a nice sprinkle of nutmeg
3 cloves garlic, minced
dash of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
1 small onion, diced
2 oz goat cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 - 3/4 cup grated fontina, mozzarella or provolone cheese (or a combination of cheeses — I used the above mix)
1/4 cup bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss squash cubes with the olive oil, salt and pepper to season. Roast in the oven 30-40 minutes until soft and beginning to caramelize. Set aside and turn the oven down to 350 degrees.

Melt the butter in a pan and add the onion, sage and garlic. Saute until soft, over medium heat, about 4-5 minutes. Add the flour and stir to combine. Let it all cook about 2 more minutes. Then, pour in the milk and stir and let come to a boil to thicken up.

Next, add the cheeses (add as much of the grated mix as you’d like — I just sort of added a big handful, tasted and called it enough after a little bit more), cayenne and nutmeg. Stir to combine. Then, mix in the squash. Use a whisk to break it up a little.

You want some of the squash pieces to blend with the sauce but you also want some pieces to stay a little chunky. Add salt and pepper to taste. It should be so good and creamy that you taste another spoonful of the sauce just because you can. Ha! It’s good to be the cook.

Keep sauce warm and covered while you cook the macaroni in salted, boiling water until just al dente. Combine the pasta with the sauce and pour into a buttered (or non-stick spray-sprayed) casserole dish.

Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top and dot with a little butter or hit it with a little spray of olive oil or canola oil.

Bake 30-40 minutes until it’s all bubbly and the top starts to brown a little.

We had the squash mac and cheese with Everyday Italian’s Pancetta Brussels Sprouts (in a test run for Thanksgiving). They were excellent and we will be having these Thursday!

Here’s a little experiment inspired by a recent issue of La Cucina Italiana, which featured stuffed bell peppers on the cover.

As you can see, (here, alongside the wine of the evening) it does make quite an impression. The magazine’s recipe was actually a vegetarian version and in an out-of-character twist, I decided to make my stuffed peppers with meat. Oh, the insanity.

Turkey & Orzo Stuffed Bell Peppers
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (or whole plum tomatoes will work too)
1/3 pound ground turkey
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
3/4 cup dried orzo
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp dried oregano
salt & pepper
1 cup (or so) arugula leaves –(you could also use spinach
3 large bell peppers (yellow, orange and red) or 4 small medium-sized bell peppers, tops cut off, washed, and inside white rib part pulled off as much as possible
4 oz feta or goat cheese
olive oil
Optional: 4 tbsp balsamic glaze* for garnish and 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves to mix in with the arugula

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Start by sautéing the onion and garlic in a tablespoon or so of olive oil, over medium heat. Let cook about 5 minutes, until onions are softened and starting to color a little. Add the ground turkey, fennel seeds and oregano and cook until the turkey is browned and mostly done.

Next, add in the red wine and scrape any brown bits up with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Follow the wine with the canned tomato (if using canned whole tomatoes, break up a bit with your hands first) and Parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste and then stir in the orzo. Let simmer about 2-3 minutes and then remove from heat.

If peppers don’t stand up flat, trim a little off the bottom of each pepper so that it does. Scoop filling into each pepper to fill. Top with feta or goat cheese, then replace the pepper cap top.

Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with a little kosher salt.

Bake in the oven for about 40-45 minutes, until peppers are soft and starting to brown nicely. Oh and you’ll probably have a little stuffing leftover. You can finish cooking the orzo through on the stove top and then bring that for a lunch with some crusty bread. It’s very good that way!

To serve, toss arugula and basil leaves and divide among plates. Place a baked pepper on top of the greens. Drizzle with balsamic glaze and sprinkle with a bit more Parmesan.

Coming up: Butternut squash and sage mac and cheese and Thanksgiving craziness! Hooray!

* You can buy balsamic glaze in a bottle at the store. You can also make your own. The choice is yours…

I made these the other day and they were quite good — but the recipe (from Everyday Food magazine) may need a bit of tweaking. It calls for 2 cups of milk, which results in very wet, sticky dough. I turned mine out onto a very well floured board and patted more flour into it until I could work with it, but you may want to just use less milk. I’d suggest about a cup and a half.

The herbs smell so good while these are baking! Very Thanksgiving-y with the fresh sage. I just used a combination of mostly chives and a little bit of everything I could snip fresh from outside — sage, rosemary, oregano and thyme.

Herbed Biscuits
4 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
8 tbsp (1 stick) cold unsalted butter cut into pieces
1/2 cup snipped fresh chives, thyme or sage, or a combination
1 1/2 - 2 cups cold milk (original recipes calls for 2 cups — I think that’s a bit too much)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a food processor, combine flour, baking powder, salt and butter.

Pulse mixture until pea-size pieces form. Through the feeding tube, add chives and milk; pulse just until combined. With my processor, I had to do this in two batches. I pulsed 2 cups flour with half the salt, baking powder and butter and then transferred to a large bowl. Then did the second batch and added that to the bowl. I mixed the milk and herbs with a spatula.

The consistency of my dough with the called for 2 cups of milk … try it with about 1 1/2 cups, I think.

Transfer mixture to a floured surface; with floured hands, pat to a 3/4 inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2 inch round cuter, cut dough into 16 rounds dipping cutter in flour to prevent sticking. Sprinkle tops lightly with flour.

Place biscuits on a baking sheet, 1 inch apart; bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

(If freezing — freeze single layer on a plate for 2 hours, then transfer to freezer bags. To reheat, use frozen. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes).

This was a recipe I found recently on Epicurious and I liked it a lot. The original called for more chicken stock (4-5 cups) but I like my soup a little thicker and I didn’t want to dilute the flavor too much. It also called for 1/2 cup of cream, which I skipped, as the soup was plenty creamy without it.

Plus, a little plain yogurt on top is just as good! Well, okay — but it’s much healthier.

Roasted Sweet Potato, Lime and Chipotle Soup
3 pounds yams or sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered
1/2 bunch chopped fresh thyme
1/4 bunch chopped fresh sage
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon coarse salt
3 cups chicken stock
4 dried chipotle chiles, stemmed and seeded or 1-2 tsp chipotle in adobo
Juice of 2 limes
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Pinch nutmeg
Cracked black pepper to taste
Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
1/2 cup plain yogurt

Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F. Mix sweet potatoes, onions, thyme and sage in large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and salt, and toss to coat. Spoon mixture onto a baking sheet, spreading vegetables out in a single layer.

Place baking sheet in oven and roast until vegetables are caramelized, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes. Remove vegetables from oven and process in a blender until pureed. Slowly add chicken broth and process until smooth. I’d say, start with 2.5 cups but have up to 4 cups on hand. Add broth until you reach your desired consistency.

Pour soup into a large saucepan and add chiles (I used canned chipotle in adobo, about a teaspoon and a half), lime juice, sugar, nutmeg and pepper. Bring soup to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.

If using dried chiles, remove and discard the whole chipotle chiles and adjust seasonings. Ladle into soup bowls and garnish with cilantro and yogurt.

Experimental Taquitos for the Side
For fun, I made some taquitos to eat along with the soup. I really just threw it together and hoped for the best. So, here’s just a rough retelling of my creation. I took about 1/4 toasted pumpkin seeds and about 2-3 ounces goat cheese and pulsed them in the food processor until they were mixed together.

Then I combined that mix with about 1/3 of a pound cooked, ground turkey and a teaspoon of chili powder. Salt and pepper to taste. Maybe a shake or two of jalapeno Tabasco sauce to make it a bit spicy.

Halve 2 multigrain tortillas (so you have four pieces) and spread a little filling in the middle of each tortilla piece, along with a little cilantro. Roll up like tightly and brush the outside with a little canola oil, for four little taquitos.

Bake in a 425 degree oven until slightly crispy and golden — about 15 minutes. Serve with soup.

Oh and pop any filling that falls out into the soup. Excellent.

I am really glad I came across this cooking event — Retro recipe Challenge (what a great idea for a monthly event, by the way), as I have in my collection, the perfect cookbook for an occasion such as this one. It’s the culinary classic, Saucepans & the Single Girl by Jinx Kragen and Judy Perry, 1965 (written before I was born — whee)! I purchased it used (duh), while going through an ironic housewife phase while in college, while being neither a housewife nor probably very ironic, as I liked to make casseroles in the dorm room kitchen during midterms (but that’s bedsides the point, I guess).

The inside cover proclaims, “A bright and bouncy new cookbook for the gal on the go — and on her own.” Huh. You can almost hear some sort of uplifting, Mary Tyler Moore-esque theme song in the background. Because you know Mary had this book. At least until Rhoda borrowed it and never gave it back. The bitch.

Further down the same inside cover, we are told:

…this swinging cookbook includes dishes that will dazzle the men in a gal’s life, recipes that will convince visiting relatives that she’s leading a safe and sensible existence, and hearty meals that will fill those inevitable empty evenings when she curls up with a head full of rollers and a good book…here is the ideal kitchen guide for the gal who wants to make the leap from filing cabinet to flambe…”

So, it’s for the girl who wants to join the circus?

The theme for this month’s Retro Recipe Challenge is Fall Foods. That is, “to cook up a recipe associated with fall and first published between 1920 and 1980.” When I think of Fall, some of the food items I think of are poultry, sticks of butter, heavy sauces and wild rice from a can. So, this Opulent Chicken sounded like a good match!

I did modify it slightly — the original did indeed call for a whole stick of butter which I just couldn’t in good conscience follow. I mean, the cookbook may be from 1965 but it is 2006 here. Instead I changed it to 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. I also added onion and garlic just because, why wouldn’t a person add onion and garlic to this? The book also directed of the accompanying Wild Rice — “open a can, drain off excess juice, heat and toss with lots of butter.”

Uh, you could buy wild rice in a can? That’s a little bit scary and not at all appetizing. But, in keeping with the recipe’s sentiment, I used a boxed mix of wild rice pilaf. Near East brand, as we usually keep some on hand to use in a pinch and it certainly worked well here.

The verdict: well, it wasn’t half bad. The chicken turned out moist and the sauce had an overall tasty flavor. I think thyme would have been a better choice than tarragon but it was quite edible. I’d give it a solid 6.5 (on a scale of 10). I’m not sure it’s the meal I’d make to land a millionaire (what the book suggests it can do) or anything but one could certainly give it a try. jwa thought it was just “okay” — but then, he’s not a millionaire.

Opulent Chicken from Saucepans & the Single Girl
4 chicken breasts (I used skinless and boneless)
paprika (sweet, I assumed, not smoked)
salt pepper
1 stick of butter –that’s 1/4 pound (or you could use the previously mentioned 1 tbsp olive oil + 2 tbsp butter)
1 15-oz can artichoke hearts, drained
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced (I used half white button and half shitake)
1 pinch tarragon (I guessed dried as the book didn’t specify)
3 tbsp flour
1/3 cup sherry
1 1/2 cups chicken bouillon (I assumed this meant chicken broth)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Slather (that’s what it said, although I imagine “dredge” or “sprinkle with liberated abandon” would be a more apt description), the chicken breasts with the paprika, salt and pepper. Saute in 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter (rather than a half a stick) until golden brown. If your skillet is oven-proof, remove the chicken to a plate and keep warm. If not, place the chicken in a casserole dish and cover with the artichokes.

Put the remaining butter (1 tablespoon or…the other half a stick) in the skillet and add the mushrooms, onion and garlic. Season with the tarragon and saute for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and add the sherry and broth. Simmer for 5 minutes and add the chicken back in, as well as the artichokes. Alternatively, if using a casserole dish, pour the mushroom sauce over the chicken and artichokes. In either case, you should end up with everything in one container, ready to go in the oven.

Cover and bake for about 20 minutes, until done (165 degrees). Now, the original recipe said to bake for 45 minutes — I can’t quite figure that out. They perhaps meant for the cook to use breasts with the bone in?

For a nice presentation, I sliced each chicken breast on an angle, then spread out on the plate and covered with some sauce. We had this with the wild rice pilaf and some pan roasted broccoli with lemon zest. So grab your saucepan and go get yourself a husband. Or something.

Thanks again to Retro Recipe Challenge –this is such a fun event!

Tagged with: RRC4.

So, after giving it much thought and trying to figure out what will work the best timing-wise, I think I have a menu. Some things from last year stayed around — the awesome Martha Stewart Cranberry Relish, some things left — the sadly so-so Martha Stewart Green Bean Casserole.

Pre-Dinner Snacks

* Raw Veggies and Orange-Tahini Dip

* Rosemary Cashews

* A few cheeses (sage-cheddar and port salut, perhaps) with a lovely cracker selection

The Main Event

* Roasted Free-range, Organic Turkey (cooked like last year), Apple-Pecan-Sage Stuffing, and America’s Test Kitchen Giblet Gravy

* Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Shallots (just throw them in the roasting pan for the last 1/2 of turkey cooking, then finish them on a baking sheet, at a higher temp (400) while the turkey rests)

* Goat Cheese & Rosemary Mashed Potatoes or Smoked Gouda Mashed Potatoes — I can’t decide…

* Cranberry-Orange Relish

* Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta & Chicken Broth

* Carrots & Parsnips with Honey-Lemon Glaze

* Butterflake Rolls

Dessert this year, will be a Pumpkin-Orange-Marscapone Pie, a recipe I found in Sunset Magazine. It sounded really good and so I did a test half recipe the other day in a few 1-cup ramekins. Yeah. It’s very good. The original recipe called for crushed gingersnap cookies but I used crushed amaretto cookies.

Pumpkin-Orange-Marscapone Pie
(from Sunset Magazine)
2 cups finely crushed gingersnap crumbs (about 32 gingersnaps) — or 2 cups crushed amaretto cookies
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
8 ounces mascarpone cheese
2/3 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
3 eggs
1 can pumpkin purée (15 oz.)
2 tsp orange-flavored liqueur, such as Grand Marnier
1 1/2 tsp freshly grated orange zest
1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup crème fraîche (you could also just use all whipping cream)
Optional: 1/4 cup slivered almonds for the top

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a 10-in. pie pan, stir together cookie crumbs with melted butter and press into a crust. Bake until set, about 6 minutes. Set aside.

Increase heat to 350 degrees. Beat cream cheese, mascarpone, and 2/3 cup sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating for 30 seconds after each egg. Add pumpkin, 1 tsp. orange liqueur, citrus zests, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Mix until smooth.

Pour filling into crust and (if using) scatter almonds on top of the pie, along the inside rim. I liked the almonds, but honestly, they got a little soggy after refrigeration. I may skip them when I bake the Thanksgiving pie and just scatter some toasted almonds on top before serving. In fact, that’s probably what I’ll do.

Bake until edges are firm but center still jiggles a bit, 45 to 50 minutes (bake any extra filling in ramekins — check the ramekins after 35 minutes, mine took about 40). Cool to room temperature, then chill at least 6 hours and up to overnight.

When ready to serve, beat cream, crème fraîche, and remaining 2 tbsp. sugar and 1 tsp. orange liqueur in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Serve pie with orange whipped cream.

***

Helpful Thanksgiving links:
Food Network’s Thanksgiving Planning Countdown and Turkey Calculator
Some good tips for what to do a week ahead to 15 minutes ahead of the meal and a cooking time calculator.

Cook’s Illustrated Turkey Help
Hints, recipes, tricks and what not to do — that manner of thing. In the same vein, The Cook’s Illustrated Complete Book of Chicken is a great resource. Yes, it says chicken but it actually covers all poultry — turkey, hen, duck, and more.

The Splendid Table is doing a Web streaming Thanksgiving show on 11/23, titled Turkey Confidential.

Butterball Holiday Guide
More hints, tricks, recipes, etc…