Thanksgiving Dinner 2009

Thanksgiving Day is a time for everyone to stop and reflect on those blessings bestowed upon them over the last year.  While 2009 has been a challenging year for our family, it didn't dampen our spirits as we prepared for dinner with our family and good friends.  There are a couple of "standbys" that must be incorporated into every Thanksgiving dinner, and even though this year we ate at a dear friends, I still brought along these old standbys.  I'd like to share them with you here.  The soup is very easy and worth all the effort.  The dressing is full of many ingredients and does take some time to prepare, but I can assure you, you will not be disappointed with it.  The flavors blend beautifully as it cooks and once you serve it you will be so glad you put forth the effort.  Try them individually or together as you plan your Christmas dinner, your guests will be ever so grateful and you will too.

Pumpkin Soup with Fig Quenells and Prosciutto                      Serves 12
1  buckskin pumpkin or 2 small pie pumpkins or better yet @3 pounds butternut squash
3  medium onions, thinly sliced
1  tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped
4  tablespoons butter
1  quart chicken stock
1  cup heavy cream
Salt, brown sugar and freshly grated nutmeg to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
Four thin slices prosciutto, julienned

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Slice the pumpkins or squashes in half and place cut side down on a sheet pan with just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan.  Bake for about an hour, or until a knife passes through easily.  During cooking, add hot water to the pan as needed to prevent the bottom of the squash from burning.

Meanwhile, cook the onions, ginger and butter over very low heat in a heavy pot large enough to hold the finished soup.  Cook the onions gently for about 50 minutes, until reduced in bulk, and be very careful not to let them burn.

Scoop out the cooked pumpkin and add to the cooked onion mixture.  Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer.  Puree the soup in small batches in a blender (I use my Braun hand mixer right in the pan and it works beautifully).  Add the cream and reheat.  If it's too thick, add more chicken stock until you reach the desired consistency.  Season with salt, brown sugar and nutmeg, to taste, plus a little cayenne if desired (you'll want to do this). 

When ready to serve, divide the quenelles among the bowls of soup and garnish with a sprinkling of julienned prosciutto.  

Fig Quenelles
12  dried figs, stems removed
1   tablespoon dark rum
1   cup heavy cream, whipped

Cook the figs slowly in just enough water to cover them, until only one teaspoon of the liquid remains, about 30 minutes.  Puree the figs and remaining liquid, along with the rum, in a food processor until smooth.  Allow the puree to cool to room temperature before gradually folding in the whipped cream.  Chill this mixture until you're ready to use it.  Form 24 to 36 quenelles, shaping them between two demitasse spoons.

You might be tempted to omit the Quenelles but I encourage you to reconsider.  The combination of flavors is something to be reckoned with.  You definitely will want to experience this and savor every bite.

Pear, Chestnut and Sage Dressing                                                  Serves 12
1   large onion, finely diced
1   large carrot, finely diced
3  stalks celery, finely diced
1   pound butter, melted
2   Bosc pears, peeled and diced
1   cup chestnuts, peeled and chopped  (I bought these at Fresh Market already to use)
8   ounces breakfast sausage, cooked, drained and chopped
1/2 cup or more parsley, chopped
1/2 cup fresh sage leaves, chopped
8   cups rustic country bread, 1/2 inch dice  (I remove the crusts before dicing)
2 to 3 cups turkey or chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook the onion, carrot and celery over low heat in a little of the butter until soft, about 8 minutes.  Combine the pears, chestnuts, sausage, herbs and bread in a large bowl.  Add enough of the rest of the butter and stock to lightly moisten the bread without allowing it to become soggy.  Handle the dressing gently when mixing.  Season to taste being especially generous with the black pepper.

Spoon the dressing into a buttered shallow baking pan and cover with foil.  Bake immediately for about 45 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the temperature of the dressing reaches 160 degrees.

Note:  I don't recommend roasting turkeys with stuffing in them.  To get the dressing to a temperature high enough to kill off bacteria you would have to overcook the meat.  Be sure you have plenty of gravy on hand and I promise you will not taste the difference.

I have encouraged the use of Mise an Place before and encourage you to do that with this dressing recipe.  There are several ingredients that must be diced and chopped so getting all that done in advance will make this preparation flow more smoothly. 

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as my family does.

Bon Appetit!!!

Check out the Ads

As some of you  might have noticed, I have inserted ads following my blogs.  Today after posting my latest blog, the first ad to pop up was from Dole and it provided a PDF of their top 10 salads.  You might want to print these out, they appear very interesting and tasty too.  Enjoy

Giving Thanks

With the holidays right around the corner, having friends to your home to celebrate the joy of the season is a treat to behold both for you and your guests.  Last weekend I prepared an intimate dinner for four to kick off the holidays and welcome some new neighbors to Weston.  They have just recently relocated from Connecticut and getting aclimated to their first winter in Florida is coming pretty naturally. What a wonderful way to make folks feel welcome, invite them to your home to share a meal. 

The meal was a fairly simple selection, stuffed pork tenderloin, sweet potato mash and green beans.  Nothing too sophisticated but adding fresh herbs and dressing up a side salad with cranberries, made the meal quite festive.  I'd like to share 1 of the recipes from this meal, the salad was a very simple yet elegant combination of Baby Arugula, Frisee, Walnuts and a Cranberry vinaigrette.  This is a "homemade rendition" so I'll share the ingredients with you.  This will serve 4 nicely.

Mixed Greens with Cranberry Walnut Vinaigrette

4   Tbsp. lemon flavored olive oil

2   Tbsp. champagne vinegar

1   Tsp. honey

1   small shallot finely diced

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup walnut pieces toasted

2  cups baby arugula

2  cups frissee

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Prepare the greens, dry them thoroughly and place in a zip loc bag in the fridge.  You can do this earlier in the day, remove the air from the bag and the greens will stay very crisp.  Place the dried cranberries in a small pyrex bowl, cover with water, and microwave for 30 seconds.  Let the berries sit in the warm water to soften. 

In a small mixing bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, honey and shallot.  Drain the cranberries, add them to the dressing, season to taste with salt and pepper and mix with a whisk to combine all ingredients.  You can prepare this, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, refrigerate until 30 minutes before serving. 

When ready to serve, toss the greens and the dressing together, divide on 4 plates and sprinkle with toasted walnuts. 

More to come regarding Thanksgiving dinner specialities.

Bon Appetit!!

The Gathering of Friends

It's been a very busy October for me and I haven't been blogging much.  However, I did receive some wonderful cook books for my Birthday this month and I want to share a couple of really good recipes with you now.  These recipes are from a lovely book entitled, "The Gathering of Friends, Volume Two" by Michelle Huxtable.  It was a gift from my dear friend Nancy who is always welcome at my table and vice versa.  The book is a wonderful compilation of complete menus that will help to make home entertaining a little less overwhelming for the average cook.  I've already tried a few dishes out on my husband and these appear to be two that we will prepare for our friends in the near future.

Beet Salad with Honey Dijon Vinaigrette

Serves @6

Salad ingredients:

2 heads  hearts of Romaine Lettuce

1 cup sweet pickled beets

3 oz. block of Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black peppercorn

Clean and tear lettuce.  Chill.  Slice beets into a small dice.  Using a peeler or cheese slicer, cut Parmesan cheese into flat pieces.  Add cheese and beets to chilled lettuce, top with coarse ground pepper and Honey Dijon Vinaigrette.

Vinaigrette ingredients:

2 tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 small garlic clove

6 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

4 tbsp. honey

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tbsp. rinsed capers

Place all ingredients except the oil in a blender.  With the blender running, slowly add oil, blend until mixture emulsifies.  Toss lightly with salad.

Roasting vegetables is an excellent way of enhancing the flavor of the vegetable and sprucing up any meal.  You'll find that you can throw some vegetables into the oven while you complete the rest of your dishes.  They always come out rich in flavor and perfectly done.  The next recipe you'll find to be an excellent accompaniment to fish or chicken.

Parmesan Baked Veggies

Serves @6

Ingredients:

12 oz. baby carrots, slivered

12 oz. gourmet skinny green beans

2 skinny zucchini, sliced

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 tsp. ground black peppercorns

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Rinse and sliver baby carrots.  Clean and cut zucchini into medallions.  In a large mixing bowl or plastic bag, combine slivered carrots, rinsed green beans and zucchini with olive oil and Parmesan cheese.  Spread coated vegetables  on a cookie sheet and back for 10 minutes.  Salt and pepper to taste.

You must try these 2 easy and delicious dishes with your family.  You'll find that they work very well if you're having friends in, the preparation time is minimal and the outcome is very consistent.

For those of you living in the Weston area, you can pick up a copy of this book for yourself from the Kitchen store on Main Street, It's in the Kitchen.  Tell her you heard about it from my blog.

Bon Appetit!