Chicken and Rice Salad?

I saw a recipe over on Cooking.com for a Chicken and Rice Salad, but after reading it, the ingredient list made it more of a main course -- and everyone liked it, especially keeping the lemon vinaigrette on the side.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of pine nuts (Toasted for 5-8 minutes in a dry frying pan -- make sure you keep them moving, they can go from toasting to burnt in a hurry.)
• Two lemons
• 2 lbs chicken breasts
• 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock
• 6 green onions (sliced into about 1/2 inch pieces on the bias)
• 1 cup of peas (I like using frozen peas and then just blanching them to defrost rather than cook to soft)
• 1 preparation of Basmati Rice, yes, that recipe again. What can i say, I love it!
  
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Regular Olive Oil (to brown the chicken)
• Salt
• Pepper

Recipe:

• First up, get the rice cooking according to the Basmati Rice recipe. It should be ready once the chicken is done and everything else is cut and ready to mix.
• Heat a tablespoon of regular olive oil in a saute pan (one with a lid).
• Salt and pepper the chicken breasts. You can do this with breast tenders or dark meat, but watch the cooking time. The breasts stay nice and juicy, the tenders tend to over cook quickly if you aren't careful.
• Brown the breasts on two sides, about 3 minutes per side.
• Add the stock once the breasts are browned and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• While the chicken in simmering, zest the lemon.
• Blanch the peas. Blanch for 5 minutes in boiling, salted water until they are defrosted. If they are fresh, blanch for only about 2 minutes -- tops. I am not a fan of mushy peas unless I am pureeing them.
  
• Juice two lemons
• Slice the scallions
• Turn the breasts and simmer for another 7 minutes. I look for an internal temp of 165F. Once there I kill the heat and let it rest in the cooking liquid for 5-10 minutes.
• While the chicken is resting, whisk 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil into the lemon juice to make a vinaigrette. Once you have the right consistency, add the zest. Reserve for serving.
• Remove the chicken from the cooking liquid and slice into 1/4 inch slices across the grain of the chicken.
• Put the rice in a large bowl, add the chicken, scallions, peas and pine nuts. Mix well. Serve with a side salad.

The vinaigrette can be used on the salad or the chicken and rice mix, or both. What I found was that some people liked it really light, others preferred more lemon. Using it more like a sauce gave them the option. It really came together quickly, not a bad work night meal.

You might have noticed that I mention toasting the pine nuts in the ingredient list, but never actually toast them while prepping and cooking the dish. That wasn't an oversight. When toasting nuts, I always do them alone and before I do anything else. When you are juggling three pans (rice, chicken, and the peas), slicing the scallions, zesting and juicing the lemons I have found that it's too easy to take your eyes off the nuts for even 30 seconds too long. That's how quickly they can burn, especially in a dry pan and over medium or high heat. So I always get that out of the way.

I did have one serving leftover, so I had it for dinner tonight. I wanted to taste it as a salad, the way the original recipe suggested, and it was good. My only issue was that the chicken was sliced a bit on the large side for a salad, so I did wind up heating it up for dinner. I might try it again for a summer-y salad and halve the amount of chicken as well as cut into small cubes.

One surprising success. My granddaughter has decided that she is my sous chef and even though she made a face after tasting the lemon vinaigrette, she did try it on the dish and enjoyed it! She is nearly the pickiest eater in the house. My wife liked the dish, but avoiding the lemon completely.

Pork Tenderloins (2)

I've had some success with braising pork tenderloins, but I wanted to roast them and I went looking for a way to roast them and still keep them moist. This was a knock-off on a recipe I saw Rachael Ray do a couple of years back but I never tried. I think she did hers with a pork loin roast, but I was looking for something for tenderloins, so I borrowed the approach of high heat and short cooking time. It roasted the outside well and the cook time was so short the inside didn't dry out. I tried this method, which worked very well.

Ingredients:

• 2 pork tenderloins
• 1 tbs Fennel seeds
• 1 tbs rubbed Sage
• 1/2 tbs kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp white pepper

Directions:

• Grind the fennel seeds until a coarse powder
• Add the sage, salt, and white pepper and grind until well mixed
• Trim silver skin from the tenderloins
• Pre-heat oven to 500F and position a rack in the bottom of the oven
• Dry the tenderloins and rub with the spice mixture.
• Sit in a shallow roasting pan and place in the oven
• Cook for 10 minutes, turn over and rotate the pan and cook for another 8-10 minutes
• Aim for 150F-155F, then remove from the oven, place the tenderloins on a cutting board and cover with foil for about 10 minutes. The temp should rise to about 160F-165F.
• Slice in 3/8 inch slices and serve.

I did up some sauteed onions with a couple of cloves of chopped garlic tossed in for the last 30 seconds of cooking. I used a combination of butter and olive oil and browned the onions nicely. I served this on top of the pork and it helped keep the pork slices, more like medallions nice and hot and the buttery sauce from the onions went well with the pork.

The meat was nice and moist, and I did have an afterthought, but I didn't do it (this time). I thought afterward that the brown bits in the bottom of the roaster would make a good pan sauce. Add some stock, water, or white wine and deglaze the pan over a stove top burner. Reduce the liquid down and hit it with a pat of unsalted butter right at the end or maybe add the sauteed onions -- then season to taste and serve over the pork.

It went over quite well, even my graddaughter liked it -- and she is a picky eater. It worked well. I think oiling the surface of the meat and even letting it marinate with the dry rub on it might add to the taste. Well all that is for the next time.

Update: I was re-reading this post and realized that the idea of oiling the tenderloin is a bad idea. Oil + 500F = smoke! Since my objective is moisture, I think I will brine the tenderloins the next time and keep the surface dry. If anyone else has a good idea for roasting tenderloins and keeping them moist and tender, please pass it on. I was able to cut it with a fork, so this method was good, but I am always looking for more.

Caprese Pasta Salad

I love a nice Caprese Salad. Slices of tomato, slices of mozzarella, chiffonaded basil and a nice light balsamic vinaigrette or even just a sprinking of good olive oil. So I was looking for a more summery version, something a little lighter and a bit different.

So I tried to turn a Caprese into a pasta salad and it worked well. I used Rotini pasta because I like the surface area for holding the vinaigrette.

Ingredients:

• 1 lbs of cooked rotini (curly pasta)
  
• 1 lemon
• 6 oz mozzarella
• 8 basil leaves
• 6 plum tomatoes
  
• Extra virgin olive oil
  

Assembly:

• While the rotini is cooking, seed the tomatoes and rough chop them
  
• Dice the mozzarella into small pieces
• Chiffonade the basil (Roll up the leaves as a group and thinly slice into ribbons)
• Zest the lemon into a mixing bowl, then squeeze the juice into the bowl.
• While whisking, slowly add about 1/2 - 2/3 a cup of olive oil into the lemon juice/zest to make your dressing. It's a nice light lemon vinaigrette, and not too much so it's never overdressed.
  
• Drain and cool the pasta. It doesn't have to be cold, just not boiling hot. I don't like to melt the cheese.
• Poor the pasta right over the tomatoes, add the cheese and basil, then stir together while adding about 1/2 of the dressing.
  
• Key step here . . . TASTE it. You might need a little salt, you might need to add more dressing. only you can make that determination, so don't be afraid! One piece of advice, if you are going to keep it overnight, save any dressing you don't add right away.
  
• You can serve immediately, which is how I prefer it. It can keep in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
  

If you are going to keep it overnight, I suggest draining any liquid the next day. The tomatoes may lose a lot of liquid. Then taste and add some more dressing if needed.

Enjoy!

Spicy Smoked Ribs

Three simple steps, Brine the ribs, marinate in the spice rub, and cook slow!

Brine ingredients:

• 1/2 cup table salt or 1 cup kosher salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 4 quarts of water
• 2 racks baby back ribs (about 2 pounds each), or loin back ribs

Brining:

• Dissolve salt and sugar in the 4 quarts cold water in stockpot or large plastic container.
• Submerge ribs in brine and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Don't go much past 2 hours and certainly not overnight. The ribs are too thin and would absorb too much salt.
• While the ribs are brining, mix the spice rub.
  
• Remove ribs from brine and thoroughly pat dry.

Spice rub:

• 1 tablespoon hot, smoked paprika
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder (homemade preferably, Ancho Chile Powder if not)
  
• 1 3/4 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dark brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

If you are looking for a less spicy rub, eliminate the cayenne, switch the paprika from hot to sweet, and double the brown sugar. If it still seems to spicy, use a regular chili powder instead of ancho or homemade.

Marinating:

• When ribs are out of brine and dried, rub each side of racks with 1 tablespoon spice rub; refrigerate racks for at least an hour, or you can wrap tightly in plastic wrap and marinate overnight.
• While the rubs are marinating, soak several pieces of lemon-sized pieces of wood. Soak for about an hour. I prefer hickory or apple wood for ribs.
  

Barbeque the Ribs:

• Open bottom vents on grill about 3/4 of the way. Ignite a decent pile of charcoal. I do use briquettes because lump is hard to find and tends to be expensive. Now I use a cut-down gallon milk jug to scoop up the charcoal. I counted it a few times and a typical scoop is about 25 briquettes. For this recipe I start with two scoops, so about 50 briquettes.
• Depending on the humidity, it should take about 20-30 minutes to get a nice light coat of ash. Push the coals to one side and put two or three pieces of the wood on top.
  
• Position an disposable aluminum pan on the opposite side.
• Put on the grill grate and cover for 5 minutes to heat up the grill grate.
• After 5 minutes, scrape and oil the grate.
• Lay the ribs over the aluminum pan (it's for catching any drippings) and position the top vent, wide open, right over the ribs. An alternative is to use a rack to stand them up. Just make sure they are not directly over the coals.
  
• Stick a probe thermometer down the vent until it's about half between the cover and the ribs. DO NOT TRUST the thermometer in the hood of your grill. They are notoriously unreliable.
• Grill temp should register about 350F. If it goes higher, close the bottom vent some. Once you get it settled, it should slowly drop over the next 90 minutes to 2 hours. Grill temp should be about 225F after 90 min - 2 hours. Don't let it drop much further of you might have to re-start your coals -- which sucks.
  
• Flip the ribs over and reverse the racks so the one nearest the fire is now the one furthest away. Add about 10 more briquettes and another piece of wood.
• Continue to cook for about 90 minutes, turned and switching the ribs about every 30 minutes. Only add more charcoal as needed. The grill temp should be between 225F and 250F. Adjust the lower vents as needed. I have found that if you cannot keep the grill temp down at this point, wrap the ribs tightly in aluminum foil and cook that way. There has already been enough smoke in the ribs, this cooking is more to finish the ribs to the point of being almost fall off the bone.
• How do you tell they are done? First is temp, you should be looking for about 160F in a meaty part of the ribs. Also, when you pick them up with tongs, hold them up from the short edge with the tongs about 1/3 of the way down the rack. The rack should bend about 40 degrees. This is the nearly falling off the bone stage. If you pick it up and the rack collapses, they are a little overdone. I know A lot of people want it to be falling off, but I like a little bite left in them. I want it to come off the bone with a slight tug when I bite into it. If I need a fork to eat it because the bones come right out, then I feel that I just took away half the fun of eating ribs.
• Once done, wrap in aluminum foil, if you haven't already done so, and let rest on a cutting board about 10 - 20 minutes.
• To serve I like to cut into either single bone or double bone portions. I think it depends on my audience.
  

Parker House Rolls

These rolls turned out great on my first try. Yes, they are courtesy of Alton Brown from Good Eats. Some folks have mentioned that maybe i watch too much Food TV, but my counter is that cookbooks are great, but when the show not only explains but shows you how to do it, you can't beat it. What I like about Good Eats is that not only does he give clear directions, but he really seems to do it right in front of you. Well anyway, back to the rolls,

Ingredients

• Nonstick spray
• 8 ounces warm whole milk (100 degrees F)
• 2 1/4 ounces sugar (about 1/3 cup)
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 15 ounces all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 4 ounces unsalted butter, 3 ounces at room temperature, 1 ounce chilled and cut into 16 small cubes
  

Directions

• Spray a half sheet pan with nonstick spray and set aside. An alternative is to use a Sil-Pat mat. I liked the mat and it worked great.
  
• Place the milk, sugar, yeast, flour, egg yolks, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine on low speed for 1 minute. Change the paddle attachment to the dough hook and rest the dough for 10 to 15 minutes. I did put the yeast into the milk and sugar and gave it a few minutes to bloom before adding it to the mixer. I was worried about the yeast and the salt. I know, I know, probably nothing to worry about, but everything else I have read is to let it bloom before letting it near salt. Anyway, it worked.
  
• Add 2 ounces of the room temperature butter and mix on low speed. Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and you are able to gently pull the dough into a thin sheet that light will pass through, about 8 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll and shape with hands to form a large ball. Return dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm, dry place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and roll into a 16 by 3-inch log. Use a bench knife to cut the dough into 1 3/4-ounce portions, about 16 rolls. Using your loosely cupped hand, roll each portion on the counter until they tighten into small balls. Working 1 at a time, use a rolling pin to roll each small ball into a 3-inch circle or oval. Use the side of your hand or a small dowel to make an indentation across the middle of the circle. Place a small pat of chilled butter into the center of the indentation, then fold in half and gently press to seal the edges. Place the rolls, top-side down, onto the prepared sheet pan, spacing them evenly. Melt the remaining 1 ounce butter and brush the tops of the rolls. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm, dry place to rise until doubled in size, 30 to 40 minutes. I did have one problem here. I couldn't put all 16 rolls on one sheet pan. I squeezed in 12 and put the other 4 in the freezer.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Remove the plastic wrap and bake until the rolls reach an internal temperature of 200 degrees F, 8 to 10 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through baking.
• Remove the pan to a cooling rack and cool for 2 to 3 minutes before serving.
  

They came out great. My wife made a suggestion of hitting them with a little more melted butter once they came out of the oven. I'll try that next time.

I got a new toy -- Pressure Cooker

I haven't done a lot of interesting cooking lately, been pretty busy. But for St. Patrick's I decided I wanted Corned Beef. My problem was that it was on a week night and takes about 3 hours to cook. I did cheat a little and picked up an already corned beef brisket, but I was still facing 3 hours of cooking time. So I broke down and bought a pressure cooker.

I went for a stove-top model rather than an electric one. I liked the idea that you could brown meat and saute other ingredients before popping in the meat and cooking it under pressure. So a nice 8 quart pressure cooker is now in my arsenal. So I did have my corned beef.

It worked well! Not perfectly, but that's more my fault being a first-time pressure cooker user, but it did work pretty well. I ended up with a nice corned beef dinner. Plus the left over corned beef was my breakfast this weekend. Cut up and rendered like bacon and mixed with some eggs and scrambled -- Yum! I didn't do anything special, just followed the package directions on the John Morrel Corned Beef. I have corned my own in the past and plan to do it again soon. Just didn't have the 10-14 days once I made up my mind.

I also did a Pot Roast on Saturday and it went pretty well also. A nice 3.5 lb bottom-round roast.

Ingredients:

• 3-4 lb Pot Roast (Bottom round worked well, plan to try a chuck roast next)
• 2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
  
• 1 medium onion (finely diced)
  
• 2 celery stalks (finely diced)
• 2 medium carrots (finely diced)
• 1 cup of beef broth
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
  1/2 tsp of dry mustard
• 1/2 tsp of smoked paprika
• 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar

Preparation:

• Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat in the pressure cooker.
• Brown the meat on all sides and remove.
• Toss in the carrots, celery, and onion and saute until softened.
• Add garlic, mustard, and paprika and bloom (heat until fragrant)
• Add broth, brown sugar, and vinegar and de-glaze the pan (scrape up any brown bits off the bottom). The liquid should come up about halfway up the meat. Add more broth/vinegar if needed.
• Return the meat and any juices.
• Put on the lid and cook at pressure for about 75 minutes.

Finish:

• Once the meat is done, remove from the pot. It should try and fall apart it it's done. If it still feels really firm, continue cooking for 15 more minutes. If you are doing nearer to a 4 lb roast you might have this problem.
• Cover the meat on a cutting board or plate. I usually use a plate to catch any liquids.
• Reduce the liquid in the pot by half. If the vegetables are still chunky, you can use a stick blender and reduce them. Personally I like the rustic chunks.
• Once reduced, add a tablespoon of unsalted butter and serve as an pan sauce. You can mix in some flour and make a pretty good gravy.
• I slice the pot roast into 1/4 inch slices and lay on a serving platter. You must use a very sharp knife or it will just fall to pieces.
  
• I put a little cooking liquid on the serving platter to warm it up before adding the sliced roast and top with a small amount of the reduced liquid.

Like I said it came out pretty well. Next time I'll be adding some root vegetables during the last 30 minutes of cooking. I didn't try it here mainly because I didn't have any potatoes and only had baby carrots left. I was worried about them coming apart in the cooker. So next time I'll be better prepared.

I served it with some potato salad (Roasted Potato Salad) and some corn. Not a bad late evening meal after a great day (Warm, sunny, light breezes -- best last Winter day we've had in a long time.)

Pork Tenderloins

I've tried a number of ways to cook up pork tenderloin and to often for no reason at all, they dry out. I've monitored time and temperature close, but all to often I get a dry, sort of tasteless meat. So I finally hit on a foolproof way -- braising. But not a long braise. I have done this in a crock pot and it works, but that takes 6-8 hours. Recently I had two tenderloins in the fridge and nothing else readily available. But I wanted to cook it in less than 40 minutes. So I decided to try something, and it worked well.

Ingredients:

• 2 Pork Tenderloins
• 3 cups of water (Other liquids can be used, but the first time I did this I used water.
• 3 Tbs Soy Sauce
• 1 Medium Onion
• Salt and Pepper

Prep and Cook:

• Open the tenderloins and rinse, pat dry.
• Trim the silver skin from the tenderloins
• Season well with salt and pepper on each side
• Slice onion in about 1/4 inch thick slices. Break up and salt and pepper them.
• Mix the water and soy sauce.
• Sear in a frying pan with a little oil about 43 minutes per side. You are after a nice brown crust.
• Add the onion and water mixture and cover
  
• Braise for 30 minutes -- this is not a boil, but more a simmer so watch the heat.
• Cook to about 155-160 internal temperature.
• Let rest for 5 minutes.
• While it's resting reserve a 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid and strain the cooked onions from the liquid.
• Put a little cooking liquid on the serving platter. This helps warm the platter and also provides a little juice for the meat.
• Slice against the grain in about 1/4 to 3/8 inch thick slices. Fan on the serving platter.
• Cover with about a 1/4 cup of cooking liquid and the cooked onions.
• Serve and enjoy

The addition of the cooking liquid doesn't do much to keep the meat moist. If it's not moist when you slice it, it's too late. The danger is overcooking. While you are braising, if you cook it to 180 or higher, it's going to be dry. if you find it that high, you do have an alternative. I'll discuss that in a moment.

You can use other liquid. I have done this with Chicken Stock and Apple Juice and like it. I have also use a number of spice mixtures, but found I like to keep it simple and the taste of the pork stands out. I've also used sliced apples instead of the onion, but you won't have anything left to spoon over the meat, the apples tend to break way down. What works well there it to reduce the cooking liquid into a pan sauce while the meat is resting. A little added butter and it's silky and smooth.

If you do find the braise heated the meat to 180 or over, you can save it, but it's not going to be quick. Take the pan and put it in a 225-250 degree oven. Let it continue to braise for about 90 minutes. The temperature of the meat actually goes above 200 and the meat shreds nice. It is a little dry, but it will taste well. Because this time while the meat is resting in a little of the braising liquid. Take the rest of the liquid and add chili powder (3 Tbs), Worcester Sauce (1 tsp), brown sugar (2 Tbs), garlic (1/2 tsp), powdered mustard (1/4 tsp) and whisk in while the liquid is reducing by about half. Yes, what you are making it a BBQ sauce. Shred the meat and put it back in the sauce. It sounds weird because a picnic shoulder would do this much better. But remember you are trying to save a dry tenderloin and this way works fairly well.

Shrimp Scampi, I hope.

I would like to surprise my wife with a little Shrimp Scampi tomorrow night. Like most of the stuff I cook, I have never cooked shrimp outside of tossing some raw shrimp on a grill. So here is my plan:

I am going to start with a bag of pre-cooked shrimp. I know, it's cheating, but I want to concentrate on the butter-garlic sauce this time. Next time I'll try raw shrimp.

Following some advice, I picked up pre-cooked jumbo shrimp and made sure the only ingredient is Shrimp! I will defrost in some hot water for about 15 minutes before starting on the sauce.

The sauce, I was thinking about a verblanc sauce, but thought that might be too heavy, so I am going to simplify it down a bit. A stick of unsalted butter, melted, two minced garlic cloves sauteed for about a minute lightly. Then toss in the defrosted shrimp to heat through -- trying to be careful not to overcook it. A little lemon juice right at the end and a tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Serve with either rice or angel hair pasta. So how do you think it sounds?

I'll give it a shot and see what happens. I know many scampi recipes also call for wine or vermouth, shallots or onion, and even Parmesan cheese. I am going to keep it pretty simple.

Skirt Steak tomorrow night

I didn't get a chance at the Chili Verde, no tomatillos. I guess they aren't in season, so I'll be patient. In the meantime anyone who want to share a recipe, please pass it on.

Since I am holding off on that, I am thinking of some Skirt Steak with a bit of Chimichurri Sauce. Here is a recipe I will try. I'll pick up the fresh herbs on the way home. It's courtesy of Michael Chiarello. I'll let you know how it turned out.

Chimichurri Sauce:

• 1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

I have seen a number of other recipes, including finely chopped onion, lime juice, green onions, even a mild pepper like a poblano. The first time with a recipe I usually stick to it and then mess with it the next time, especially if there seemed to be something missing. For some reason the onions seem like they would be a good fit, well we shall see. If I mix it up and it doesn't have the expected impact, I always have some yellow onion in the house :-)

The skirt steak will be pretty simple. I love it quick grilled on a hot grill pan with nothing but a little oil, salt, and pepper. Skirt steak cooks in a flash, so don't turn your back on it. Now some might suggest that Chimichurri is a bit overkill on skirt steak and that a bottle of A1 is all you need. Sorry, A1 is OK, but I think it's overkill on thin cut like a skirt. I prefer a sauce that will add it's own level of flavor and still allow the meat to shine. A1, , is good with a thick cut, like a sirloin, but for skirt it's like using a shotgun on a mosquito.

Santa must like to eat! (Chili Verde)

Let's see, Santa brings my wife, among other things, a new computer and a Blue-Ray DVD player. I get a new 9.5 quart enameled cast iron dutch oven and the full 10 years of America's Test Kitchen Cookbook. Around here, that's pretty normal. One year I got a wok and she got a CD player. So in my opinion, Santa must like to eat because I have new toys to play with in the kitchen! Chili Verde, here I come! Anyone have a great recipe?

Now before you start digging, I prefer the spicy New Mexico style of chili verde, at least I think I was in Albuquerque. We were traveling so much it might have been Tucson. No, I think it was Albuquerque. I am pretty sure that in New Mexico when asked if you want green or red, green is spicier than the red. in Arizona it was the opposite. Luckily I like spicy so when I got them confused I wasn't disappointed because while the red wasn't as spicy -- it was delicious. Now the poor Major I was traveling with . . . well let's just say he will never forget which is which!

So seriously, anyone have a really good recipe for spicy New Mexico-style Chili Verde? Here is a recipe I am thinking of scaling up, in volume and maybe in heat. I got it from the Food Channel, courtesy of Mary Sue Milliken & Susan Feniger! Yea, the 'Too Hot Tamales' themselves!

Ingredients

• 4 pounds pork butt or shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut into 2-inch cubes
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Flour for dredging
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 yellow onions
  
• 2 green bell peppers, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 Anaheim or Poblano chiles, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2-3 jalapenos, seeds removed, and finely chopped
  
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, roasted, peeled and chopped
  
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds, crushed and soaked in a scant amount of water
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 bunch cilantro leaves, cleaned and chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock

Directions

• Season the pork meat generously with salt and pepper, lightly flour.
  
• Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat and brown pork chunks well in small batches, on all sides.
  
• Lift pork out of pan and place in a wide soup pot.
  
• Discard fat and place the onions and peppers in the same skillet and sweat over moderate heat, stirring occasionally until limp, about 5 minutes.
  
• Add all of the chiles and cook an additional 3-4 minutes, then add the garlic and cook 1-2 minutes more.
• Add the Sauteed vegetables, chopped tomatillos, dried herbs and cilantro to the meat, cover with the chicken stock and bring up to a boil and reduce to a slight simmer.
  
• Cook for 2-3 hours uncovered or until the pork is fork tender.

Christmas Dinner/lunch

I haven't been cooking much, things have been insane. Work has been a bit busy and I got a bit behind on a project! Luckily I work with a terrific team and they got me unjammed! Mike and Kiki are my heroes and TJ really keeps us on track!

In addition my wife opened up her own flower shop, you can imagine how busy things have been for the Christmas season. But tomorrow is Christmas Eve and then Christmas! So gotta plan up a bit of a Christmas dinner. Well in our case more of a Christmas lunch. My daughter and her husband are coming down for a lunch with us and then dinner with his family later. But we still plan on a pretty nice meal.

Front and center is a 'Heavenly Ham' from Dorothy Lane Market. It's along the same line as a 'Honey-Baked Ham' but we found it is a little less sweet for our tastes. The crust is more brown sugar than honey. Delicious! The cooking for us will be the side dishes. Still debating a couple of those, but the planned menu seems to be:

• Heavenly ham
• Stuffing
• Mashed potatoes
• Glazed baby carrots
• Green beans almondine
• Rolls

The carrots and green beans are the same ones from Thanksgiving. Nothing succeeds like success. Haven't decided on the potatoes, but I am thinking of more a smashed red potatoes. It's easy, here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 4-5 lbs of red potatoes, skin on (Baby potatoes or fingerlings work as well)
  
• 1/2 stick of soft, unsalted butter
• 8 oz of cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
• 1/2 cup of milk, half-and-half, or cream

Prep and cook

• Cut the potatoes into about equal size pieces for even cooking. Us the smallest potato for a guide. the larger the pieces are, the more 'smashed' the final product will look.
  
• Boil the potatoes in heavily salted water until a fork slides in easily. This is important, a fork, not a paring knife. A paring knife would slide in too easily and the potatoes are normally not quite done.
• Drain well and toss into the mixing bowl of a stand mixer. I have found a hand mixer just isn't strong enough. Alternatively, mix by hand with a pretty stuff wooden spoon or hand masher.
• Add the butter, cream cheese, and milk (or half and half/heavy cream).
• Mix until just combined. It should be very lumpy. That's why I call it 'Smashed' as opposed to 'mashed'. You can mix it until it's smooth, but the skins will look funny in there.

Good stuff, if I do say so myself. We are still hashing things out, but I think it will be close to what we end up with. I'll post afterward if anything changes. Gotta work on cookies for Santa and some appetizers. Although since we are eating early the appetizers might be munchies for later. My wife is planning on deviled eggs and I am thinking about some shrimp cocktail.

Well Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! I hope your culinary adventures for Christmas are fun and taste terrific! Pass me any interesting recipes!

Southwestern-Style Rub London Broil

Picked up a nice looking London Broil. I was after a flank steak, but the only ones in the meat case were too small, so London Broil it is. Now I really do like Flank Steak, I think it is a more flavorful cut, so I plan to jazz up the London Broil with a take on a Southwestern-style rub.

Now why do I call it 'Southwestern-style'? For one reason I think the cumin and coriander take this part of the way there, but this rub isn't very spicy -- which seems to be the hallmark of most southwest rubs. My wife and one of my daughters don't like things too spicy, so no cayenne, no hot peppers, but still lots of great flavor!

Ingredients:

• 3 tsp Chili Powder
• 2 tsp Hot Smoked Paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp Cumin Seed (freshly ground)
• 1 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 1/2 tsp Crushed Oregano
• 1 tsp Roasted Smoked Coriander
• 1 tsp Onion Powder
• 1 tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 1 1/2 - 2 lb London Broil
  

Prep and cook:

• Mix all the ingredients except for the London Broil
  
• Trim any excess from the steak
• Rub the Southwestern Rub on all sides
• Place in a Ziploc Bag, squeezing out as much air as possible
• Let it marinate in the fridge for several hours. I usually leave it for 6 hours
• Heat up a grill pan over medium-high heat
• Grill the steak on each side for 7-8 minutes, or as long as 10-12 minutes depending on the thickness of the cut.
  
• Allow the meat the rest for about 10 minutes
• Slice in about 1/4 inch slices making sure to go against the grain of the meat. I usually slice on the bias so each piece has a bit more of the crust of the meat.

I did this the other night and while I think it was a success, my wife and granddaughter did not. It wasn't to unexpected of the granddaughter, she doesn't seem to like any spices. I thought my wife would like it because it wasn't spicy hot, but she thought it was. Oh well, I'm still going to chalk it up to a success because I liked it. My daughter will try the leftovers and I think she'll like it as well.

Chili Powder

Now here is an ingredient I use often. From making a BBQ sauce to chili and even a dry rub for ribs, a good chili powder is a necessity. I have used a number of supermarket varieties they seem OK. McCormick's regular Chili Powder is usually in the spice rack because it tends to me the most available no matter where I am in the country. But in all honesty it rates near the lowest of the OK list. Durkee is there as well. It's not as available as McCormick, but it does the job in a pinch. They really are my chili powders of last resort mainly because they are pretty mild and not a very sharp chili taste. McCormick's Gourmet Collection Ancho Chili Powder is much better as is Spice Islands. However I have found one that's better. Like most things, store bought is OK, but homemade is light years better.

Alton Brown had a Chili episode on Good Eats where he made his own chili powder. Here is his recipe:

Ingredients:

• 3 ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
• 3 cascabel chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
• 3 dried arbol chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
• 2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Prep and cook:

• Place all of the chiles and the cumin into a medium nonstick saute pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
  
• Cook, moving the pan around constantly, until you begin to smell the cumin toasting, approximately 4 to 5 minutes.
  
• Set aside and cool completely.
• Once cool, place the chiles and cumin into the carafe of a blender or spice grinder along with the garlic powder, oregano, and paprika.
  
• Process until a fine powder is formed.
  
• Allow the powder to settle for at least a minute before removing the lid of the carafe.
  
• Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Now maybe being in Ohio is a problem, but I could not get the exact dry chilies. But I found that matters less than I thought it would. Ancho chilies are dried Poblanos and are a pretty mild pepper. Cascabels are a little hotter and Arbol chilies are very spicy. What I found is as long as you mix a mild, medium, and spicy pepper, nearly any combination works well. The last time I did this up I used Anchos, New Mexicos, and Cayennes and the chili powder that resulted made the best pot of chili I have ever made! I had enough to dry rub a brisket before smoking and the taste was amazing!

So like anyone who cooks, recipes are great, but technique is better. I heard a commercial from one of the Iron Chef's, Michael Symon, who said when you learn a recipe, you can cook one dish. When you learn a technique you can cook a hundred. While I might never make a hundred varieties of chili powder, Using a selection of dried chilies, along with a few other spices, and toasting the cumin seeds to bring out the flavor, and then grinding up all the ingredients made a terrific chili powder.

Pass me any other chilies you might try. I think the next time I see dried chipotles, I know what's going in my next batch.

An Apple Pie you do not want to make

While I had one success this evening, I also had one failure. Since I love posting when things go right, I should also post when things do not!

I made an apple pie loosely based on a couple of other recipes, so I cannot blame them -- I take all discredit. I'm not sure where I went wrong, so I wanted to post the recipe in case someone has any suggestions. The problem was sourness, way too sour! The kind of sour that made you scrunch up your face!

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 pounds of a mix of Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Braeburn and Golden Delicious, apples, peeled, quartered, and cored
• 1 lemon, zested
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus 1 teaspoon to sprinkle on top
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 nine inch pie doughs (homemade or the Pillsbury redi-made pie crusts)
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
  

Prep and cook:

• Preheat the oven to 400F
• Slice the apples into about 1/2 inch wedges
• Toss with 1/2 cup of sugar
• Let sit in a colander over a bowl for about an hour. This will render several tablespoons of apple juice. Take the liquid and reduce to about 2 tablespoons in a saucepan.
• Combine the apples, zest, lemon juice, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.
• Take one of the pie crusts and place in the bottom of a pie pan. I used a glass Pyrex pie pan.
• Place the apples in the bottom crust
• Pour the rendered and concentrated apple juice over the top
• Cover with the second crust, tucking the edge under the edge of the lower crust and crimp
• Brush the egg wash over the top of the pie
• Sprinkle with 1 tsp of sugar
• Cut 4 slits across the top for venting
• Place on a half-sheet pan
• Cook for 1 to 1 1/4 hours at 400 until the crust is nicely golden brown and the filling is bubbling
• After about 20-30 minutes check the edge of the crust, you may need to cover them with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning.
• Let cool for 1 1/2 to 2 hours before slicing.

Like I said, it was so sour, even though only two of the 6 apples were Granny Smiths. I was very disappointed as were everyone else. It was my first pie and I admit cheating by using the ready-made crust, but the crust wasn't the issue.

Any advice? I am planning to toss this recipe away and looking for a new one. This one was very disappointing, very!

Turkey Schnitzel (breaded turkey cutlets)

I picked up a package of turkey cutlets, very thin slices of turkey breast. They can be pretty versatile and don't have a very strong flavor of their own, so they can match up with most anything.

Now I call it Schnitzel, mainly because a traditional schnitzel is veal or pork, it's breaded and fried. So it's more technique than ingredients. So here is my version.

Ingredients:

• Flour
  
• 1/2 tsp of Hungarian Smoked Paprika
• Three eggs
  
• 2 cups of bread crumbs (I prefer Panko-style)
• 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese (Fresh is preferred over a green container)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Olive oil
• 1 package of turkey cutlets, about 8-10 cutlets
• A half-sheet pan with a wire rack
  

Prep:

• Stir the flour, salt, pepper and paprika together in a bowl/dish. You'll be coating the cutlets in this, the first of three dippings
• Beat the three eggs in a second bowl/dish
• Combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese in a third bowl/dish
• Pat dry each cutlet
• Coat in the flour mixture, shaking off any extra
• Coat in the egg wash
• Cover in the bread crumb mixture
• Set on the wire rack
• Repeat for all the cutlets

Cooking

• Preheat the oven to 200F. This is for keeping the cutlets warm once they are cooked. Put an oven-proof plate in the oven.
  
• Heat up 2-3 tbs of olive oil in a saute pan
• Saute two cutlets at a time, about 2 minutes on each side (depends on thickness)
• Once nicely golden-brown and crispy, stash in the oven

They really are nice plain like this. I did them just like that tonight, with a side of the basmati rice and a salad. There are various sauces and gravies you could serve. Since you are cooking multiple sets of the cutlets, the pan oil and residue are not good choices for a pan sauce.

My Favorite Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Courtesy of Alton Brown!

I saw these on his show "Good Eats" and had to try them. I usually use Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate Chips. They have a great flavor. I tried the more traditional Nestles Semi-Sweet but found they just didn't have much flavor. I also tried to go high end with Ghiardelli's Bittersweet Chips, recommended for cookies by America's Test Kitchen. While they were very chocolaty, they were also way to bitter for my tastes. I guess I need sweetening up.

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 2 1/4 cups bread flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• Optional 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
  

Hardware:

• A scoop or disher. #20 makes large cookies, smaller scoops make small ones. Adjust cooking time based on cookie size.
  
• Parchment paper
• Baking sheets
• Mixer

Prep and cook:

• Heat oven to 375 F. Don't skimp on giving your oven plenty of time. If you cut this short you might ruin the first batch.
  
• Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat.
• Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside.
• Pour the melted butter in the mixer’s work bowl.
• Add the sugar and brown sugar.
• Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed.
• Add the egg, yolk, 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
• Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined.
• Stir in the chocolate chips and optional walnuts.
• Chill the dough, then scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet, if you are using the large scoop. I usually wind up with 12 -16 per half-sheet pan. My wife likes small cookies.
  
• Bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown, checking the cookies after 5 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet for even browning. For medium cookies, 11 minutes. For very small cookies, 6 minutes.
  
• Cool and store in an airtight container. Someone told me they would last several days -- but that never seems to happen around here.
  

A couple of tricks:

• I never cook more than one tray at a time. While two trays, rotated and swapped works in theory, I have never gotten even cooking.
• Parchment paper is a godsend. It also makes it easy to get them off the sheet pan quickly. If you leave them on there too long they keep cooking.
• I usually use two half-sheet pans, alternating between batches. I find better cooking on a cool sheet than putting fresh dough on a hot pan.
• Rule of thumb, if the cookies are completely brown in the oven -- they are overdone. Adjust your next batch accordingly.

Basmati Rice

Rice has long been a favorite dish, but the cooking has always been a challenge. Often I get starchy rice that clumps or undercooked rice that was hiding from my tasting spoon when I was checking on doneness. Ida Garten, the Barefoot Contessa, suggested this recipe and so far it's come out perfect every time! Of course it's slightly different than hers, but it really is mostly hers.

Ingredients:

• One cup of Basmati Rice
• One small onion finely diced
• 1 3/4 cups of water
• 1 Tbs of unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tsp of kosher salt

Cooking:

• Cook the butter and onions over medium heat in a saucepan until translucent, Do not allow them to fry.
• Add the rice and toss until all of the grains are coated with the butter.
• Add the water and salt, cover and cook until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender, it should take about 15 - 20 minutes.
• Kill the heat and let it sit covered for at least 5 minutes, 10 is better. Don't be tempted to open the lid, just leave it alone.

Right now you have a great tasting dish, albeit a little plain. There are times this is exactly what I want. Now The Barefoot Contessa liked to add 1/4 cup of chopped scallions and 2 Tbs of chopped parsley. That is great, but the reality is you can put just about anything you want in here.

My preference is to tie in the flavors used in whatever main dish I am serving. For example with my Orange Marinated Flank Steak, I like using the zest of one orange. If you do something like add orange juice to the cooking liquid, or orange supremes, you will make it too 'orangey', but the zest adds a nice touch and compliments the main course. Rosemary or thyme are also great additions. A little cumin can really change the flavor and goes well with pork dishes. So what I am really saying is don't be afraid to experiment.

For example I once did a braised pork shoulder and the braising liquid was apple juice and sage. I added a small bit of diced apple and some chopped sage to a small amount of rice to check the flavor. The apple browned, which was a turn off, but the sage tasted great. So when I served the dish I had added a few sage leaves chopped fine and just a little bit of apple juice. So take a little rice and test your thoughts out before you assemble the final dish. Trust me, creativity tastes better than you might think!

Orange Flank Steak

I love flank steak! It's a great cut for quick grilling or even slow braising. My Mother cooks a terrific stuffed flank steak. It's one of my go-to meats. You know, you have 30 minutes before having to run out and take the kids to softball practice or marching band and you need to throw something together in a hurry. Here is a favorite recipe that you start marinating before you leave for work and it can be quickly grilled or broiled in 15 minutes after work.

Marinade:

• Zest of one orange
• Juice of one orange
• 1/2 cup of orange juice concentrate
• 1/2 tsp of crushed oregano
• 1/8 cup of a mild vinegar, like rice wine or white wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• Several turns of black pepper

Whisk together all the ingredients and pour over a 1 1/2 lb flank steak in a Ziploc bag, try and remove as much air as possible. A vacuum system, like FoodSaver also works well for marinating. Place it in the fridge and head out for the day. If you are home, turn the bag over a couple of times. Once you get home from work, turn it over while it's still in the fridge, since it might be a while until you prepare it anyway.

Cook:

• Preheat the oven to 275F.
• Remove the flank steak from the marinade and rinse the surface marinade off, especially if you are grilling. The marinade will burn on a high heat. Pat dry.
• Set it in the oven for 15-20 minutes. This is to raise the temperature of the meat from the fridge. I know many folks just let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes or so, but a suggestion from America's Test Kitchen had me try this. After 30 minutes on the counter a flank steak goes from about 40F to 50F, not really enough to help avoid overcooking the outside while the inside is still cold. In the 275F oven the steak quickly goes from 40 to about nearer to room temperature and you get a much better sear.
• While the meat is in the oven, reduce the marinade to about 1/2 it's original volume, simmering over medium heat.
• Preheat a grill pan, preferably one with raised lines for good frill marks. I like a cast iron one for heat retention.
• Remove the steak from the oven and lay it on the hot grill. Cook for about 7 minutes on each side. Check the internal temp and you should be about 130F.
• Remove and let rest for several minutes under some aluminum foil.
• Add a tablespoon of butter to the marinade and whisk in. This gives it a creaminess and helps to thicken it.
• Get the side dishes ready, I usually like some mashed potatoes or basmati rice and a veg.
• Once everything is ready, slice the meat into no more than 1/4 inch slices going against the grain. You should also slice it on the bias to give each piece more of the seared exterior.
• Arrange the slices on a platter and either top with some of the reduced marinade or serve the marinade on the side.
  

Thanksgiving leftovers

So tired of turkey yet? Which is one reason we tend to have a ham at Christmas. But the annual question is what to do with the leftovers form Thanksgiving dinner. This year we had a pretty significant amount of turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.

Of course the obvious is turkey sandwiches, which is an old standby. Turkey, mayo, salt, and pepper on potato bread is a classic for good reasons! A Hot Turkey Shot (an open-faced sandwich of bread, Mashed Potatoes or Stuffing, with Turkey and then gravy served hot) is another!

After a couple of days the desire for Turkey wanes as you consider options. Now last year I did a turkey hash that wasn't bad, but I need to dig up that recipe again. This year went with a turkey salad that even my granddaughter -- the ultimate of picky eaters -- liked. I did have to hold the onions until I made her sandwich. A little thyme when a long way to give this a distinctive taste.

Ingredients

• Turkey! White or dark meat, it really doesn't matter. I prefer a mix, but for some reason the white meat tends to get eaten on sandwiches first. Cut it up pretty small.
• 1 small onion diced fine.
• 2 celery stalks, also diced fine.
• Several sprigs of fresh thyme, very finely chopped.
• A bunch of cherry or grape tomatoes halved or quartered, or an avocado diced
• Mayo, about a cup. The amount really depends on the amount of turkey.
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

• toss the turkey, onion, celery, grapes/avocado, and thyme in a large bowl. Add a couple of tablespoons of mayo and mix well. Add more mayo until you get it coated. Do this in steps because it's easy to add more, hard to take it out.
• Taste and add salt and pepper if needed

Yes, it's simple, but pretty flexible. I have found that tomatoes along with the avocado tends to bring a bit too much moisture to the party. Other ingredients included in the past are sun-dried tomatoes, julienned carrots, sliced radishes, shredded lettuce, and even slipped in the occasional jalapeno. Some of what goes in depends on what you have handy in the house. I have also made it without the tomatoes or avocado, but I like the butterness of the avocado or the acidity of the tomatoes with the turkey.

While it makes great sandwiches or wraps, you can also serve it on a small salad bed of arugula, which adds a nice bitterness. Or on endive leaves as some finger food.

Thanksgiving -- Success for the most part!

This year my wife had a number of other things to do -- all involved with her jewelry business and opening a flower shop next month. So guess who had to handle cooking Thanksgiving dinner? Yup, me! The good news is everyone survived! The bad news? Well there wasn't any, not really, although one recipe wasn't as well received as I would have liked, but brining the turkey and the changes to the stuffing went well. Here are the recipes, if you are interested. The menu was turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans almondine, fresh Tuscan bread, glazed carrots, and salad. Oh and we can't forget my granddaughters favorite nibble, large black olives. She likes to put them on her fingers and wave at Aunt Jen. Yes, she's all of 6 so it's cute. Now if she it still doing it as 16, we might need to talk.

Turkey Brine:

• 16 cups of water
• 1 cup of kosher salt
• 16 oz of chicken stock
• A good handful of cracked black peppercorns (give peppercorn a crack with a rolling pin or meat mallet. Don't crush, just crack them.
• Two cinnamon sticks

Preparation and brining:

• Boil the water and add the salt.
• Once the salt is dissolved, add the other ingredients and let steep for 10-15 minutes. Don't boil, just keep a low flame under it and the water will absorbe some of the flavors from the other ingredients. I plan on looking for some more interesting recipes for Brine for next year.
• Pour into a large bowl, add about an equal amount of ice to cool it down quickly. It must be cool, preferably cold, when it hits the bird. Warm or hot brine might actually start cooking the turkey.
• Clean the turkey and remove the giblets, neck and other pieces and parts.
• Prep a large container, either a brining bag or even a bucket.
• Place the bird in breast side down and add the brine to cover the bird
• If you need more liquid, dissolve more salt into water and add. If you don't add more salt, the solution may not be salty enough, depending on how much liquid you need to add.
• Brine for 4-6 hours before cooking in the fridge or a cooler packed with ice. You can brine for longer, but remember to keep it below 40 degrees. I prefer the fridge. If you are going to brine overnight, turn the bird once in a while.

Now to cook the bird:

• Pre-heat oven to 350.
• Remove the bird from the brine and rinse completely.
• Stuff the front and rear cavities loosely if desired.
• If not stuffing, place a quartered apple, a quartered onion, several sprigs or thyme and rosemary. This helps keep it moist and adds aromatics.
• Tuck the wings under the body and place in a roasting pan. A raised rack helps as well, but I haven't noticed much difference in the turkey, just in getting it out of the pan.
• Coat the skin in vegetable oil, then salt and pepper the outside.
• Cook for 2 1/2 hours. About each 30 minutes baste with liquid from the bottom of the roasting pan, or melted butter.
• It's done when the breast is at 160F. I also check the stuffing and want to make sure it reaches 150F.
• Let rest for 20 minutes before removing the stuffing and slicing. Carryover raises the breast to about 180F and the stuffing to 165F.

I actually had two problems.

• Even after nearly 80 hours in the fridge, my bird was still frozen. I couldn't remove the plastic bag with the giblets or even get to the neck. I ended up setting the bird in the sink, covered in cold water for an hour (changing the water ever 15 minutes) to get it defrosted enough. It did cut an hour off the brining time, but the bird still came out incredibly moist.
  
• The brining bag was way to big for my 13 lb bird and I ended up doing to innovative knotwork to tie up the bottom corners with the top of the bag. if not, I would have needed to quadruple my brining solution. I might try a bucket next year.

OK, that was the turkey and much to my surprise, even the refrigerated leftovers were still moist today. As you can guess, you know what I had for lunch? A turkey sandwich -- just turkey, mayo, salt and pepper!

While the bird was brining, I whipped up the stuffing. I used some of it in the bird, and cooked the rest while the turkey was resting. Then, as a cheat, I mix the stuffing from the bird with the baked stuffing and it all ends up tasting like it had cooked in the bird.

Stuffing ingredients:

• 1 Large onion, small dice
• 2 large celery stalks, small dice
• 1 large Granny Smith apple, small dice
• Several rosemary sprigs, stripped off the hard stalks and finely chopped
• A handful of flat leaf parsley finely chopped
• One stick of unsalted butter, melted
• 1 bag of herbed Pettridge Farm Stuffing
• 1 cup of chicken stock

Prep and cooking the Stuffing:

• Mix all the ingredients -- EXCEPT for the stock -- and reserve until you stuff the bird
• After stuffing the bird loosely, place the rest of the mixture in a baking dish, 1 1/2 quart is usually perfect.
• Add 1 cup of chicken stock, cover and place in the fridge.
• Once the bird comes out, put the baking dish in a 400F oven uncovered.
• If the top browns to much before it's hot enough, cover.
• Once it's done. mix with the stuffing removed from the bird. I check the temp, looking for 155F. It usually sits covered for 5-10 minutes so carryover works there as well.

I liked it, as did most everyone at dinner. My wife suggested a sweeter apple, so I might try that next time.

Giada DeLaurentis inspired Mashed Potatoes:
I caught most of this recipe on the food channel show on Thanksgiving. It looked interesting, so I figured why not! I liked it, but thought one ingredient was a bit overwhelming, so I made a few small changes.

Mashed potato ingredients:

• 4 lbs Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 cup of mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 4 ounces of prosciutto, diced, with fat rendered.
• A handful of Italian flat leaf parsley, finely chopped.
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 stick of unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs
  

Preparation and cooking:

• Boil the potatoes in heavily salted water, about 15-20 minutes, until a fork slips in easily.
• Drain and then return the potatoes to the hot pan. Stir around for a few minutes. This helps get rid of any lingering moisture.
• Mash while adding the butter and milk.
• Once smooth, add the prosciutto, mozzarella, Parmesan, and parsley.
• Place in a baking dish, 2 1/2 quart worked well.
  
• Cover with the Panko breadcrumbs
• Once the turkey is done, you can pop this in the oven for 20 minutes, uncovered at 400F. This can go in at the same time as the stuffing.
• It's done once it's hot and the topping is nicely brown.

The original recipe called for more prosciutto and Parmesan, but we found then to be a bit overwhelming, especially the Parmesan. leftovers made great potato pancakes with the addition of beaten eggs.

Glazed Baby Carrots:

• Steam a couple of cups of baby carrots until just about done. They should have softened slightly, but not too soft.
• The carrots can also be set aside until the turkey is resting.
  
• Add a tablespoon of butter in a saute pan along with 1/4 cup of light brown sugar.
• Once the brown sugar has dissolved in the butter, add the carrots.
• Toss until thoroughly coated and heated all the way through.
• Top in the serving bowl with some chopped Italian flat leaf parsley.

A pretty easy side dish. The glaze is simply sweet and goes well with the carrots. My final recipe is actually the simplest of all.

Green Beans Almodine (which is a fancy way of saying green beans with sliced almonds):

• About 1 1/2 lbs of green beans
• Sliced almonds
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Prep and cooking the green beans:

• Trim the ends of the beans, remove any strings.
• If they are large and thick beans, you need to blanch them (place in boiling for 2-3 minutes and then shock them with ice water to stop the cooking and retain the green color. If they are thin (less than 1/2 inch thick), you do not need to blanch them.
• Toss in a bowl with olive oil and salt
  
• You can cover them in plastic wrap and hold them for several hours in the fridge.
• Once the turkey is resting, heat up a little olive oil in a saute pan on med-high.
• Saute the green beans until heated. They can show a little color, but not too much.
• Place in a serving bowl and top with a handful of sliced almonds.

As you can see it's one of the easiest recipes. I usually save this for last. They are best fresh from the pan. Hot, still have a snap to them, great taste. The almonds add a compliment rather than taking things over. I've tried walnuts in the past, but the flavors didn't work for me. Pecan's weren't bad. Blanched pastachios are an option I want to try ever since I saw a chef on Top Chef blanch them. I had never thought to blanch them before. Anyone know how they go with green beans?