Archive for November, 2013

Thanksgiving Turkey

November 21, 2013 · Filed under Baking, Cooking, Family, Turkey

It’s turkey time.

November 1980

Thanksgiving is coming up this month and that usually means roasting a turkey for the holiday dinner. Elaine Broadhurst of Broadhurst Turkey Farm has cooked a lot of big birds in her time and they always turn out moist and succulent.

 

Roast Turkey

Choose either a hen or tom turkey since both have equally good meat. Rub the exterior of the turkey with fat. I prefer rendered bacon fat, but butter can be used instead. Use generously. Then rub salt inside the big cavity, the neck cavity and the outside of the bird. A 20 to 22 pound turkey takes 2/3 cup salt while a 10 to 14 pound one requires 1/3 cup of salt.

Place turkey on a rack in the bottom on a large roaster. Put on lid, but leave the vent open. Bake at 325°F oven 6 ½ hours for a 20 to 22 pound turkey and 4 ½ hours for a 10 to 14 pound turkey.

Set giblets to boil in 2 or 3 cups water and cook until tender. Cut into small pieces. One hour before the roasting time is completed pour off the broth that has collected in the bottom of the roaster. Remove roaster lid and bake the remaining hour uncovered so the bird will brown.

Make dressing with part of the broth and make gravy with the rest. To make the gravy use 3 cups of hot broth or broth and milk mixed. Combine ½ cup of flour with an additional cup of cold milk. Add this flour paste to the hot broth and stir and cook until thick. If it gets lumpy, beat with an electric mixer. Add the giblets. Season to taste. Keep hot until serving time.

Take turkey out of oven at correct time and let it stand 20 minutes at room temperature before slicing and serving. (Lift turkey from the roaster with the rack supporting it.)

 

If you want a different pumpkin dessert to finish off the big dinner, try this cake roll. It requires no last minute work. It also makes a nice dessert for a club meeting or a party, I got the recipe from Eleanor Schirer after she brought one to work. Her father, Calarence Schirer, farms north of Sedgwick

Pumpkin Cake Roll

Cake:

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup pumpkin

1 teaspoon lemon juice

¾ cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup finely chopped walnuts

 

Filling:

1 cup powdered sugar

6 ozs. Cream cheese

4 tablespoons margarine

½ teaspoon vanilla

To prepare cake beat 3 eggs for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in one cup of sugar. Stir in the pumpkin and lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients.

Fold dry ingredients into pumpkin mixture. Spread on greased and floured 15” x 10” x 1” inch jelly roll pan. Top with the nuts.

Bake at 375° for 15 minutes. Turn out on towel sprinkled with powdered sugar. Roll towel and sake from narrow end. Cool. Unroll. Spread with filling. Roll and chill. Slice and serve.

 

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Potatoes

November 15, 2013 · Filed under Cooking · Tagged , ,

I have been getting a lot of potatoes from my CSA right now and these recipes will come in handy.

November 1983

Now that cooler weather is here it is more fun to cook, and the warmth given off when something is baking in the oven is welcome.

Since restaurants featuring elegant baked potatoes are finding a good reception from the eating out public, this might be a good time to try a few baked potato ideas on your family.

Potatoes are the new darlings of nutritionists, being praised for both their high food fiber and low fat content. If you are looking for economy, they invariably are a good buy for your money.

A medium size potato (about 3 per pound raw) has 90 calories. It is 75% water and has 3 grams of protein, only a trace of fat, 21 grams carbohydrate, 9 milligrams of calcium, some thiamine and riboflavin, and is a good source of niacin and vitamin C. A potato this size has one third as much Vitamin C as a medium size orange.

These recipes feature baked potatoes that become the main source of protein, as well as carbohydrates, for a meal.

With raw carrot sticks, whole bread, and applesauce or a fresh apple for dessert, they make a satisfying and nutritionally sound meal for a crisp fall or winter day.

Pizza Potato

2 baked potatoes

2 tablespoons oil

2 teaspoons Parmesan cheese, grated

1 teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon pepper

1 cup Pizza sauce

1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese

Bake potatoes at 400° for 1 hour. Do not use foil. Cut in half. Cut slits one-half inch apart in the edges of the shell and flatten the potato halves to form a base for the pizza. Put on cookie sheet. You will have four bases.

With a fork work in one-fourth of the oil, in the pulp on each potato half. Spread one-fourth of the pizza sauce on each base and top with the Mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 400° F for 15 minutes. For variations add pepperoni, mushrooms, green pepper or any other topping you like on top of the cheese.

Pizza Sauce

2 cups tomato juice

2 tablespoons vinegar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 medium- sized onion, sliced

1 teaspoon oregano

Mix all ingredients except oregano. Bring to boil. Simmer one hour. Add oregano and simmer 30 more minutes.

Yield: 1 cup

Taco Potatoes

2 baked potatoes, large

1 cup cooked hamburger

1 cup taco sauce

½ cup grated cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded lettuce

½ cup diced tomatoes

Bake potatoes at 400° for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut off thin slice. Scoop out pulp. Mash and keep warm.

Add beef, taco sauce and cheese and then mix. Put mixture in shells. Top with shredded lettuce and diced tomato.

Potato Lasagna

2 baked potatoes, large

1 medium- size onion, chopped

½ cup ground beef

¼ cup milk

¼ cup tomato sauce

1 small tomato, peeled and chopped

¼ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

½ cup grated Mozzarella cheese

¼ cup ripe olives, sliced

1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

Bake potato at 400° F for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut a thin slice from top of each potato. Scoop out pulp. Add milk. Mash and keep warm.

Heat skillet. Add beef and onion. Stir and cook for 10 minutes over low heat. Add tomato sauce, tomato and seasonings. Add the potato pulp and stir. Add cheese, olives and Tabasco sauce. Heat. Heap into shells and garnish with parsley.

Dried Beef Baked Potatoes

1 large baked potato

1/3 cup dried beef, torn into pieces

2/3 cup medium white sauce

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Bake potatoes at 400° F for one hour. Do not use foil. Cut off a thin slice and scoop out potato. Mash. Keep warm. Combine white sauce and dried beef and cook until mixture comes to boil. Add the mashed potato and pepper. Heat through. Scoop into shells and garnish with parsley.

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Simple Foods

November 7, 2013 · Filed under Cooking · Tagged , ,

November 7, 1985

Appetites are perking up with the cool fall weather. It’s time to get out the big kettle and cook some simple food that takes a while to be done. You’ll warm the kitchen and get supper ready at the same time.

The recipes today are all meatless, but they are still high in protein and low in fat. Also high in fiber and low in cost.

The Mung Bean Dal and Lentil Soup are authentic recipes I got from an Indian friend who babysits my Connecticut grandchildren, Kaberi Chakraborty.

Lentil Soup

8 ounces dry lentils

Water to cover

2 onions, chipped

4 celery stalks, chopped

4 carrots, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

4 cups grated zucchini

2 quarts canned tomatoes

Cook beans in water 20 minutes. Add onions, celery, carrots and garlic. Cook 30 more minutes. Add zucchini and tomatoes and cook 15 more minutes.

Any kind of dry beans may be substituted for lentils. Adjust cooking time so they are tender before adding other ingredients.

Makes 4 large servings, 300 calories each.

Mung Bean Dal

1 cup mung beans

4 cups water

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 hot yellow or green pepper

4 tablespoons ghee

Cook beans and next 5 ingredients until beans are sot. Add chopped pepper and cook five more minutes. Add ghee Mix and serve. Makes four servings.

In India the chapati (a form of bread) is dipped into the dal and eaten with the fingers.

Butter may be substituted for the ghee.

Refried Beans

2 cups cooked pinto beans with juice

1 six ounce can tomato paste

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 onion, chopped

2 teaspoons oil

Mash beans. Add tomato paste and chili powder. Saute onion in oil.

Stir in beans and cook, stirring frequently until beans are hot. Serve with flour tortillas and cheese, if desired.

Mexican Rice and Beans

1 pound red kidney beans

3 quarts water

2 15 ounce cans tomato sauce

4 tablespoons chili powder

4 teaspoons oregano

4 onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 ounces brown rice, raw

1 tablespoon oil

Soak beans in water overnight. Cook till tender. Saute onions and garlic in oil. Add tomato sauce and spices. Simmer 15 minutes. Add to cooked beans. Add rice and stir. Cook one hour. Makes eight serving. 350 calories per serving.

White rice may be substituted for the brown rice.

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