Chris' Recipes

Bon Appetite!

Brined Turkey, 2013

Written By: Chris - Dec• 16•13

We enjoyed a moist and delicious turkey for Thanksgiving.  We ended up with plenty of extra for the freezer, so we’ll be happy over the next few months when we want something easy to grab google earth kostenlosen deutsch!  I prefer to brine our bird because the process of brining increases the moisture holding capacity of meat, which results in a much more moist product once it is cooked film aus mediathek downloaden.  The great things about brining is that there are very few rules and you can season yours with what you have on hand.  Most start with water and salt and soaking the turkey overnight in the solution ensures moist results tweakbox kan niet downloaden.  When you add aromatics to the brine, the resulting roast is also infused with a subtle character all its own.

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Ingredients:

1 Fresh Whole Turkey, patted dry, neck and giblets and liver reserved for stock, and/or stuffing
Makes enough brine for one 18- to 20-pound turkey

6 to 8 quarts Water
1 Cups Coarse Kosher Salt
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Sugar in the Raw
2 large Carrots, chopped
2 large Celery Stocks & Heart, choppedd
1 Small Onion, chopped
3 Sprigs Fresh Thyme download whatsapp report. leaves & stems
5-6 Sprigs of Fresh Oregano, leaves & stems
3 Sprigs of Fresh Rosemary, leaves & stems
4 Garlic Cloves, smashed
1/3 Cup Fresh, Sage
2 Tablespoons Coriander, ground
2 Tablespoons, Fresh Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon, Fresh Black Peppercorns

The day before you plan on cooking the turkey, remove the innards and rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water snagit kostenlos herunterladen.

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Bring about a gallon of water to a boil google earth free download windows 10.  Add the brining ingredients, including fresh herbs, salt, sugar and the vegetables to the hot water and blend for several minutes, until the salt and sugar is dissolved dota 2 auto chessen.

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Turn off the heat and let it cool to room temperature angelspiel pc kostenlos downloaden. (To speed things up you can add cold water and/or ice to it.)

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Place a bit of water at the bottom of your brining container and add the turkey, breast side down and submerge the turkey in the brine solution so that it is completely covered herunterladen.

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I use a large stainless steel pan designed for deep frying, because it’s the largest pot I own mp3 download programm kostenlos.  Any clean large container including a new five gallon bucket would work.  Refrigerate overnight or at least 24 hours. If your brine doesn’t completely cover the turkey, turn the turkey over half way through brining.

Then you have to get ready to cook the turkey!  Next day, about an hour before you are ready to cook the turkey, remove the bird from the bath and discard all of the brine, but keep the vegetables.  Rinse the turkey well with cold water and pat dry.

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I use the stuffing inside the carcass for added flavor while it cooks in a roasting bag.  A whole turkey is safe when cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees measured with a food thermometer.  Check the internal temperature in the innermost part of the thigh and wing and the thickest part of the breast.  Allow the turkey to set at least 20 to 30 minutes, or even up to an hour before carving to allow juices to saturate the meat evenly.

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I prefer to cook the dressing outside of the turkey and the meat was tender and succulent!

Enjoy!
Cheers!
~Chris

 

Corn Bread Stuffing

Written By: Chris - Dec• 11•13

Since we just got through another Holiday of traditional eats, I thought we could discuss stuffing.  It’s a long time favorite side dish to turkey dinners and is basically a Thanksgiving essential fifa 18 gratisen pc!  I am pretty sure that I grew up in a house where the stuffing was always inside the turkey, but many people bake their stuffing separately in a casserole dish, often called “dressing” Download tomb raider game for free.  Actually, I think my mom did it both ways because there were so many of us to feed that what was inside wasn’t enough.  People often wonder “to stuff the bird, or not” audio dateien download kostenlos!

I haven’t put much thought into stuffing ours over the past few years because frankly, I just think it is a little gross.  Have you looked inside the carcass buch von google booksen?  I have and believe that as a turkey cooks, its juices (that could actually contain salmonella) might absorb into the stuffing if it’s inside the bird nintendo game!  I really can’t be so sure that the filling deep inside the cavity would actually reach the necessary temperatures to kill any potentially harmful bacteria’s, so I just don’t skiregion simulator.

Anyways, whether or not you stuff, there are basically very few components to making it.  The main ingredients are dried bread, vegetables and spices herunterladen.  You can change-up the breads; add meat, fruit or whatever makes you happy! I prefer cornbread in ours.

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Ingredients: 

1 lb icloud fotos herunterladen ohne zip. Ground Beef, 80/20
1 Onion, medium chopped
3 Stalks Celery, chopped fine
1 8X8 pan Corn Bread, cubed and dried
1 Package Herb Flavored Stuffing Mix
2 Cups Chicken Stock, homemade
1 Tablespoon Better than Bullion, Chicken
1/4 Cup Butter, melted
Salt & Pepper, to taste

I’ve had stuffing over the years by various hosts that has been soggy Download classic wow.  The result is completely understandable given that bread is porous and absorbs the moisture of the bird as it cooks inside.  What I find odd though, is that stuffing a turkey can actually dry out the meat herunterladen!  I didn’t think it would, but my friend Heather stuffed her bird this year and though she swears by the flavors of her stuffing inside the bird, she was disappointed in the dryness of the meat.

heathers bird

I call my version of stuffing semi-homemade.  I started with a package of store-bought pre-seasoned package of cubed bread.  I also bought a wonderful pan of fresh corn bread that almost tasted like cake from the local Cub.  Cut up the cornbread into cubes and allow it to dry out over night on baking sheet.

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Cook the ground beef and chopped onions over medium-high heat until the meat is browned.  Drain access fat and add celery cooking an additional six to eight minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft.

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Gently toss celery mixture with all of the remaining ingredients, including the chopped herbs until bread cubes are evenly coated.

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If you’re into that sort of thing, stuff into your turkey; or you can do what I do and bake the stuffing separately.

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Place into a greased casserole or baking dish, cover with foil and bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and bake uncovered for about 15 minutes longer to brown and crisp up the top.

Enjoy!
Cheers!
~Chris

 

 

Sweet Potato Casserole

Written By: Chris - Dec• 10•13

It’s the Holidays and I wasn’t really thinking “light” when I prepared this dish.  Though the sweet potato is nutritious (high in vitamins A and C) and very tasty, not too many in my bunch care for them too much fifa 12 vollversion kostenlosen pc.  But I like them and I particularly think they need to be on my Thanksgiving menu.  I enjoy the sweet contrast along side of my green olives, pickles and salty gravy over mashed potatoes…  These little gems are traditionally a dish of pureed, sugary-sweet potatoes topped with a generous layer of mini marshmallows (in other words, an opportunity to eat dessert for dinner, so I don’t understand why my gang isn’t crazy for them too.)  I thought if I changed them up by adding a buttery cracker top, it might elevate this years sweet potatoes to a new level internet videos downloaden firefox.  Well, some ate them and some didn’t – but these are GOOD!  Next time, I’ll be adding toasted pecans.

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Ingredients: 

1/4 Cup Butter, melted 
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Cream
2 Eggs, slightly beaten
Salt, pinch
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Lg canon eos utilityen. Can Sweet Potatoes, drained

Topping:
3/4 Package of Muliti-Grain Butter Crackers, crushed
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients using a hand mixer until blended herunterladen.

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Blend with canned, drained sweet potatoes and transfer to a greased 8-in herunterladen. square baking dish.

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Combine the topping ingredients by melting the butter and brown sugar itunes neueste version download kostenlos.  Add the crushed crackers and sprinkle over sweet potato mixture.  Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Cheers!
~Chris

 

Meat Balls, by Heather

Written By: Chris - Dec• 09•13

Who doesn’t like a meatball?  Made from an amount of ground meat rolled into a small ball, sometimes along with other ingredients, such as breadcrumbs, minced onion, spices, possibly eggs and herbs avast cleanup kostenlos.  Or whatever else you have on hand!  Meatballs are usually prepared and rolled by hand, and are cooked by frying, baking, steaming or braising in some sort of sauce e mails outlook.  They can be made with pork, beef, veal, chicken and even vegetables.  Seems like when I’ve been visiting my friend Heather lately, that she’s been making a variety of flavors lately download mundschutz cut pattern for free.  After sampling some the other night hat she had made from a blend of ground beef and Italian sausage, (I’m not even a fan of Italian sausage typically and these were really good!) So I asked her to share her recipe minecraft snapshot!

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Ingredients: 

3 lbs download loot boy. Ground Beef
1 lb. Italian Sausage
1 Green Pepper, chopped fine
1 Onion, chopped fine
1 Cup Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/2 Cup Cut Oats
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Fennel
1 teaspoon Cumin, ground
1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
2 Eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 Cup Red Wine

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees download rainbow six.  Remove the meat of the Italian sausage from their casings.  In a large mixing bowl, gently combine the ground meats with the other ingredients.  Using your hands, carefully mix all ingredients until well incorporated, but don’t over work the mixture or the meatballs can become tough download openstreetmap maps.   Shape the meat into rounds, and place the balls onto a cookie sheet.

meat balls

Bake uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes or until browned and cooked through tomtom mydrive connect.  Drain any access fat before serving.  These can be added to a pasta sauce or served as an appetizer.

Enjoy!
Cheers chip videos herunterladen!
~Chris (on behalf of Heather!) 

 

Salmon Wrapped Scallops, with Lemon and Dill Beurre Blanc

Written By: Chris - Dec• 04•13

I was poking around on the Internet looking for ideas of how to combine two small fillets of fresh salmon and some scallops that I had on hand into a cohesive meal.  I usually only hear terms like “Beurre blanc” when I’m reading foodie magazines or watching some Food Network program; unless I’m at my friend Laura’s outlook webmail download!  I came across a guy making these delicious salmon wrapped scallops and thought that I needed a light sauce incorporating some fresh Dill that I had just harvested.

This dish looks fancy, but trust me – it’s not hard and really isn’t even very time consuming!  Beurre blanc is a classic French butter sauce, brightened with added capers, fresh dill or other herbs wie kann man videos für whatsapp herunterladen. It is a delicious sauce ideal for sear-roasted, grill, barbecued or baked fish.  It can also be used for chicken and white meals such as turkey or pork.  I’ve learned that the secret to keeping the sauce emulsified is to use cold butter and to add the butter a little at a time while whisking to blend it into the sauce music from youtube linux.  A well-made beurre blanc sauce is rich, tangy and buttery and is lighter than sauces made with egg yolk.  It has a neutral delicate flavor by itself and doesn’t overwhelm dishes like fish, scallops and other shellfish and seafood.  Adding flavorings such as dill, lemon and lime just make it shine.

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Ingredients: 

2 6 oz linux programmeen. fillets of Salmon, skin removed
4 Scallops
Sunflower Oil

Beurre Blan Sauce, with Lemon and Dill:
1 Lemon, juiced (start with half and add to taste)
2 Tablespoons Lemon Zest
3 Tablespoons Fresh Dill, finely chopped
1/2 Cup Butter, cold and cut into small pieces
1 Shallot, large and finely chopped (about 1/2 Cup)
1 Cup Dry White Wine (Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, or similar. I used Meritage, which is a US equivalent to a Bordeaux blend)
Salt and Pepper, freshly ground to taste
Pinch of red Cayenne Pepper

Beurre blanc is prepared by first by reducing wine, vinegar or lemon juice with herbs and chopped shallots, down over moderate heat until it is almost dry adobe flash player für google chrome kostenlos.  (Some people add cream to act as a stabilizer, though it is not necessary, I think I would prefer the flavor and will next time!)  Then cold, small cubes of butter are then gradually whisked into the hot sauce.

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Heat the wine and shallots in a medium-size saucepan over moderate to high heat, stirring frequently moodle free download.   Render down the wine until it is concentrated with most of the liquid evaporated.  It should have an appearance of a glaze and should take about eight to 10 minutes.

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Remove the pan from the heat and using a whisk add the butter cubes a couple at a time, waiting for each to melt before adding the other schulschrift herunterladen.  The sauce should become thick and creamy.

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(Warm the mixture slightly if the sauce cools and the butter takes too long to melt. But don’t overheat it, as this could ruin it.)  I prefer lemon and dill with fish, but numerous other herbs and spices can be used per your liking herunterladen.  Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, dill, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper.

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Meanwhile, steam asparagus as a side dish and prepare the wrapped scallops.

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Cut the two salmon fillets in half kostenlos apps iphone downloaden.  The thickness should be about the same as the scallops when wrapping them around.  Using four wooden skewers that have been snipped in half, secure the salmon around the scallops.  Season with Salt and pepper and cook over high heat in a couple tablespoons of oil.  Sear each side for about three minutes.  Remove fish from heat and gently pull out the skewers wahrheit oder pflicht herunterladen.

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I served the fish on a bed of mashed potatoes with the Beurre Blanc drizzled around.  I chose to enjoy a glass of the Cosentino 2008 Novelist (Meritage) that I had used in my sauce and thought it paired perfectly.  Bill wanted a glass of Anderson Conn Valley 2010 Pino Noir and though each tasted great, I think my wine paired better!

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The Salmon was flaky and delicious with a tender, crispy crust

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And the Scallops were sweet and succulent!

Enjoy!

Cheers!
~Chris