Friday, November 27, 2009

Cornbread Stuffing w/Chestnuts

Made half of this recipe that I found online and still had enough with leftovers. I used leftovers of jalapeno cornbread that I had made earrlier in the week. Yum!

3 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
2 1/4 to 2 3/4 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 cups coarsely chopped chestnuts from one 16-ounce jar
1 large egg, beaten to blend

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut bread into 1-inch cubes. Spread on large baking sheet. Bake until dry but not firm, about 25 minutes. Cool. Coarsely crumble into very large bowl. Maintain oven temperature.
Butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and celery; sauté until tender, about 7 minutes. Add to corn bread. Mix in 2 1/4 cups broth and herbs. Stir in chestnuts. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in egg. Add up to 1/2 cup more broth if stuffing seems dry. Transfer to prepared dish. Cover; bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until top begins to brown, about 30 minutes longer.

Thanksgiving Leftovers Shepherd's Pie

Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse; found this on the Food Network site-delicious!

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onions
2 carrots, peeled and chopped (about 1 cup)
1/4 teaspoon Essence or Creole Seasoning, recipe follows
1/4 teaspoon plus
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 ounces mushrooms, stemmed, wiped clean, and sliced
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons tomato paste
2 to 2 1/2 cups chopped or shredded roast turkey (white and/or dark meat)
1 1/4 cups chicken stock or canned chicken broth
1/2 cup green peas
4 cups leftover mashed potatoes
3/4 cup grated sharp or medium cheddar cheese
Chopped parsley leaves, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9-inch square or 2.2 quart baking dish with the butter and set aside. In a large saute pan or skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, carrots, Essence, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until the onions are soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 20 seconds. Add the mushrooms, thyme, and bay leaf and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until thick, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the meat and stir well to combine. Gradually add the stock and then the peas, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the mixture is thickened, 6 to 8 minutes
Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaf. Carefully transfer to the prepared dish and spoon the potatoes over the meat mixture, spreading to the edges. Sprinkle with the cheese and bake until the cheese is bubbly and the potatoes are crisp around the edges, 22 to 25 minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

Emeril's Essence

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly, and store in a labeled jar.

Daikon and Carrot Pickle

Found this recipe online after loving it at our local Koran restaurant.

Try this daikon and carrot pickle recipe once and then tweak the recipe to your liking. Makes about 3 cups

1 large carrot, peeled and cut into thick matchsticks
1 pound daikons, each no larger than 2 inches in diameter, peeled and cut into thick matchsticks 1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons plus
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups distilled white vinegar
1 cup lukewarm water

Place the carrot and daikons in a bowl and sprinkle with the salt and 2 teaspoons of the sugar. Use your hands to knead the vegetables for about 3 minutes, expelling the water from them. They will soften and liquid will pool at the bottom of the bowl.

Stop kneading when you can bend a piece of daikon so that the ends touch but the daikon does not break. The vegetables should have lost about one-fourth of their volume. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water, then press gently to expel extra water. Return the vegetables to the bowl if you plan to eat them soon, or transfer them to a 1-quart jar for longer storage.

To make the brine, in a bowl, combine the 1/2 cup sugar, the vinegar, and the water and stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour over the vegetables. The brine should cover the vegetables. Let the vegetables marinate in the brine for at least 1 hour before eating. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.

Cap'n Crunch French Toast

6 eggs
6 tbs sugar
2 c heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 box Cap'n Crunch Cereal, crushed in a ziploc bag, spread onto plate
Bag of texas toast bread

Whip the first five ingredients in a pie plate. Dip each slice of bread into the egg mixture, then coat with the crushed cereal. Pan fry on a buttered griddle until nicely carmelized. Serve w/whipped cream topped with fruit. At the Blue Moon Cafe in Baltimore, it was topped with sliced strawberries, blueberries, and carmelized bananas on top of homeade whipped cream. No syrup necessary. A wonderful guilty indulgence.