Thanksgiving mash AND a Sunday Supper - Two-for-one Special!

 Today I'm giving a two-for-one special - a double whammy so to speak. I wanted to share my favorite new mashed "potato" recipe since some sort of mashed is a must have on Thanksgiving, and also get back in the swing of doing the Sunday Supper posts. So, I created a menu around the mashers than is easy, relatively quick and perfect for the Sunday Table.

 Mashing on the Light Side: These mashed potatoes are great because they're smooth and creamy like any cream and butter-filled version would be, but they are mush less heavy and starchy due to the addition of cauliflower. Cauliflower is in season throughout the winter, so great for mashing under the hearty stews and heavy meals we crave in colder weather. I don't love doing the cauliflower on its own because the water content is a little high and so it's kind of baby-foody, but mixed in a 1 to 1 ratio with potatoes it's perfect.

Bacon pieces on top make for an elegant presentation

I also add some garlic, thyme, bacon and goat cheese. These four wonderous ingredients round out the dish to make an awesome mash that can stand alone or accompany a more subtle main dish.

To go with my mashers I made some Toad in the Hole which is a relic of my childhood and so much yummier than it sounds. My mother, being Scottish and this being a British staple, would make this often on Sundays, much to our delight. It's essentially sausages cooked in a Yorkshire Pudding (Americans call this popover dough) crust.

Toad in the Hole!

For the veggie accompaniment we had an arugula and roasted squash salad, recipe thanks to Lindsey - which perfectly incorporated seasonal arugula and butternut squash into a salad that could easily stand on its own.

Any of these recipes could have been the highlight of the meal, but together they make a great feast that makes you forget that tomorrow is Monday and you'll have to go back to work!

Sunday Supper #2

RECIPES

Alelia's Creamy Bacon Mashers
serves 4-6


4 large Russet potatoes, in one inch pieces
1 small or 1/2 of a large head of cauliflower, roughly cut into large pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 strips bacon
1/2 - 3/4 cup goat cheese
1 Tbsp thyme
1 cup milk (any percent)
salt & pepper

- Combine the potatoes and cauliflower in a pot of water and boil until tender (about 10 - 15min)
- Meanwhile, cut the bacon into half inch pieces and fry in a pan until crispy, set aside.
- Drain potatoes and cauliflower, return to pot.
- Using a wand blender or beaters, blend the potatoes and cauliflower while adding the milk. When pretty much smooth, add the goat cheese and thyme and continue blending.
- Stir in the bacon bits, leaving some for garnishing on top if you desire.
- Salt & pepper to taste.

Toad in the Hole
serves 4 (with some leftovers for Monday!)


1 stick of butter

6 Good quality sausages (I like Italian, but any flavor will do)
1 cup of flour
1 1/4 cup of milk
3 large eggs
pinch of salt

springs of fresh rosemary, thyme or sage

- Heat oven to 475 degrees
- Mix together flour, milk, eggs and salt. Make sure to remove as many lumps as possible. Set aside.
- Place butter in a large, oven proof dish, let heat until fully melted and beginning to turn brown (don't let get too brown!!!)
- Add sausages carefully to the butter, they will sizzle and spit, so be careful. After a few seconds, turn the sausages to brown the other side. Return to the oven until light golden color - about 5-7 minutes.
- Carefully pour the batter atop the sausage and return to oven. DON'T open the oven for at least 20 minutes (Yorkshire Puddings can be finicky)!
- When the dough has risen around the sausages and is a deep golden color, it's ready.
-  Let rest 5 minutes before serving as it will be very hot.

Arugula, Squash and Goat Cheese Salad
serves 4-6


1 small butternut squash
l - 2 large bunches of arugula
2 oz of goat cheese
1 cup candied pecans
1 shallot
1 cup apple cider
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
Salt & Pepper to taste

- Set oven to 375 degrees. Cut the squash in half and deseed. Place on a baking tray and drizzle with oil. Roast for about 35 minutes, or until very tender.
- In a small saucepan, add 1 Tbsp olive oil and saute the shallots until translucent. Add the cider, vinegar and sugar and cook down to about half the original volume. Add salt & pepper to taste.
- In a large salad bowl, add the arugula, chunks of squash, crumbled goat cheese, and pecans.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss thoroughly.

ENJOY!

Sunday Supper #1

One of my favorite days growing up was Sunday. The threat of Monday morning and the return to school was certainly trumped by the delicious anticipation of Sunday dinner. My mother is a great cook, but no night was better than Sunday - for Sunday she pulled out all of the stops.

I have held on to this tradition and have tried my very best to keep it as my own. So last Sunday I did a full on Sunday Dinner for us and our good friends Lindsey and Jesse.

On the menu was:

Fresh baked pain a l'ancienne (country bread) with Irish butter
Marinated Flank Steak
Tomates a la creme
Baby dumpling quash and potato mash

and last, but certainly not least,
Blackberry Pie



The bread was really fun to make, though it is definitely an all-day process with the multiple rising times and all. The end result was fantastic though - especially slathered with some of the buttery goodness.

The steak is an old standby, but when paired with the tomates a la creme (creamy tomatoes) it was superb, hence recipe to follow. I made the squash and potato mash because we received the baby dumplings in our weekly CSA box and I wasn't quite sure what to do with them in the heat of summer...so mashing them in with potatoes it was and the result was velvetty sweetness, a little too sweet for my taste, but the guests loved it.

Lastly came the pie. I happen to love blackberry pie, especially in summer as it seems to pinpoint the very essence of my youth. Pie crust is always a daunting task and there are many philosophies on what ingredients make the best pies. One of my all time favorite cookbooks, The Best Recipe put together by Cooks Illustrated, suggests that a mixture of veggie shortening and butter makes the flakiest tastiest crust. I, however, had no shortening on hand so I went the all-butter route. I would have to agree with them though that it wasn't as flaky as I would have liked, but tasted good all the same.

Another pie item discussed in The Best Recipe is what type of pie pan to use. They say that the Pyrex glass pie pans are the best for even baking of the top and bottom crust, but a metal pie pan does a pretty good job too - you just can't see the status of your bottom crust as you can with the Pyrex. I naturally threw these rules by the wayside and went with my super-cute ceramic pie pan that I just love! And lo and behold, my bottom crust did not get cooked through and I was reminded that The Best Recipe is most often right.

The pie was good nonetheless and made breakfast for several mornings thereafter - I LOVE pie for breakfast.

And thus ends, another Sunday supper at the Red Door.

RECIPE

Tomates a la Creme

4-5 tomatoes, halved
3-5 oz of heavy cream
1 large pat of butter
salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in the pan at medium heat. Put the tomato halves in cut-faced down and cook for five minutes. Poke many holes in the rounded sides of the tomato to allow juices to flow. Flip the tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes. Add the cream and salt and pepper and cook for another five minutes. Serve immediately, very hot.

The result is a creamy, saucy dish that does a great job of being a gravy for the steak and potatoes.

Sunday Supper

One of my favorite days growing up was Sunday. The threat of Monday morning and the return to school was certainly trumped by the delicious anticipation of Sunday dinner. My mother is a great cook, but no night was better than Sunday - for Sunday she pulled out all of the stops.

I have held on to this tradition and try my very best to keep it as my own. So last Sunday I did a full on Sunday Dinner for us and our good friends Lindsey and Jesse.

On the menu was:

Fresh baked pain a l'ancienne (country bread) with Irish butter
Marinated Flank Steak
Tomates a la creme
Baby dumpling quash and potato mash

and last, but certainly not least,
Blackberry Pie

The bread was really fun to make, though it is definitely an all-day process with the multiple rising times and all. The end result was fantastic though - especially slathered with some of the buttery goodness.

The steak is an old standby, but when paired with the tomates a la creme (creamy tomatoes) it was superb, hence recipe to follow.