Breakfast of Champions

One of my favorite things about the weekend is breakfast. During the week there just isn't time to enjoy anything more than cereal and milk, or, if I'm lucky, a fresh fruit smoothy. So, when Saturday roles around and I can start looking forward to crispy bacon, fluffy pancakes and perfectly fried eggs I'm one happy girl.

As I've mentioned before, we get a CSA box (Community Supported Agriculture) and so I like to incorporate those veggies into all meals of the day and breakfast is not exception. This week the box included broccoli and green onions as well as strawberries so it was a tough choice between french toast with strawberries or one of my personal favorites, potato hash. The potato hash won.

Some fresh, local AND organic product from my farm box

Usually when you get a diner-made hash the potatoes are either diced or shredded, but I like mine sliced into discs. That way the potatoes have a lot of surface area with which to collect all of the flavor. Another trick I prefer for hashes is placing a fried egg on top of the hash, so that the yolk runs down into the potatoes.

Sauteing potatoes in bacon - perfection? Pretty close!

For this week's hash I was lucky enough to have a perfect storm of ingredients that made a meal worth drooling over. I had bacon, cheese, fingerling potatoes and organic, cage free eggs. Mixing in some fresh broccoli and green onion added both color and sublime flavor.

And Voila! I could eat this breakfast everyday!

This, my friends, is the way to rock a weekend!

RECIPE
Sunday Morning Hash
serves 2

2-3 fingerling potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
5 slices of bacon, cut into half inch pieces
1 cup broccoli florets, cut into small pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
2 green onions, white and very light green segments sliced
salt and pepper to taste

- Place the potato slices in a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, fry the bacon pieces until almost desired crispiness.
- Add the broccoli, potato slices and garlic and saute until the potatoes are cooked through and you start to smell the garlic.
- Serve the potato hash onto two plates, reserving some of the bacon grease that should remain at the bottom of the pan.
- Heat the bacon fat on medium high heat and crack the eggs in. Cook for one minute and flip onto the other side for another 10 seconds (you want the yolk to be runny).
- Place the eggs on top of the hash and top with shredded cheese and green onions.
- Serve immediately and enjoy the weekend!

When it's cold outside...viva Mexico!

 It is the middle of winter and the weather is cold, well, at least as cold as it gets in Santa Barbara, and I was feeling like something a little spicy to warm up. Chicken enchiladas fit the bill perfectly and it had the added bonus of being something that I'd never made before.

Simmering enchilada sauce - so spicy!

In everything that I make, I always try and incorporate more  vegetables because once a week I get a CSA box (Community Supported Agriculture) and it's always full of organic and local produce that I need to incorporate into my culinary adventures. This week the box included spinach and cauliflower and I wanted to throw them into my fiesta fare.

Fresh spinach mixed with chicken - great twist on a standard

I decided to make the enchiladas chicken and spinach and I actually really liked the combo. It gave the dish more depth and I felt a wee bit healthier eating it too. I'm not going to include the recipe however, because I wasn't that impressed with my enchilada sauce. First of all there wasn't enough of it and second it was WAY too spicy. I think that the problem lied in my chili powder which was a bit more potent than I'd expected.

I will, however, include my mexican cauliflower recipe which was a surprising and refreshing way to use this vegetable that I eat a lot of in the wintertime. It is basically steamed or boiled cauliflower mixed with fresh pico de gallo and topped with feta. I would definitely make this again!

The onion and lime mix - made a tangy marinade for this fresh cauliflower dish

RECIPE

Braised Cauliflower and Fresh Salsa

1 onion, finely chopped
1 lime - both zest and juice
1 medium head cauliflower
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 - 1 cup water
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 Fresh tomatoes, diced
1 bunch cilantro
1/2 cup feta

- Put the onion, lime zest and lime juice into a small bowl so that the juice cooks the onion
- Cut the cauliflower into small florets
- Put the can of tomatoes into a pan with the water and heat, add the sugar and salt. When they start to simmer add the cauliflower and braise for five minutes.
- Add the onion mixture and warm through - about another five minutes (if you like your cauliflower softer you might want to pre-boil it for a few minutes before adding it to the tomatoes).
- Mix the cauliflower, fresh tomatoes, cilantro and feta in a larger serving bowl and serve.

Savoring Seattle - a brief view of a tasty trip

You know, I have a great dislike for the times when things you have to do get in the way of things you want to do. The past two weeks have been full of those times - work deadlines, social responsibilities, tedious errands, that I have had little time to cook, let alone blog. It has been a pain!

 Seattle sunrise with Mt. Rainier in the background

However, here I am - ready to finish part 2 of the already begun saga of the Seattle Holiday Adventure, albeit a little late and out of context...but here goes.

You've now heard about the epic (and delicious) route we took to get to Seattle, now all of the eating we did once we arrived must be accounted for, and let me tell you - there was plenty of eating going on.

We got there just in time for Christmas Eve and the Quebec side of my family has a great tradition of staying up really late - having a fancy hors d'ouvre party around 10:30 and then at midnight (when it's officially Christmas) we get to open presents. This event usually extends into the not-so-wee hours of the morning...

My contribution to the evening was to be blue cheese-stuffed dates, wrapped in bacon (recipe below). I had sampled these before, but had never made them - luckily they are super simple, especially for something that tastes so good.

Bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with blue cheese - ready for the oven.

Pitted dates come with a hole already in them, so all you need to do is find a blue cheese soft enough to coax into it. This isn't a huge limitation by any means because most blue cheeses are naturally soft(ish) so just stay away from the rather hard ones. Once these bacon-wrapped gems came out of the oven, they almost didn't make it to midnight - they were that popular!

I almost didn't get a photo of these, they went so fast!

There was also plenty of eating out while in Seattle, but one place stood out in particular. It's one of my perennial favorites when I'm in town and its name is La Medusa. It's Sicilian eatery with little pretense and lots of flavor. We went there on New Year's Eve, which also happens to be my brother's birthday. They had a prix fixe menu on this particular night with wine pairings, so naturally that's what I got.

The first course was seared scallops atop a sunchoke puree with caramelized onions and pomegranate seeds. The scallop was delicately seared and still almost translucent in the middle, an indication that it has not been overcooked and its light texture floated nicely above the puree when paired in a bite together. The onions and pomegranate added both a subtle sweetness and crunch that rounded out the dish nicely. This course was paired with NV Jeio Rose Prosecco from Italy, whose bubbles carried a lightness that matched the dish and was lovely.

The happy eaters @ La Medusa - birthday boy at the far end

The salad (or second) course was an arugula salad with satsuma orange, castelvetrano olives and a pancetta vinaigrette. The vinaigrette is what made this salad, and no, I'm not just saying that due to my obscene fondness for bacon (a close relative to pancetta). Without the salty accent, the salad would have been too common, bordering on cliche - but the warm vinaigrette definitely set it apart and made it something special, especially given how nicely the peppery arugula paired with the pancetta (pepper bacon anyone!?!?). Course two was paired with Mirth Chardonnay from Washington State which, I've got to admit, I was not a big fan of. The flavor was too heavy, lacking a crispness that would have gone nicely with the salad and had a slight hint of burnt rubber to it.

The main course was Cotechino with black lentils. I at first had to ask the waitress what Cotechino was exactly. It's a large, rustic sausage typically consisting of pork, fatback and pork rind. Cotechino is a dish traditionally served on New Year's Eve and is purported to bring prosperity to its eater. La Medusa's version was very tasty indeed and that was lucky because the bed of black lentils it rested upon was a little underwhelming on its own. Together, however, they had an earthy richness and heartiness that was a nice way to say arivaderchi! to 2009. The cotechino was paired with a Sicilian red that goes by the name Il Frappato (it's 100% frappato grapes) which brought forth a comparable earthiness to the pork.

Cotechino! (Unfortunately this is the only good picture of the food I managed)

Lastly, though the prix fixe came with poached seckle pears, I couldn't resist La Medusa's cannoli. I don't know what it is about this crispy-creamy pastries but I am just ridiculously enamoured with them and get them everywhere I go. So there!

Suffice it to say that I have never eated at La Medusa and been dissappointed, and this year was no exception. So - for those of you who don't live in Seattle, but plan on visiting - add this to your must visit list. And for those of you who do live in Seattle - what are you waiting for?!?!?



P.S. A Fast Food Favorite: Its not too often that I give in to fast food cravings, but these days it's possible to have slow/fast food. Does that make any sense? I didn't think so! What I mean is that there are lots of talented food artisans that are taking on traditional fast foods and making them into tasty (often locally-sourced) delicacies, but they're still available in high speeds and relatively low costs.

One such example is Top Pot donuts in Seattle. They are taking a tired perhaps even antiquated foodstuff and turning it into something exotic that you might actually want to waste the calories on. We got to try the chocolate raspberry (the glaze is made with real raspberries!), the mexican chocolate (with cinnamon and sugar), the classic maple bar and the oh-so-tasty raised glazed, just to name a few.

Top Pot donuts - 12 kinds o' love (some already got eaten)

These were so good we got a dozen to share, and coming from someone who was previously not a huge donut fan, that's a pretty big deal.

RECIPE

Bacon-Wrapped Dates Stuffed with Blue Cheese

Pitted Dates - as many as you want to serve (suggested: 1/2 pound)
Blue cheese (such as St. Agur) - you'll need about 1/2 tsp per date (suggested: 1/4 pound)
Bacon - half a slice per date

-Let the blue cheese soften slightly at room temp.
-Pinch off a piece of cheese and roll it into a size that can be inserted into the hole.
-Wrap the date tightly in bacon, placing it on a baking tray with the bacon's free end down.
-Broil in the oven for 7-10 minutes (or until crispy, but keep a close eye so that they don't burn) and flip (if possible - sometimes the dates don't want to cooperate!)
-Transfer to plate and serve! (watch out - these puppies come out hot~)

  The rainbow over the Tillamook Cheese Factory - Notice I am enjoying my milkshake...

Well, we're just back from a delicious stint in sunny, yes I said sunny, Seattle. Every time I get to go up there I get so excited because Seattle has really come into its own as of late in the realm of all things culinary. Luckily, my brother is as much a foodie as I am and plans each meal of our stay.

The tastiness did not wait for Seattle to start however, and we made sure to savor local flavors the whole way up the California, Oregon and Washington coasts. Our first stop was the town of Medocino, famed for gorgeous countryside, quaint village life and good things, including food, beer, wine and certain "medicinal" herbs.

 Avenue of the Giants - California Redwood Forest

We ate dinner at the local pub, Patterson's, which, being Saturday, was packed. Rarely do you find such gourmet food as Kobe beef burgers in a local pub, but we were in Mendocino after all. We ordered the burger and a pint each of local beers and they were both scrumptious! The burger, which was cooked to our liking, was so tasty and the beer washed it down nicely.

 The next morning we came back into town for breakfast and tried the Mendocino Bakery, which looked pretty underwhelming from the outside. However, once inside, our minds were changed and the pastries were delicious. I got a "breakfast pouch" which was a pouch made with pizza dough filled with scrambled eggs, pepper jack cheese and housemade sausage. This was a grand idea in my opinion and a great way to contain the staples of breakfast into a contained, easy to handle treat.

Depoe Bay Oregon - famous for savage coastlines and every flavor of taffy

On our way through Humboldt County, we saw an "Adopt-a-Highway" sign that read "Eel River Brewery, the first organic brewery." Less than five minutes later we found ourselves on barstools in front of a vast selection of hand crafted beers. Having never heard of Eel River beers before, we opted for the sampler. We got to try 8 different beers from light to dark, including an Acai Berry Wheat, that was very tasty. We ended up buying several varieties to take with us to share with folks over the holidays.

Eel River Brewing Sampler

For dinner, we ended up stopping, on a whim, in a town called Gold Beach at a steakhouse called "Spinner's Seafood and Chop House." At first we were worried that the prices were going to be a little steep and that our road-weary outfits and faces would not be accepted, but this was not the case. The hostess happily seated us and we were pleasantly surprised to find that the menu was really rather affordable.

Luckily for us, our trip coincided with the launch of crab season and so there was no way I was going to pass up on the Dungeness Crab Mac N' Cheese. We also got the lamb shoulder which was braised in red wine with mushrooms and root veggies. Both dishes were very, very good. There was so much food (each entree came with a choice of salad - and there were 5 varieties or soup) that we ended up taking half of our meals with us, to be enjoyed for dinner the following day.

We were extremely surprised when we checked out the dessert menu at the variety and appeal of the desserts. We ended up selecting a marionberry cheesecake, that was the perfect finish to this great meal.

Our last day on the road enjoyed the cherry on top of all meals on this particular road trip. Our friend Clark, owner of Full of Life Flatbread, highly recommended a place in Newport, OR aptly named Local Ocean Seafood. When we first walked into this place I was a little confused, I mean Clark LOVES good food as much as I do and this place looked like a fish and chip shack warmed over. However, I sat chastened once the food graced our table and our mouths.

I immediately asked the chef what he recommended and he came over, sat at our table and went through each item - apologizing profusely that the crab actually came in yesterday...it turns out this gentleman was the restaurant's owner and each dish he recommended hit the bull's eye.

Roasted Garlic and Crab Soup

We started out with Dungeness crab and roasted garlic soup, followed by pan roasted oysters. The crowning moment was the 2 pound whole crab, which was easily shared by the two of us. We washed this seafood feast down with two bottles of Rogue Brewing beer, one of my faves from Oregon.

Our friend, Mr. Crab, was super meaty

The remainder of the trip wasn't marked with any particularly tantilizing foods, until, that is, we reached the Tillamook Creamery. This haven of cheese and ice cream was a feast for the eyes. This, my friends is where some serious cheddar magic happens. We were able to sample several cheeses and were delighted by the ice cream selection (38 flavors) in all (the mud slide makes a phenomenal milk shake!). It seemed like the perfect way to end this first part of our culinary journey.

Where the magic happens, yes - those are giant blocks of ages cheddar!

Stay tuned as a fill you in on all of the eating we did IN seattle - it was no small feat, but somebody had to do it...

Homemade ketchup, salty chocolate bark and baby pies!

The holidays are definitely upon us and I'm still loving all of the baking and crafting I'm getting to do in order to get all of the Christmas gifts ready. This week was a bit of a whirlwind as I am preparing to head out of town for almost three weeks on a camper van odyssey up the California-Oregon-Washington border to spend some well deserved time with my family.

 However, I did manage to squeeze in making a few sweet treats to give away...including individual apple pies and the easiest salty pecan chocolate bark you ever did see. I also made some homemade ketchup to go on some tourtiere (Quebecer-speak for meat pie) that I had made and that turned out quite well, though I wouldn't call it a holiday gift as someone might look at you sideways if you handed them a jar of ketchup and said "Merry Christmas!"

Nothing like homemade ketchup to say Happy Holidays!

The ketchup was quite easy though, if you have a food processor or solid blender that is. All I did was roast the ingredients together (unpeeled), peel them when they were done, through them in the food processor with some vinegar and sugar and voila! See the complete recipe below.

The chocolate bark was completely inspired by my friend Jessica's cooking adventures and she made these for holiday treats. She got such great reviews on it that I decided to make some this year. This recipe is quite possibly the easiest recipe this side of making toast. Plus, the results are absolutely gorgeous! It is even easier if you buy the pecans already roasted and salted, because you take that step out of the process.

Salty Pecan Chocolate Bark - no easier gift this year...

Lastly, no, I am not obsessed with apples. I happen to have tons of them from my CSA box (Community Supported Agriculture) and since I'm going away for almost three weeks, I wanted to use a bunch of them up. I figured I'd make mini apple pies and give them to friends for a nice holiday surprise. Using a very simple crust recipe and the french style crust (place your filling in the middle and fold up the sides to provide structure, these treats were whipped up in a snap (literally between coming home from work and going out to dinner). Wrap them in a rustic cloth and tie it with a ribbon and you've got a lovely favor.

These pies made tasty and attractive gifts.

Though this may be it for holiday gift ideas (I'm not sure yet...) stay tuned for some eating, drinking and cooking adventures up north in jolly (and tasty) Seattle!

RECIPES

5 minute (plus chilling) Chocolate Bark

makes 1 large cookie sheet

12oz bittersweet chocolate, either chips or baking bars cut into 8 pieces

12oz white chocolate, either chips or baking bars cut into 8 pieces

3/4 - 1 cup pecans - if you get them pre-roasted, you won't have to do that step yourself.

1 tsp sea salt

*if you don't have roasted pecans, roast them on a cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes, stirring at least once. Keep an eye on these as burnt pecan don't taste good!

- preheat oven to 175 degrees

- distribute the chocolates alternatively on a parchment-lined cookie sheet so that there are pockets of brown and pockets of white (if using chips, make these pockets up with small handfulls of them).

- bake chocolate for 5-10 minutes (take it out as soon as the chips have melted)

- using a fork, swirl the chocolates together

- sprinkle pecans on top (pressing down slightly on them if you like)

- sprinkle sea salt over the entire bark

- chill in the fridge until hard (at least 4 hours)

- remove from fridge and break into pieces

Mini Apple Pies

makes 6

Crust:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 stick (16 tbsp) butter, cubed and chilled

8-10 Tbsp ice water

Filling:

6-8 apples

6 Tbsp butter

1 tsp cinnamon

1 Tbsp brown sugar

- Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a food processor.

- Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the butter is about the size of peas.

- Add 8 Tbsp of ice water and pulse until the dough comes together (you may need to add more water) into a ball.

- divide the dough into 6 pieces and flatten into disks and chill at least one hour, but over night is good too.

- peel and slice the apples.

- in a heavy skillet, melt the butter and add the apples, sugar and cinnamon - saute until golden.

- on a floured surface, roll out the dough disks until about 1/4 inch.

-place about a cup of apple slices in the middle of each crust and fold the edges up to keep the pie contained.

- Bake the pies for 20-25 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.

- Cool for at least 60 minutes before wrapping.

Homemade Ketchup

makes 1 pint

10 large tomatoes
2 onions
4 gloves garlic
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
1-2 tsp salt (depends on taste)

(you can add oregano, basic, allspice and cayenne if you like)

Ketchup ingredients, fresh out of the oven    

- place the tomatoes, onions and garlic on a baking sheet and roast at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes (remove the garlic after 15 minutes) - until the tomatoes split.
- Remove from the oven and let cool until you can handle them without burning yourself.
- peel the tomatoes, onions and garlic and process them in the food processor until saucy.
- put the sauce into a heavy medium saucepan, add sugar, salt, vinegar and desired spices.
- cook down over medium heat for about 15 minutes (this will bubble and splatter so make sure you have something to cover your pot with).
- once you have your desired consistency, you can keep the ketchup for three weeks in an airtight container or can it for later use.

Butter and Bacon Make Everything Better

As promised, I have been diligently working on my homemade holiday gifts this weekend and I wanted to share a few of them. My friend Athena came up for a little R&R and went to work making homemade marshmallows, bacon ice cream and bath scrub (I know, not edible, but I thought I'd share anyway).

I dipped these marshmallows in melted chocolate, topped them with a

salted pecan and sprinkled sea salt over them - to die for.

The marshmallows were so easy that I'm pretty sure I'll never buy the store-bought kind again. They were also way tastier and you can do all sorts of fun things with them (including adding liquor - you won't find those at your typical grocery store...). The only thing with them was that they needed two ingredients that I don't normally stock - gelatin and corn syrup (I really try and stay away from the stuff!) so that did require a special trip to the store. However, with a stand mixer, they take no time at all, albeit are a bit messy.

Whipping the mallow... and the finished product...so much better than store-bought

Now the bacon ice cream was pretty much amazing, though very subtle in the bacon department. It could definitely have handled a bit more bacon. The base flavor is brown sugar and you mix in caramalized pieces of bacon. Yum! I think that if you made little ice cream balls with this, poked a popsicle stick in them and dipped them in chocolate and refroze you would have yourself a real dinner party winner.

Bacon caramelizing...                          The finished (awesome) product!

Lastly, the bath scrub - SO EASY and this stuff costs so dang much when you buy it! All it is is a mix of sugar, sea salt, epsom salt, a little essential oil and some carrier oil - olive, sunflower, almond and walnut all work well. you mix it together and plop it in some glass jars and you have yourself a beautiful holiday gift.

 Rose and ylang ylang body scrub - 

I'm never buying this in a store again, too easy to make!

Next week I'm hoping to have time to make some chocolate bark and some other goodies - until then - happy eating!

RECIPES

Homemade Marshmallows

nonstick cooking spray

1 cup cold water divided in two halves
3 x 1/4oz packets of gelatin
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup powdered sugar
optional: substitute 3-5 Tbsp kahlua, almond, lemon or other flavoring for some of the water*

Athena with mallow hands...scary   

-Line a 13x9x2 in pan with wax paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray
- pour 1/2 cup of water into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the gelatin and let sit for 15 minutes (until all of the gelatin is           
absorbed). (*this is where you would substitute your flavoring) 
-Combine 2 cups of sugar, corn syrup, salt and remaining 1/2 cup of water into a heavy saucepan. Stir at med-low heat until the sugar is dissolved brushing the side of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water.
- Bring to a boil without stirring for 8 minutes.
- With the mixer running at low speed, pour in the hot sugar mix into the gelatine, in a thin stream down the side of the bowl. Gradually increase the speed and whip at high for 15 minutes. Add vanilla and beat to incorporate (30 sec.)
- Scrape mix into the prepared pan, making sure the wet your spatula (and hands!) with cold water to keep it from sticking and know that you wont get everything out of the bowl because a layer will stick there.
- leave out, uncovered for at least 4 hours (it's ok to leave it out over night).
- Cover your work surface with powdered sugar and turn the marshmallow out onto it. Remove the waxed paper and sift more powdered sugar onto that side. Cover a knife with cooking spray and cut mallow into 1 inch x 1 inch squares (or any shape you desire). Toss in powdered sugar to coat and shake off excess.
- They will keep in an air tight container separated by parchment paper for up to two weeks.

*** a great party trick to do with these is dip them in melted chocolate and roll them in graham cracker crumbs with a toothpick for a stem. You've got a little bite of s'more right there.

Brown Sugar Bacon Ice Cream

7 Strips of good quality bacon (think cut = yum)
3 Tbsp brown sugar

For custard:

5 large egg yolks
3 Tbsp salted butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 cups half and half, divided
2 tsp whiskey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

The ice cream maker - making magic        

- Set oven to 400 degrees
- place the bacon on a parchment-lined baking sheet and sprinkle the two tbsp of brown sugar between the 7 pieces.
- place them in the oven for 12-15 minutes,   
flipping the bacon mid way through. They should be a deep brown when they're ready.
- transfer to a cooling rack until crispy and candied. Cut into small strips or pieces.

for the custard:
- melt the butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Add the brown sugar and half of the half and half. Once fully dissolved take off the heat and let cool slightly.
- Pour the remaining half and half into a bowl sitting in an ice bath.
- In another bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Add a small amount of the warm brown sugar mix to it and stir well. Add a little bit more and then add all of the brown sugar mix - you do this so as not to cook the egg yolk.
- Pour it all back into the sauce pan. Stir over moderate heat until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Then, using a fine-mesh strainer, pour into the chilled half and half. Add liquor and vanilla and stir until cool.
- place the mixture in the fridge until thoroughly chilled.
- Pour into your ice cream maker and follow manufacterer's directions, add the bacon bits five minutes before chilling cycle is finished. Place in freezer until firm.
- Serve by itself or with a warm chocolate sauce!!!

Turkey time and coming soon...Holiday goodies!

Well, it's four days after Turkey day and I'm still obscenely full! It was awesome, an entire, uninterrupted day of cooking followed by a lovely evening (and following day) of eating, drinking and good folks. I tried a new turkey recipe this year and I've gotta say it was my favorite turkey (recipe below) I've ever made and it was SO easy, no basting, no burning, no nothing. It was one of those things where you did a minimal amount of prep work and shoved it in the oven and then just forgot about it.

The skin on this bird tasted heavenly! I guess that's what covering it in butter will do!

This year I definitely overcompensated for the lack of leftovers last year and bought a bird that was so big, each person had THREE pounds allotted to them!!! Yep, I said three. Needless to say, there were lots of leftovers, which I've been savoring in a number of tasty ways. One of my favorites has been the turkey quesadilla - as simple as spreading some grated cheese on a corn (or flour) tortilla, placing a few pieces of turkey on top, sprinkling that with a little dried oregano and a little more cheese, another tortilla and then a quick shot in the pan on both sides. So yummy, especially with a little salsa and sour cream.

This is only a third of our turkey - no joke! So moist!

Another good (and healthy) way to use up some of those leftovers is in a nice salad. A few mixed greens, some choice pieces of turkey, a bit of goat cheese and some almonds and dried cranberries keep the dream that is Thanksgiving alive (all week long since it's what I've been having for lunch).

One of the best thing about Thanksgiving is the leftovers! This salad is so good...

Alright, stay tuned throughout December for a month full of homemade gifts that you can use to stuff stockings or your family's mouths. This year I'm going to be making homemade granola, lemon curd, and many other fun things...

RECIPE

Perfect Roast Turkey

1 Whole Turkey (any weight works with this recipe really)
1 stick salted butter, softened
2 Tbsp rosemary, finely minced
2 lemons, cut in half
4 rosemary sprigs
3 tablespoons salt (preferably kosher) plus more for seasoning
pepper to taste

- Move the oven rack to the lowest level and set the oven to 325 degrees
- Remove the neck and giblets from the turkey, rinse it off and pat it dry with paper towels.
- Melt the stick of butter and the minced rosemary together.
- Using your hands, gently separate the skin of the turkey from the meat. Using your fingers, spread 2/3 of the rosemary butter under the skin of the bird.
- salt and pepper the cavity of the bird and place the lemon halves and rosemary sprigs inside.
- Place the bird in a roasting pan and brush the skin with the remaining 1/3 of the herb butter.

- rain the bird with salt (roughly three tablespoons) and tent with tinfoil
- Cook a 10-12 lb bird for about 2 hours at 325 degrees and add 15 minutes per lb for a larger bird (i.e. 4 hours for a 20 lb bird)
- At this point, crank the oven heat up to 425 degrees remove the foil and cook for another hour.
- The bird is ready when the juices run clear and the thickest part of the breast reads at 180 degrees.
- Let sit for at least 15 minutes before carving.