Thanksgiving Stress

Thanksgiving, on a whole, went swimmingly. I woke up refreshed with plenty of time to start the dough for the rolls, which rose while I took Harper for a nice long walk so she'd be well behaved at dinner. The nuts were easy, I got the turkey out of the fridge and prepped. The hardest part was trying to get the turkey holes closed up, I didn't have enough skin to close the big stuffing whole, but I just ended up cutting a piece off the neck and using that.

Yep, everything was going so well, and the turkey was ready to go in the oven at 3 o'clock, right on schedule... except then the roasting pan would not fit in the oven. The handles--I had made sure to get good, study, riveted handles that could not ever be removed, even on purpose--stuck out too far. In all my careful, month-long research for a roasting pan, I never bothered to think, oh, my oven is only a 3/4-sized oven, I should make sure the pan fits... Sigh. The roasting rack itself was far too large to fit in any of our other pans, so at 3:10 I rushed out to find a replacement, only to discover that just about every store I went to -- the grocery stores, Bed Bath and Beyond, Target, etc -- closed at 3 o'clock, if not all day. I was beginning to see why people ate thanksgiving dinner so early in the day, so that when disaster strikes there's still a store open! I ended up driving until I saw a store with cars in the parking lot, which turned out to be a CVS. Got an enchilada pan there, but I was worried that it wouldn't be big enough, and then I found that the Kmart was still open, where I got one of those disposable foil pans. Which is a good thing, since the enchilada pan wasn't big enough.

Anyway, after I got back and my blood pressure returned to normal, Chris had the table all nicely laid out and I got the turkey in the oven (an hour late, but that's ok), but I was done with any sort of higher-level thought processes. I just changed my clothes, got a glass of wine, watched some really annoying football as stupid Jason Witten (my current most-hated cowboy) proceeded to single-handedly pulverise the Seahawks, then turned that off and chatted with Chris and Pete for a while.

The worst are the announcers, who seem to think Jason Witten can play every position. Oh, look at that long ball that Jason Witten, a mere tight end, just caught with his teeth! Oh, it's amazing how fast he is, despite being an every-down player! Oh, Jason Witten such a good down-hill runner! Oh, Jason Witten just kicked a game-winning field goal from 60 yards, and he blocks, too! Oh, Jason Witten's so selfless, he refused a bonus this year so the mascot could get one! Jason Witten's got Hall of Fame written all over him, the only question is for which position?! Oh, did you hear about Jason Witten's plan for peace in the Middle East, and in his spare time he's saving the whales! I hate Jason Witten.

Other than that one hiccup (well, two if you count the Cowboys winning), I think everything went really well, and we had a really fun time. So, success!

Union Square Cafe bar nuts mix

I got this recipe off of a chat transcript for the Washington Post food section.

1-1/4 pounds mixed raw nuts, toasted for 10 minutes at 350. Toss with 2 teaspoons brown sugar, two teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, two tablespoons chopped rosemary and 1 tablespoon melted butter. Serve warm. (Though cold is fine too.)

RESULTS: Whoa, way too spicy. The problem was the cayenne clumped, so some nuts were very coated with it, and some had barely a hint of spice. I would still halve the spice, myself, but it's totally variable. Otherwise, they were really good, I really liked the sweet, salty, rosemary mix. It was a lot like what I was trying to do a couple months ago; I got a recipe from a friend, who got it from her mom, for rosemary nuts, but her recipe called for mixing all the ingredients and THEN putting it in the oven, which was disasterous since the suger burned, the kitchen (well, the whole house, really) filled with the worst smoke, EVERY smoke alarm was going off,... not good. I would recommend this method instead. I didn't do a post on that other recipe because there was really no finished product to evaluate.

The rosemary is much better fresh (I dried both fresh and dried and the fresh is better). As for what nuts to use, I used cashews, walnuts and pecans. The cashews weren't the best in the mix, they really didn't take on much of the flavor. The pecans came in second place, but the walnuts really worked well. I think peanuts could be good? Maybe almonds? I don't think I'd use cashews again, though. I think they just have so much flavor to begin with, and with the smooth outside of the nut, there's nothing for the spices to settle into. Either way, thumbs up on this one (if with less spice).

Tom Colicchio's Herb-Butter Turkey with gravy

The directions for the turkey that I made for Thanksgiving are really long, so instead of posting all of that here, I'll just give you a link to the site on Epicurious.com. Tom Colicchio, by the way, is the head judge on Top Chef, the bald guy.

This turkey was very juicy and delicious, if I do say so myself. We let it rest for, I thought, a good long while, and there was still juice pouring out of it when Suz (thanks, Suz!) carved it. I was having moments of panic as I searched every store in town for the herbs and only found then the day before thanksgiving at the last store I went to (well, obviously it was the last store). Also, I didn't make the gravy that accompanies the turkey recipe, I just followed Mom's recipe by making a gibblet stock and using that (sorry, Mom, I didn't cut up the gibblets and put those in). Suz and Aimee were KEY in gravy preparations, as by the time the turkey was done I was no longer "accepting incoming information" (my new favorite phrase), and so was having a hard time understanding the gravy directions, so a big hip hip hooray for them.*

Small alterations: I totally forgot to keep adding butter and broth in the last, long roasting part,* but it really didn't need it. Between the gibblet stock and the two cups of broth I actually put in, there was plenty of liquid. Also, I decided, upon much rumination, to put the turkey in for the first hour or so breast-side down, and then flip it (which was totally easier than I expected, since my turkey was only 10 pounds and I had these great silcon pot holders that Mom got me that have lots of traction and are juice-proof, so there was no chance to burn myself).

The one thing I wasn't trilled with was the skin didn't get nice and crispy as it does when you baste it (since I only basted it twice). If I had kept track of that and been more careful with the basting, that might have helped.*

I'm labeling this post "chicken" because I really don't see why you couldn't roast a chicken this same way, just altering the amounts and the cooking time.


*See story of Thanksgiving Stress in the above post for why all thoughts of keeping track of cooking flew out of my head once I got the bird in the oven.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Chris and I are hosting Thanksgiving at our house for some friends, and I'm in charge of the turkey. I'm a little nervous, but I've put a fair amount of research into this, so I'm also confident. Conflicting emotions, yes, but they seem to get along OK.

I got us a free range bird, just to try it (if we don't like it, we don't have to get it again), and I researched even that to figure out whether the birds really were free range (meaning, they lived out doors for most of their lives), or just had a small door in their pen to look out of (which would also allow them to be called free range, as per FDA standards). As far as I can tell, the one I bought is the former. I wish I could say this decision was motivated by a desire to encourage the ethical treatment of turkeys, or care for the environment, or other good causes like that, but the real reason is that I heard that they taste way better. I'm certainly not against those those things, but I just wanted it to taste good.

This is my second turkey. My first was a huge behemoth turkey that I cooked for friends in Wisconsin. It was me, Chris, Emily, Roseanne, and about 20 foreign students, so not many of them knew what to expect a roasted turkey to taste like. I hadn't allowed the full week that I should have to let it defrost in the fridge, and most of thanksgiving morning was spent trying to defrost the darn thing with running water. And sleeping, as I was still recovering from a nasty cold (although I was well past being infectious). The turkey took about three hours longer to cook than expected, and one of our friends, a rather large, jolly, and tipsy Argentinian, kept busting into the kitchen with a crazy gleam in his eye saying he wanted the turkey NOW! I have no memory of how the turkey tasted...actually, I think I remember that I didn't eat anything because by the time it was done I just wanted to go home to bed, and in fact did just that...but this will surely go better. Right?

In addition to turkey, I'm making french bread rolls and roasted nuts. I'll give you a full report sometime this weekend. Cross your fingers!

We feed Harper twice a day. Her food is kept in a container in the garage. It takes me about three seconds to open the lid and scoop out the food, and then another two, two-and-a-half seconds to walk to the other side of the kitchen where her bowl is and dump the food in. In that time, say about 5-6 seconds, Harper has already drooled a puddle on the floor, literally a puddle. Not a little puddle, either. You can see the river of drool just pouring out of her mouth as she patiently (or not so patiently) waits for that glorious moment when she gets to eat, bless her heart.

Now I know how she feels. Pete sent me this link. Seriously, don't click on it 1) before grocery shopping, 2) before eating, 3) before swimming, 4) before dieting, after dieting, or if at any point in your life you might possibly want to diet: www.foodgawker.com.

Frothy Milk

I saw a tip today on the Food Network that worked really well. It was Tyler Florence, and he said if you want to have frothy milk for a cappucino but you don't have an espresso machine, all you have to do is bring milk to a simmer on the stove top in a pot then froth it up with an immersion blender. So simple! I can't believe I haven't thought of it before (well, I can easily believe it, but it makes perfect sense now that I heard someone else come up with it). And, it's really easy to add a little bit of sugar to make sweet "steamed" milk.

ADDENDUM: This morning I tried doing this by whisking the milk with a small whisk while it's heating on the stovetop. I got more of a latte foam than a cappucino foam, with some un-frothed milk, which was also nice. It makes perfect sense why this works, because the steam in a cappuncino machine is just a way to heat the milk and incorporate air, right? So, if you can heat the milk on the stove top and add air either by blender or whisk, it's essentially the same result. I'm pretty happy with this technique. It's easy and it takes up less space than an espresso machine, space that we don't have to spare in our kitchen. Plus, I get to use the immersion blender, the most fun appliance ever. I think I'll try it on Thanksgiving with the after dinner coffee.

More snow flurries today. I've decided the first snow fall of the year is much less magical when it happens before Thanksgiving and you know that it's only going to get much, much worse. I'm already thinking of breaking out my long underwear!

Speaking of winter, I finally got Harper some of those dog boot/mittens to protect their feet from ice and salt. We put one on her, and you would think we were torturing her. She would NOT put her paw down on the ground and shook it and chewed at the boot almost frantically (for her) until she got it off. Those are going back to the store, and we'll just stick with the method we've been using all these years of just avoiding the salty patches.

Thing I learned today: squash seeds!

Roasted squash seeds are just as good as pumpkin seeds. Gastrointenstinal effects to be determined, but I think it'll be ok. :) I made a delicata squash, which to me seemed a little on the bitter side. I'm not sure I prefer it to acorn or butternut.

It snowed just a teeny tiny little bit yesterday. Methinks it'll be a cold winter!

Mmm, delicious delicious naan bread...

INGREDIENTS
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
1/4 cup butter, melted

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.

At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.

RESULTS: Mmmmm....delicious. I put the garlic in, and next time I will leave it out; it didn't really ever cook, so it was still the pungunt raw garlic flavor. Otherwise, very tasty. I would advise taking out the smoke detector in the kitchen if you do this inside. Oh, a note on that: I just used our grill pan to cook them, since we don't have an indoor grill. Worked just fine. I would also advise you not to roll them too thin, since then they get kind of tough. By the end I was just giving it one roll with the pin, without too much weight, just to get it flat-ish. I didn't worry about getting it round. Also, I think this would be easiest as a two-person operation, one rolling and one manning the grill since they cook really fast, but you don't want to roll them out beforehand.

Easy Fried Rice

Here's another one of those simple recipes, perfect for an easy post-election dinner (and using the Chinese take out rice from the election-viewing party the night before!). This is from the Washington Post's series, "Cooking for One" which is convenient, because that's what I'm doing. As you may guess, it's also a kitchen-sink recipe. Once you know the basics, you can substitute whatever you happen to have in the kitchen at the time. For instance, while it calls for red bell pepper and cauliflower, I used thawed uncooked shrimp, and frozen peas. Don't stress...just eyeball the amounts. And I didn't have any scallions, but I did have some leftover fresh parsley courtesy of last week's hummus recipe for some additional aromatic support.

Summary:
This preparation uses half the amount of rice typically called for in fried-rice recipes. The cauliflower and red bell pepper may be replaced by mushrooms, broccoli, summer squash or zucchini, but in that case the stir-fry time might need to be adjusted. This stir-fry is best accomplished in a wok, but you can also do it in a large nonstick saute pan; it will take a little longer and won't go as smoothly. (Bethie's note: I just got this terrific non-stick wok from Ikea. It's awesome and waaaay too big for my tiny stove. Get the more expensive one from Ikea, not the cheapo one)

1 serving (Beth again....ahhhh, I think 1 serving is appropriate if that serving happens to be for a giant. So much for the "cooking for one" idea)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable or peanut oil (or canola. Heart-health, people)
1 medium clove garlic, cut into thin slices
1 1-inch piece ginger root, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 scallions, white and light-green parts, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch slices
1 cup cold, cooked brown or white rice
1 cup cauliflower florets, cut into small pieces
1/2 medium red bell pepper, stemmed and seeded, then cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 1/2 cup)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce (I used a lot more then just 1 teaspoon...)
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Heat a 14-inch, flat-bottomed wok over high heat for several minutes, until a bead of water dropped in vaporizes within a couple of seconds.

Swirl in the oil to coat the sides and bottom, then add the garlic, ginger and scallions, and use a heat-proof spatula to stir-fry for about 20 seconds. Add the rice, breaking it up with your fingers as you toss it into the wok. Use the spatula to keep the rice moving for 2 to 3 minutes, scooping and tossing and pressing the rice against the bottom and sides of the wok to sear it.

Add the cauliflower and red bell pepper; stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until they slightly soften.

Make a well in the mixture to expose the bottom of the wok. Break the egg into a small bowl, then pour into the center of the wok; immediately break it up with the spatula, then stir-fry to incorporate it throughout the rice and vegetables. Cook for about a minute or until the egg is almost cooked through (but still a little wet).

Add the soy sauce and pepper to taste; stir-fry for 30 seconds or so. Serve immediately.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/22/AR2008072200523.html?sid=ST2008072202527&s_pos=

Recipe Source:
From Food editor Joe Yonan; loosely based on a recipe in "The Breath of a Wok," by Grace Young (Simon & Schuster, 2004).


Results:
So, this is the 2nd time I've made this recipe, and it's just the best comfort food out there.
Note on take-out rice, from the WashPost: According to the Food and Drug Administration, a bacterium common in rice makes it particularly important that, once cooked, the rice be consumed or refrigerated within two hours and used within three days. Japanese cookbook author Elizabeth Andoh recommends freezing cooked rice for up to a month in resealable plastic food storage bags. To defrost the rice, place the opened bag on a microwave-safe plate; heat on high for 60 to 90 seconds or until the rice has thawed.

One final word on the Washington Post website: the first time I made this recipe, I was trying to locate it on the website by trying to find a way to search through all of the Cooking for One series. I wanted both the recipe and the accompanied article. I did not succeed because they hadn't grouped all the recipes with the articles and hadn't group all of the Cooking for One recipes together. It was a particularly dull day, so I emailed the helpful Help people for the Food section to explain my problem. Well, wouldn't you know it, but 20 minutes later, they not only emailed me the articles I was looking for, BUT ALSO said they would perform the exact task that I had been lamenting on it absence. So here, in all it's shining glory, is the link to all dozen or so of the articles and recipes written under the column of Cooking for One: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/linkset/2008/09/12/LI2008091202786.html

Forget voting, this makes me feel special.