Happy Thanksgiving! On CBC's Weekend Morning Show

Happy Thanksgiving!  Yesterday I featured a few easy to prepare Thanksgiving side dishes for CBC's Weekend Morning Show, with host Nadia Kidwai.  One is a Mennonite dish, called Bubbat, which is similar to scones, another is a vegetarian creamy mushroom sauce, and the third is a simple way to prepare Brussels Sprouts with Beef Bacon.

This was a Manitoba menu.  The Brussels Sprouts were from Fertile Farm.  The beef bacon is from Wildfire farm.  Both are available at St. Norbert's Farmer's Markets.  I used Notre Dame butter, also from Manitoba.  For the Bubbat, which also uses a wonderful local flour by Prairie Mills, I used wonderful raisins that are available at Millad's Supermarket, on Notre Dame Ave.  They originate in Afghanistan, but are at a great local store.

Mennonite Bubbat

There are many variations on this recipe, dating back to traditions before there were Russian Mennonites in the Molotschna and Chortiza colonies, I'm sure.  

 

Preheat oven to 350ºF

2 cups flour

1 tbs baking powder

1 cup raisins, soaked and dried

2 tbs sugar

1/4 cup butter melted (I melted the butter in the oven in the 8X8 pan so that it would be greased at the same time)

1/2 cup milk

1 cup cream (can add more if more moisture is required)

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.  Add the raisins.  Mix together the milk, cream and egg in a measuring cup.  Add the melted butter to the dry ingredients, mix and then add the milk mixture.  Stir well, incorporating all of the mixture.  If it is too dry, add more cream.  Spread mixture into the 8X8 pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350ºF.  Let cool and serve with dinner. 

Brussels Sprouts roasted with Beef Bacon and Maple Syrup

1 -2 stems Brussels Sprouts, removed from stem and cut in half (Available from Fertile Farm at St. Norbert's Farmers Market)

4 strips beef bacon, cut into chunks (available from Wildfire Farms, at St. Norbert's Farmer's Market)

drizzle olive oil
drizzle balsamic vinegar
a couple pinches salt
up to 1/2 cup maple syrup

Stir all of the ingredients together in a roasting pan.  Roast open at 400ºF for up to 30 minutes or more, until done.

Enjoy!

Mushroom Sauce
2 cups sliced assorted mushrooms
1 yellow onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbs butter
drizzle olive oil
1 cup cream
1/2 cup white wine
nutmeg
salt and pepper, to taste
thyme, to tastes

Sauté onion in a saucepan on medium heat in butter and olive oil until translucent.  Add mushrooms and cook well.  Add seasonings, to aid cooking mushrooms down.  Add cream and wine and simmer.  Enjoy!
 

Happy Thanksgiving! on CBC's Weekend Morning Show!

 Tomorrow I will be presenting these recipes on CBC's Weekend Morning Show with host Terry MacLeod.  I am so thankful for such an abundance of beautiful products here in Manitoba!  These dishes can all be prepared in advance, to make your Thanksgiving feast a celebration for all.  

I prepared Eye of Round Beef, because it is versatile and as an option from Turkey.  For other Turkey ideas, please look in my blog.

1. Wildrice pancakes

2 cups cooked wild rice (Black Duck Lake Wild Rice at St. Norbert’s Farmer’s Market)*

4 large eggs (I used Nature’s Farm eggs)

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 cup flour (optional to use wild rice flour or potato flour, for gluten-free alternatives)

½ tsp ground nutmeg

Optional spices:  Cajun, Turkish, Moroccan, Italian blends

Olive oil

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.  In a hot skillet, heat oil and form pancakes.  Cook until crisp and brown on each side.  Enjoy as a side dish with cranberry sauce or relish, chutneys, etc.

*I boiled the wild rice in a pot of water for 40 minutes, then drained the water.

2. Walnut fig orange stuffed Eye of Round roast

1 3 lb eye of round roast beef (Wildfire Farms at St.Norbert’s Farmer’s Market)

Optional marinade:  ½ cup red wine, rub with Ras el Hanout, salt, to taste, drizzle olive oil, 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed

Filling:  ½ cup walnuts, chopped , zest of one orange, juice of one orange, ½ cup chopped dried figs (or other dried fruit), 1 egg, salt and pepper, ½ cup chopped parsley

Dijon Mustard, to coat roast

Cut open an eye of round roast to lay flat.  Marinate overnight, if desired.  Remove from marinade and reserve liquid.  Lightly coat both sides of roast with Dijon Mustard and place filling inside, roll and tie roast.  Preheat oven to 350F.  In a large pan, sear roast to brown all over and place in baking dish.  Bake with liquid over chopped onions and carrots for 20 minutes a pound for rare meat.

Let meat rest before cutting.  Enjoy hot or cold.  Prepare a sauce with drippings by pureeing and cooking, adding a bit of butter and red wine.

Chef's Notes:  You can also cook the roast in a slow cooker for fall apart tenderness.  If cooking rare, slice thinly after resting the meat.
 

Enjoy!

3. Solberry CurdTarts

½ -3/4 cup Solberry Puree (Available at Co-op stores and Vita Health)

1/2 cup butter (I used Notre Dame butter)

1 cup sugar

3 eggs (I use Nature’s Farm eggs, available at the St. Norbert’s Farmer’s Market)

Mix sugar, eggs and Solberry in a bowl

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a double saucepan over a very gentle heat.

Gradually add 1 cup sugar, 3 beaten eggs, the grated lemon zest and the Solberry.

Stir until thickened.

Put into sterilized jars while still hot and cover with wax paper, pressing the paper on the surface of the lemon curd. (If using curd for Lemon Meringue Pie/tarts, cool in fridge), or cool in a container until needed.

Enjoy in tarts, as a spread, with meringue, over pavlova, etc.

Turkey Schnitzel and Tomato Coulis for CBC's Weekend Morning Show!

This morning I had the pleasure of presenting the following dishes for CBC's Weekend Morning Show with host Terry MacLeod.  

Make Thanksgiving easy but full of flavour!  

(from top:  Turkey schnitzel, garlic roasted potatoes with yoghurt tahini, squash and pear with Frangelico, Carrot Thoren, tomato coulis and centre cranberry relish)

Turkey Schnitzel

1 turkey breast (for 3-4 servings) (available at Millad’s)

~1 cup Corn Flakes crumbs or Panko or combination

½ tsp grated nutmeg

smoked paprika (optional) (available at Millad’s)

salt and pepper

1-2 eggs

½ cup milk

2-3 tbs butter

drizzle olive oil

Cut the turkey breast into even slices across the grain, cover with wax paper or plastic wrap and pound flat without shredding the meat.

Mix egg and milk in one bowl and crumbs and seasonings in another bowl. 

Dip pounded meat into egg/milk wash and then cover in crumbs.  Sauté in medium-high heat pan with butter and olive oil. 

Serve immediately with your favourite toppings, cranberry sauce, chutney or try a tomato coulis.

Enjoy!

Tomato Coulis

4 medium tomatoes

4+ oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained

1 clove garlic,

2-3 tbs. olive oil

small bunch basil

dash of crushed red chilies

salt and pepper

Blend all ingredients and chill.

Enjoy!

Cranberry Relish

 In a food processor or blender, combine the following ingredients until a fine relish consistency.

1 pkg cranberries

1/2 cup orange juice or 1-2 chopped peel-on oranges

2-4oz Frangelico or Disorrono liquor

scant cup sugar

Chill and serve with Turkey, sandwiches, curries, etc.

Truffled Eggs and preparing for Thanksgiving

I had the great pleasure this morning of presenting delicate and decadent scrambled eggs topped with local golden caviar on CBC's Weekend Morning Show with host Kerän Sanders. Try this with either farm fresh eggs or the wonderful Vita Omega 3 eggs, produced near Steinbach.

I also presented some ideas for Thanksgiving for next week. Many of the steps to prepare the turkey and stuffing can be done days in advance so that the day of the feast is less stressful.

Truffled (excellent) Eggs

2 eggs per person - recipe for 2 people

4 eggs (farm fresh or Vita Omega 3 eggs are excellent)
1/4 cup cream (Notre Dame Dairies)
Options: fresh chopped chives, spice blends such as Ras el Hanout
pinch salt and pepper (try white pepper)
butter, for sauté pan (Notre Dame Dairies)
dollop of local caviar, for plating (Gimli Fish)
more options: truffle salt, truffle oil

In a bowl, whisk eggs, cream, optional spices or herbs and salt and pepper. Heat sauté pan on medium high heat and melt butter. Pour eggs into pan. If using an electric stove, keep pan on stove but turn off heat. If using gas, turn to lowest setting. Fold the eggs until almost set and creamy texture. Place on plate and top with a spoon full of caviar. Serve immediately. Truffle oil can be added on the plate or in the pan using sparingly.

Enjoy!





Southwestern Turkey with Garlic-Ancho Chili Paste and Southwestern Corn Bread Stuffing


Garlic-Ancho Chili Paste

3 large heads garlic, roasted
3 large dried ancho chilies (dry roast, pour boiling water over in a bowl, stemmed and seeded and cut into pieces)
1/2 cup olive or canola oil
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin (toasted)
1/2 cup honey

Squeeze roasted garlic into measuring cup for 1/2 cup measure. Reserve remaining garlic. Blend into a purée. Add chili pieces, oil, cumin and honey and blend into a paste, adding olive oil and/or honey as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Can be made up to a week in advance.

Turkey

1 17 - 18-pound turkey, neck and giblets reserved
1 turkey neck
2 tbs olive or canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1 teaspoon whole allspice berries
3-5 cups low salt chicken broth

Pat turkey dry. Season with salt and pepper. Slide hand under skin of turkey breast to loosen skin. Spread 1/2 cup of the garlic-chili paste over the breast under the skin using gloves. If stuffing turkey, spoon stuffing into the cavities. Rub two tablespoons of the paste all over the outside of the turkey. Reserve any remaining paste for gravy. Tie legs together loosely to hold shape of turkey. Place on rack set in roasting pan. This can be done 1 day in advance if not stuffing the turkey.

In a skillet, sauté turkey neck and giblets over high heat and add to the roaster. Add spices, celery, tomatoes and onions and any reserved garlic into the pan. Add 2 cups of the broth, keeping the rest for basting. Roast turkey for 1 1/2 hours at 325ºF and then tent the turkey to cook with heavy aluminum foil for about 1 hour 40 minutes for unstuffed turkey and 2 hours 25 minutes for stuffed turkey or until the thickest part of the turkey is 180ºF or until the juices run clear. Baste from time to time with the broth.

When turkey is fully cooked, remove from oven, keep tented and let rest for 15 - 20 minutes before carving.

Southwestern Corn Bread Stuffing

Buttermilk Corn Bread

Make this a day in advance.

2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 cup sifted all purpose flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chilled unsalted butter, diced
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Butter a 9x9x2 inch baking pan. Mix first 6 ingredients in a processor or mixer. Add butter and cut in until it resembles coarse meal. Beat buttermilk and eggs in a large bowl to blend and add cornmeal mixture to milk/egg mixture and blend. Transfer to pan.

Bake until corn bread is light golden brown on top and toothpick comes out clean when testing, about 30 minutes.

Stuffing

1 Buttermilk Corn Bread recipe
6 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell peppers
4 large poblano chilies, stemmed, seeded and chopped
3 large jalapeño chilies, stemmed, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage or 4 teaspoons dried rubbed sage
2 tablespoons dried oregano
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 /12 cups crushed tortilla chips
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
3 large eggs, beaten to blend
1 1/4 cups canned cream-style corn

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Cut cornbread into 4 equal pieces and crumble 3 of the pieces onto a large baking sheet. Reserve remaining 1/4 for another use. Bake until dry, about 20 minutes and transfer to a very large bowl.

Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, peppers, all chilies, herbs and sauté until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl with corn bread. Mix in cilantro, tortillas and corn kernels. Season to taste.

If stuffing in turkey, add cream-style corn and fill cavities. Spoon remaining stuffing into dish and cover with foil. Bake for 40 minutes covered and then bake uncovered for ~ 15 minutes.

To bake all of the stuffing in a pan, butter a 13x9x2 inch pan and place stuffing in and cover. Bake covered for ~ 45 minutes, uncover and bake until beginning to brown, ~ 20 minutes.

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here are a few recipe ideas to add to your holiday celebrations

1. Shitake Mushroom Gravy
2 tbs all purpose flour
1/2 cup dry Sherry
3 tbs butter
12 ounces fresh shitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
OR
2 cups dried sliced Shitake mushrooms, rehydrated in hot water for 30 minutes (available in Asian markets)
1 tbs + 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary or 2 tsp dried
2 cups whipping cream
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried
2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon or 1 tsp dried
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1/2 cup white wine

Mix flour and Sherry in a small bowl until smooth. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium high heat. Add mushrooms and rosemary and sauté until mushrooms soften, about 3 min. Add flour paste and cook for at least 1 minute, stirring so as not to burn. Add whipping cream, thyme and tarragon and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper. Boil until thickens to a light gravy and add white wine. Cook on medium until thickens.

Can be made in advance.

Enjoy!



2. Southwestern Turkey with Garlic-Ancho Chili Paste
(from Bon Appétit, November 1994, by request of some cousins)

Paste
3 heads garlic, roasted
3-4 large dried ancho chilies, dry roasted, soaked, stemmed, seeded and torn into pieces
1/2 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup honey

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and puree until a smooth paste. Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.

Corn Bread Stuffing
A. Buttermilk Corn Bread
2 cups yellow cornmeal
1 cup sifted all purpose flour
6 tbs sugar
1 tbs baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup chilled unsalted butter, diced
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Butter bottom of 9x9x2-inch baking pan. Mix first 6 ingredients in processor. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns until mixture is a coarse meal. Can be done by hand with pastry whisk. Beat buttermilk and eggs in a large bowl to blend. Add cornmeal mixture to egg mixture and blend. Transfer to buttered pan.

Bake until cornbread is light golden brown on top and toothpick comes out clean when testing, about 30 minutes. Cool in pan on rack. Can be prepared 1 day in advance.

B. Southwestern Corn Bread Stuffing

Buttermilk Corn Bread

6 tbs butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell peppers
4 large poblano chillies, stemmed, seeded and chopped
3 large jalapeno chilies, stemmed, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage or 4 tsp dried sage
1 1/2 tbs dried oregano
1 1/2 cups crushed corn chips or corn nachos
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
3 large eggs, beaen to blend
1 1/4 ~ cups canned cream-style corn

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Cut corn bread into 4 equal pieces. Crumble 3 piecs onto large baking sheet. Bake until slightly dry for about 20 minutes Transfer to very large bowl.

Melt butter in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, bell peppers, all chilies, sage and oregano and sauté until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the corn bread. Mix in cilantro, corn chis and corn kernels. Season with salt and pepper. Mix eggs into stuffing.

WEAR GLOVES!

To bake inside turkey, first line the cavity with some ancho chili paste and mix in enough cream corn to moisten stuffing. Fill cavities with stuffing. Any remaining stuffing can be baked in a covered buttered dish for about 40 minutes. Uncover to brown for about 15 minutes.

Cover turkey with the remainder of the ancho chili paste. Add celery, tomatoes and allspice to roasting pan. Roast turkey at 350ºF for 20 minutes/lb or until juices are clear and leg joints are loose. Use 1-3 cups chicken broth for basting. If turkey is stuffed, tent with foil and add up to 1 - 1/2 hours, depending on size of turkey..

Allow turkey to rest for at least 30 minutes before carving. This is very important as if the turkey is not allowed to rest, the juices will run out and will result in a very dry turkey.

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!