TWD: I’m doubling up next week!
FYI to all my TWD friends: I have two holiday get-togethers next week, so I’ll be making the next two recipes then!
The 2nd Annual Autumnal Extravaganza: The Full Run-Down
Thanksgiving vacation came and went in a flash! I spent all day Friday with my mom, Kath, and my best friend, Erin, preparing for the Autumnal Extravaganza. We hit the grocery store around 9am, and continued cooking all the way until 6pm! It was a long day of cooking, but so much fun! We didn’t get to take pictures of everything, but we took as many as we could (Thanks to Erin for many of these pictures!).
The Menu
(click for recipes)
Hot Spiced Sangria
Mulled Apple Cider*
Sweet Onion Dip
Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Ham and Cheese Rugelach (click here for Dorie’s dough recipe, put whatever you want inside!)
Panko-Crusted Chicken Bites
Turkey Meatballs in Homemade Barbecue Sauce (with some secret ingredients- comment if you want the details!)
Pumpkin Mousse**
Thanksgiving Twofer Mini Pies
Mini Caramel Cupcakes with Caramelized Butter Frosting
Mini Fruit Tarts (click here for the dough recipe)
The sweet onion dip, chicken bites, rugelach, barbecue sauce and caramel cakes were the hits of the party. I will be making the onion dip again and again, I’m sure! Check out the pictures below -I wish I had more!
The Sangria was super tasty and super easy!
*Quick steps to mulled cider: Pour the cider into a stockpot or crockpot. Add mulling spices, wrapped in cheesecloth (I recommend Williams Sonoma Mulling Spices, of course). Simmer for a few hours. Add applejack brandy to mugs (if desired) and pour cider on top.
Mini fruit tarts! These pie shells were meant for the Twofer pie, but they were too tiny! My quick fix: fill them with pie filling and throw them back into the oven for a few minutes to set up.
**Pumpkin Mousse Recipe (straight from the Williams Sonoma files!)
3/4 cup powdered sugar
8oz cream cheese, room temperature, softened
12oz cool whip
1 jar Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter (found at WS – on sale now!)
Mix milk and sugar until well blended. Add cream cheese and pecan pumpkin butter and mix well again. Fold in Cool Whip. Chill 20 minutes and serve.
Tuesdays (Sundays?) with Dorie: Thanksgiving Twofer Pie
This week, I took full advantage of the extension on our TWD* posts. For this week’s recipe**, Thanksgiving Twofer Pie, I decided to make mini-pies. I love making tiny versions of things, and this seemed like a fun experiment for me.
The first attempt at the mini-pies wasn’t exactly successful. I thought I could make them in a mini cupcake pan, but the crusts were entirely too small for all of the filling (check out my posts in the next few days to see what I ended up doing with the tiny pie shells!). I upgraded to a regular muffin tin and the results were a lot better.
My best friend and kitchen helper Erin was on hand to help make the two fillings while I fiddled with the pie crusts (and simultaneously made 50 other things for the party). She did a lovely job, and I fully endorse her addition of extra booze to the filling. The only other change to the recipe is the crust – I cheated, sorry Dorie! – I used my favorite recipe for an all butter crust.
The little pies were tasty, but not as big a hit as the Mini Caramel Cakes. I think we made so many things that it was hard to decide which treat to choose!
*Tuesdays with Dorie is a group of bloggers baking through Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours.
**Find the recipe here. Thanks, Vibi!
Daring Bakers: Caramel Cake
This is my very first Daring Bakers challenge, and I was very excited to start with this caramel cake. I decided to make mini-cupcakes for a holiday party yesterday instead of the full-size cake. The cake was a hit- moist, tasty, and just enough icing.
The little cuties, just after icing.
After a little drip of caramel syrup. I’m definitely a fan of this syrup. Super easy to make, great in the cake and icing.. I think it would also be delicious with some nuts over ice cream.
More pictures to come of the Autumnal Extravaganza soon!
Seriously. The Praz family could not get enough of these little babies! In fact, we’re snacking on them right now..
*Find Shuna Fish Lydon’s recipe here.
**This month’s DB hosts: Culinary Curiosity, Blondie and Brownie, Foray into Food and Gluten A-Go-Go.
Thanksgiving: Kath’s Big Success
This year, my family spent Thanksgiving in Pittsburgh with my grandmother. For the first time in a very long time, Kath (my momma) took the reigns and did most of the cooking. She made a great spread- turkey, stuffing, corn pudding, green bean casserole, and sweet potato casserole. I just sat back and helped when asked- I can only take credit for the gravy and mashed potatoes. She did an amazing job, and here are the results..
Meet Big Bird! Mom’s first turkey in years turned out great. While watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, we heard a little tip from the people at the Butterball Turkey Hotline that was extremely helpful- stuffing should register 165 degrees, thighs 180 degrees – to make sure the turkey is moist and not overcooked. A great tip. We used the plastic oven bags, no brining here. Moist and delicious!
My gravy. The recipe: Make a roux of flour and butter over medium heat. Strain turkey drippings; whisk into the roux. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. To thicken, make a paste of flour and water (or broth) and whisk in as needed. Season with salt and pepper.
My potatoes. The recipe: Peel and quarter yukon gold potatoes; place into a pot. Add water into the pot until potatoes are just covered. Bring to a boil, cook until potatoes are very tender. Drain water. Add butter and milk (or buttermilk, or half-and-half, or cream.. whatever you have) and mash the potatoes to desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
New addition to the Thanksgiving table: Mom’s new corn casserole. She got the recipe from the December edition of Cooking Light. A quasi-veggie for a carb-filled meal.
The old stand-by: green bean casserole. We actually never have this dish, but my dad insisted this year. It’s the basic French’s recipe– American cooking at it’s finest? Not my favorite, but apparently some people live and die by it.
And the finale.. Grandma’s sweet potato casserole. We don’t mess with that marshmallow stuff. We get down with brown sugar and pecans. I don’t have the recipe on hand, but I’ll be sure to post sometime in the future. SO good.
Overall, a terrific time with family, a delicious meal thanks to Kath. The fun continues tomorrow!
The Miracle of Trader Joe’s
When I lived in Philly, Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s were my bread and butter. Sadly, there isn’t a Whole Foods closer than Cincinnati. But, Trader Joe’s is only fifteen minutes from the house! A few weeks ago, I headed over to see if there were any cool new products. Along with some other treats, I found this: Italian Tomato Starter Sauce.
This stuff is great for a quick meal. All I did was add some fresh tomatoes and some italian seasoning and I had a great marinara, ready for pasta. It can also be used as a starter for salsa, bolognese, and tons of other sauces. Basically, it’s a quick way to get that homemade taste when you’re short on time. 
Birthday Breakfast: Sticky Buns
Nick doesn’t like cake. He’s just not big on it. Me, I could eat cake all day, every day.. but Nick is more of a pastry/pie person. Needless, to say, he always helps me eat all of the treats that come out of the oven. For his birthday, I thought it would be nice to make him sticky buns instead of a cake that he would have to fake excitement for.
I found the recipe* in a cookbook by Devin Alexander called The Most Decadent Diet Ever. The book is filled with healthier versions of the foods we all crave when we’re dieting. I’m not on the diet, and obviously Nick doesn’t need to be on one, but the recipe looked tasty and didn’t include nuts (the birthday boy likes to picks the nuts off of his sticky buns).
The recipe breaks down into three parts: dough, filling and sticky topping. They were all fairly simple to make. Sticky buns take more time than some other baked goods because the dough needs to rise, so I prepared everything the night before and stuck them right in the oven in the morning.
The result was a plateful (20 buns, to be exact) of sticky, gooey birthday goodness. Nick had four for breakfast alone. There are less than ten left right now. And I thought about only making half of the recipe..
Here’s the birthday boy. Can’t forget the candle to celebrate 23 years!
This recipe is a real keeper. Chances are, you have all of the ingredients.. all you have to do is plan ahead if you want them ready for breakfast. Or make them on a lazy weekend and eat them for dinner. They’re that good.
*Find the recipe (and a better picture) here.
Tuesdays with Dorie and Other Updates
I’m a lister, so here’s what you should know:
1. No TWD post today. We were granted a little Thanksgiving extension, so I’m making the Thanksgiving “Two-fer” Pie this Friday. Check Saturday or Sunday for the TWD rundown.
2. Sorry for the lack of posts Sunday and Monday. I finally started my job at Williams Sonoma, so I’ve been working more on the weekends (40% employee discount – Amazing.) and yesterday was my husband’s 23rd birthday. There have been lots of fun treats, just not enough time to fix dark pictures and post them! I should have some up later today.
3. This Friday is the 2nd Annual Autumnal Extravaganza (read more about it at the end of this post), and I’m also taking charge of Thursday’s turkey, so there will be even more to post about! It’s a huge cooking holiday, and I can’t wait to share all of my fun recipe finds with my family, and with my Oven Lovers. 🙂
4. If any of you readers (most likely just my friends and family.. ha) will be in the E-town area on Friday, you’re welcome to stop in for the extravaganza! Just leave me a comment, shoot me an email, or call me for the details!
Easier Than You Think: Gruyere Cheese Fondue
The idea of eating a meal centered around a hot pot of cheese is basically irresistible to me. That makes it sort of odd that I had never tried cheese fondue before this week. I’ve done chocolate fondue (I got a fondue pot from my dear friend Christina a few years ago, but conveniently left it at my parents’ house), but never got around to the good stuff. I saw a recipe in Everyday with Rachael Ray and decided it was a must.
The fondue was fairly simple. My only advice is to watch the wine while it’s boiling – I had a nice little fire going as the alcohol burned away on my gas stove. It’s also extremely tasty. I was very impressed.
Rachael’s recipe recommended roasted potatoes for dipping. I didn’t have baking potatoes, but I did have little Yukon Gold potatoes, which were a great substitute.
I think Rachael’s intention with the baking potatoes was so you could dip the long spears directly into the fondue. We were using skewers anyway, so these little quarters worked out better.
I couldn’t go with just the potatoes, so I picked up some other dip-able items at the store. We dipped apples, crusty roasted garlic bread, and sweet apple chicken sausages. Nick’s favorite dipping item was the sausage, mine was the bread. We could not get enough.
If you’ve never tried fondue, you have to! You don’t need a fondue pot, you don’t need skewers.. it’s very adaptable. If you don’t want to cook it yourself, come to my house and I’ll make it for you. And that’s a promise.
Gruyere Cheese Fondue with Roasted Potatoes
*Adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray, Dec/Jan ’09
serves 4-6 (if you’re lucky!)
prep: 15 minutes
cook: 25-35 minutes
1 1/4 lbs small potatoes, any type, sliced into quarters
2 tbs vegetable/olive oil
salt and pepper
12oz gruyere cheese, shredded (usually, you can’t find gruyere pre-shredded, so check the deli section for blocks. and don’t forget to trim off the rind!)
1 tbs plus 2 tsp cornstarch
1 garlic clove, halved
1 cup plus 2 tbs dry white wine
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 pinch ground nutmeg
*other recommendations for dipping: apples, crusty bread, sausage, etc.
1. preheat the oven to 450. toss the potatoes with the oil. season generously with salt and pepper. arrange in a single layer on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. roast, turning once, until browned and slightly crisp, about 25-35 minutes.
2. in a medium bowl, mix cheese and cornstarch. rub the cut sides of the garlic on the inside of a fondue pot or heavy saucepan, discard garlic. add wine and lemon juice to the pot, bring to a boil over medium heat. cook 1 minute. gradually mix in the cheese, then cook for 1 minute. stir in nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. serve warm with potatoes for dipping.
On a Completely Unrelated Note..
Chase Utley is getting hip surgery! We all knew you were hiding an injury, love. I’m glad he’s getting the surgery, and if I know a Chase, I know he’ll be back as soon as he can. He’d do anything for the club, and he will. So let’s all send up prayers for number 26. 🙂
