Vegan Pumpkin Pie - yes, really!

I don't keep a vegan kitchen but a few years ago a customer ordered a vegan pumpkin pie. Without even thinking, I said "yes!"

Then I turned to the web to learn about vegan food.

Learning that vegans don't consume anything produced by animals produced a challenge: how do I make a custard without eggs or milk? After all, a pumpkin pie filled with nothing but pumpkin with a few spices is pretty lame and looks disgusting. The custard gives it that smooth texture people remember.

It took a bit of experimenting but I adapted my friend Miriam's pumpkin pie recipe to satisfy a vegan lifestyle. A combination of vanilla-flavored soy milk (which I now drink regularly) and corn starch thickened the pie to provide a texture very similar to a standard custard.

Follow the link to my Recipe for Vegan Pumpkin Pie!

An Easier Main Dish for Thanksgiving - Stout Can Chicken

I know turkey is the tradition for Thanksgiving. Turkey also lends itself so well to all those leftovers - turkey stew, turkey and rice soup, turkey hash, turkey and noodles...

Sorry - I'm having "A Christmas Story" flashback.

There are people who just don't like turkey. Also, chicken takes much less time to cook than a 20-pound turkey. What? You only buy a 10-pound turkey? Chicken still takes less time to cook and can be dressed up several ways.

Unless I'm making good ol' fashioned Southern fried chicken, about the only way we eat a whole chicken is with a beer can shoved up its...well, you know. Fill that can half-full with a stout and add a few seasonings and the flavor and moistness will knock you off your feet - in about an hour.

There are as many ways to prepare chicken as there are cooks in this country. Try a method other than roasting a whole chicken. After all, if you are going to ignore Thanksgiving tradition and eat chicken, why not try a different cooking method as well.

Stout Can Chicken - serves 2-4

If you are fortunate enough to have tried beer-can chicken, it's time to play with the flavor. While the fancy holders are not required, they do hold the chicken and can very nicely. An added bonus of beer-can chicken - it can be prepared on the grill or in the smoker, creating room in the oven for other non-traditional Thanksgiving dishes, such as scalloped potatoes. The garlic and rosemary act as aromatics and hold up well to the robust flavor of the stout.

1 3 ½-4 pound whole roasting chicken, rinsed, patted dry

2 teaspoons canola oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled, halved if necessary

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

1 12-16 oz. can stout (dark beer)

After cleaning the chicken and patting it dry, rub the canola oil over the outside. Open the can of stout and pour out ¾ of a cup. At this point in time, you have an option. If you are smoking the chicken, pour the ¾ cup of stout over the wood chips you plan to use in a disposable pie pan. If you are baking or using charcoal, drink the stout. Add the garlic and rosemary to the stout can. Holding the chicken by its wings, press it down over the stout can inserting the can into the bottom cavity. Carefully pull the legs forward, creating a tripod (the can is the third leg) and the chicken will stand upright. If grilling or smoking, use the indirect cooking method until the meat thermometer registers 180 degrees, usually 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours. If roasting in an oven, place the chicken standing in a drip pan on the lowest rack of the oven. Roast at moderate heat - 350 degrees until done. Allow chicken to "rest" for 15 minutes before carving.

Homemade Cadbury Creme Eggs

No, I can't take credit for this recipe for Cadbury Creme Eggs. My favorite Canadian Savannah dweller, Angie Mohr, came up with this one. She and I have a lot in common - we both want safe, local food sources to outweigh mass-produced crap. She beats me in some ways because she has actually *made* her own sea salt. Of course, living close to the ocean makes that a little easier.

Think about it - those addiction-inducing Cadbury eggs that are gone as soon as Easter is over are possible to make at home. Oh, and when you look at the recipe, you'll see that there aren't any chemicals. No, light corn syrup is not the same thing as high fructose corn syrup that is used to cheaply sweeten so many products.

So here you go - follow the link to Angie's recipe and indulge yourself year round.

Homemade Cadbury Creme Eggs

Thanks Easter Bunny! BAWK BAWK and thanks to donzeladef over at sxc.hu for the cute pic!

And - if you can't quite get the hang of shaping the homemade eggs by hand, Amazon has a mold for you!

Carnival...and King Cake!

Unless you live near New Orleans, don't waste your money on a store-bought King Cake. More importantly, if you've ever had a "real" King Cake in NOLA, don't buy one - especially from someplace like Kroger in Central Ohio. The disappointment and angst will overtake your taste buds.

I'm foregoing the King Cake baking this year because my ass doesn't need it! This recipe makes TWO King Cakes and Harry won't eat enough of it to save me from myself. I'll just look back with fond memories...


While Mardi Gras isn't until March 8, we're officially into the Carnival season and it's time for King Cake. Well, apparently not in Central Ohio - 'round these parts they seem to think King Cakes are only to be displayed on one day of the year. Silly grocers...

Isn't it pretty?

Central Ohio - you can buy the King Cake babies at Cake Craft. It's on Cleveland Avenue just South of 161 on the east side across the side street from GFS Marketplace.

Mardi Gras King Cake with Cream Cheese Filling

Holiday cocktails...

I was a bartender in a former life and I loved making "pretty drinks" when the holidays rolled around. At home, I'm kind of partial to the punchbowl rather than setting up a full bar.

The Whiskey Slushies absolute ROCK! I make it twice a year - at Christmas and once in the summer for a long holiday trip to the river to visit with Mom & Dad. In years past, I have been able to find 7-up or Ginger ale in "red" flavors like pomegranate and cherry. Mom still wants "regular" 7-up with it but the red mixers do make the drink very pretty!

CHEERS!

10 Holiday Cocktails for Office Parties

If you do decide to create a full bar for your holiday party, you must have the right tools! Your bartender needs a jigger more than anything. This kit includes the jigger, wine service and a shaker and these will last forever!

Thanksgiving Bread Stuffing Recipe

I love stuffing!

No - not that nasty boxed crap that you boil water, add butter and then throw in the rock-hard chunks of bread (?) crumbs. I want to start with three kinds of bread, chop the veggies, use my own broth or the broth from roasting the turkey. I want to smell it as all the flavors come together.

I love the texture and flavor that you get when the stuffing is actually STUFFED inside the Thanksgiving turkey. Yeah, yeah - people have gotten sick from improperly stuffed turkey on Thanksgiving. But - they did it wrong. Yes, they did it wrong.

Safely stuffing a turkey involves two important details - don't stuff the bird until you are heating the oven on Thanksgiving morning. This means you can't whip it all together the night before, stuff the bird and leave it in the refrigerator overnight to save time in the morning. The other detail is the turkey has to be completely thawed. Thanksgiving is always on a Thursday - this means you need to put the turkey into the refrigerator to thaw no later than Sunday. Don't try the water in the sink method on Wednesday night. Someday, I'll tell you about the phone call I got from my daughter on Thanksgiving eve and her frozen turkey.

But, you can save a little Thanksgiving morning time with some prep work the night before. Go ahead and slice the bread, put it in your mixing bowl and cover with a lid or plastic wrap. Chop the veggies and keep them in the fridge. In the morning, saute the veggies, mix everything up and stuff it in the bird.

I don't trust those pop-up thingies to tell me that my Thanksgiving turkey is done. I've had those babies pop and the bird was still raw on the inside. The best investment I've ever made was a digital thermometer for the kitchen. I use that thing for EVERYTHING! Even if the temperature of the bird seems OK, check the temp of the stuffing. No, not at the very back end - stick it deep inside the stuffing itself - it should be at least 160 degrees to be safe. If it isn't, cover everything back up and put it back in the oven for another 30 minutes - that won't be enough to kill the turkey and honestly, wouldn't you rather have moist, delicious stuffing that doesn't poison anyone? 

Yeah, my turkey NEVER comes to the table like this, either! Courtesy davidlat via sxc.hu

Debbie's Bread Stuffing - stuffs an 8-11 pound turkey

1 cup butter

2 cups diced celery

1 ½ cups diced onion

2 tablespoons dried parsley

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

2 teaspoons ground sage

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

8 cups fresh white bread cubes, lightly packed

4 cups fresh wheat bread cubes, lightly packed

                                   4 cups fresh rye bread cubes, lightly packed

                                   3 large eggs, well beaten

Sauté celery and onions in butter over medium heat approximately 10 minutes, until vegetables begin to soften. Add seasonings and mix well. In a large bowl, combine the bread cubes and vegetable mixture, tossing gently. Add beaten eggs and stir gently to combine. Immediately spoon bread stuffing mixture into cleaned cavity of thawed turkey.

To bake separately in a pan, omit the salt and add 1 15 oz. can of chicken broth to bread stuffing mixture. Loosely spoon the mixture into a greased square or oblong baking dish. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove cover and continue to bake for 15 minutes until stuffing is lightly browned on top.

Scalloped Potatoes for Thanksgiving? Three recipes

Are you gravy challenged? I'm 45 years old and have finally gotten comfortably with my "gravy-ness" within the last few years. Wondra WAS my life-saver, but now I can use flour, cornstarch, a roux that Harry rocks and get yummy gravy no matter what I started with. Oh, and a few lumps are perfectly acceptable!

I like scalloped potatoes because you don't have to make gravy. Have you ever read the label on one of those jars? Even worse, one of the packaged mixes???? AAAGH! More multi-syllable words than you can shake a stick at.

Thanksgiving Dinner doesn't have to include mashed potatoes and gravy. Repeat after me: "Thanksgiving Dinner doesn't have to include mashed potatoes and gravy." Repeat again.

Yes, I dream of the Thanksgiving dinners of my childhood with the turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy...on and on and on. But, why torture yourself or settle for a jar of gravy when you can change up the menu to include scalloped potatoes? Oh, and scalloped potatoes always seem to reheat easier than mashed potatoes.

Don't you feel better already? You rebel, you.

By the way - I LOVE cooking with Granite Ware! I have 3 oval roasting pans in different sizes, plus a huge Granite Ware pan for lasagna. No matter what sticky (scalloped potatoes), messy (scalloped potatoes) semi-burned on sometimes (scalloped potatoes) casserole I cook, it's so easy to clean.

Scalloped potatoes can also be cooked in a slow cooker, eliminating the need for a stovetop burner or space in the oven. I have adapted my family's scalloped potatoes recipe for the slow cooker. Please keep in mind, when using a slow cooker it is necessary to allow plenty of cooking time. Starting the scalloped potatoes the night before your Thanksgiving dinner will allow sufficient time to cook, and alleviate preparation on the day of your dinner.

Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes - Serves 8-10

3 pounds russet potatoes, well- scrubbed, thinly sliced

1 medium onion, sliced

1 14 oz. can evaporated milk

1 15 oz. can creamed corn

4 tablespoons butter, diced

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

sea salt to taste

additional heavy cream, whole milk or half and half, if desired

Spray the inside of a 3 ½ quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker, except the additional cream. Cover and cook at Low heat for 8-10 hours. Remove cover 30 minutes before serving to allow sauce to thicken, if necessary. If the sauce is too thick, thin it with additional cream. If your slow cooker has a "warm" setting, scalloped potatoes will hold very well.

Traditional Scalloped Potatoes - Serves 6

3 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, diced

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

½ teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 ½ cups milk (not skim), warmed

2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a heavy medium saucepan, sauté onion in butter over low heat until onion begins to soften. Add flour and cook, about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Using a wire whisk, slowly add milk, whisking continuously to prevent lumps. Increase heat to medium, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and begins to boil. Reduce heat to simmer, and continue to stir for 1 minute. Add salt and pepper and remove from heat.

Grease a 9-inch square baking dish or shallow 2-quart casserole. Place a single layer of potato slices on the bottom of dish and cover with ½ of the white sauce. Repeat the layers. Cover the dish and bake for 1 hour. Remove the cover and bake for 30 minutes, until potatoes are soft and top is lightly browned.

Allow to stand for 15 minutes before serving so that sauce will thicken.

While traditional scalloped potatoes are made with a creamy white sauce, in my area many people enjoy a cheesy potato casserole instead. Starting with frozen cubed potatoes, the preparation is very quick and is another dish that can easily be made in a slow cooker.

Cheesy Potato Casserole - Serves 10-12

1 32-oz. bag frozen cubed hash brown potatoes, thawed

 1 4-cup bag shredded cheddar cheese

1 10 ¾ oz cream of chicken soup

1 10 ¾ oz cream of mushroom soup

1 medium onion, diced

1 8 oz. container sour cream

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

½ teaspoons sea salt

4 tablespoons butter, melted

Spray the inside of a 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker. Cook, covered, at High heat for 4-5 hours. Remove cover during last 30-45 minutes of cooking to allow mixture to thicken.

Planning for Thanksgiving...the MEAT!

Is it too soon? Thanksgiving IS more than a month away - and the turkeys won't go on sale for at least another 3 or 4 weeks.

Turkey sales - I love finding turkeys for less than 30 cents a pound to fill the freezer. OK - I'd love even more to find turkeys that weren't raised via injections of whatever-the-hell it is they put into them to make them so big at a price I can afford. That will come! Two years ago, Harry hunted and gathered, picking up a turkey plus whatever else he needed to buy to get the minimum required purchase and filled our freezer with 6 turkeys. Last year, money was tight but we managed to get 4 turkeys in the freezer. I think there's still one in there...hmmm...

I used to do the long-touted rub-butter-all-over-the-turkey-inside-and-out method. After learning to play with homemade rubs and marinades, I realized I could do much better justice to the largest part of the Thanksgiving meal. The first time I tried a turkey rub, it was to season our first deep-fried turkey. I couldn't reconcile adding butter to a turkey that was going to be fried in peanut oil and you know what? It's a REALLY good turkey rub!

You've already decided what main dish you're going to fix for Thanksgiving - turkey, pork, chicken (more on that soon!), prime rib, seafood. What not change things up again with an appropriate rub for your turkey or pork! I have a few recipes below.

Oh - and while you're planning your Thanksgiving dinner? I can't find a video of Daddy Wags singing "Two Bags of Guts in Every Turkey" so I'll leave you with my OTHER favorite Thanksgiving song...

Meat rubs are increasing in popularity as a way to season meats without continual basting or using cooking bags. Rubs for Thanksgiving meals can be both dry or soft-butter based. My preference is a dry rub, but I have also had success with herbed butter as a rub for roasted Thanksgiving turkeys.

Dry rubs all employ the same process. Combine the dry ingredients, then pat an even coating over the skin of the thawed meat. Allow the meat to rest in the refrigerator, for at least 30-60 minutes prior to cooking in order for the rub to become a crust. When deep-frying a turkey, generally a heavier crust is desired.

You may notice that the sea salt may seem disproportionate to the rest of the ingredients. Sea salt usually has a much more "salty" taste that standard table salt. It is much better to have your guests add a little salt to suit their tastes at serving than to attempt to serve a too-salty main dish.

Dry Rub for Roasted Turkey

1 tablespoon ground sage

1 tablespoon poultry seasoning

1 tablespoon granulated garlic

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt

Combine all ingredients in small bowl. Rub approximately 1 tablespoon of mixture inside turkey cavity. Sprinkle remainder evenly over completely thawed turkey, pressing into flesh. Roast turkey as you desire.

Dry Rub for Deep Fried Turkey

3 tablespoons ground sage

2 tablespoons granulated garlic

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in small bowl. Rub approximately 1 tablespoon inside turkey cavity. Sprinkle the rest of rub evenly over completely thawed turkey, pressing into flesh. Allow turkey to rest in refrigerator while preparing fryer. Deep fry turkey, in a safe place (away from your house), according to manufacturer's instructions.

Mustard Turkey Rub

I love leftover turkey sandwiches with yellow mustard. This rub doesn't have a taste quite that strong, but it is a pleasant seasoning.

2 tablespoons poultry seasoning

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 tablespoon dry mustard

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

2 teaspoons granulated garlic

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Rub approximately 1 tablespoon of mixture inside turkey cavity. Sprinkle over the outside of turkey, covering all flesh surfaces evenly and lightly. Roast as you desire.

Moist Mayonnaise Turkey Breast - coats 3-4 pound turkey breast

If you've ever been a victim of dry turkey, this recipe may help you serve your first moist turkey ever.

1 ½ to 2 cups good mayonnaise (not low fat or fat-free)

2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

1 teaspoon ground sage

Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Cover completely thawed turkey breast with mayonnaise, evenly. Sprinkle dry mixture over mayonnaise evenly, forming a dry "crust" over mayonnaise. Allow to rest in refrigerator for 30 minutes so that crust can set. Roast according to manufacturer's instructions.

Herbed Roast Turkey

A traditional herbed rub, the butter will assist the skin in browning.

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dried thyme

¼ teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 sprigs fresh sage

Combine all ingredients well, except sage sprigs, in a small bowl. Rub a small amount of mixture inside cavity of completely thawed turkey. Rub 1 tablespoon mixture under the skin of each breast, and place one sprig of sage under the skin, pressing the skin back into place. Rub remainder of mixture over all of the outside surface of turkey. Roast according to manufacturer's instructions, covered until final 30-45 minutes of roasting. Uncover and continue to roast until skin is crisped and browned.

Pork Rub

Not everyone serves turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. I have a friend who is allergic to poultry, and their Thanksgiving main course is generally a pork loin or roast. This is our favorite rub for pork, whether we are roasting, smoking or grilling a pork roast.

4 tablespoons sweet paprika

4 tablespoons ground sage

1 tablespoon sea salt

2 tablespoons granulated garlic

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle lightly and evenly over all sides of pork roast, pressing into the flesh. Roast, smoke or grill as you desire.

Another pumpkin shortage? Not really!

A lot of people might remember last year's shortage of canned pumpkin in the stores - the entire 2009 Libby's harvest was processed, delivered, stocked and sold by Thanksgiving. Heavy rains in Illinois prevented the tractors from getting in and out of the fields and the pumpkin disappeared from store shelves faster than you can bake a pumpkin pie.

We always process real pumpkin - you know, those big orange things you cut funny shapes into every Halloween and stick a candle inside? My frozen supply ran out early during this year's farmer's market season and I was a little worried. No fears - I've been buying #10 cans of pure pumpkin puree at GFS Marketplace since July. In fact, I've never seen the shelves empty until my friend and fellow vendor Denise mentioned the store we both buy supplies at was out last week.

Part of this is because of memories of last year's shortage. People are panicking and buying more than what they normally would "just in case". Libby's has assured everyone the pumpkin harvest is fine this year, but it takes a little time to process those orange beauties and get them into the stores. E-bay sellers are scoring should-be-illegal prices. I'll admit to feeling more than a little bit of glee at seeing the price on a listing I was watching for research drop by over $20 since Libby's made their announcement - especially because the seller stated "They are already predicting a pumpkin shortage" in the listing.

So...I did rant a little bit:

The Great Pumpkin Shortage of 2010?

On to how to...

It really doesn't take any special skill to process your own pumpkins at home to use to baking anything pumpkin - pumpkin bread, pumpkin rolls, pumpkin pies. Canned pumpkin IS one of the few products out there that really is nothing but - no fillers, preservatives, additives, just pure pumpkin. But, with some time you can save a lot of money by buying pumpkins at the farmers market and making your own frozen pumpkin puree.

How to Make & Freeze Homemade Pumpkin Puree

Plenty of pumpkin in 2010 - Photo courtesy www.sxc.hu/dbgeorge