amyatkendall's Profile
JFX 2012
I still haven't been this year despite my best intentions - are there any strawberries yet? Or asparagus?
Scallion/Spring Onion/Green Onion Recipes
Somewhat along the same lines - I use green onions in mashed cauliflower, along with a chunk of cream cheese, heavy cream and seasoned salt.
JFX 2012
I'm happy you started this board. I've made a commitment to myself to go every week and not miss out like I did last year.
What's For Easter Dinner?
For lunch it's:
ham w/maple glaze
taffy apple salad
grits and greens casserole
asparagus with hollandaise
strawberry blue cheese salad
lemon cheesecake
carrot cake
It's also my husband's birthday, so dinner will be sushi out.
Delicious organic bread made in baltimore and the surrounding area?
Brunie's Bakery is great - if you can get in touch with them. A couple of years ago she did my birthday cake and it was terrific but now every time I try to contact her through the email listed on her website, I get a "no user found" response. I'd like to give her business, but it's frustrating not to be able to get in touch.
Baltimore restaurants with fireplaces?
We're hoping to brianstorm a list of cozy restaurants in Baltimore that have fireplaces for cold winter date nights! Doesn't have to be upscale (although they can be).
Any help greatly appreciated...
Is commercial almond milk really healthy?
In addition to being a good alternative for the lactose intolerant, it's also a good substitute for diabetics (such as myself). It's lower in carbs than regular milk.
Garam Masala... What do u use it for?
What a good idea - I'm going to try this! I've got a big bag from Penzey's that I have sitting around.
32nd Street Farmers Market
Hi -
Does the 32nd Street Farmer's market have a good selection of cold weather vegetables (i.e. broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale) this time of year?
I went to the Baltimore food co-op on Saturday morning and it was slim pickings - thought maybe the farmer's market would have more.
Thanks!
How big is it? (Your turkey, that is)
15 pounder for 2 people and 4 cats :)
We'll freeze a lot, and make turkey soup for days.
Best Tea Kettle
I've got a Le Creuset tea kettle that I've had for years that I love. At one point it got dinged and they sent me a free replacement - the Flame color is cheerful in the morning. I alternate between using that and an electric no-name kettle from Walmart that actually works quite well.
Thanksgiving 2011 Disaster Stories
Ouch, oh there's nothing worse than a cast iron burn. My sympathies.
A couple of days ago I put a cast iron skillet on my linoleum thinking the skillet had cooled down, and it destroyed a portion of the linoleum. The linoleum got so hot it let out a gunshot loud POP and cracked and then the linoleum stayed hot for hours. Yeah, I don't think we're getting our security deposit back.
Thanksgiving 2011: What's on the menu?
Another vote for the pumpkin martooni recipe, please!
Menu for us:
Football game appetizers:
bloody mary's
relish tray: gherkies, dill pickles, deviled eggs, pickled okra, pickled tomatoes, pickled cauliflower, black olives, green olives
salmon pate
Dinner:
roasted turkey
sage stuffing
cranberry orange sauce
Paula Deen's green bean casserole
sweet potato bake
seasoned sauerkraut (Baltimore tradition)
turkey gravy
Prosecco
Dessert:
pumpkin pie with pecan/hazelnut crust
cranberry apple crisp
pecan pie bites (figs stuffed with pecans)
assorted cheeses
red grapes
Port, Coffee
Thanksgiving 2011 Disaster Stories
No disasters thus far, but one of our cats did get his head caught in the paper handle on the Trader Joe's grocery bag and ran around frantically, knocking over everything in his path.
Oh, and I did forget to buy a can of evaporated milk for my classic pumpkin pie, so I made the Paula Deen pumpkin pie recipe instead. Also, Trader Joes was out of canned cranberry sauce (!) so I couldn't make the congealed cranberry mold. No biggie, I've got lots of regular homemade cranberry sauce and will make the congealed salad for Christmas.
Weekly menu planning, how do you go about it?
I have a spreadsheet that I use every week with columns for the days and rows for the meals, including b/l/d, snacks and any speciality seasonal baking I want to do each week. I start a new spreadsheet for each week and then once the week is over I store it in a folder on my laptop designated for weekly menus so I can look back and see what seasonal dishes I made this time last year.
My husband and I both work full-time, so during the week we eat simply: on M,W,F we eat salmon and seasonal veggies and on T and TH we eat roasted chicken thighs with seasonal veggies. I only really use recipes that take more time on the weekends. Every Sunday I decide which seasonal dishes I want to cook/bake on the following weekend and I pull out my cookbooks and online recipe files (I have folders on my laptop for each season with recipes that I've stored online). I look at my calendar and see if there are any holidays or special occasions, or fun things like football games when I make chili and incorporate those events into my menu planning spreadsheet.
I love menu planning! I hope you find a system that works for you!
cheese for Thanksgiving dessert course
I'm planning on serving a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dessert, along with port and a selection of cheese.
Any suggestions as to cheese choices that would pair well with the port and pie? I was thinking about going to either Trader Joes or Whole Foods to pick up the cheese.
cooking marathon meal?
My big cooking/baking day is on Wednesday (making pies, assembling casseroles, putting together the relish tray, etc).
The night before Thanksgiving we always order in wings but what do y'all eat during your cooking marathon (if anything?) during the day? Maybe the ticket is to eat a substantial breakfast (or something like a trashy once-per-year fast food breakfast run).
Make Ahead Turkey Gravy
Just out of curiosity, does it need to be frozen? I read on Serious Eats that it can just be kept in the fridge until Thursday and then heated up.
I like your changes, BTW. I'm going to make note of them for next year. This was my first year making gravy ever and I'm pretty pleased with the results.
(also a librarian) :)
Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
Hi - I've done it and liked the result. This is a good primer:
http://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/2009/11/day-294-slow-cooker-turkey-breast.html
Make Ahead Turkey Gravy
I made my gravy yesterday - this is the recipe I used:
4 smoked turkey wings (about 3 lb)
2 medium onions -- peeled and quartered
1 cup water
8 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup chopped carrot
1/2 tsp dried thyme
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp stick butter or margarine
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1. Heat oven to 400°F. Have ready a large roasting pan.
2. Arrange wings in a single layer in pan; scatter onions over top. Roast 1 1/4 hours until wings are browned.
3. Put wings and onions in a 5- to 6-qt pot. Add water to roasting pan and stir to scrape up any brown bits on bottom. Add to pot. Add 6 cups broth (refrigerate remaining 2 cups), the carrot and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 1 1/2 hours.
4. Remove wings to cutting board. When cool, pull off skin and meat. Discard skin; save meat for another use.
5. Strain broth into a 3-qt saucepan, pressing vegetables to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard vegetables; skim fat off broth and discard (if time permits, refrigerate broth overnight to make fat-skimming easier).
6. Whisk flour into remaining 2 cups broth until blended and smooth.
7. Bring broth in pot to a gentle boil. Whisk in broth-flour mixture and boil 3 to 4 minutes to thicken gravy and remove floury taste. Stir in butter and pepper. Serve, or pour into containers and refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze up to 6 months.
Makes: 8 cups
Make up to 3 months ahead and freeze in an airtight container. Refrigerate 2 days to thaw. Reheat in a saucepan, whisking often.
Home in a hurricane, what are you cooking?
Jambalaya in the crock, mashed cauliflower (in lieu of mashed potatoes), brownies, zucchini bread.
bacon - an Irene related question
Maybe I should clarify.
I'm in Baltimore. This is supposed to start in earnest on Saturday night.
I thought I'd defrost it today, cook it tomorrow, and then put in in tupperware on the fridge and my husband and I can eat in early next week.
bacon - an Irene related question
I'm automatically assuming my power will go out because I have experience with BG&E :)
bacon - an Irene related question
I have three pounds of bacon in my freezer.
If I fry it up tomorrow and store it in tupperware, will it last for a good long time without refrigeration?
Baltimore Food Trucks?
Next food truck gathering on August 5th, according to the Sun.
(yay!)
