SIDE DISHES, THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX

                                               

Happy Thanksgiving everyone...I hope you all had a wonderful day filled with love and plenty of good food. I know I did. We had a number of very dear friends and as one of us noted we were representing five generations, from nineties to preteens,  but we all got along fine.. it was indeed a very nice evening. I think it's too late now to give you pointers or how-to-do instructions about the turkey, you probably heard that all over the place and read it in every paper or magazine you  had in hand during the whole month. What I am proposing today are some side dishes that you may wish to consider next Thanksgiving, or even the next time you have company. It might be helpful especially if you have any vegetarian among your guests..we had two, and it was nice that they found something special to have while we ate the turkey.

On the menu: Turkey, of course, a whole tenderloin of beef with my special mustard sauce, baked cheese ravioli, Waldorf salad, mixed salad, fragrant rice with nuts, vegetable pot pie and for dessert everybody chipped in, so we had sweet potato pie with pecans, a chocolate dessert and trifle (very good after a heavy meal).

You can find the recipes for the turkey, the tenderloin, the sauce and the rice on previous blogs.

All the pictures on the blog today were taken by the children. I think they came out OK.

CURRIED VEGETABLE POT PIE

  

                                         

I remember posting this recipe on a previous Thanksgiving day blog. It was a suggestion to a friend who had to cook a thanksgiving dinner for a group of vegetarian friends. Today I made a new version of the recipe, proving once again that it is very common to cook the same recipe in many different ways. Usually I know the main idea, then I tweak it according to taste or, actually, to what I have in my pantry or fridge. It turned out that the new recipe was a big success: when I started cooking and the aroma filled the house mom got really excited and wanted to know what was smelling so good in the kitchen. Once seated, I was happily surprised that everyone liked it. Even my husband said that it looked really good and promised that he would try it with the leftovers.. I'll believe it when I see it. You'll need:

4 to 5 medium potatoes (I had red ones, about 2 inch in diameter)

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, green beans and corn) thawed

3 to 4 stalks celery, finely chopped

3 scallions finely chopped white parts and some green

2 tbsp frozen onion/garlic mixture

1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk

8 ounces sour cream

1 tbsp oil (I used canola)

3 tsp curry powder + a pinch of ginger

1 tsp garam masala (at Indian stores)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 ready made frozen puff pastry sheet, thawed

1 egg plus 1 tbsp water (egg wash)

Peel and cut the potatoes in small cubes. In a large pot cook the frozen onion/garlic mixture in the tbsp oil until translucent. Add the celery, scallions and potatoes, and stir  over medium high heat. Add the spices and keep cooking until fragrant, about 4 to 5 minutes. You may add some water to the pot if the veggies are not as tender as the frozen ones you just thawed. The idea is that when you add the frozen veggies, they should have the same  consistency as the ones cooking in the pot so that they all cook at the same time when put together. So, if you added water, keep cooking, stirring often until the liquid is absorbed, then add the frozen vegetables. Stir to combine and heat through, then add the coconut milk. Let it simmer on low heat until the liquid thickens, then fold in the sour cream. Remove from heat and transfer to an oven proof dish.

Beat the egg with the water, roll the puff pastry sheet and cut it about 1/4 inch bigger than your dish. Brush the puff pastry with the egg wash, then cover the dish with it, egg wash side down. Secure the edges of the pastry to the dish and brush the top with the remaining egg wash. With a knife, make a couple of slits on the top to allow steam to vent.  Bake in a 375 degree oven until the crust is golden brown.

WALDORF SALAD

                                                  

                                              

I used to love this salad. I can't remember why I didn't make it for a while. But lately I developed a tendency to have an apple plus something salty as a snack, or even dinner if I had a good lunch. So when the opportunity came and I had to think of something new to make as a vegetarian side dish, I immediately thought of this salad. I know I had the "official" recipe of the salad somewhere, but I also knew that I was going to tweak it anyway, so let's not insist on finding the recipe. One good thing about this salad is that the next day, you can chop some leftover turkey over it and you'll have a completely new dish, a nice lunch to take to work with you. You'll need:

4 to 5 green apples, depending on their size, peeled, cored and chopped in 1/2 inch cubes

2 red apples, peeled, chopped the same size

3 endives, sliced in 1/4 inch rings

1 heart of celery, chopped

1 small red onion, very finely chopped

1 and 1/2 cup raisins

1 to 2 cups walnuts, toasted and lightly chopped

1/3 cup mint leaves or dill, finely chopped, (optional)

2 tsp curry powder, plus salt and pepper to taste

2 heaping tbsp mayo

3 tbsp red wine vinegar

Chopped lettuce and whole leaves from the heart

In a large bowl, combine the chopped apples, the onion and the celery. Toss with the vinegar and refrigerate for 30 minutes covered with plastic. Add the endives and the mint or dill, the spices and toss. Add the mayo and mix to coat. Then add the raisins. Arrange the whole lettuce leaves around the serving platter, make a bed of the chopped lettuce and spoon in the salad. Sprinkle the walnuts and serve.

RAVIOLI AL FORNO

This is one of the easiest dishes you can make if you have company: Just get a bag of cheese ravioli, cook the amount you need (al dente) according to package directions. Make a tomato sauce by cooking 1 tbsp of frozen onion/garlic mixture in a drop of oil, add 1 can of crushed tomatoes and sprinkle some dried oregano. Drain the ravioli, then layer them in a baking dish alternating with sauce and a sprinkle of Parmigiano between layers and on top. Cook in a 375 degree oven for about 30 minutes.

                                            

I made 3 layers, each of 15 large ravioli.

WE'RE BACK IN BUSINESS, BABY

Oh yes, finally my oven is working again. After weeks waiting for the precious electronic control panel, out of the blue, and right before the storm gets into full gear, I received a phone call from the technician announcing that he got the piece and that he'll come to install it in a few minutes. Oh how happy I was to hear that. Just in time for Thanksgiving. I was already making alternative plans and thinking of ways to cook the turkey without an oven. Of course frying it was out of the question, but I had other ideas. I might explore them later, when I have the time and when we finish all the leftovers from the big day. Of course I started using it right away, just to make sure that it worked properly. So the first day we had pasta al forno, then I cooked some sweet potatoes. I still have to broil something. But that's not urgent. Yesterday, I cleaned the freezer and dug out the fish fillets that I've been harassing my husband about: I was sure we had them in the kitchen freezer, he kept opening it and insisting that we did not have any fish at all. We had cod, salmon and tilapia fillets. The choices are multiple, so I chose the tilapia.

TILAPIA FILLETS WITH VEGETABLES

                                                          

Growing up, we used to have this dish a lot, especially on Fridays, when we had the famous fish meal that included several kinds of fish, grilled, fried and "in a pan", as we used to call it. I was not very fond of it. Maybe because I couldn't digest the idea of having fish and veggies in the same dish? Maybe because they usually made them with whole fish, and I didn't like the fact that I had to fish out the bones? Or was it because they usually used a lot of oil in it? As a matter of fact, I discovered that I did not like a lot of dishes as a child simply because they had a lot of fat in them. Now that I can cook, I discovered that by reducing the fat content, I actually love these same dishes. I remember that I used to pick up the potato slices from the pan. I loved them, they were lemony, crispy on the outside and tender inside. Well, today I'm in control, I have clean fillets of fish and I can do whatever I like with the dish. You'll need:

3 whole fillets of tilapia

1 medium onion

5 medium potatoes (I used red ones)

! large carrot

3 stalks celery

2 medium cloves of garlic

3 to 4 sprigs dill

1 tbsp canola oil

3 tbsp lemon juice, plus round slices of lemon or lime (optional)

2 tbsp white wine or water

Salt, pepper and cumin to taste

Sprinkle salt, pepper and some lemon juice over the fish, and let stand. Peel the potatoes, the carrot and slice them in 1/4 inch slices. Put each vegetable in a pot, add some salt,cover with water and bring to a boil. The idea here is to cook them until al dente so that they would take the same time as the fish in the oven. Remove from heat and drain the vegetables. Peel the onion and thinly slice it. Also slice the garlic and chop the celery. In a non-stick rectangular pan, drizzle some oil and turn it around to cover the bottom. Arrange the onion slices on the bottom of the pan, add celery and garlic. Sprinkle some salt, pepper and cumin. Now arrange the fish fillets, drizzle another drop of oil and sprinkle some cumin. Top with the carrot and potato slices. Alternate with lime slices if you are using them. I prefer adding only the lime or lemon juice. Sprinkle salt, pepper and cumin, and add the dill. Sprinkle the rest of the lemon juice, the wine if using it, or water. Cover with foil and cook in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and give it 10 minutes more.

FISH EN COCOTTE

You can use the same recipe if you are cooking for one, or two, to have individually wrapped fish. Just cut a rectangle of foil, arrange the ingredients the same way, close the foil to make a pouch, and cook it in the oven as above. Just be careful when you open the pouch, it usually has a lot of steam. Cod fillet is best for this recipe: they are thicker and will not flake easily when you transfer the content into a platter.

                                                       

Lazy and bored? That's not an excuse.

In a previous entry I told you that I was feeling lazy and bored lately. I still feel the same. I guess it's a phase that will take it's time and eventually I will go back to my usual creative self. The oven is not fixed yet, we are still waiting for the piece that the technician had to order twice because the first time, against my advice, he ordered the wrong one. I hope it will come soon, because the holiday season is approaching very fast, and, lazy or bored, I have to take care of business, so I must have an oven ready. Still, we have to eat, and we do. I thought I should tell you, as I usually do, how we are doing, how we are getting through this phase. Actually I am not that upset about it. I am taking my time. If I want to cook I do, if not, I just find some easy solution. Of course the hurricane that hit New York made things easier for me. I know, I hate to admit it, but we were from the lucky few who did not lose power, so we were glued to the TV all the time and did not think about food. How could we? 

Today I took my time having breakfast and reading the papers, then, before I ask my usual question, I got an idea. What if we try something new? I had some chicken defrosting in the fridge, so I decided to cook them in a completely different way. I decided to make 

CHICKEN STROGANOFF

                                               

Why not? We make it with beef, so why not with chicken? Is it going to taste bad? How could that be? It's chicken, mushrooms and a creamy sauce..how can that be bad? With that thought,I went to the kitchen and started cooking. It turned out to be one of the easiest meals I ever made. I started by putting a pot of water to boil for the pasta. In the mean time I prepared the chicken. Everything was ready by the time the pasta was cooked. You'll need:

10 chicken thighs, skinless and boneless, visible fat removed

1 pint of mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

2 tbsp frozen onion/garlic mixture

2 tbsp flour

1/2 container (16 oz) sour cream

1 or 2 tbsp lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

With a sharp knife cut the chicken in strips, about the size of your finger (2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide). Transfer all the chicken strips to a large non stick skillet. Drizzle the chicken with the lemon juice, add the onion/garlic mixture, salt and pepper, and sprinkle 1 tbsp of flour over it. Mix to coat. Start cooking the chicken on high, turning frequently so that it doesn't brown too much, but allowing it to cook through. When the chicken strips are no longer pink, add the mushrooms and stir until they welt down. Reduce heat, continue cooking until it's almost done. Mix the remaining tbsp of flour with the sour cream and add it to the skillet. Stir to mix and adjust seasoning if need be. Let it cook for a couple of minutes more and you're done. Serve over pasta.

You may have noticed that I did not add any oil or butter, that's because I think that thighs, even with all the visible fat removed, still have some more fat left in them. The addition of the sour cream is fat enough for me.