Five Star Turkey Dressing/Stuffing - make ahead for easy cleanup

Recipe Title:  Make Ahead Turkey Dressing/Stuffing (this stuffing can be made ahead and kept in the fridge until it is time to cook for dinner or until your stuff your bird) click here to go to my YouTube Video of this recipe

Yield:  6-8 servings

By: Miriam Borys

Ingredients:

1          onions – large 
4          stocks celery
2 c       carrots - diced
¼ c       olive oil
1/4 c    butter
1/2 c    fresh sage 
2 T      rosemary - fresh
2 tsp.      sage powder
1 tsp.  thyme dried
1 cup  cranberries fresh - cooked down, drained to make 1/2 cup of cooked cranberries
1/2 cup  fresh parsley OR cilantro  (either of these taste amazing - your choice)
1 c       pecans (walnuts, pine nuts, are also an option)4-5c  bread crumbs (or bread chunks)
1/2   cup milk (to add to bread crumbs)
1 cup stock liquid (veg or chicken) Option: add ½ cup white wine and ½ cup stock
salt & pepper to taste

This stuffing was rolled in parchment and baked in tin foil.

Procedure:

Melt butter in olive oil in sauté pan on medium heat.
Add onions. Sauté diced onions until softened and slightly transparent.
Add diced celery, carrots, sage and rosemary. Continue to sauté with onions until carrots turn a bright orange but are still hard and not fully cooked (they will continue to cook in the oven).
Process old bread in processor until crumbs or large chunks. In a bowl add milk to bread crumbs and stir well until all milk is absorbed. Set aside.
Cook cranberries in a separate pot until cranberries melt down and reduce. Strain and hold cranberries to add to bread crumbs.
Meanwhile wash parsley or cilantro and chop 1/2 cup of your choice. 
Add all ingredients into a large bowl with bread crumbs and cooked onion mixture. Toss until well combined.

Place stuffing into a greased casserole dish. Cool overnight in fridge. If desired you can also roll this stuffing in parchment paper and then tin foil to make very tidy, presentable rounds that can be cut very easily after coming out of the oven.
For a hot side dish cook at 350 degrees for approx. 30 – 40 minutes until internal temperature is 165 or stuff this dressing in your turkey for the most amazing turkey stuffing ever.

1.      

Best Pastry Ever

PASTRY - Mom's recipe (click here to go to my YouTube video)

Yield: 3 large pies

5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 lb. shortening
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar or white vinegar
1 cup ice water
1 tbsp. brown sugar

1.     Mix together flour, salt and brown sugar. Whisk together to remove the lumps.

2.    Cut up shortening into small cubes, return to cooler to keep cold.

3.    Add vinegar and egg to liquid measure cup. Beat with a fork.

4.    Add enough ice cold water to egg/vinegar mixture to make a total of 1 cup of liquid.

5.    Place measured dry ingredients in a large bowl if mixing by hand.

6.    Add shortening and with a knife or a pastry blender start cutting the shortening in to the flour until all the shortening is dime size and mealy.

Miriam's Time Saving Tip♥ If using a stand mixer in pastry making do not multi task. Stay at the mixer and pulse the machine on and off until the flour and shortening are slightly mixed but not totally combined. There should still be big size chunks of shortening showing and plenty of loose flour. Do not be alarmed at this because if you go too far at this stage you will ruin the pastry.

7.     Add liquid to mixing bowl and with a fork mix liquid in. Do not over mix at this stage or your pastry will be tough. Gently form into a ball with your hand.

8.    Roll dough up into a disc and wrap in parchment paper and then in a clean plastic bag and store in cooler until needed.

Miriam's Time Saving Tip♥ Making this pastry ahead is a great time saver. It keeps well for over a week in the fridge as long as it is wrapped well. After making pies freeze the remaining pastry for use later.

Mom's best ever Pumpkin Pie

Recipe Title:  Pumpkin Pie Filling (click here to go to my YouTube video of this recipe)

Original Recipe By:  Eileen Little and adapted by Miriam Borys

Yield: 3 medium sized pies

Ingredients:

1 can pure pumpkin (796ml or 28 oz.)
6 eggs
1 ½ cups sugar
2 cups milk
2 tsp. cinnamon
¾ tsp. ginger
¾ tsp. allspice
¾ tsp. nutmeg
½  tsp. salt

Procedure:

Heat milk in the microwave until heated but not boiled.
In a large bowl or with a stand mixer whisk eggs and sugar until well blended.
Add pure pumpkin, spices, salt and mix in until well combined.
Add hot milk and stir in until combined.
Pour into unbaked pastry pie shells (recipe to follow) just up to the fluted edges (don’t
overfill).
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake pie on the middle shelf of the oven for approximately 40 minutes until the filling is baked and is not liquid.
Serve hot or cold.  Refrigerate pie after cooled to preserve the freshness.

raw pie filling just before going into pre-heated oven

PASTRY (for 4 pie shells)

5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 lb. shortening
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar or white vinegar
1 cup ice water
1 tbsp. brown sugar

1.     Mix together flour, salt and brown sugar. Whisk together to remove the lumps.

2.    Cut up shortening into small cubes, return to cooler to keep cold.

3.    Add vinegar and egg to liquid measure cup. Beat with a fork.

4.    Add enough ice cold water to egg/vinegar mixture to make a total of 1 cup of liquid.

5.    Place measured dry ingredients in a large bowl if mixing by hand.

6.    Add shortening and with a knife or a pastry blender start cutting the shortening in to the flour until all the shortening is dime size and mealy.

Miriam's Time Saving Tip♥ If using a stand mixer in pastry making do not multi task. Stay at the mixer and pulse the machine on and off until the flour and shortening are slightly mixed but not totally combined. There should still be big size chunks of shortening showing and plenty of loose flour. Do not be alarmed at this because if you go too far at this stage you will ruin the pastry.

7.     Add liquid to mixing bowl and with a fork mix liquid in. Do not over mix at this stage or your pastry will be tough. Gently form into a ball with your hand.

8.    Roll dough up into a disc and wrap in parchment paper and then in a clean plastic bag and store in cooler until needed.

Miriam's Time Saving Tip♥ Making this pastry ahead is a great time saver. It keeps well for over a week in the fridge as long as it is wrapped well. After making pies freeze the remaining pastry for use later.

Tiramisu with Chocolate Wafers

Tiramisu ( a little bit more healthy version)

Serves 6-8

By: Miriam Borys

Ingredients:

5 yolks
1/2   cup white sugar
¼ cup Philadelphia spreadable cream cheese or ¼ cup mascarpone cheese (both optional)
5 egg whites
¼ tsp. cream of tartar
500ml whipping cream
1 tbsp.  Icing sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup vanilla yogurt – Greek style (thick)
1 pkg. (200 g) Mr. Christie's Chocolate Wafers
½ pkg. ladyfinger biscuits (100G)
1 cup hot espresso coffee
1 T cocoa powder

Prep:

1.     Whip 5 egg whites, ¼ cup sugar and cream of tartar to soft peaks. Hold in another bowl.

2.    In a bowl on top of a double boiler (bain marie) soften cream cheese.

3.    Add ¼ cup sugar & combine until smooth.

4.    Add 5 egg yolks and cook while whisking constantly until mixture starts to thicken. (do not cook eggs). When mixture has thickened take off heat and hold to cool.

5.    Whip whipping cream together with vanilla and icing sugar. Whip until soft peaks form.

6.    Make coffee and pour into a shallow bowl. Dissolve cocoa in coffee. Set aside for assembly.

Assembly:

7.    Stir cold yogurt & cooled egg yolk mixture into whipped cream. Stir only until combined.

8.    Gently fold in egg whites just until blended.

9.    Start layering:

a.     Start with coffee soaked lady fingers on the bottom of your cup/dish

b.    Spoon egg/ cream mixture on top of lady fingers

c.     place a single layer of chocolate wafers on top of egg/cream mixture

d.    spoon another small portion if the egg mixture onto wafer careful not to dirty the outside rim of your bowl

e.    one more layer of chocolate wafers

f.     Top with egg & cream mixture

g.    Decorate the top of the tiramisu with half-moons of chocolate wafers

Chicken Vegetable Soup with Brown Rice & Cilantro

Recipe Title:  Chicken Vegetable Soup with Brown Rice &Cilantro (click here to go directly to my YouTube video of this recipe)

Original Recipe By:  Miriam Borys

Servings: 4

 

Ingredients:

1 T  coconut oil
2 T olive oil
½ yellow onion – diced
4 fillets of anchovies
½ small zucchini – diced
½ red pepper
3 stalks celery
1 small yam – peeled and diced
1 ½ cups new potatoes – cut in ¼’s
1 tsp. bouillon of choice
8 c  chicken stock *  see video ‘how to make stock at home’
½ cup brown rice (optional but delicious)
1 c fresh cilantro – add to soup pot just before service

Procedure:

Heat a large sauce pan.  Add oils & continue to heat to a medium.

Add diced onion, anchovies, celery, red pepper, zucchini, yam and sauté until onions are transparent.

Add bouillon, chicken stock, potatoes, brown rice and herbs of choice.

Cover and bring up to the boil.

Uncovered, and reduce the heat to low so that the soup simmers for approximately 25 minutes.

Just before service, add 1 cup of chopped fresh cilantro (optional but delicious).

Serve hot with crackers or fresh bread or with nothing at all because this soup is delicious on its own

                                                                                                                                                

Chicken Stock at home from a leftover chicken bones

Recipe Title:  Chicken Stock at home from a leftover chicken bones (click here to go directly to my YouTube video of this recipe)

Original Recipe By:  Miriam Borys

Servings: makes almost 4L of chicken stock (16 cups)

Ingredients:

2 chicken carcasses (small) chicken removed
3 cups      diced onion
1 ½ cups   diced celery
1 ½ cups   diced carrots
6 black peppercorns
3 bay leafs
Optional:  fresh thyme, rosemary or oregano
5-6 L COLD water (enough to cover the vegetables)

Procedure:

Wash and chop vegetables  

Add chicken, vegetables, bay leaf, & peppercorns to the cold water. Make sure the cold water covered all the ingredients.

Bring up to the boiling point. Immediately turn down and simmer for 1 ½ hours. Skim off any impurities off the top of the stock but do not disturb the stock.

Cool & strain to preserve the liquid stock. Discard the cooked vegetables and chicken bones.

Principles of Stock Making[i]
Start with cold water that covers all the ingredients
Simmer stock gently
Do not cover
Skim off any impurities that rise to the top but do not stir
Strain carefully
Cool quickly

                                                                                                                                             

---

[i] Labensky et al, ‘On Cooking A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals’ Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006

A true Canadian pie story

Sophia & her winning pie

Imagine if you will a delicious pie recipe created in Saskatchewan in the 1950’s by Maggie’s Mom (Helen Patterson), being resurrected in Green Lake (1/2 an hour south east of 100 Mile House) this summer (2012) and just this weekend the same recipe winning a pie competition at the Metchosin Day Fall Fair 60 years later.  Sophia, my niece, decided to enter the pie contest at the local country fair. With the help of my Sour Cream Rhubarb Pie video and blog she made the pastry and the strawberry only filling (no fresh rhubarb available) and with her mom’s help (my sister Marie-Térèse) packaged it carefully up and headed for the fair. And this is the result of her baking efforts as told by her mom in an email;

Sophia received 3 ribbons for her Strawberry Sour Cream Pie at the Metchosin Day Fall Fair Pie competition today.

1. Best pie in category of entrants 11 years old and under
2. Best Berry Pie
And...
3. Grand Prize (big blue ribbon) best in show -for the best of all pies in
any category.

Sophia modified her Auntie Miriam's Rhubarb sour cream pie recipe from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmnGLFoVO1s

http://cookinguncovered.blogspot.ca/2012/07/sour-cream-rhubarb-pie-maggies-favorite.html

Ask me is I am the proudest Auntie in the world?  Congratulations Sophia…job well done!

What's cooking in September?

Alexandra with her first ever 'Hali'

Can you believe it is September already and the kiddies go back to school tomorrow September 4th...Yikes!!!!  That means that I am back to school as well. But, I have some amazing recipes to share with you in September that will help the transition between summer and fall. How about a very garlicky Caesar dressing or a luscious pasta sauce to use up the fresh tomatoes and zucchini. To keep up with the change in the temperature ….yes it is getting really cold in North Vancouver at night… I have some delicious soups on the back burner and  …for all you fish fans how does Hali Ceviche or BBQ’d  Hali sound (Hali is fishing lodge talk for Halibut). My daughter Alexandra is up in the Haida Gwaii ("Islands of the People"), unofficially the Queen Charlotte Islands, working at the floating West Coast Fishing Resort….hopefully she won’t forget the fish when she returns home!