Christmas at the Hopkins’ house was full of family, food, fun, food, gifts, food, friends, more food and laughter. The most honored and long standing tradition in our house is our Christmas breakfast. It always consists of only two items; the artery-clogging, sickeningly sweet, and utterly delicious and delectable brown sugar baked bacon and cinnamon-pecan rolls. These rolls are only made on Christmas day, as your heart and waistline could not bear them more than once a year. And the bacon, that we have twice a year. Once on Christmas to celebrate Jesus’ birth and then again on Easter to celebrate His resurrection. Of course, the bacon itself has nothing to do with either blessed event, just with our traditional family meals. Again, the bacon is only eaten twice a year because of its horrific health ramifications! Today’s post shall focus on the rolls and tomorrow, the bacon. The dough for the rolls is a classic James Beard recipe for Refrigerator Potato Bread, the original recipe can be found in his book, Beard on Bread, available on Amazon.com.

I make a double batch of the dough and use it three times over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The first third is used for potato rolls for Christmas Eve dinner with my mother, the next third for the cinnamon rolls Christmas morning, and the final third for a fresh batch of rolls for Christmas dinner with my dad. If you would like to do the same, the dough needs to be made on December 23rd and refrigerated overnight to begin the process. The dinner potato rolls are also a traditional part of our Thanksgiving meal each year.

Another thing I just have to share with you is what caused all the laughter at our house this year. I stumbled upon the funniest thing a few weeks ago. Decoy gift boxes at theonion.com. They are the most clever and hilarious things I’ve seen in a long time.  I purchased the four-pack, check out the site when you have a free moment and consider buying a pack for next year or for birthday gifts throughout 2010.

Dave, Marissa, and Connor with their decoy boxes

Linda Hopkins’ Christmas Morning Cinnamon-Pecan Rolls and Dinner Rolls

(make 2 batches of the dough if you would like 1 batch of cinnamon rolls and 2 nights of dinner rolls)

Dough
1 package or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup warm potato water (reserved from mashed potatoes, below)
3/4 cup (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened in the potato water
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2 eggs
1 cup mashed potatoes (cooking water reserved for potato water, above)
6 cups flour

Cinnamon Rolls
1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Dough: Dissolve yeast and the tablespoon sugar in the 1/2 cup warm water and let proof for 5 minutes.  Then add the 1 cup warm potato water with the butter, 1/2 cup sugar, salt, and the eggs to the yeast mixture and stir to blend well.

Add the mashed potatoes and stir well.  Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition, to make a stiff dough.  Turn the dough on a floured surface and knead 10 minutes, until the dough is very smooth and shows elasticity.

Shape dough into a ball.  Butter a large mixing bowl, place dough in bowl, turn dough to coat with butter. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight to let rise.

Dinner Rolls: Punch the dough down, then pinch off 14 pieces of the dough to make fourteen 2-inch diameter balls. Cover the remaining dough in the bowl and return to the refrigerator. Roll dough balls between the palm of your hand and a lightly floured surface to create smooth round rolls. Place rolls on a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Cover and let rise until almost doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the rolls are a light brown color on top.

Makes 14 dinner rolls

Cinnamon Rolls: The next morning, stir together the 1 1/4 sticks melted butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup until smooth.  Generously butter the sides of two 10-inch-round cake pans.  Divide the glaze into the bottom of each pan, then sprinkle with the chopped pecans.

Remove dough from refrigerator and remove 2 pounds of dough.  Cover and return remaining dough to refrigerator for another batch of dinner rolls for Christmas dinner.

Divide the dough in half and flatten each into a disk and then on a heavily floured surface, roll the each dough into a 10 x-16-inch  rectangle.  Brush the dough with  2 tablespoons melted butter and then sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar.  Starting at the short end, rollup each dough as for a jelly roll.  Cut each “jelly roll” into six equal slices.

Arrange 6 slices in each of the prepared pans.  Cover with a greased sheet a plastic wrap and a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake in center of oven for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and let  rest 3 minutes, then invert onto serving platter.  Serve warm.

Makes 12 sinful rolls

At last the day has arrived – whatever leftovers haven’t been eaten, given away, or frozen; are going in the trash. Marissa and Connor head back to their respective universities this evening. Care packages are going with them and then I will have my refrigerator back!

This recipe is a perfect example of when to use light sour cream and cream cheese. There are so many other prominent flavors going on here, that you’ll never taste the difference.  When the sour cream or cream cheese is the main flavor, then I prefer to use the real thing, because you can truly taste the difference. As for the fat-free versions – not a good choice – they don’t bake up as well. When a recipe calls for canned green chilies, always go for the whole chilies and dice them yourself. They are better quality than the “already diced”, and it takes only seconds to cut them up.  ”Good-bye turkey, see you next November!”

Creamy Turkey Enchiladas

16-ounce container light sour cream, divided
7-ounce can whole green chilies, drained and diced
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 cup canned black or pinto beans, rinsed and drained
6 green onions, chopped and divided
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
2 teaspoons toasted cumin seed, ground
2 cups diced cooked turkey
2 cups packed grated Queso Quesadilla or Monterey Jack cheese, divided
10 8-inch flour tortillas
8-ounce light cream cheese, cut lengthwise into 10 strips
3 cups salsa

2 avocado, peeled and diced
2 tomatoes, chopped
Cilantro sprigs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish with Pam.  Mix 1 1/2 cups sour cream, chilies, corn, beans, half of the green onions, cilantro, jalapeno, and cumin in large bowl.  Mix in turkey and 1 cup of the cheese.  Season filling to taste with salt and pepper.

Divided the filling amongst the 10 tortillas, spreading down center of each.  Top filling with a cream cheese strip.  Roll up each tortilla.  Arrange (squish together) enchiladas seam side down in prepared dish.  (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)

Pour salsa over enchiladas.  Cover baking dish with foil and bake until sauce bubbles and enchiladas are heated through, about 45 minutes.  Uncover, sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese and remaining green onions and bake until cheese melts, about 5 minutes.

Garnish with avocado, tomatoes, cilantro, and remaining sour cream.

Makes 10

So here are my feelings about Thanksgiving leftovers – I love having mass amounts of white meat leftover for turkey sandwiches, and it wouldn’t feel like Thanksgiving without all the fabulous turkey stock I make from the carcasses, but the rest of it… not so much!  To that end, I always make two turkeys, one is roasted the traditional way, the second is always grilled or smoked. This year I wound up with 36 cups of stock, happy day!

To use up all that dark turkey meat, I just make our family favorites and add in the turkey.  Our all-time favorite salad is another of Barbara Pool Fenzl’s recipes.  It comes from her 1994 Southwest The Beautiful Cookbook. I’ve made very few changes to the recipe over the years… instead of whisking by hand, I use a food processor for the dressing.  Since the original recipe makes about 1 1/3 cups of dressing, I double all the other fixings so that all that amazing dressing can be utilized, it would be shameful to waste even one drop!  Also in the original, the tortilla strips are dusted with chili powder prior to frying. Instead I salt and dust them immediately after removing from the hot oil so the seasoning really sticks to the strips. And with all this turkey on hand, it quickly becomes a perfect main course salad for a busy weeknight family dinner.

Southwestern Caesar Salad

(adapted from Southwest The Beautiful Cookbook by Barbara Pool Fenzl)

Dressing
2 eggs
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 shallot, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons anchovy paste (or one whole anchovy)
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup corn oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Vegetable oil, for frying
8 corn tortillas, cut into thin strips
Salt
Chili powder

4 cups cooked and shredded turkey meat
2 avocado, peeled and diced
4 heads romaine lettuce, washed, spun dry, and torn into bite-size pieces
1 cup Parmesan cheese

Dressing: Place eggs in boiling water for 1 minute. Remove from water with slotted spoon. Crack open into a bowl, discard egg whites and place yolks in the bowl of a food processor or blender.  Add garlic, shallot, chipotle, mustard, vinegar, lime juice, anchovy paste, cumin, and cayenne to the yolks. Process for about 30 seconds.  With the machine running; add both oils through the feed tube and process just until dressing is emulsified.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour vegetable oil in a small skillet to a depth about 1/4-inch. Heat over medium-high heat.  Fry the tortilla strips in batches until they are crisp and lightly browned.  Remove with tongs to paper towels, immediately sprinkle with salt and chili powder.

Place shredded turkey and avocado in a medium bowl and toss with 1/3 cup dressing, to lightly coat.  In a large serving bowl, toss romaine with remaining dressing, toss in the turkey.  Gently mix in the cheese and tortilla strips.

Serves 16

Above is a picture of our Thanksgiving dessert table; the apple tart, pumpkin pie, plus pilgrim hat and turkey sugar cookies. Hope your Thanksgiving was a wonderful mix of family, friends, and good food!  Here is a recipe to use up some of your leftover turkey and mashed potatoes. It is equally good with leftover stuffing as the bottom layer or mashed sweet potatoes.

Mashed Potato-Turkey Casserole

1 1/2 cups mashed potatoes
1/3 cup sour cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
1 cup diced yellow and/or red bell pepper
1 teaspoon ground sage
1 cup shredded cooked turkey meat
1 cup grated Monterey jack, cheddar, or a Mexican blend of cheeses
1 cup prepared French-fried onion rings
3 slices bacon, cooked crisp

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter an 8 x8-inch baking dish. Spread mashed potatoes evenly on bottom of baking dish. Spread sour cream evenly over top.  Sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic powder over sour cream.

In a medium skillet, melt together butter and olive oil, add onion, bell pepper and sage and saute until vegetables are tender, stir in shredded turkey to combine; evenly layer over top of sour cream.

Top with cheese and French-fried onion rings.  Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and crumble bacon over top, return to oven for 5 minutes.

Serve hot from the oven.

Serves 4

A perfect Thanksgiving side dish inspired by a recipe in a 2002 issue of Bon Appetit. Pictured above are the two main parts of the dish, the creamy corn mixture and the topping consisting of breadcrumbs, bacon, green onions and fried onion rings. They may be made a day ahead, covered and refrigerated separately.  Also pictured is a package of the instant or “quick-cooking” grits used to thicken the corn mixture.

The fried red onion rings are delicious and well worth the effort, but if you wish to take a shortcut – substitute with the prepared fried onion rings you find in the grocery store. You know, the ones used in the classic Green Bean Casserole. If used, eliminate the 1/4 cup flour, the red onion, and the 1/2 cup olive oil from the ingredient list and also eliminate the 3rd paragraph from the procedure portion of the recipe. Use 1 1/2 cups purchased onion rings in their place.

Triple Onion Creamy Corn Gratin with Bacon

6 bacon slices, chopped
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 medium red onion, peeled and thinly sliced into rounds
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups Panko breadcrumbs
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced (white and green portions), divided
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large white or yellow onion, peeled and diced
8 cups frozen corn kernels (about 2 1/2 pounds), thawed
2 cups whole milk
1 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup quick-cooking grits
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 packed cup grated Monterey Jack  or Pepper Jack cheese

Sauté bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels. Transfer 2 tablespoons bacon drippings to large heavy pot; reserve for creamed corn. Discard remaining drippings.

Place flour in medium bowl.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Separate red onion slices into rings and toss in flour to coat lightly.  Heat 1/2 cup oil in same large skillet over medium-high heat.  Working in batches, add onion rings to skillet and cook until golden brown, adding more oil as needed, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer onion rings to paper towels.

Mix the bacon, onion rings, Panko, and half of  the green onions into the bowl with breadcrumbs.  Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking dish.

Add butter to pot with reserved bacon drippings; melt over medium-high heat.  Add chopped onion; sauté until light golden and beginning to soften, about 6 minutes.  Add frozen corn; sauté 5 minutes.  Add milk and cream; bring to boil.  Gradually stir in grits and cayenne pepper.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir in cheese and remaining green onions.  Season with salt and pepper. Spoon corn mixture into prepared dish. (Topping and corn can be made up a day ahead. Cover separately and chill.)

Bake gratin uncovered 25 minutes. Sprinkle topping over; bake about 20 minutes longer or until topping is crisped.

Serves 10- 12

This is a gourmet take on my grandmother’s traditional sage stuffing. She did not add the apples, sausage, pecans, or cranberries. It took her son, my dad, a couple years to get used to my version, but now I think even he would miss those yummy additions – although he probably won’t admit it! The picture above is all the components, prepared and ready to put together before stuffing the bird (excluding the pumpkins, of course, those are for decoration!). The dominating flavor is still the sage, so be sure not to skimp on that. And remember to tear and dry out the bread at least 24 hours ahead of time.

Grandma Otter’s Thanksgiving Sage Stuffing

1 1/2 pounds challah and/or brioche, stale or day-old, torn into 1-inch pieces

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
1 cup chopped celery, with leaves
1 large or 2 small chopped Granny Smith apples
1 heaping tablespoon ground or rubbed sage
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, cooked and drained
1 cup toasted pecans, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3 to 4 cups chicken or turkey stock

Place torn bread pieces on baking sheets at least 24 hours before making dressing, to completely dry out. (May be done up to a week in advance, store in a sealed bag or container at room temperature.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter an 9 x 13 x 2-inch ovenproof baking dish.

In a large skillet on medium-high heat, melt the butter until it is foamy.  Add the onions, celery, and apples and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the sage, poultry seasoning, parsley, salt, and pepper. Cook an additional 2 minutes, remove from heat. (May be done 2 days ahead, cover and refrigerate. Reheat before proceeding).

Pour into a very large bowl or pot and stir in the bread, cooked sausage, pecans, and cranberries.  Add enough of the stock to moisten the mixture.  Toss thoroughly. (Dressing may be completely assembled one day ahead, covered, and refrigerated, but do not stuff the bird until immediately before placing the turkey in the oven to roast).

Stuff turkey with mixture, place remaining dressing into the prepared dish, cover with foil.  Bake dressing 25 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes, adding more stock if needed to keep the dressing moist.

Serves 8 -10

Recycling is a wonderful thing… not only with paper and plastic, but with food too. Of course, the most basic form of food recycling is reusing leftovers, taking the leftover beef from a roast and making burritos, for instance.  Or in this case, using the red wine poaching liquid from the poached pear post on 11/18/09 and using it to flavor this wonderful Thanksgiving side dish. Don’t fret if you didn’t make the poached pear recipe but want to make this, just use red wine in place of the poaching liquid.

I’m using frozen “petite whole onions” also known as pearl onions for this recipe.  Until about a month ago, I did not even know that pearl onions were sold peeled and frozen. What a find, all these years I’ve been meticulously boiling and peeling them myself!

The soaking liquid for the dried mushrooms is also reused here.  If you have any left after using the 1/2 cup asked for in this recipe, freeze it and use to enrich sauces or deglaze pans in the future. And be sure to recycle those Thanksgiving leftovers too! I’ll post plenty of ideas after  Thursday.

Red Wine Pearl Onions and Wild Mushrooms

1 ounce dried wild mushrooms
1 pound fresh wild mushrooms
4 large shallots, peeled, and quartered
3 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1  1/2 cups reserved poaching liquid (from poached pear recipe on 11/18/09 post) or 1  1/2 cups red      wine, divided
14-ounce package frozen pearl onions, thawed
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Fresh thyme leaves, for garnish

Place dried wild mushrooms in bowl and pour boiling water to cover, soak until soft, about 35 minutes. Lift out mushrooms, squeezing out excess liquid. Rinse mushrooms in a sieve to remove any dirt or grit and squeeze dry again.  Strain the mushroom soaking water through a cheesecloth (or coffee filter) lined sieve to remove the grit and set aside the soaking liquid.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Halve or quarter large fresh mushrooms, keep smaller ones whole  (about bite-size), transfer all mushrooms to a 9 x 12-inch baking dish. Add shallots, garlic, thyme, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and pepper to baking dish with mushroom and toss well to coat. Cover tightly with foil.

Toss pearl onions with remaining tablespoon oil in an 8 x 8-inch baking dish, generously season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Leave uncovered.

Place both baking dishes in preheated oven. Roast for about 48 minutes, stirring pearl onions every 12 minutes and switch position of baking dishes after the first 24 minutes. After total roasting time, remove pearl onions from oven and set aside.

Remove foil from mushrooms and stir in 1/2 cup poaching liquid (or red wine). Continue roasting mushrooms in middle of oven, uncovered, fort 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. Add in pearl onions plus 1/2 cup of the reserved mushroom soaking liquid and another 1/2 cup of the poaching liquid and roast 15 minutes more.

Meanwhile, place the remaining 1/2 cup of poaching liquid and the balsamic vinegar in a large skillet and boil until reduced to 1/4 cup. Remove baking dish from oven and pour mushroom-onion mixture into skillet, toss to coat.

Taste and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place in serving bowl and garnish with fresh thyme leaves.

May be made 1 day ahead, cool completely,cover and refrigerate. Remove from refrigerator 1 hour before reheating and allow to come to room temperature.

Serves 6 to 8

This is our traditional Thanksgiving soup. Back in the day, I went all “Martha” and hollowed out miniature pumpkins and served the soup in those. Hey, it only took about 4 or 5 hours to cut and hollow out 8 of those little guys! I am thankful that I eventually recovered my mind and my sanity and purchased and now use darling orange and green ceramic pumpkin bowls instead!

Butternut squash can be a difficult to cut, but luckily many stores (including Costco and Trader Joe’s) sell packages of already peeled and cubed squash. If you can’t find them, look at the “Tip Index” on this site and learn how to correctly (and safely) cut a butternut squash.  Save the oil the sage leaves are fried in to use in place of olive oil for just about any Thanksgiving recipe, especially those that have herbs included in them or to saute vegetables.

Butternut Squash Soup with Blue Cheese, Walnuts, and Sage

Fried Sage Leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
About 24 small fresh sage leaves

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
1 tablespoon reserved olive oil from frying sage leaves
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds butternut squash cubes
2 apples (Granny Smith, Fuji, or Gala), peeled, cored, and cubed
2 whole cloves
3 cups chicken or turkey stock or vegetable broth
1 cup spiced apple cider
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon rubbed sage

1 cup blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup toasted walnut halves

Sage Leaves: Heat olive oil in a small skillet over high heat. Fry sage  leaves, 8 at a time, gently stirring, 5 seconds. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and season with salt. Do not discard “sage” oil from frying sage leaves.  One tablespoon is used below, allow remaining oil to cool and pour into a bottle or jar and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.  (Leaves will crisp as they cool. Sage leaves can be fried 2 days ahead, cooled completely, then kept in an airtight container at room temperature).

Melt the butter and 1 tablespoon “sage” oil in a large heavy pot.  Add the onion and sauté over medium-low heat until onion is soft and translucent. Stir in the salt, pepper, squash, apples, and whole cloves; cover pot and sweat until the squash and apples are tender, about 15 to 18 minutes.  When tender, add the stock and apple cider and simmer 15 minutes.

Remove the whole cloves from soup and discard. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the solids to a blender or food processor with a ladle full or two of the hot liquid. (be sure to remove to feed tube from the machine so the steam can escape) and puree until smooth, adding more liquid, if necessary.  Return the puree to the pot with the remaining liquid and stir to combine. Add the cream and rubbed sage and cook over low heat for 3 minutes. Taste for seasoning and correct with salt and pepper, as needed. (Soup can be make 2 days ahead, brought to room temperature, covered, and refrigerated, then reheated before serving).

To serve, ladle hot soup into bowls, sprinkle with blue cheese crumbles, toasted walnuts, and 3 fried sage leaves for each bowl. Serve immediately.

Serves 8

Just about all the dishes I make for Thanksgiving are “must haves” from my family. There can be no variations in our traditional stuffing, we must have butternut squash soup served in our individual pumpkin bowls.  There has to be pumpkin pie – plain old pumpkin pie – nothing fancy and if we do not have the jellied cranberry sauce from the can, it is not Thanksgiving!  I can make another gourmet cranberry sauce if I wish, but I’ll be the only one eating it!  And we must have to this outstanding apple tart!  I’ve been making it annually for at least 12 years since it was introduced to me by Barbara Pool Fenzl of Les Gourmettes Cooking School, where I have worked for the past 21 years. It makes me feel old to say that aloud!  Old, but very proud to work with and have such an amazing, giving, and loving person, as Barb, to call my dear friend and mentor.

In addition to the fact that it comes from Barb, there are several things that make this particular apple tart so special. There is the thin layer of raspberry jam topping the bottom crust, and the gorgeous lattice top; but mostly it’s the irresistible cookie dough-like macadamia nut crust.

Because of that cookie dough texture, it may seem difficult to roll out, but don’t fret – if it rips, just piece it together or press it into the tart pan, it all melts back together and will turn out perfectly – perfectly beautiful and delicious!

Apple Tart with Macadamia Nut Crust

6 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) whole macadamia nuts
Crust
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon real almond extract
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam
Filling
9 medium Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced into about 12 wedges each
1/4 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
1 lemon, washed well, sliced thick, and seeds removed
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place the macadamia nuts on a dry baking sheet. Place in oven and toast for about 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Watch them closely, they scorch easily. Remove from oven as soon as they begin to turn brown and become fragrant. Remove from baking sheet, or nuts will continue to cook and could scorch on the bottom.  Allow to cool. When cool, place in a food processor and using the pulse button, pulse until the nuts are finely chopped. Like all nuts, macadamia have a lot of oil and will turn to nut butter if processed too much, so be sure and use the pulse button, not the on button. Once you have chopped the nuts, divided them into 1 cup and 1/2 cup portions so you don’t accidentally use them all at once. Turn off oven.

Crust: Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer, add the egg and extracts.  On a sheet of waxed paper combine the flours, baking powder, and only 1 cup of the nuts.  Add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture and combine well.  Flatten into a disk and wrap in the plastic wrap for 30 minutes.  Roll two thirds (2/3) of the dough into a 12 – inch circle and place into a 10-inch tart pan, pressing into fluted sides of pan.  Freeze the tart shell for 30 minutes.  Roll the remaining third (1/3) of the dough into an 11” x 11” square. Transfer to a cookie sheet or tray, cover, and refrigerate until needed. (for ease, either roll out the square a flexible cutting board liner or use the bottom of another tart pan to transfer it to the cookie sheet).

Filling: While crust is in refrigerator or freezer; place the apples, water, cinnamon stick, lemon slices, and sugar in a medium pan over medium heat and cook until the apple slices are soft and the liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally.  Remove from the heat, discard the cinnamon stick and lemon slices, and set aside to cool.

Assembly: Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Remove the tart shell from the freezer and spread the raspberry jam evenly over the bottom.  Pour the apple filling over the jam and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup macadamia nuts.  Remove the dough square from the refrigerator and cut it into 1/2-inch wide strips with either a knife or a pastry cutter wheel.  Form a lattice pattern over the tart, trim any excess, and bake until brown, about 50 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.  Cut the tart into 10 pieces and serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 10

There are so many Thanksgiving recipes to get posted before the big day!  I figured, I better get the star of the show up soon, as in today!

The turkey here is trussed, which means the wings and legs are bound closed. When you truss a bird, the wings and legs stay close to the body; the ends of the drumsticks cover the top of the breast and keep it from drying out.  Trussing helps cook evenly, reduces shrinkage by about 15% and it also makes for a more beautiful roasted bird.

The pictures here are lifted from the internet, and will be replaced with my pictures when I actually make my turkey next week. Until then….

Hopkins’ Thanksgiving Roasted Turkey with Caramelized Onion & Herb Gravy

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup apricot preserves
3 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
4 tablespoons minced fresh sage plus 8 large whole sage leaves, divided
Grated zest from 1 large orange
4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 pounds red onions, peeled and sliced
5 shallots, peeled and minced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
14- to 15-pound turkey; with neck and giblets
6 cups chicken or turkey broth, divided
5 slices prosciutto or bacon
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup dry white wine
Pinch of ground nutmeg

The day before roasting turkey:  Melt butter in saucepan, add apricot preserves and stir until melted into butter.  Mix in minced rosemary, 3 tablespoons of the minced sage, orange zest, salt and pepper.  Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for an 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours. Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 425 degrees. Toss onions, shallots, garlic, and 2 tablespoons oil in large roasting pan. Roast until onions are golden brown, stirring every 15 minutes, about 1 hour.

Rinse turkey inside and out; dry very well.   Starting at neck end, slide a hand under skin of turkey breast to loosen skin.  Spread 3 tablespoons of the apricot-butter mixture under skin over breast meat.  Arrange 4 sage leaves under skin on each side of the breast.  Spoon stuffing loosely into main cavity.

Truss the turkey: Use about 4 feet of cotton string.  Center the string under the bird at the neck or shoulders.  Come up and wrap the string around the wings then up over the breast, cross the strings and bring the string up under the legs, crossing them.  Tie string securely, going around a couple of times, tie nice and tight.  Melt remaining apricot-butter and brush over turkey.

Place turkey atop onions in pan, breast side down.  Add neck and giblets to pan on top of onions.  Roast turkey 30 minutes.  Remove neck and giblet pieces from roasting pan, discard liver and place remaining giblets and neck in medium saucepan and set aside.  Pour 1 cup broth into roasting pan over onions. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.  Roast turkey 2 hours.

Meanwhile, add 5 cups broth, and bay leaf to saucepan with giblets and neck.  Simmer until reduced to 2 cups liquid, skimming occasionally, about 1 hour.   Strain turkey stock and set aside.

Turn turkey over, breast side up and continue to roast until turkey is golden brown about 1 hour 30 minutes longer. During the last 45 minutes of cooking, place the slices of prosciutto or bacon over the turkey breast to cover; continue to baste. The turkey is done when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the meatiest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees (the thigh juices will also run clear when pricked with a knife.) Transfer the turkey to a cutting board, tent loosely with foil and let rest for 25 minutes before carving, so the juices can settle back into the meat.

Meanwhile make gravy:  Pour onion mixture into 8-cup glass measuring cup; spoon off fat, reserving 3 tablespoons.  Add enough of the turkey stock to the onion mixture to measure 6 cups.  Using a blender or food processor, puree 3 cups of the onion mixture, once smooth add back to the other 3 cups of mixture.

Heat reserved 3 tablespoons turkey fat in large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add chopped sage; stir 30 seconds.  Add flour; whisk until flour begins to color, about 3 minutes, mixture will be dry and lumpy.   Gradually whisk in wine, then onion mixture and nutmeg.   Simmer until gravy thickens to desired consistency, adding more broth if needed, whisking frequently, about 5 minutes; add any accumulated juices from turkey platter. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve turkey with gravy.

Serves 8

The second appetizer of the day for Thanksgiving is just as easy and quick as the first.

Hot Feta and Tomato Spread

16 ounces crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons, drained and chopped sun-dried tomatoes
5 plum (Roma) tomatoes, cut crosswise into thin slices
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano leaves
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Pita chips

Preheat broiler. Move rack to the position closest to the broiler element or flame.

Spread feta evenly in a shallow 3 to 4-cup baking dish.  Sprinkle feta with sun-dried tomatoes. Arrange thin plum tomato slices overlapping, on top. Drizzle oil over tomatoes and sprinkle with oregano and pepper. Place baking dish in oven and broil until cheese is bubbling, about 8 minutes.

Serve spread with pita chips.

Serves 8

With all the dishes you’ll be making for the big Thanksgiving feast, you need a couple easy, quick, and tasty appetizers to go with the crudites. One of the quickest and easiest products to use is puff pastry.

Puff pastry can be purchased in the freezer section of the grocery store, usually near the pie crusts. Most grocery stores carry the Pepperidge Farms brand. Trader Joe’s also carries their own signature brand of puff pastry (you can pick up the tapenades there too). Both brands have two sheets of pastry per package, only one is needed for this recipe. Wrap well and refreeze the second sheet for future use.

Twisted Tapenade Swirls

1 sheet thawed puff pastry
3 tablespoons green olive tapenade
3 tablespoons black olive tapenade

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.

Lay puff pastry on a lightly floured cutting board. Cut lengthwise into 11 strips, cut those strips in half for a total of 22 strips.

Spread 11 of the strips with green olive tapenade and the remaining 11 with the black olive tapenade.

Twist each strip and place on prepared baking sheet, pressing down each end of the strips to keep them from untwisting.

Bake for 15 minutes or until puffed and golden. Remove to racks to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 22