Stuffing Casserole

I know it has been over a week since Thanksgiving. But I still have leftovers! Specifically stuffing. I've been stumped on it. I can serve it alongside chicken or anything else, but there had to be a better way.

I was trying to find something to make for breakfast today. I thought I could make a hash-brown casserole, but didn't have any hash-browns. But I do still have stuffing.

I did not expect it to be this good. The smell of the rosemary combined with everything else was really great. I will definitely make this again.

Stuffing Casserole

All these measurements depend on the size of your pan. So please adjust them to your needs.

3 cups stuffing
6 links breakfast sausage
1/2 cup shredded cheese, any kind
3 eggs

Cook the sausage in a pan and chop it up. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 325degrees.

Place the stuffing and sausage in a large bowl. Lightly beat the eggs and pour over top. Toss with the cheese and make sure that everything is well coated.

Turn everything into an oven safe dish and bake for 35-50 minutes. This also depends on the size of the pan you use. If you are making something small like mine, it only took 35 minutes. If you do a really large pan, it may take up to an hour. Just make sure that all the eggs are set.

Cranberry Mayo

I love sandwiches. I make lots of other food, but the sandwich is my favorite form of food. As a child, I could make a sandwich out of any meal, much to my parent's horror. And I knew that I had found the guy to for me when I was on a date and watched him make a sandwich out of spaghetti. I married that one.

So the leftovers sandwich is my favorite part of Thanksgiving.

You need to start with the bread. To cram the most stuff on, I suggest a round kaiser or long roll. I used a small potato roll for this sandwich, it is only a little bit for breakfast.

On the bottom, start with cranberry sauce. Then some stuffing. If this was a larger roll, I'd put potatoes on too. Give it a nice wedge of turkey and a dollop of Cranberry Balsamic Mayo.

Sandwich heaven.

Cranberry Mayo

2 tbsp Mayo

1 tsp Cranberry Balsamic

Stir it together.

I suggest making a bunch of this ahead and refrigerating it until needed. The ratio works out the same however much you make, but taste test it! Make sure you like it. Add a little more balsamic if you want to!

It's your sandwich, go wild!

No Meat Chili and Pineapple Cornbread

I hope everyone had a safe and happy Turkey Day.

My day was fun, but my families celebration combined with the cooking I've been doing for you guys, I am turkey-ed out!

To get completely away from turkey, I made this no meat chili. I'm going to show you some good things to do with leftovers this coming week, you could even put shredded turkey into this. But right now, turkey is out and beans are in!

No Meat Chili

2 cans black beans
1 can red kidney beans
1 can chopped carrots,
         or 2 fresh carrots
1 can, diced new potatoes,
          or 1 large baking potato, diced
1 cup chopped or crushed pineapple in juice
1/2 cup juice from the can of pineapple
1 large onion, diced
3-4 tbsp Taco, Southwest, Jerk or Wings seasoning blends
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
2-4 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Jalapeno Olive Oil
1 cup vegetable stock

Heat the Olive Oil on medium heat in a large stock pot. Add in the onion and saute 5-7 minutes, until they start to become translucent. Add in the potatoes and the carrot and one tbsp of your seasoning blend. Saute 2-3 minutes.

Rinse and drain all your beans. Add them to the pot along with the vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and stir occasionally. Cook for 10 minutes. Taste. Add the rest of your seasonings blend one tbsp at a time along with 2 tbsp of the brown sugar. Simmer 5-10 mins. Taste again. If still too spicy, add a little more brown sugar. If too sweet, add more spices. The spices will intensify a bit as you cook.

Add the pineapple bits, juice and tomatoes and simmer 1- 1 1/2 hours. Sauce will thicken and turn darker.

Serve with Pineapple Cornbread (recipe follows)

Pineapple Cornbread

Take one package cornbread mix and empty it into a bowl. If the directions call for water or milk, substitute an equal amount of crushed or chopped pineapple in juice, plus 2 tbsp of the juice.

Add in eggs if it calls for it, also 2 tbsp Jalapeno Olive Oil.

Stir and bake as directed. Remember to grease your pan well. The pineapple bits make it stick more than usual.

Cool slightly and turn out onto wire racks. Slice and brush the tops with White Pineapple Balsamic. Serve warm with chili.




*If you would like to make a meat chili, I would saute the meat in one of the spicy oils before I put in the onions. I would use Jalapeno for preference, but Citrus Habanero if you are feeling the need to breathe fire. If you do, you may only need 1-2 tbsp additional spices.

Mushroom Pumpkin Pasta

With Thanksgiving over, some people might be done with pumpkin flavors. Not me. I've been buying at least one can of pumpkin puree every time I go to the grocery store for the past month. And I'll keep going until my kitchen is buried in a pumpkin avalanche!

Well, maybe not. But it is the season for shopping, and with all the long hours we are putting in trying to find the perfect gifts for people, sometimes it's hard to find time to make the perfect meal too.

This pasta is awesome. You can make a big batch at the beginning of the week and heat it up as you need it. I'm going to be bringing it to work with me for most of the winter season.


Mushroom Pumpkin Pasta

1 pkg Ricciarelle pasta*
1 medium onion, roughly sliced
1/2 cup roasted red pepper, chopped
1 cup fresh green beans, trimmed and chopped into bite size pieces
2 cup sliced mushrooms, any kind
1 cup spinach, washed and drained
1/4 cup vegetable broth
3 tbsp Porcini Cream*
2 tbsp Olive Oil, I used Garlic
2 tbsp pumpkin puree, canned or fresh
1 tsp Wild Porcini Sea Salt*
1tsp sugar
roasted salted pumpkin seeds, for garnish

Cook pasta until al dente. Rinse and set aside.

In a large saute pan, heat your Olive Oil to medium and add the onion, roasted red pepper and sugar. Saute, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

Add the green beans, mushrooms and salt. Cook another 5 minutes.

Stir in the spinach. Once it starts to wilt, add the pumpkin and cream of porcini. Give it a quick stir and add the vegetable broth.

Cover and let it simmer for about 10 minutes. If you like your green beans more tender, let it go for 15 minutes.

Plate your pasta. Top with sauce and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.

Enjoy!

*all starred items can be found in our store, or can be ordered by phone.

That's it!

That's it for the recipes! Get your cooking on!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. 

Enjoy it all, I'll see you all back on Friday. 

Pumpkin Pie with Vanilla Crust

Pumpkin Pie with Vanilla Crust

Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp milk
1/2 cup Vanilla Olive Oil*

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the milk and Olive Oil and mix with a fork.

Pat into a 9 inch pan with your fingertips. Set aside.


Pie Filling:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup milk or cream (I sometimes use chocolate milk!)
2 large eggs
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 15oz can pumpkin puree (you can use the premixed kind, but taste your spices to find out when you have            too much!)

Stir all the ingredients together and pour into your pie crust. Smooth the top.

Bake for 15 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 350 and bake for another 35- 40 minutes. A knife inserted in the center should come out clean when it is done.

*unfortunately, the Vanilla Olive Oil is no longer available. I am very sad. The Meyer Lemon or the Blood Orange would be nice here too.

White Honey Ginger Sweet Potatoes

White Honey Ginger Sweet Potatoes

2 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, scrubbed
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup White Honey Ginger Balsamic
1/2 cup walnuts
1/3 cup water
Salt and Pepper to taste

Fill a large pan halfway with water. Add a dash of salt and bring to a boil. Add the sweet potatoes and boil 10-15 minutes. A knife should be able easily inserted into the center. Drain and cool slightly. Peel and dice.

In a large pan, melt the butter and add the Balsamic. Cook for one minute. Stir in the water and cook for another minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the sweet potatoes  and walnuts, toss well to coat. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir again. Transfer to a lightly buttered baking dish and cover with foil.

Bake for about 30 minutes. Stirring about halfway through. Remove the foil and cook an additional 15 minutes. The sauce should thicken and become more like a glaze.

Serve.

Rosemary Garlic Stuffing with Apples

Rosemary Garlic Stuffing with Apples

6 cups cubed bread or one 16oz bag of stuffing mix
2 tbsp Rosemary Garlic Olive Oil*
2 medium yellow onions, roughly chopped
2 medium apples, diced on the small side
2 celery stalks, diced finely, or thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups no-sugar added apple cider
Salt
Fresh pepper

Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat, stir in the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until they start to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add apples, celery and sage and simmer about 5 minutes. The apples should be fork tender and very fragrant. Add the cider and 1/2 cup of the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer.

Turn off the heat and add the vegetable apple mixture to a large heat-proof bowl with the bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper and stir evenly to combine. If mixture is too dry, add more broth 1/4 cup at a time.

Transfer stuffing to a large greased baking dish. Bake, uncovered, until the top browns, about 30 to 40 minutes.

This stuffing can be made two or three days ahead and warmed up again.

*Rosemary Garlic Olive Oil is no longer available. Use the Rosemary or plain Garlic.

Turkey Trio: one day, three turkeys

Okay, it isn't really three turkeys. But it is three turkey breasts. And I did make them all last night.

I was only going to make a Lemon Pepper, and a Spanish Rosemary one, but I threw in a surprise one too.

I only made turkey breasts, but these recipes can work for a whole turkey with no problem. Since the size of your turkey decides your cooking times, I am not going to give you that part of the recipe. The USDA recommends that you heat your meat to a minimum of 165 degrees. I really suggest you invest in a good meat thermometer.

12o'clock: Lemon Pepper, 4o'clock Cranberry Lemon, 9o'clock Rosemary Butter

Lemon Pepper Turkey

Rub Lemon Pepper blend all over the outside of your turkey. For the breast I used 1 tbsp. For a whole turkey, it should be less than 4 tbsp, unless you want to rub the inside too. You could lift the skin of the turkey and rub it underneath the skin instead. If you do that, I suggest that you brush the skin with butter.

Slice a lemon in half and slip it inside your bird. I placed some lemon slices on top as well before roasting. I liked the way that looked for presentation.

Cook to 165 degrees.


Cranberry Lemon Bonus Turkey

Gently pull the skin away from the breast of the turkey. Lift it, but don't rip it. Massage 1-2 tbsp Meyer Lemon Olive Oil under the skin. Slice one lemon in thick slices. Slide them under the skin. If you have any bits left over, you can put them inside the turkey.

Brush the top with Cranberry Balsamic.

The balsamic burns quickly, so tent a sheet of foil over the turkey, cover it, or rub the inside of the turkey with the Cranberry Balsamic and brush the outside 20 minutes before the end of your cooking time.

For even more cranberry, try putting some fresh cranberries under the skin as well as lemon slices, and inside the turkey as well.

Cook to 165 degrees.


Spanish Rosemary Butter Turkey

Let 1 stick of unsalted butter(8 tbsp) come to room temperature. Stir in 2 tsp Marsala Rosemary Sea Salt. Mix until well combined.

Pull the skin up from the turkey breast. Be careful not to rip. Rub the infused butter under the skin, saving about 1 tbsp. Rub the remaining tbsp on the outsides.

Cook to 165 degrees.

A plate full of choices

Cranberry Chutney

Fresh Cranberry Chutney

1 12oz bag fresh or frozen cranberries
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Chocolate Balsamic
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
1 1/2 tablespoons Meyer Lemon or Blood Orange Olive Oil
3 shallots, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp lemon zest

Cook shallots with the olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Stir once or twice, until softened. Stir in remaining ingredients. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the berries pop. About ten minutes. Taste, if it's still too tart, add in 1/4 cup more brown sugar.

Allow to cool and sprinkle with the lemon zest.

Olive Oil Biscuits

Sundried Tomato Parmesan and Garlic Biscuits

2 1/2 cups biscuit mix
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup SunDried Tomato, Parmesan and Garlic Olive Oil
1 egg
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese

Mix biscuit mix with milk in a large bowl. Stir in Olive Oil, egg and cheese. Stir until all evenly mixed.

If the mixture is too sticky, add flour by the teaspoonful until you get something you can handle without becoming dough covered. If the mixture is too dry, add Olive Oil by teaspoonful to the same point.

Roll the dough out lightly, 1/2 inch thick on an oiled cutting board. Cut with a biscuit cutter as many times as you can.

If you want to, you can brush the tops with Olive Oil and sprinkle more parmesan on top. I didn't, but I should have!

Bake on a lightly greased sheet at 425 degrees for 10-12 minutes. They should be golden brown.

This only made about ten, so you probably need to make a double or triple batch.

Balsamic Baked Potatoes

Balsamic Baked Potatoes
adapted from The Noble Pig

You can do this recipe with either russet or red skin potatoes. I'll give the amounts needed for each. I used red skins.

1 1/2 lbs Red skin potatoes, cubed or
          4 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1/4 cup Zesty Lemon Balsamic Vinegar
1 Lemon, seeded, cut into wedges
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Preheat the oven to 425degrees. Toss all the ingredients together in a large bowl. Spread out in a single layer in a roasting pan.

Bake until potatoes are tender and the liquid gets very thick. 30-40 minutes. Stir them halfway and watch them carefully. They go from amazing to burned quickly.

Harvest Salad with Pear Dressing

I am starting off the week easy with this one. I really like the way this turned out. The colors look fantastic together. You can whisk up the dressing early and serve it on the side. But you may want to make a double batch, just in case someone pours more than their share!

Harvest Salad with Pear Dressing

2 heads Romaine lettuce, cut into ribbons
1 bunch spinach, washed and roughly chopped
1/2 cup shredded red cabbage
1/4 cup pecans
1/3 cup golden raisins, or dried cranberries
2 asian pears, scrubbed and diced
2 carrots, thinly sliced into matchsticks
4-5 radishes, thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 ribs celery, sliced

Dressing:
1/4 cup Pear Balsamic
2 tbsp dijon mustard
1/4 cup Koroneiki Olive Oil

Toss all the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Whisk the dressing together until it combines. Serve on the side or drizzled on top.

Thanksgiving Menu

Thanksgiving is a bit over a week away! It's time to get all the groceries your fridge can handle, because the crowds are going to be huge.

I am trying to make all these recipes this week so you can get a look at them. I hope you like them as much as I have enjoyed writing them.

If you have any requests, please let me know!


Thanksgiving Menu

Olive Oil Biscuits with Sun dried Tomato, Parmesan and Garlic Olive Oil

Cinnamon Pear Roasted Brussels Sprouts Please refer to the linked recipe, I made these a few weeks ago.

Harvest Salad, with Pear Dressing

Balsamic Baked Potatoes, I plan to use the Zesty Lemon

White Honey Ginger Sweet Potato Casserole

Cranberry Chutney, with chocolate

Rosemary Garlic Stuffing with Apples

Marsala Rosemary Turkey, one of our salts

Lemon Pepper Turkey, a spiceBlend

and

Pumpkin pie with Vanilla Crust

Lasagna in a pan

My husband is a big fan of Italian food. His favorite thing is Lasagna. He gets it when we go out, he gets the frozen kind for at home and if a friend mentions they are making it, he tries very hard to get himself an invite to dinner.

I am not as much a fan. Sure it's good to eat, but if I go out, I'm getting something else. I made this first with other noodles and it's just not as good. The Lasagnace noodles we have in the store are just the best.

Lasagna in a Pan

1 pkg Lasagnace Noodles
16 oz pasta sauce
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 onion, diced
1lb ground beef, or turkey (optional)
2 tbsp Garlic Olive Oil, divided (plus additional for the ground meat)
1 tbsp Italian Table Blend

Cook your pasta and drain. Return to a large pan and toss with 1tbsp Garlic Olive Oil to prevent it from sticking.

Heat 1 tbsp of Olive Oil to medium heat. Saute the onion 4-5 minutes. Add the spices and stir to mix them into the oil well.

If you are using meat, you can add it to that pan and brown it over medium heat with one tbsp Garlic Olive Oil if needed. Cook for 8-10 minutes, until it is no longer pink inside.

Reduce the heat in your pan and add the cheeses and sauce and stir until combined. Let simmer 5 minutes, or until the cheeses are well melted.

Slowly add the sauce to the noodles and toss together.

You just made Lasagna!

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Sauce and Pasta

Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Sauce with Pasta

1 tbsp Italian Herb Olive Oil
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
1/2 cup jarred roasted red peppers, coarsely chopped
1 28oz can plum tomatoes
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup basil leaves, torn into pieces or
       2 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp Traditional Balsamic
1 pkg twisty pasta, I used our Maestri Pastai Torchietti

Cook the pasta and set aside. Keep warm.

Heat the Olive Oil in a large pan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes, sun-dried tomatoes and roasted peppers and cook 1 minute.

Crush in the the canned tomatoes and the sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the tempurature to medium and let simmer about 10minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the herbs.

Let cool slightly. Pour into your blender or food processor(leave your vent open!) and pulse until mostly smooth. If you have an immersion blender, that would be even better.

Stir in the balsamic vinegar and serve!

Red White and Blue Tart

Here is your special dessert!

Red, White and Blue Tart

1 prepared pie crust
1 apple, peeled and sliced thinly
1/2 cup raspberries
1/2 cup blueberries
1 tbsp Blueberry Balsamic
3 tbsp apple cider

Icing:

2 tbsp butter, melted
1 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
4 tbsp apple cider

Preheat the oven to 400degrees. Spread the pie crust over a lightly greased baking sheet.

In a large sauce pan, over medium heat, place the apple and the berries. Add the Blueberry balsamic and the apple cider. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Spoon filling gently onto the pie crust. Fold the crust edges over the filling.

Bake for about 20 minutes. Crust should be golden brown and filling should be bubbly. Cool for about 15 minutes before icing.


Stir together melted butter, confectioners sugar and the apple cider in a medium bowl. Mix until smooth and drizzle over the cake. Serve warm.

Happy Election Day!

Happy Election Day everyone!

Later tonight I'll be posting a recipe for a special dessert! Stay tuned and have a great day!

Vanilla Pear Coffee Cake

This is all that is left of the Vanilla Pear Coffee Cake I made on Wednesday. I had such success with the Peach Cupcakes, I decided to replace the eggs in this one with some of our new jams. I chose the pear. It sounded very coffee-cake.

I had some friends come by who had no power. They got to take warm showers and have dinner with us. We opted for a simple spaghetti plate with veggies and I made this for dessert. They liked it, I hope you do too!


Vanilla Pear Coffee Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat four
1/2 cup Vanilla Olive Oil
1/4 cup chopped nuts (or nut meal*)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup Pear Jam(available in store only)
1/4 cup sugar

Crumb Topping:
1/2 cup brown Sugar
1/4 cup nut meal* or all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Vanilla Olive Oil
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
sprinkle of ground nutmeg

Heat your oven to 375degrees. Grease a 9inch round or a 9inch square pan and set it aside.

Combine the flour, nut meal*, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Add in the eggs, Vanilla Olive Oil and jam. Beat until well blended. Stir in nuts, if using.

Pour into prepared pan.

Combine dry topping ingredients in a bowl. Slowly stir the Olive Oil in until it reaches a wet crumb stage. Sprinkle cake with crumb topping. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

*Nut meal. I mentioned this a couple days ago with the Apple Cake Bars. It's finely ground nuts. I used some Almond meal for this cake and Walnut meal for the Apple Cake. If you don't want to use it or can't find it in time to make the recipe, never fear! It is easy to do without it. Just sub chopped nuts. But you can get nut meal by whizzing chopped nuts around in a food processor for a bit, or get them from Nuts.com

Jam available in-store or by phone only. If you don't have it, you can use any jam you do have. Or applesauce. (but then it won't be a Pear coffee cake)

Sandy

Hello everyone!

We finally have our power back in the store and the internet at home and I can start updating you on tasty recipes again.

For those of you who are still struggling with storm related problems, our thoughts are with you. We wish everyone the best.

We will resume business in about 5 minutes, regular hours today, 11-7ish. New blog posts will start tomorrow.

Be well.