November 30 Meal:Lovin' the Lamb Chops

Last night of November.  The remaining recipes were Kale and Cannellini Soup, Lamb Chops with Red Onion, Grape Tomatoes, and Feta, Pear Crostata with Figs and Honey, and Fresh Fennel Pan Gravy.  If you are keeping track, you know that I left out Fennel, Sausage, and Ricotta Stuffing, which was supposed to be made with the butterfly turkey and The Autumn Orchard cocktail.  The first I didn't make because we didn't want the stufifng with that turkey and the second because a lot of the different liquors are not available in the local ABC stores.

Kale and Cannellini Soup

This is an easy second-night soup.  The night before, I made the kale and cannellini beans for the bruschetta.  All I had to do was saute some carrot and celery, add beans and kale, tomatoes in juice, Parmesan cheese, garlic, and Italian seasoning.  After it simmers for a while puree half and mix it in.  This soup tasted great and was hearty enough with the beans. 

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx $4 for 4 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 20 minutes for prep and 50 minutes total.  It took me about 10 minutes for prep and 40 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, I love this soup.

Lamb Chops with Red Onion, Grape Tomatoes, and Feta

I'm actually starting to like lamb.  This was the first time I ever cooked lamb chops.  The lamb chops are marinated in a mixture of olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, and cumin.  Cook up the chops, saute the grape tomatoes, and top the chops with the tomatoes, red onion, and feta cheese.  I'm not a huge fan of sauteed tomatoes, which is opposite of most people who have issues with tomatoes.  I could eat fresh tomatoes every day, but cooked ones are less satisfying to me. 
Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $11.25 for 2 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and 1 hour total.  It took me about 35 minutes for prep/marinating and 45 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, I like this lamb chop recipe.

Pear Crostata with Figs and Honey
This is a fun recipe because it doesn't really matter how pretty you make it, it will end up looking rustic as intended.  The crust is rolled out and the fillingg mounded on top.  The filling is pears, dried figs, sugars, cornstarch, cardamom, and ground cloves.  I really liked the dried figs.  As long as you can keep yourself from being too much of a perfectionist with this dessert it is easy.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $9.25 for 8 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 1 hours for prep and 3:20 hours total.  It took me about 40 minutes for prep and 3 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, fun dessert.

Fresh Fennel Pan Gravy

In an effort to make all the recipes this month I went to great lengths to make this gravy.  Unfortunately, once I made it I completely forgot to eat some of our leftover frozen turkey with it!  I brought back the turkey carcass from the butterflied turkey to make the turkey stock and also the drippings from the pan.  The other ingredients are fennel, shallot, Pernod (an anise-flavored liquor), flour, and white wine.  It sounds really good, but I wouldn't know.

Yumminess: ?
Cost: Approx $3.75 for 1 cup
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 20 minutes for prep and total.
Was it worth it?: Not sure...

November 29 Meal: Almost the End of November

Back from Thanksgiving break with two days left in the month.  Time to cram eight recipes into two days!  This night I made Kale and Bean Bruschetta, Seared Asian Steak and Mushrooms on Mixed Greens with Ginger Dressing, Mushroom and Lentil Pot Pies with Gouda Biscuit Topping, and Rosemary Bread Stuffing with Speck, Fennel, and Lemon.

Kale and Bean Bruschetta
 The October issue also had a kale bruschetta.  This one has cannellini beans.  First, you start by making the Cannellini Beans with Kale, which has the obvious ingredients, plus onion, garlic, bay leaf, sage, lemon juice, salt, and crushed red pepper. The mixture is set on top of toasted bread that is rubbed with garlic.  Add a little Parmesan cheese and that's it.  I can't say I'm a huge fan of this recipe, but it's not bad.  It's just not very easy to eat kale of the bread.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $2.75 for 3 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 25 minutes for prep and total, once Kale and Cannellini Bean mixture is made.  It took me about 10 minutes.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but I won't make it again.

Seared Asian Steak and Mushrooms on Mixed Greens with Ginger Dressing

Another great salad recipe.  The dressing for this one was unique and really good: soy sauce, rice vinegar, vegetable oil, fresh gainer, chili-garlic sauce, and cilantro.  The steak is coated with oil, salt, pepper, and sesame seeds, then seared.  Cook up some mushrooms (for those who like them) and toss everything with the dressing.   Wonderfully Asian and refreshing, while still being filling.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $12.50 for 2 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 20 minutes.
Was it worth it?: Yes, another good new salad recipe.

Mushroom and Lentil Pot Pies with Gouda Biscuit Topping

There was no way we could eat this all in one night, so I made one little pot pie for lunch the next day.  It worked out really well.  The recipe calls for a 2-cup ramekin, but I used a small corning ware that had a lid.  The filling was made from lentils, dried porcini mushrooms and their re-hydration liquid, cremini mushrooms, onion, carrot, sage, thyme, garlic,flour, potatoes, soy sauce, and tomato paste.  I was certainly surprised by the soy sauce, but it just adds some saltiness, not really any Asian flare.  The topping is a mixture of flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, butter, buttermilk, and some Gouda on top.  It asks you to combine the topping ingredients in the food processor, but I was too lazy for that and it worked out alright just mixing by hand.  I love the food processor, but it's a pain in the butt to clean all the time.  Then, just bake the pie.  The taste was really good.  You wouldn't miss too much if you left out the mushrooms.  Maybe you could substitute the porcini liquid with beef broth?

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx $6.50 for 1 pot pie
Time: Bon Appetit said 1:15 hours for prep and 2:15 hours total.  It took me about 30 minutes of prep and 1:30 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a great make-ahead lunch and I'm sure it would be great fresh for dinner.

Rosemary Bread Stuffing with Speck, Fennel, and Lemon
 I cna't take any credit for this recipe since Shaun made it.  It was one of those nights that it really took all hands on deck.  The bread in this recipe is rosemary-olive bread.  When I went to Whole Foods I was so excited to buy it because I always drool over those loaves with olives and now I finally had a recipe to use it in!  Funny enough, they were all out.  I asked the baker if there were any left and told him I was sad and shared my sob story.  He just happened to have the cut-up bread in the back that was to be used for samples.  Perfect for a stuffing, and free!  The rest of the ingredients are butter, white wine, golden raisins, fennel seeds, fennel bulb, shallot, prosciutto, lemon peel, chicken broth, and egg.  Thanks to Shaun, it turned out very well.  It's a more traditional stuffing with a little flare from the olives in the bread and golden raisins.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $9.75 for 8 servings (with free bread)
Time: Bon Appetit said 1:10 hours for prep and 2:30 hours total.  It Shaun about 30 minutes of prep and 1:50 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a good stuffing recipe.

November 27 Meal: Potatoes, Sweet!

Time for some more potatoes.  This night we were at my in-law's house.  On the menu were steak roll-ups and kale, so I decided to make the Perfect Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Potato Pudding with Pecan and Gingersnap Topping, and some Honey-Chipotle Pecans to munch on.

Perfect Mashed Potatoes
These potatoes were delicious!  I usually make mashed potatoes with sour cream and maybe a little bit of milk.  This recipe uses Yukon Gold potatoes, garlic, whole milk, and butter.  The potatoes and garlic are boiled together.  The garlic gets soft enough to bled in with the potatoes.  Whole milk and butter do a great job of making these potatoes rich and creamy.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $5 for 8 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and 50 minutes total.  It took me about 10 minutes of prep and 30 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Definitely.  These are really good mashed potatoes!  Possibly perfect.

Sweet Potato Pudding with Pecan and Gingersnap Topping

Unlike most sweet potato casseroles, this one has a very light and airy texture.  Even the name "pudding" might be wrong for this dish.  When I think of pudding I think thick and creamy, but this was more fluffy.  First, bake the sweet potatoes.  Scoop out the flesh and mash with half and half, orange juice, orange marmalade, brown sugar, and butter, then pumpkin pie spice and egg yolks.  The next part is a little bit more challenging.  Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until peaks form.  Fold together the egg whites and the sweet potato mixture.  The topping made form gingersnaps, pecans, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and butter.  The topping adds a nice crunch to the airy texture of the potatoes.

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx $8 for 12 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 45 minutes for prep and 2:15 hourstotal.  It took me about 30 minutes of prep and 2 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a nice new way of eating sweet potatoes.

Honey-Chipotle Pecans

I'm pretty sure I did something wrong with this recipe.  Nowhere in the recipe does it say that you should be able to put all the pecans in a bowl, turn it upside down, and they stay there.  At least they tasted good.  Just bring honey, sugar, and ground chipotles to a boil, add pecans, and cook until the syrup gets dark.  Turn out onto foil and add kosher salt and aniseed.  Maybe I didn't let it cook long enough?

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $6 for 2 cups
Time: Bon Appetit did not provide a time estimate, but it took me about 10 minutes.
Was it worth it?: Yes, these are tasty nuts.  (Waiting for the "That's what she said" joke.)

November 23 Meal: Party with the Family

My mom had the great idea of inviting some family friends over the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and making a bunch of recipes from the November issue for heavy hors d'oeuvres.  We had a great time cooking the night before and the day of the party and all the food was a hit!  We made Warm Artichoke-Olive Dip, Date, Kumquat, and Ginger Chutney, Smoked Salmon Terrine with Dill and Capers, Pancetta Crisps with Goat Cheese and Figs , Butterflied Turkey, Apple-Cherry Tartlets, and White Chocolate Mousse with Pomegranite Granita.  Along with all this, my mom made some great warm marinated olives and bacon-wrapped apricots and I made the chocolate-covered dates with spiced nuts again.  I do not have cost estimates for these dishes because my mom did all the grocery shopping for the party.

Warm Artichoke-Olive Dip

This was a very easy appetizer to make.  Just mix thawed artichoke hearts, basil, Parmesan cheese, green-olive tapenade, and garlic-herb-cheese.  We made this the night before the party and then heated it in the oven for 30 minutes the night of.  Serve with toasted bread.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit did not provide a time estimate.  It took us about 15 minutes.
Was it worth it?: Yes, but it might be better with cream cheese.

Date, Kumquat, and Ginger Chutney

Kumquats are definitely a rare recipe ingredient.  My mom looked a few places and finally asked the produce manager at Publix, who said they would be in the next day.  These sour little fruits made for a very tasty chutney.  Orange juice, shallot, sugar, crystallized ginger, white wine vinegar, orange peel, crushed red pepper, ground clove, and salt are combined in a saucepan and simmered for a few minutes.  Add the dates and kumquats and simmer for another minute.  When everything is done cooking, add cilantro.  We found out that it was tasty on crackers with cheese.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes of prep and 2:30 hours total, including chilling.  It took us about 20 minutes of prep and 2 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this was a unique appetizer.

Smoked Salmon Terrine with Dill and Capers

Smoked salmon is not one of my favorite things.  I felt like I was making sausage when I made this recipe because it wasn't pretty.  Mix chopped smoked salmon with cream cheese, capers, dill, red onion, and lemon juice.  The hardest part was mixing all the cream  cheese with the other ingredients, so let it sit to get to room temperature for a while.  Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap and layer the cream cheese mixture with slices of smoked salmon, then refrigerate to set.  It tasted good, but I couldn't quite get over the smoked salmon.  The recipe calls for enough to have 24 servings, but I think it's more like 48!

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit did not provide a time estimate.  It took us about 20 minutes.
Was it worth it?: Yes, it was good, but I wouldn't make it again.

Pancetta Crisps with Goat Cheese and Figs

This was a definite crowd pleaser.  It was really easy to make and looks really impressive.  Aside form the pancetta, which is baked in the oven, there isn't any cooking involved.  The crispy pancetta serves as the base for an arugula leaf, goat cheese, fig jam, and half a fresh fig.  Not an expected combination, but very good!

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit did not provide a time estimate.  It took us about 25 minutes.
Was it worth it?: Yes, very good!

Butterflied Turkey

I'd never heard of a butterflied turkey before.  I'd recommend asking the butcher to do the dirty work, but in this case my dad did it.  We found a YouTube video to show us how to do it.  You have to cut out the spine with strong scissors and a butcher's cleaver.  Once the spine is out you have to break the breast bone so the bird can lay flat.

The turkey is rubbed with a mixture of fennel seeds, fresh rosemary, salt, pepper, and olive oil.  The roasting only took about 2 hours.  It's a lot shorter with the turkey butterflied.  Something to keep in mind for Thanksgiving emergencies in the future.  The meat was very tasty and we put it on little sandwiches with cranberry sauce.

 Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit said 1 hour of prep and 3:30 hours total, but that includes the stuffing, which we did not make.  It took us about 15 minutes of prep and 2:15 total.

Was it worth it?: Yes, this was a very good turkey.

Apple-Cherry Tartlets

These little tartlets are quite tasty and can almost act as a super-sweet breakfast.  The crust is made from phyllo dough layers with butter and brown sugar.  We made the topping the night before and let it chill.  It was made of Pink Lady apples, dried tart cherries, brown sugar, orange juice, butter, lemon and orange peel, cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, cloves, salt and brandy. 

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit said 2 hours of prep and 3:40 hours total.  It took us about 1 hour of prep and 1:40 hours total, including cooling time.

Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a great dessert.  Not too sweet.

White Chocolate Mousse with Pomegranate Granita
 This was a somewhat strange dessert.  The pomegranate was very strong.  it was good to have the balance of the light and sweet mousse, but the pomegranate still seemed to overpower it.  First, the pomegranate sauce is made from pure pomegranate juice.  We had to make it twice becausee the first batch burned.  The mousse is made from white chocolate (we used Ghirardeli), salt, whipping cream, vanilla bean, and creme fraiche.  The granita is just pomegranate juice and sugar frozen.  We made all of these the night before to let them chill.  We served everything in one bowl.  Unfortunately, the granita melted pretty quickly 

Yumminess: 6 out of 10
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes of prep and 8:30 hours total.  It took us about that amount of time.
Was it worth it?: No, this dessert was a little too strong for my taste.

November 20 Meal: What goes best with venison?

We have a friend in Chapel Hill that does a great job of eating local.  In the past couple months he has hunted several deer... with a bow and arrow!  He invited a bunch of us over one night for a feast of venison.  It was really good!  He made venison lasagna, burgers, and a fritata.  We brought along a Golden Brown Butter and Pecan Praline Tart.  Earlier in the day I also made Cranberry-Orange Chutney with Cumin, Fennel, and Mustard Seeds.

Golden Brown Butter and Pecan Praline Tart
This is definitely a comfort food dessert.  Butter, butter, and more butter, plus a little whipping cream.  The crust is butter, flour, sugar, and salt.  The filling is Egg, golden brown sugar, golden syrup, whipping cream, salt, and pecans.  However, I forgot to get golden syrup, so I improvised with corn syrup and honey.  I also forgot the whipping cream, so I used half and half.  This is a good time to mention that I hadn't planned on making this tart originally.  It was a good exercise in making it work.  The outcome was a sweet and buttery tart.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $5.50 for 12 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 35 minutes for prep and 3:50 hours total.  It took me about 20 minutes for prep and 2:30 total, including cooling.
Was it worth it?: Yes!  This was a very tasty dessert and pretty cheap.

Cranberry-Orange Chutney with Cumin, Fennel, and Mustard Seeds
Another cranberry recipe... it's like they never end.  This one starts with some sugar and red wine vinegar on the stove.  Next, saute some cumin, fennel, mustard seeds, onion, ginger, and serrano chile.  Add the vinegar mixture, water, cranberries, orange peel, and salt.  The outcome is good.  The spices add an interesting savory flavor to the cranberries.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $4 for 3/4 cups
Time: Bon Appetit said 50 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 30 minutes for prep and total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, it is an interesting way to prepare cranberries.

November 19 Meal: Turkey Dinner Take 2

There's certainly no way we could make it out of November without our fair share of turkey. The Friday night after I got back from a business trip it was time for a mini Thanksgiving menu: Masa Cornbread Stuffing with Chiles, Maple-Braised Butternut Squash with Fresh Thyme, Roast Turkey Breast with Potatoes, Green Beans, and Mustard Pan Sauce, Vanilla-Spiced Caramel and Pear Tart, and an Italian Manhattan, for good measure.  It actually wasn't as crazy as it sounds, but it was a lot of food!

Masa Cornbread Stuffing with Chiles

This was my favorite stuffing of the whole month.  The cornbread and chiles provided a lot of great flavor.  To make the cornbread, you use masa, which is what you use to make corn tortillas.  You can get a huge bag of masa foronly $2.50 in the Mexican section of your local grocery store. For the cornbread I only used a lit bit of the bag, so looks like I'll be trying my hand at homemade corn tortillas in the future.  The rest of the ingredients for the cornbread (which you have to make first before the stuffing recipe) were vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs, cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. 

When you finally have the cornbread ready just chop it in chunks and mix with suateed onions and garlic, chiles (Anaheim, jalapeno, and poblano),  spices, cilantro, Monterey Jack cheese, egg, and chicken broth.  Bake for an hour.  The outcome is perfectly spicy and gooey with the cheese.  If you like cornbread and chiles, this is a recipe for you.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $6 for 4 servings
Time: Cornbread - Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and 1:45 hours total.  It took me about 10 minutes of prep and 45 minutes total.  Stuffing - Bon Appetit said 1 hour for prep and 2 hours total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep and about 1:15 total.
Was it worth it?: Definitely.  This is a good side, even without a Thanksgiving meal.

Maple-Braised Butternut Squash with Fresh Thyme

I just can't get into butternut squash.  This was a decent recipe for the vegetable, but I just think it's not one that I'm ever going to love.  Shaun liked it, though.  Just cut up the squash into small chunks and saute with butter.  Add shicken broth, maple syrup, fresh thyme, salt, and pepper and cook for 10 minutes.  Once the squash is done cook the liquid a little loner to thicken up.  That's it.

Yumminess: 5 out of 10 (because I don't care for butternut squash)
Cost: Approx $3.75 for 3 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 35 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 10 minutes of prep 25 minutes total. 
Was it worth it?: Good try, but I won't make it again.

Roast Turkey Breast with Potatoes, Green Beans, and Mustard Pan Sauce

This was a nice little Thanksgiving meal.  Everything gets cookes at once and together.  The turkey breasts are rubbed with a mixture of honey mustard, fresh tarragone, and olive oil.  They are cooked for about 45 minutes, then the mixture of potatoes and leeks is added to the turkey pan to cook longer.  Then, the green beans are tossed with olive oil and tarragon and roasted on a seperate pan from the turkey and potatoes.  Everything comes out warm all at once. 

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $18.50 for 6 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 25 minutes for prep and 2 hours total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep 1:30 hours total because the turkey cooked faster than the magazine said. 
Was it worth it?: Yes, this was an easy meal.

Vanilla-Spiced Caramel and Pear Tart

It was nice to have an easy pie crust for a change.  This one was just puff pastry (half of a 17.3 oz. package).  The filling is Anjou pears, which are cooked in butter, sugar, cinnamon stick, star anise, whole cloves, and vanilla bean.  The half-pears are so pretty as the carmellize in this mixture.  The rest of the fillings is similar to the ingredients above (minus the pears), as well as flour and egg.  The outcome is similar to a breakfast pastry.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10

Cost: Approx $10 for 10 servings

Time: Bon Appetit said 1:20 hours for prep and 2:50 hours total.  It took me about 30 minutes of prep 2 hours total, including cooling. 

Was it worth it?: Yes, this was a good pear dessert.

Italian Manhattan

This cocktail missed the boat. It tasted like cough syrup.  The ingredients were bourbon, Amareto, orange blossom honey, lemon juice, and thyme sprigs.  The Amareto was supposed to be amaro liquer, which was not available in the ABC stores in NC.  One of the challenges of cooking in the Bible belt is that specialty liquors are not readily available.  In order to get it I would have had to buy an entire case, special ordered from ABC.  No thanks.  I'm not really sure how much this changed the intended flavor.  We added a little extra lemon juice, which cut down on the cough syrup flavor.

Yumminess: 4 out of 10
Cost: Approx $4 for 2 drinks
Time: No times reported in Bon Appetit.  It only took a few minutes to mix the drinks. 
Was it worth it?: No, this was not a good cocktail.

November 14 Meal: Potluck and More Sides

Time for a church potluck, which meant a chance for me to cook one of the four stuffing recipes for the month.  This one was Wild Rice Stuffing with Pine Nuts.  Later that day I cooked more sides: Roasted New Potatoes with Red Onion, Garlic, and Pancetta, Rustic Herb Stuffing, and Green Beans with toasted Walnuts and Dried-Cherry Vinaigrette.

Wild Rice Stuffing with Pine NutsThis was a good rice recipe, but maybe my definition of "stuffing" is too narrow for this to be included.  First, saute ground cumin, chopped onion, and garlic, then add tomato paste, fresh thyme, ground black pepper, salt, and dried mint.  Recently, I've been drying the mint in my yard, which grows crazy on the side of the house, by baking it for a couple minutes in the toaster oven.  Next, add the wild rice and broth.  The wild rice cooks for about 40 minutes.  I had to add at least an extra 3/4 cup of broth when I checked on the rice because the broth had cooked off, but the rice was not close to tender.  Then, add the white rice in.  I had to add more broth in at the time since the pan was dry.  I'm not sure why the broth measurements seemed so off, but my rice turned out fine even with this extra liquid.  When the rice is done add in Fresh lemon juice, fresh Italian parsley, and toasted pine nuts.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $7.75 for 6 large servings or 10 smaller servings
Time: Bon appetit said 40 minutes for prep and 1:45 hours total.  It took me about 15 minutes for prep and 1:20 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, it was a good rice recipe.

Roasted New Potatoes with Red Onion, Garlic, and PancettaYou really can't go wrong with roasted potatoes.  This is a good variation.  First, saute the pancetta.  A recipe that starts with some sort of pig is sure to be good.  Mix potatoes with oil, salt, and pepper and roast for 20 minutes.  Add red onions and garlic to the pan and roast a little longer.  At the end, add the pancetta back in and some fresh Italian parsley.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $4.50 for 3 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 25 minutes for prep and 1:35 hours total.  It took me about 10 minutes for prep and 1:20 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, these are good roasted potatoes.

Rustic Herb Stuffing

This stuffing has the nice addition of swiss chard.  It is one of the two more traditional stuffings from this issue.  The French bread is baked first, then the vegetable mixture of swiss chard, green onions, herbs, and celery is added in.  Everything is held together with an egg and broth mixture and some Parmesan cheese.  Bake for about 30 minutes and you're done. 

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $8.25 for 4 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 45 minutes for prep and 1:45 hours total.  It took me about 30 minutes for prep and 1:30 hours total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a good traditional stuffing.

Green Beans with Toasted Walnuts and Dried-Cherry Vinaigrette

This was a unique way to eat green beans, but not one of my favorites.  They are served cool, so that explains part of it.  The flavor was good, though.  The dressing is made from olive oil, shallot, red wine vinegar, fresh mint, kosher salt, sugar, and black pepper.  The green beans are cooked for just a few minutes and then plunged in an ice water bath.  They are a lot crispier this way, which can be a good thing, depending on your perspective.  Then, just toss the beans with the dressing, dried cherries, and walnuts.  Very easy.

Yumminess: 6 out of 10
Cost: Approx $5.50 for 4 servings
Time: Bon Appetit said 20 minutes for prep and 20 minutes total.  It took me about the same amount of time.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but I won't make it again.

November 12 Meal: Random Recipes

The day before our big pre-Thanksgiving turkey trial (written earlier this month) I decided to just make a couple random easy recipes.  We actually went out for Mexican for dinner, one our rare meals out during this challenge.  I made Oatmeal Muffins, Cranberry Salsa with Cilantro, and Chocolate-Dipped Dates Stuffed with Spiced Nuts.

Oatmeal MuffinsThis recipe comes from a restaurant in LA called Tazzaria.  The muffins have a lot of different grains and came out super moist.  Earlier in the month we visited Shaun's grandparents and they took us to an old mill that still grinds grain.  I bought the natural oat bran and wheat germ for this recipe while we were there.  The price was great and it was a huge bag.  I only needed 2 tablespoons of each for this recipe, so I may be making it a lot!  First, whisk the oats with wheat flour, pecans, dark brown sugar, sugar, oat bran, wheat germ, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.  Next, add buttermilk, canola oil, egg, vanilla, boiling water, and frozen blueberries (the remainder of our summer picking).  They only bake about 20 minutes.  Yum!

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $6 for 9 muffins
Time: Bon appetit said 20 minutes for prep and 3:50 hours total, including cooling.  It took me about the same amount of time.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this was a great breakfast muffin.

Cranberry Salsa with CilantroThis is a recipe I never would have thought of, nor though would be as good as it was.  First, heat pepitas (pumpkin seeds) in oil.  The recipe called for pumpkin seed oil, but I used walnut oil.  Add a little sea salt and set aside.  Thaw some frozen cranberries and chop in the food processor.  Add in green onions, cilantro, and serrano chiles.  I kept the seeds in the chiles for the added heat.  Stir together lime juice and sugar in a separate bowl, then add to the cranberry mixture.  When you are ready to eat, add the pepitas.  This was really great with plain tortilla chips.  We snacked on it throughout the day while I made the turkeys on Saturday and Shaun worked outside.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $3.50 for 3/4 c.
Time: Bon appetit said 20 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about the same amount of time.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a good new way to eat cranberries.

Chocolate-Dipped Dates Stuffed with Spiced NutsFor dessert I made this bite-sized chocolate treat.  Toss spiced almonds with honey, cinnamon, allspice, and orange zest.  Put two almonds inside each date.  Melt bittersweet chocolate (I use Ghirardeli) in the microwave.  Dip the dates half-way in the chocolate.  Dip another spiced nut in the chocolate and place on top of the date.  Finally, add a little orange zest to the whole thing.  Repeat with as many dates as you want.  The combination of the sweet and salty almonds, the bittersweet chocolate, and the orange zest was really good.  It's the perfect dessert for a cocktail party because they are easy to pick up and eat in two bites.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx $2.50 for 6.
Time: Bon appetit said 30 minutes for prep and 1 hour total.  It took me about 15 minutes for prep and 45 minutes total, including cooling time.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is an easy and unique dessert.

November 11 Meal: Making Moroccan

Some rare recipes don't even look that good in the pictures the magazine has.  That's when I get scared.  The Braised Chicken with Dates and Moroccan Spices fit into that description.  It just looked very brown.  It didn't turn out too bad, though.  I also made the Moroccan Carrot Salad (because that just makes sense) and Roasted Red Onions with Pomegranate, Orange, and Parsley Gremolata (because it seemed to fit best here). 

Braised Chicken with Dates and Moroccan SpicesI finally got to use the leftover pieces of chicken from my butchering experiment.  One day I bought 3 fresh chickens form the farmers market and the farmer instructed me to watch a YouTube video on how to cut it up.  It was a fun experiment and it is pretty economical.  We used the breasts pretty quickly, followed by the thighs, but it's those legs and wings that just kept sitting in the freezer.  This recipe calls for chicken breast, thighs, and legs, but I just used our legs and wings since that was enough.  First, sprinkle the chicken with salt, pepper, and flour and brown with olive oil.  Remove chicken and add shallots to saute.  Then, add cinnamon sticks, ginger, cumin, turmeric, and cayenne pepper.  Add chicken broth and lemon juice and simmer for a while.  Add the chicken back in and cook for 20 or so minutes until done.  To finish the dish off, add cilantro and sliced almonds.  Not too bad.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $10 for 3 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 1:15 hours for prep and 1:40 hours total.  It took me about 20 minutes of prep and 1:15 hours total.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but probably won't be on my list to make again.

Moroccan Carrot SaladThis is a really tasty and easy salad. Just imagine the dressing: cumin, ground ginger, cinnamon, coriander, cayenne pepper, allspice, ground clove, olive oil, lemon juice, and mint!  The salad part is just shredded carrots, baby carrots, and sweet onion.  All those spices really make this simple salad stand out.

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx $5.25 for 2 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 20 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep and total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is very good and unique.

Roasted Red Onions with Pomegranate, Orange, and Parsley GremolataI was kind of excited about this recipe, but it was just alright.  First, mix olive oil, pomegranate molasses (found out our local Mediterranean deli), red wine vinegar, fresh rosemary, kosher salt, and black pepper.  Add wedges of red onion and mix.  Roast the onions on foil for 55 minutes.  The gremolata, which is just a topping, is a mixture of pomegranate seeds, Italian parsley, and orange zest.  The taste wasn't bad, but it just didn't hit the spot that I thought it would.  It was interesting, at least.

Yumminess: 6 out of 10
Cost: Approx $4.50 for 2 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 40 minutes for prep and 1:35 hours total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep and 1:10 hours total.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but I won't make it again.

November 10 Meal: How to Like Burssels Sprouts

Another night of making sides.  This night included Sweet Potato Biscuits, Sauteed Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Smoked Ham and Toasted Pecans, and Potato Gratin with Mushrooms and Gruyere.  The only star of the night was the Brussels sprouts recipe, which I think would be a great way to introduce a picky kid (or any picky person) to the vegetable.

Sweet Potato BiscuitsI was really excited about this recipe, but something went wrong.  First, microwave a large sweet potato to get the flesh soft.  The potato and other ingredients (Gluten-free flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, butter, buttermilk, maple syrup, and toasted pecans) are added to the food processor.  Turn out the dough and sprinkle with flour.  Roll to a square and cut out the biscuits.  The only thing I can think that I didn't do correctly was adding too much flour to the dough in the rolling process.  The outcome was a very dry, flat biscuit.  Shaun and I ate one each and tossed the rest of the batch.  Any suggestions?

Yumminess: 3 out of 10
Cost: Approx.$6.25 for 16 biscuits
Time: Bon appetit said 20 minutes for prep and 1 hour total.  It took me about the same amount of time.
Was it worth it?: No, I would not make these again unless I figure out what went wrong.

Sauteed Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Smoked Ham and Toasted PecansThe fact that the Brussels sprouts are shredded may be the primary reason why this is a good recipe for those who don't care for this vegetable. Shaun and I are kind of impartial to them usually.  To "shred" them I thinly sliced them and then gave them a chop.  Saute some ham and garlic with butter and olive oil then add the Brussels sprouts and chicken broth.  They only need to cook for a few minutes.  When you are ready to serve just add the toasted pecans.  As yo can probably guess, the flavor is very rich and buttery.  Adding ham to any vegetable is never a bad idea, right?

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx $6 for 5 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 20 minutes for prep and 1 hour total.  It took me about the same amount of time.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a great way to eat Brussels sprouts.

Potato Gratin with Mushrooms and GruyereI always have mixed feelings about potato gratins.  On the one hand, you know it's going to be good... butter, cream, cheese, etc.  On the other hand, you know how bad it is for you.  It's one of those foods that's just better made by someone else so you can pretend you don't know how bad it is.  There isn't any real redeeming quality either.  It's not dessert, so the fat makes me feel a bit guilty.  I'm no nutritionist, but I don't think there's really any significant vegetable content to add nutrients.  But I guess if it's only every once in a while, that's OK. 

This gratin starts by sauteing leeks, mushrooms (OK, so there are a few extra vegetables in this one), and garlic in stages.  Thinly slice Yukon Gold potatoes and pat dry.  Heat whipping cream with salt and pepper and add potatoes. Simmer for a few minutes to make them tender. The recipe asks you to layer the potatoes with the leek and mushroom mixture, but I forgot and just placed the leeks on top and added the Gruyere.  I don't think it significantly changed the taste, except for making the leeks a little crunchy.  The flavor was good, but the one thing I'd change was the type of mushrooms I used.  The recipe called for shiitake and cremini, but I'd just stick with cremini next time.  The shiitakes were a little too rubbery for me.  Overall, it wasn't my favorite gratin recipe, but it might be nice to liven things up once in a while.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx $8.75 for 5 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 1 hour for prep and 2 hours total.  It took me about 25 minutes of prep and 1:15 total.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but I won't make it often.

November 9 Meal: The Best Apple Pie

This was an unexpectedly successful night.  I wasn't sure what to expect from Linguine with Tuna, Arugula, and Lemon and Radicchio and Arugula Salad with Dates, Hazelnuts, and Feta.  The one safe recipe was going to be Apple Pie with Oat Streusel, but even that turned out so much better than I thought it would.  The pasta and salad made for a very quick dinner with a lot of flavor and something out of the ordinary.

Linguine with Tuna, Arugula, and LemonThe main thing that didn't sound quite right about this recipe was canned tuna.  It's not often you find canned items on an ingredient list in Bon Appetit and tuna is probably one of the more rare of these products.  There are just a couple steps.  First, cook the linguine.  Second, while the pasta is cooking, saute garlic, dried crushed red pepper, and tuna.  Combine the tuna mixture with the pasta and add some lemon zest, lemon juice, and arugula to everything.  The arugula and lemon give the flavor a nice freshness.  I was scared the meal would be a little too fishy, but it was great.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $6.75 for 3 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 15 minutes for prep and 30 minutes total.  It took me about 5 minutes in prep and 20 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a very easy meal.

Radicchio and Arugula Salad with Dates, Hazelnuts, and FetaThis challenge has taught me that I should pay more attention to salad recipes.  I always skip over them because I like the salads I make and don't really think to try others.  I love this salad!  It's a good combo with the pasta above because both require arugula, so you can buy one big package to use for both.  The other components are easy to put together: chop some radicchio, cut up some dried dates, toast some hazelnuts, and crumble some feta.  The dressing is red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil.  I'd never thought to combine those two vinegars before, but it was very tasty.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $6.50 for 2 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 25 minutes for prep and 30 minutes total.  It took me about 15 minutes for prep and total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is going in the do-again pile.

Apple Pie with Oat StreuselThis may just be the perfect apple pie recipe.  I'll admit, I'm pretty proud of how it turned out.  The apples were stacked perfectly and compressed so that each slice came out clean, no apples falling all over.  The crust was just right, too.  First, the crust is the Pie Crust recipe in the same section, but when you roll it out you add some oats and roll with parchment paper over the crust disk.  It grinds the oats right into the crust.  The filling is made with Granny Smith apples, sugar, brown sugar, butter, flour, allspice, cinnamon, and salt.  The only challenging part of making the filling is peeling all those apples.  I usually peel the whole apple then use an apple corer-slicer, then slice the pieces in half again.  You can also slice the whole apple with the peel on and then peel the slices.  Last, the topping, which has flour brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, salt, allspice, butter, and oats.  When you pour the filling into the pie crust you may be concerned that it is too much.  It's mounded very high, so I just pressed down a bit to compact it.  Then just add the topping.  The oven does the magic of compressing everything a bit.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $9 for 8 servings
Time: Bon appetit said 25 minutes for prep and 30 minutes total.  It took me about 15 minutes for prep and total.
Was it worth it?: Definitely, this is the best apple pie I've made.  Even my office mates and Shaun agree.

November 8 Meal: Spiced Salmon

Salmon is good on its own, but the recipe in the November issue of Bon Appetit makes salmon somehow twice as good.  The spices and yogurt sauce really work well together.  Along with the Spice-Crusted Salmon with Ginger-Cilantro Yogurt Sauce, I made  Parsnip, Potato, and Turnip Puree, Iron-Skillet Succotash, and Blood Orange Champagne Cocktails.

Spice-Crusted Salmon with Ginger-Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

I used frozen salmon from Trader Joe's.  As I've mentioned before, they have really good prices on frozen fish and the quality is good.  The spice mixture that goes on the meat is fennel seed, coriander, salt, and pepper.  The fish is cooked for just a few minutes on each side.  The sauce is a great addition.  I didn't have plain yogurt like I thought I did, so I used sour cream.  Just add cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, fresh ginger, and garlic.  I even started scooping up the extra sauce with the puree and succotash.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $7.25 for 2 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about that long.
Was it worth it?: Yes, I'll put this on my list of regulars.

Parsnip, Potato, and Turnip Puree
This was a good mellow side for the salmon.  Sauteed onions, parsnips, potatoes, and turnips are cooked in chicken broth until soft.  The puree gets an added boost of richness with cream cheese and a kick of flavor with dill.  There's also a topping made form butter and panko breadcrumbs.  Everything is baked for 15 minutes.  This is another good alternative to regular mashed potatoes.

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $6.50 for 4 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 50 minutes for prep and 1:20 hours total.  It took me about 20 minutes of prep and 1:05 total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, it is different and cheap.

Iron-Skillet Succotash
Succotash is the best.  A bunch of chopped up vegetables sauteed together, usually featuring lima beans.  Lime beans have such a great texture, especially in combination with the other vegetables.  This one has corn (frozen from local corn, in our case), onion, zucchini, bell pepper (calls for red and orange, but I used red and green), and a bit of marjoram.  It's all sauteed together in stages and you have a great side dish.  The marjoram is key, such a great spice!

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $5 for 5 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 45 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep and 30 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, great side and cheap.

Blood Orange Champagne Cocktail

This is a really easy cocktail.  I got the champagne for only $6 a bottle at Trader Joe's.  The blood orange was from Whole Foods.  It is really dark red, so my cocktails came out a lot darker then the ones in the picture.  Maybe I used too much juice in them?  Along with the orange juice and champagne is a little bit of Cointreau or another orange liqueur.  I used orange Patron.  Overall, it's very easy and relatively inexpensive to make.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $11 for 4 servings.
Time: It only takes a minute to juice the orange.
Was it worth it?: Yes, it was easy and different.

November 5 "Meal": Berry Pie

We were going to head down to Shaun's grandparent's cabin in the mountains in Georgia.  As a thank you I decided to bake the Cranberry and Wild Blueberry Pie.  It was the first pie I'd ever made a lattice top on.  Therefore, I made the whole Pie Crust recipe, which makes two disks of crust.  Like most crusts, this one uses flour, salt, sugar, and equal parts butter and non-hydrogenated solid vegetable shortening.  The shortening gives it more flakiness.  The filling is to-die-for, with blueberries (frozen, which we picked back in July), cranberries (frozen), sugar, corn starch, cinnamon sticks, lemon juice, and lemon zest.  It all gets simmered together until the mixture thickens.  The recipe asks you to remove the cinnamon sticks before pouring the filling into the crust, but I was a bit preoccupied and left them in.  See the picture of Shaun's grandfather showing off his cinnamon "cigar" that he found in his pie.  Fortunately, I was able to excavate the other stick before anyone else got to it.

The lattice top turned out alright, but the crust was a bit dry, making it fall apart some as I tried to weave the pieces together.  In the end, the outcome was delicious.  This ranks as one of my new favorite pies.

Yumminess: 10 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $9 for 1 pie
Time: Bon Appetit said 1 hour for prep and 4 hours total (not including the crust).  It took me about 30 minutes of prep and 4 hours total (including the crust).
Was it worth it?: Yes, definitely!

November 4 Meal: On the Side

The November issue has lots of side item recipes, therefore we will be having a few nights of just sides.  This isn't Shaun's favorite way to eat dinner.  In his eyes, a meal isn't quite complete without meat, or at least a hearty veggie entree.  This night I made Sauerkraut with Gin and Caraway and Fennel Gratin with Pecorino and Lemon and we had a few leftovers from nights before.

Sauerkraut with Gin and Caraway
I know I've said recipes are simple before, but this one is about as easy as it gets.  Just use jarred sauerkraut and simmer with gin and caraway seeds for a while until the the liquid reduces.  At the end, add some butter.  I used half of what the recipe called for.  The finished product was a milder-tasting sauerkraut.  I like the regular stuff, so I wouldn't say it was necessary to use the gin, but if you need to cut the sour quality, this recipe is good.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $5.50 for 3 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 10 minutes for prep and 40 minutes total.  It took me about 2 minutes for prep and 22 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Not really.  It was good, but not necessary.

Fennel Gratin with Pecorino and Lemon

Fennel is a great vegetable.  I'm all about adding more fennel recipes to my repertoire.  This one was good, but I'm not sure if I made it correctly because it looks nothing like the picture in the magazine.  Don't you hate that?  Maybe if I walk through the steps again I can figure out where it went wrong... Saute onion and garlic, then fennel.  Next, add broth, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper.  I think so far, so good.  The topping is Panko breadcrumbs sauteed with butter with Pecorino, parsley, and lemon zest added at the end.  Everything goes in a glass baking dish and gets baked.  I feel like I did all that correctly.  My gratin turned out a lot less creamy than the one in the magazine looks.  It almost looks like they added cream to the fennel mixture.  It still tasted alright, but not as good as the picture made it look.

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $7.50 for 3 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 1 hour for prep and 1:30 hours total.  It took me about 20 minutes for prep and 55 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, I'll try it one more time to try to improve.

November 3 Meal: Odd Combinations

I never tried shrimp and grits until I moved to North Carolina.  It sounds like such a strange combination, but it's oh so good.  This recipe was for Shrimp and Grits with Tasso Cream Sauce.  I also made the Celery and Pear Bisque (another strange-sounding combination) and Chocolate-Caramel Sandwich Cookies (a very normal combination).

Shrimp and Grits with Tasso Cream Sauce

If you need some comfort food, this recipe should be in the running.  Saute raw, peeled shrimp in butter for a minute.  Then, saute peppers, andouille sausage, and garlic.  Later, add wine, cream, parsley, thyme, and the cooked shrimp.  Meanwhile, cook the grits.  Be careful not to overcook.  A little bit of butter and cream gives that all-important edge of unhealthiness necessary for comfort food.  Top with the shrimp mixture.  I'm glad I chose to use the sausage rather than the other option of ham.  It had a nice little hint of spice.

Yumminess: 9 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $10 for 3 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 45 minutes for prep and total.  It took me about 10 minutes of prep and 30 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, great comfort food.

Celery and Pear Bisque

This is another combination that doesn't sound right.  Celery and pear, really?  However, the pear adds just a little sweetness and celery is a great soup flavor.  Just saute a lot of celery, pears, leek tops (I've never had a use for these before!), bay leaves, and thyme.  Then, add broth and simmer for 20 minutes.Once everything softens you can puree in the food processor.  When it's served add a little diced pear and celery leaves.  Surprisingly good.

Yumminess: 8 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $7.50 for 4 servings.
Time: Bon Appetit said 30 minutes for prep and  50 minutes total.  It took me about 15 minutes of prep and 40 minutes total.
Was it worth it?: Yes, this is a good Fall soup. 

 Chocolate-Caramel Sandwich Cookies

Ugh, the dreaded caramel.  Caramel is my nemesis in this cooking challenge and I'm determined to master it in the next year.  There is no picture in the magazine, but I'm pretty sure the caramel isn't supposed to run out the sides of the cookie.  I had high hopes for this recipe.  The cookie part is great, just a plain chocolate cookie, soft with just a little bit of a crunch.  It gets rolled out and cut into 1.5-inch rounds.  The caramel is made with sugar, cream, honey, corn syrup, vanilla, and butter.  I think my problem was that I couldn't get it to the right temperature when it was cooking.  I usually burn it, so I went the opposite way this time.  After it's cooked it goes into a baking dish to solidify.  Unfortunately, this caramel never really solidified.  I was supposed to be able to use a 1-inch cookie cutter to cut it out, but all it did was ooze.  I just smeared some on and sandwiched the cookies together.  At least it tasted alright. 

Yumminess: 7 out of 10
Cost: Approx. $7.50 for 30 cookies.
Time: Bon Appetit said 1:20 hours for prep and 6 hours total.  It took me about an hour for prep and 5:30 hours total, including cooling time.
Was it worth it?: It was nice to try, but I'll attempt my caramel again elsewhere.