Vegetarian Stuffing

 

We wanted to make a traditional Thanksgiving meal, but we were a little bit worried we were going to have way too much food for 8 people. We were thinking about skipping the stuffing since neither of us were huge stuffing fans. However, we decided to halve a recipe I found. The stuffing ended up being a hit and was the first thing we ran out of! Next time, I will probably use the original recipe (as shown below) that yields about 10 servings.

 

Ingredients

1 loaf of sliced white bread

3/4 cup butter or margarine

1 onion, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

1 to 2 cups chicken broth (I used vegetable broth to make it vegetarian)

 

Toast the slices of bread in a toaster oven. You want them to be pretty well toasted on both sides, but just be sure not to burn them. Once toasted, cut the bread into cubes.

 

In a stove pan (or a Dutch oven), melt the butter or margarine over medium heat.

 

 

Cook onion and celery until soft. Add the poultry seasoning, salt and pepper.

 

Stir in the bread cubes until evenly coated. Moisten with 1 cup of chicken broth, mix well.

 

 

Put the stuffing in a greased baking pan or casserole dish. Add more broth, depending on how moist you like your stuffing. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 to 40 minutes. I made the stuffing the morning of Thanksgiving and just reheated it right before we sat down to eat. I added some broth once I put it in the baking pan and then added a little bit more right before I put it back in the oven to reheat. The amount of broth you add really depends on your preference. 

 

Enjoy!

 

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

 

This recipe is a must try! I think going forward it will be my go-to pumpkin pie recipe.

 

Ingredients

1 sugar pumpkin

1 premade (unbaked) pie crust

2 eggs

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk

 

Note - this recipe make enough for two pumpkin pies or one large pumpkin pie. I had a deep dish 9 inch pan that I used but if I did not have deep dish I would have separated this out into two separate pies. If you do that just be sure to adjust the cooking time appropriately.

 

Cut the pumpkin in half and remove seeds. Place cut side down on a cookie sheet lined with lightly oiled aluminum foil. Bake at 325 degrees for about 30 to 45 minutes, until the flesh is tender when poked with a fork. Cool until just warm. Scrape the pumpkin flesh from the peel. Puree in a food process (alternatively, you can use a blender or mash by hand). Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees.

 

In a large bowl, slightly beat the eggs.

 

Add brown sugar, flour, salt, 2 cups of the pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and evaporated milk. Stir well after adding each ingredient. (I added some cinnamon, if you like cinnamon I recommend adding a teaspoon or so.)

 

Pour mixture into the unbaked pastry shell.

 

**Very important - place a strip of aluminum foil around the edge of the crust to prevent over browning. Michael helped me with this. We figure out the best way to do it by looking up a video. Click here for a cheesy video that explains a simple process.

 

The original recipe says to bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees, then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 40 to 50 minutes. I think a combination of our oven and the fact I was using a deep dish pie crush but this baby baked for about 3 hours (including the 10 minutes at 450 degrees). I would suggest giving yourself plenty of time in case the pie does take that long, but begin checking after about 40 or 50 minutes in the oven. The consistency of the pumpkin mixture will have a liquid consistency. Do not have fear - the pie will set eventually while baking. Try not to take the pie out until you can insert a toothpick and it comes out clean. After 3 hours I became a little bit impatient and worried about overbaking so I took it out before it had quite reached that point, but it still turned out great.

 

If you end up splitting the pumpkin mixture into two separate pies, you should take off the aluminum foil when you believe you have 10-20 minutes of baking time left. Since mine took forever I left the aluminum foil on the whole time and I think it really helped save the crust from becoming too hard to eat.

 

Cool and refrigerate pie (after at least an hour of cooling) overnight for best results.

 

(pictured above with chocolate pecan pie and bourbon whipped cream)

Try serving this with some bourbon whipped cream!

 

Enjoy!

 

Bourbon Whipped Cream

 

This year Michael and I hosted Thanksgiving for my family. We were a little bit worried about preparing all of the dishes in our tiny oven and having everything warm at the same time. We ended up eating a little bit later than we were planning but everything worked out really well. I am already looking forward to the next time we get to host!

 

We tried to make everything from scratch, but didn't go crazy about it. This whipped cream recipe was one that Michael was especially excited about. It was a nice excuse to have a good bottle of bourbon around the apartment. It turned out really well and I was surprised just how easy it was to make.

 

Original Recipe can be found here.

 

Ingredients

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons premium bourbon (we used Turkey)

 

In a medium bowl, whip cream with a hand mixer until soft mounds form.

 

 

Gradually add sugar, whipping until cream forms stiff peaks (see Michael's finger above pointing to the stiff peaks).

 

Using a spatula, gently fold in the bourbon. Chill until ready to serve.

 

Enjoy!

 

Black Bread

 

Michael's brother bought Michael the Game of Throne cookbook for his birthday. (Thanks Adam!) If you are into Game of Thrones and you like to cook it is a must-have. After going through every recipe in the book we decided the black bread would be the first recipe we should try. It's a delicious bread that can be eaten with almost anything (we used it for sandwiches, cheeses, bruschetta, etc.), but would be amazing with a stew.

 

Ingredients

2 1/4 teaspoons dry yeast (1 packet)

One 12-ounce bottle dark beer such as a stout or porter, at room temperature

3 tablespoons honey (the original recipe calls for 2 tablespoons but we like it a little bit less bitter)

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 egg, beaten

4 to 5 cups mixed flour (we used 2 cups of rye and 2 1/2 cups of TJ's whole wheat/white flour blend)

additional flour for working (once again we used TJ's flour)

 

In a small bowl, add the yeast and honey to the bear and allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes until it becomes foamy. Add the salt and beaten egg to the wet ingredients, then begin adding in the mixed flour, one cup at a time.

 

Once the dough forms into a cohesive mass, flour your work surface and turn the dough out for kneading. Need the dough for about 5 minutes until it bounces back when poked.

 

Cover with a clean dish towel and let it rise for at least 1 hour in a warm spot. I usually turn the oven on warm for a few minutes, turn it off and then put the dough in to rise.

 

Next, punch down the dough, put the towel back on and let it rise again for at least 2 more hours in a warm area.

 

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

 

 

Form the dough into two loaves and dust them lightly with flour. If you want you can use a knife to slash the tops in a decorative pattern.

 

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned, then let it stand for at least 15 minutes before serving.

 

 

This picture shows the bread with goat cheese, pistachios and dates. I highly recommend trying this!

 

Enjoy!