Thanksgiving Leftover Cooking: Cranberry-Orange Muffins

This recipe is from my great-grandmother. Great-grandmother recipes need no introduction because they are always good. My favorite thing about these muffins, aside from the taste, is that the batter is such a pretty pink!

• 2 cups flour (gluten free flour should work too!)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 - 3 cups leftover cranberry sauce (puréed) or raw relish. If you have no cranberry sauce or relish, finely chop 4-6 oz cranberries and add 1/2 a cup sugar.
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• one large egg
• 1/3 cup sugar (optional, muffins will be nice and tart without it)
• orange juice as needed to moisten batter

1) Preheat oven to 350
2) Purée cranberry sauce (if not using a relish)

3) Mix together ingredients, no particular order necessary.
4) Spoon into a greased muffin tin.
5) Bake for 18-20 minutes

Delicious with pumpkin cream cheese!

Apple, Cranberry and Pecan Stuffing

I have never been a huge fan of stuffing, but I really like this version. It's a great, comfortable combination of flavors that was popular with all ages last year.

·       6 T butter

·       1 large loaf of bread (gluten free if necessary), staled or cut into small pieces and baked until crisp

·       1 large onion

·       5 celery stalks

·       salt & pepper

·       ½ cup dry white wine

·       2 large, tart apples

·       1 cup dried cranberries

·       1 cup toasted pecan pieces

·       1 T thyme leaves

 

1)    Stale your bread if you haven’t already by baking small pieces in the oven on a cookie sheet at 350 for about 10 minutes. While you’re at it, toast your pecan pieces (it’s easiest to Cuisinart chop them).

2)    Cuisinart-chop your onion and sauté in the butter, salt and pepper until soft, about 10-12 minutes.

3)    Cuisinart-chop the celery and hand-cut the apples and add to the pan.

4)    Add wine and cook until the celery and apples are tender. Do not cook until dry – be sure there is still some liquid in the pan.

5)    Turn off heat and cover.

6)    Combine bread, cranberries, pecans and thyme. 

7) Mix onion mixture with bread mixture. 

8) If inserting into turkey, do so now and bake as directed by turkey recipe.

9) If baking separately, place in a covered dish and bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Then remove cover and bake until browned, probably 20 - 30 minutes more.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

It's that time of year!

 Carve your pumpkin and save the seeds.

Separate the seeds from the pulp. This can be done easily with a strainer, or by soaking the seeds for about 10 minutes in warm water.

Spread out on cookie sheet and let dry overnight.


Sprinkle with garlic salt and bake for an hour at 350. Easy! Tasty and a great source of fiber. My preschool students love these!

Fruit-Stuffed Pork Loin with Apple Cider Sauce

Okay, this recipe is seriously amazing. Can I say that again? AMAZING. Even though it looks really fancy, a beginning cook could make it and pass for an advanced cook. You know why? Because the recipe is, again, AMAZING. It's also good for any time of year. Fruity enough for summer, savory enough for winter. Amazing.

Thanks to my friend (and employer) Julie for passing this on to me.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma.

Ingredients:

• 1 boneless pork loin, 2 1/2 lb. 
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped apple
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots. If you have none, dried apple works too.
• 1/4 cup raisins, cranberries or both
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme -- go light with this!
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 cups apple juice
• Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves
  
• 2 tsp. cornstarch 
• A few feet of kitchen string (cotton yarn would work, but don't use polyester!)

Directions:

1) Make your apple juice into apple cider by adding a few dashes of cinnamon, nutmeg and ground cloves. You can use whole cloves too, if you strain them out after sitting for a while. Stir and let sit while you prepare the stuffing.

2) Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut 4 pieces of kitchen string, each about 14 inches long. 

3) Warm the olive oil in a large fry pan over medium-low heat. Add the apple and onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the dried apricots, raisins and thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Add the apple cider and boil, stirring occasionally, until the cider is absorbed by the stuffing, about 5 minutes.

4) Cut the pork loin like a hot dog bun, just deep enough so that the loin opens up to lie flat like a book. Some pork loins come already sliced completely in half, and it's workable. Just pretend it's still attached by a hinge and try to keep the stuffing from going everywhere.

 

5) Place the strings evenly underneath the pork loin. (Two loins shown below.)

 

6) Spoon the stuffing evenly onto the meat. Close up the loin tightly using the strings. Push in stuffing where you can. Sprinkle the surface LIGHTLY with the thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Place the loin in a baking pan and add 1/2 cup of the cider to the pan.

 

7) Roast the loin for 30 minutes. Baste with the pan juices and add a cup of cider to the pan. 

8) Roast for another 15 minutes before basting again. Check temperature of meat. Continue roasting, basting every 15 minutes until the internal temperature reaches150°F. That will take between 20 and 45 minutes AFTER the initial basting (when you added the extra cider.)

9) Transfer the loin to a cutting board and cover loosely with aluminum foil. 

 

10) To make gravy: Scrape the pan bottom to dislodge any remaining bits, then pour the pan juices into a measuring pitcher and add additional cider as needed to measure 1 1/2 cups total. In a small saucepan, combine 1/4 cup of the pan juices and the cornstarch, and stir until the cornstarch is dissolved. Then add the remaining pan juices. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook, stirring, until the sauce is slightly thickened. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Cut the loin into slices and serve the gravy on the side.

Serves 6 - 8.

 

Almond Chai Snowball Cookies

Yummy, easy, and gluten-free! You might have to search a little to find cardamom, but it is worth it. It is fragrant and delicious. Recipe originally found here.

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 3/4 teaspoon allspice
• 3/4 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all purpose flour (gluten free baking mix worked wonderfully)
• 1 cup finely chopped almonds

1) Preheat oven to 350.
2) Chop your almonds with a good knife or Cuisinart.
3) Combine butter, 1/3 cup powdered sugar, extracts, spices and salt. Blend with mixer for 5 minutes.
4) Add flour and almonds and mix until well incorporated.
5) Grease a cookie sheet and place tablespoon-sized rounded dough balls.
6) Bake for 20 minutes. Check. If cookies are golden and firm, they are done.
7) Let cookies cool for five minutes before rolling in remaining powdered sugar. Roll one time to cut down on the sugar and twice if you want to indulge.

Blueberry-Balsamic and Sweet Mustard Salmon

I'm not big on seafood, but I do love me some salmon. Salmon also has many nutritional benefits:

"Salmon is low in calories and saturated fat, yet high in protein, and a unique type of health-promoting fat, the omega-3 essential fatty acids. As their name implies, essential fatty acids are essential for human health but because they cannot be made by the body, they must be obtained from foods."

Here's one way to prepare this amazing food:

three medium salmon fillets
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
4 T brown sugar, divided - or you can omit 2 T brown sugar and use honey instead
1 T olive oil
3 T mustard

1) Make sure your fillets are thawed.
2) Combine the vinegar, blueberries, 2 T brown sugar and olive oil in a very small saucepan. Stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Allow sauce to cool.

3) Place fillets in a plastic bag. Pour in blueberry sauce.
4) Allow to marinate at least 4 hours and up to 4 days.
5) Cook in an oiled skillet over medium heat. Times vary depending on size of fillet.
6) While salmon is cooking, combine remaining brown sugar with mustard in a small prep bowl or cup.
7) When fillets are cooked, spread mustard glaze over top of fillet and serve immediately.

Kitchen Sink Chicken Noodle Soup

JT had a cold and I was just getting over one. We had no chicken noodle soup and no desire to go to the store. We were also mid-No Shop Challenge. Here is what I came up with:

6 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
3 T olive oil
2 leftover cooked chicken breasts
1 bag penne pasta (use rice for a gluten-free version and add 10 minutes to total time)
1 large potato
1/4 cup minced onion (more if you are more fond of onion than JT)
2 strips pre-cooked bacon
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 t garlic salt
small dash cumin (optional)
large dash Italian seasonings
pepper to taste (optional)
several springs of fresh parsley

Here are other things you can add if you have them:

carrots
celery
sweet potato
corn
pine nuts
rice (instead of or with noodles)

1) Bring chicken broth, water, olive oil, and penne to boil. Set a timer for 20 minutes.
2) Chop and add chicken, bacon, potato and onion first.
3) Reduce heat to medium when soup is bubbling exuberantly. Add remaining ingredients.
4) Cover and boil until timer goes off.
5) Serve with love.

Balsamic Honey Chicken

This one is tasty, with a hint of sweet. Try for yourself and see!

Balsamic Honey Chicken 

Adapted from Honoring Health

3 chicken breasts
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup honey
2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
1 tbsp minced onion
1/4 tsp salt
dash of ground ginger
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Defrost the chicken breasts (if necessary) by placing in a zip-lock bag and soaking the bag in warm water. This takes at least 45 minutes.
2. Combine the vinegar, honey, garlic, onion, salt, ginger, and a dash of pepper in a large zip-lock bag. Marinate for up to 8 hours, a minimum of 1 hour. 
3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Remove the chicken from the bag and throw away the leftover marinade. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper and add the oil to the hot pan. 
4. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and cook on each side for about 5 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. The outside will become a little black and charred. 
5. Remove the chicken from the pan and allow it to rest for a few minutes before serving.

Marbled Royal Icing

This beautiful icing technique looks difficult, but was easy enough for my Girl Scout Troop when I was nine. I know you can do it too!

The most important thing is to get your frosting the right consistency. Once you have that down, the creative part begins (also known as the part you can't mess up.)

Use any Royal Icing recipe. Here's the one I used:

2 lbs (1 large bag) powdered sugar

3 T meringue powder

7 T cold water

food coloring as desired

You will need:

cookies

a standing or handheld mixer

icing bags or ziplock bags

a butterknife

toothpicks

1) Combine frosting ingredients together and mix for about 5 minutes on medium. At this point, when you lift the beater up, a string of frosting will fall on top of the rest of the icing, remain at the surface momentarily, and then be reabsorbed.

2) Place 2/3 of white frosting in a decorating bag or ziplock.

3) Color remaining icing as desired. As you can see from the pictures below, you need more red food coloring than I had to make red. But pink is pretty too!

4) Prepare your decorating area.

5) Outline each shape with a line of white frosting. Fill it in.

6) Draw thin lines of colored frosting across the cookie.

7) Using a toothpick or something similar, drag lightly perpendicular to the colored frosting lines.

8) Repeat dragging toothpick alternating "up" and "down" strokes. You look like a frosting genius!

Holiday Applesauce

I was given a wonderful gift by one of my students recently: a bag of freshly-picked, home-grown organic apples! These little yellow apples we so tiny and sweet, I wanted to make a special winter treat. What a great gift, especially in light of the No-Shop Challenge!

Applesauce is delicious all year round, but the holiday twist in this recipe is the cinnamon and cranberry flavors. You could also try adding a few tablespoons of leftover cranberry sauce - yum!

This recipe's a Twenty-Something Home original - enjoy!

• 3 - 4 pounds of apples. Type generally doesn't matter.
• 1/4 cup sugar (less if your apples are sweet, more if your apples are tart or you like a very sweet applesauce)
• 1 T lemon or orange juice
• 2 T butter
• 2 cups cranberry juice (pre-sweetened, from concentrate -- or 1 cup pure juice with 1 cup water, plus more sugar)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• dash of nutmeg and ground cloves
• optional - several tablespoons of leftover cranberry sauce 

1) Wash your apples. There's no need to peel them - many of the nutrients apples provide are stored in the peel!
2) Cut your apples into medium slices.
3) Put all ingredients in a pot and cook over medium heat. Stir every five minutes for 30 minutes or until apples are very soft and mushy.

4) Use an immersion blender (if you have one) to chop up peels. If you don't have an immersion blender, use a regular blender. 

Enjoy!

Pomegranate Tart

This was my favorite Christmas dessert as a child, and I would ask for it on my birthday. Now that I cook for myself, I can have it whenever I want!

It looks complicated, but after you get into it, it really isn't. Enjoy!

Make the crust and white layer a day ahead - it needs plenty of time to chill.

One package graham crackers or gluten-free cookies (or pie crust)
3 T melted butter
2 cups nonfat yogurt (plain or vanilla - if using vanilla, use slightly less sugar and omit vanilla extract)
1/2 c sour cream
1 t grated orange peel
1/2 t grated lemon peel (if you have it - don't worry if you don't)
3 T lemon or lime juice, divided
1 t vanilla (if using plain yogurt)
1/2 c water
3 envelopes unflavored gelatin, divided
3/4 c sugar, divided
2 medium pomegranates or about a cup of pomegranate seeds
3 oz raspberry flavored gelatin (usually Jell-O packages are 6 oz)
2 cups raspberry-cranberry juice

1) Make your crust:
I just mashed up graham crackers and some melted butter, but you can use whatever you like. I once used gluten-free ginger cookies and it was delicious!

For graham-cracker version, use one package of graham crackers, minus a few crackers. For other versions, use whatever cookies desired. A basic pie crust should work too. Put in a plastic bag and mash with hands (this was always my job as a kid). Add 3 T melted butter and mix well. Press into the bottom of a spring-form cheesecake pan*. Bake at 300 for 20 - 25 minutes. 

* It is important to use a spring-form cheesecake pan, otherwise you will not be able to get the tart out of the pan without ruining it.

2) Mix the white layer. Combine yogurt, sour cream, orange peel, lemon peel and lemon/lime juice in a metal or glass bowl.

3) When the crust is done and cooled, prepare a large bowl of ice water in the sink.
4) Mix in a small saucepan: 1/2 cup sugar, 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin, and 2/3 cup water. Bring to boil on high, remove from heat.
5) Working quickly, add to yogurt mixture, whisking thoroughly.
6) Put yogurt bowl in bowl of ice water, stirring continuously. Stir until the mixture thickens slightly and is cool to the touch.

7) Pour into pie crust. Chill for at least 4 hours.
8) While it is chilling, break apart pomegranates in a bowl of water and extract seeds. This is way less messy than harvesting the seeds on the counter, and doesn't stain your hands. Refrigerate until ready to use.

 9) When white layer is done setting, prepare another large bowl of ice water.
10) Combine remaining packet of unflavored gelatin, raspberry gelatin, remaining tablespoon of lemon/lime juice and cran-raz juice in a small saucepan. Heat until just boiling.
11) Just as with white layer, place saucepan in the ice water and stir frequently until the mixture is cool but still liquid.
12) Add pomegranate seeds to cool liquid.
13) Pour pomegranate mixture onto white layer. Pomegranate seeds will naturally float to the top.
14) Chill for at least 4 hours.
15) Cut with a sharp, warm knife.

Wholesome Rice Pudding

This dish is a favorite with my students. Slightly oatmeal-ish, but smoother and creamier. Also, calling it "pudding" instead of "cereal" makes it more appealing to little tummies.

1 cup rice
3 cups water
2 T butter
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg
1/2 cup cream, half and half, or milk (nonfat milk will not have as creamy a result)
3 T raisins (optional)
2 T maple syrup or brown sugar
1 t vanilla


1) Put the rice, water, butter and spices in a pot over medium heat.

2) Simmer until the water has boiled down significantly. Be sure to stir often, as rice sometimes sticks and burns to the bottom of the pan.
3) Add the cream and raisins and simmer until thickened, stirring often.

4) Removed from heat and add maple syrup and vanilla.
5) Serve warm or cold.
Yum!

Green Beans with Caramelized Onions and Toasted Almonds

Yum! Scouring other blogs for the best recipes usually pays off. Adapted recipe courtesy of The Mother Huddle with original recipe from the Food Network.

Ingredients:

A handful of almonds
One tablespoon butter
2 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
Half an onion
Dash of salt
Half to one pound (approximately) green beans

1) Heat one tablespoon of butter and 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat.
2) Chop half an onion up and place in skillet, stirring every 2 - 3 minutes. (If you have a food processor, don't use it, the pieces will be too small for the final product.)

You want these to soften and then turn a lovely caramel color. This will take about 20 - 25 minutes total, but stir often. If the edges of the onions start to darken and get crisp, turn the heat down.
3) While the onions are cooking, chop up a handful of almonds.

4) In a large, dry skillet over medium heat, toast your almonds. This will take 3 - 5 minutes. Place in small bowl.

5) Put several cups of water in the skillet you just toasted your almonds in. Turn temperature up to high.
 6) Check on your onions. Be very careful not to cook them too quickly (heat too high). I burned them at first and had to start over.
7) Wash and remove stems from green beans.

8) Once the skillet of water is boiling, add a dash of salt and your green beans. Cover. Set timer for 8 minutes.

9) Continuously check and stir your onions.
10) Remove green beans from heat after 8 minutes. Drain.
11) When onions have reached a nice caramel color, add the almonds and green beans.

Stir for just a few seconds, then remove from heat. Serve immediately. Season with salt and pepper if you like, but I don't think it needs it.