Gourmet Food on a Budget
Recipes and tips for foods you might want to serve for the Fall and Thanksgiving holiday celebrations, special occasions, or just because you want something a little fancy.
This Thanksgiving Guide is not only for that big holiday, it can be used for any celebration you are considering hosting. You are, after all, the best host. You can absolutely do this. Be sure and get my book, Talking Turkey, which will help you with planning and timing.
Blue Cheese Stuffed CeleryA few years ago, Saveur magazine featured a recipe for Blue Cheese Stuffed Celery from one of my favorite restaurants, Musso and Frank, in Hollywood, California. Musso and Frank originally opened in 1919 and has been in the same place on Hollywood Boulevard ever since. It has been a popular hang out for the entertainment industry since it opened. The history of the restaurant is fascinating. My mother would take me there for my birthday, and I loved it.
I found this recipe on the back of the Zulka brown sugar bag. The cake looked great on the package, I happened to have apples in the refrigerator, and I wanted to try something new.
The instructions on how to make the cake on the bag make no sense, therefore, I changed it to the traditional method of creaming the butter and then creaming the butter and sugar together. Okay, so you don’t know what creaming is? It’s very simple. Put room temperature butter into a large bowl, and then beat it with an electric beater until it is nice and smooth. If you don’t have room temperature butter, you can cut the butter up into small pieces and then cream it. The best way to beat is with a stand mixer, but a hand mixer will do just fine. Don’t try this with a whisk, it’s too difficult.
This is a very moist cake, and may take quite a while to bake. The original instructions said 40-55 minutes, mine was in over 80 minutes, your mileage may vary.
Cream Cheese Cranberry Stuffed Celery is a healthy and easy appetizer to make. It’s great as an after-school snack or something to do with all that leftover celery. A little sweet, a little savory, it’s a perfect appetizer for the holiday season.
It rained today, and it’s a bit chilly, the night before Halloween. Social media is talking about killer clowns coming out in my city, so I’m double-locking the doors, just to be on the safe side. It’s a perfect night for apple pie.
Someone gave me a can of apple pie filling and a package of frozen puff pastry. When I received the gift, I put both away, thinking I would use them for other things. But, today, I realized I could put them together and make a wonderful pie. There is no need for a pie pan, just a sheet pan, and some parchment paper to keep the pastry from sticking. Of course, you could use other fillings, cherry or blueberry would be great.
This is something that I really love, and when I don’t have leftover turkey, I have been known to go to the store and get the frozen one – you know which one I mean. But, this dish is really best fresh, made from the leftover turkey at your feast.
I have found other recipes that called for peas, no sherry, white wine, etc. Well, it’s just not the same thing! This is the Turkey Tetrazzini you have been looking for, that you remember, that you crave, the one with celery, mushrooms and sherry cream sauce. You can make a lot of this, put it into individual serving trays and freeze it for some night when you don’t want to cook, but you want something comforting.
In this article, you can learn how to roast a perfect turkey in a Nesco or other electric roaster oven. In addition, you can get tips about how and why to brine the turkey. Finally, use the handy chart showing how long to cook a turkey in a roaster oven, depending on size and stuffing.
As the Christmas Holiday rapidly approaches, it’s time to get into the kitchen and make some Christmas memories. I have been making fudge for Christmas presents for years, but this time, I wanted to do something a little different. Spane really likes Eggnog, and I do, too. We were invited to a potluck Christmas party at Entrepreneurs and Professions, and I decided to make Jambalaya, Hot Dogs with Bacon appetizers, and wow everyone with the Eggnog Fudge.
So, it’s just the two of us. We have a lot to be thankful for today. As a work-at-home Mom, I’ve been busy as a one-armed paper-hanger. That’s great for my pocketbook, but for spending time with my wonderful son, not so good. Today, we’re going to cook together, play the Monopoly game we started last night (he’s winning), watch a movie, enjoy our meal, and just enjoy our time together.
When I went to the market looking for our feast, I had a bit of a problem. Since it is just going to be the two of us, I couldn’t see the sense in purchasing a whole turkey, it’s just too much food. All I’m concerned with is The Sandwich the next day. I don’t want to have to eat leftover turkey until I start gobbling. I looked at a breast because it’s smaller, but neither one of us likes breast meat, and I wanted something we both like. I said to Spane, “Gee, I wish turkeys came with just thighs and wings!” He said, “Mom, don’t they have parts? Why not just get parts?” I love my son! He is so smart! Sure enough, there was a nice package with two large thighs, and those were the ones I took home. Hurray! We’re having stuffed turkey thighs in the Nesco.