Mudflats Recipe Collection

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[nisperos]

Perfectly Moist Turkey; Success Without Hardly Trying

Since we get all ages and all skill levels on here, I thought I'd pass on this tip. Some people are vegetarians, but make an exception for their holiday guests with fowl as a side option, others are cooking their first big bird, and still others may be doing only a small turkey roast. This tip will also work with game hens.

Do not be intimidated by cooking fowl and no, you don't have to buy a more expensive brand or pre-basted to get good results. (You do, however, have to defrost the thing and you do have to pull out whatever is in the cavity if you are cooking a big bird rather than a small roast.  It's entirely up to you whether or not to stuff the bird, make stuffing on the stove top, or even have no stuffing at all.)

Following directions on the package, plan to cook the meat for the longest time at the lowest setting.  You want to salt and butter or or salt and olive oil your bird, even if it says it has been pre-basted.

The big tip to keep your bird or your roast moist is to stick it in a brown paper bag and staple the bag shut before putting it on an open pan and placing it in the oven. That's it!  (No, since you are doing slow cooking on low heat, the bag will not catch on fire.) 15 minutes before the projected end of your cooking time, you will want to open the bag where it's stapled (venting but leaving the meat in the bag).  This helps brown the skin a bit more.  Big birds will stay moist and roasts almost have the taste of a big bird but without all the extra deboning.  

[SMR]

Nisperos --

What is the lowest temp you use?  325?

[Jamie]

@ira2 -

Still working on the rabbit/yellow pepper conundrum. I remembered last night, and hubby confirmed, that I do have a small cookbook from Italy with only rabbit recipes (it must've been given to my hubby when he worked there by the Rabbit Consortium - so real Italian). Am still looking for it, tho it can't be far.

[ira2]

Kewl  Thanks, Jamie! I still haven't come up with anything that would work as a substitute.

[Dianna]

Yummy. Cream cheese & scallions on a bagel works for me. One of my all-time favorite snacks is a celery stalk filled with cream cheese. And to go in another direction, cream cheese on French toast. If I weren't trying to watch my fat intake, I could make a big block disappear fast (I know there's low fat cream cheese, but it just isn't the real thing).


This is fantastic! I popped back to the recipe world and I see the cream cheese is still alive and well! LOL

Steve, I have made many a block of cream cheese disappear.... well..... it just collected in fat pockets around my body. That isn't disappearing. Cream cheese and a raw green pepper is delightful but the ultimate way to use that bulk cream cheese has to be New York cheesecake with glazed strawberries on top. Ah. Just sitting here with tea and chips. Yuck.

[Dianna]

How to use up the bulk cream cheese:
Cream cheese on bagels, cream cheese wraps, cream cheese and strawberry jam on saltines, cream cheese & peanut butter, cream cheese nut ball, cream cheese and raw veggies.

Yummy. Cream cheese & scallions on a bagel works for me. One of my all-time favorite snacks is a celery stalk filled with cream cheese. And to go in another direction, cream cheese on French toast. If I weren't trying to watch my fat intake, I could make a big block disappear fast (I know there's low fat cream cheese, but it just isn't the real thing).

Oooops, Steve, I messed up trying to copy your quote so I could respond to it. So sorry.


I need a tutor and lots of practice with all the posting tricks.

[aggirl]

Here's another easy delicious one for Christmas:

Christmas Balls (now, now let's keep it clean)

1 cup butter or margarine (I never use margarine, and it should be softened)
2 teaspoons vanilla
   * * *
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons water
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour (yes, thats 2 cups)
1 cup chopped pecans (I use my little cuisinart, pulse it . . .don't make it a powder!)
Red and green sugar (buy it or use food coloring in your sugar)

Cream butter and vanilla; add sugar, creaming the mixture until light and fluffy.  Blend in water.  Stir in flour, mixing well.  Add pecans.  Shape in 1-inch balls.  Roll in colored sugar.
 Bake 1 inch apart on ungreased cooky sheet in slow oven (325 F) 20 minutes or until firm to the touch.  Cool before removing from pan. Makes 3 dozen.

Another of the ones I makes lots of, can be tripled or . . .

Note:  the mixture will be basically a big ball by the time you're done.  You will have to do it by hand at the end and they are deeelish!  Very pretty red and green alternately.

Now if anyone wants the other easy one (that includes dates, raisins and nuts) a drop cookie called Christmas Rocks, let me know.

JaneE! (who loves baking for Christmas)

[Rubo]

I was experimenting around with banana bread yesterday and came up with this. It was quick and easy. I send so many cookies and breads overseas that I try to create variations. Plus, it was a way to sneak in alcohol to our son! We'll see how it vacuum seals and ships!

Banana Kaluha Nut Bread

4 cups ripened bananas mashed
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
2 cups flour
1 cup chopped nuts
1 shot of Kaluha

Bake at 350 for 1 hour. If you want to add a little more Kaluha, adjust with a little more flour. I also made a couple of loaves with some dried cranberries.

Makes 2 loaves and it's delicious.

[CO Almost Native]

   
Re: Mudflats Recipe Collection
« Reply #104 on: November 18, 2008, 01:41:35 PM »

King Ranch Chicken
This is famous in Texas and it's really terrific! Every family has their own version. Here is ours. Which is the best, of course.

Obamanos-

I make this, but I use one can of Hatch's Green Chili Enchilada Sauce (med) in place of one of the creamed soups- and yellow corn tortilla, of course.

Ok, I'm starting to drool on my keyboard...

[Obamanos!]

Hey-
I love that idea!
Will do that next time!

[Steve]

Oooops, Steve, I messed up trying to copy your quote so I could respond to it. So sorry.

No need to be sorry, it's a minor booboo.

I need a tutor and lots of practice with all the posting tricks.

Tutorials are in Forum Guidelines & How To Guides. Beyond that, just play with the stuff until you get the results you want. Takes some time, but it's actually pretty easy when you get used to it.

[nisperos]

@ SMR Reply #123

What is the lowest temp you use?  325?

That sounds about right.  However, at the very end, the last 5 minutes, I may turn it up to 350° for browning the skin.

[arkangel3]

WOW!  Very cool tip about the paper bag and the Turkey!  I might have to try that sometime (unfortunately my kitchen will still be undergoing renovations until just after the holiday, so we'll be eating out).  I did promise the family a "mini-Thanksgiving" once everything is done...so I'll be making a big, fresh turkey breast (13 lb) and the trimmings. 

I usually use olive oil for basting.  Salt, pepper, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme as outside (and inside) seasonings.  If find that olive oil really lets the flavor of the bird shine through and not cover it up, ESPECIALLY if you have a fresh-Turkey! 

I'll present to you my World-Famous Sausage Stuffing Recipe shortly.  I only make this once a year, but my daughters BEG me to make it more often (I like keeping things special, so it's T-Day only  ).

[Susan in PA]

Granny's Banana Nut Bread

Another long-time family favorite (my 16-year-old son devours this every time!), and a good way to use bananas past their prime.  Tastes great toasted too!

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening (I use butter-flavor Crisco)
1 egg
2 Tbsp. milk
2 large ripe bananas
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Cream sugar and shortening.  Add unbeaten egg and milk and mix well.  Mash bananas with mixer.  Stir into mixture and mix thoroughly.  Sift in dry ingredients and nuts and mix just until moistened.  Grease and flour a 9 x 5 loaf pan.  Bake 60 minutes at 350 degrees.  Cool in pan 10 minutes then turn onto wire rack to cool completely (although we never manage to let it cool it completely before we start eating it!).

Susan in PA

[Sauerkraut]

Susan, can you substitute walnuts or other nuts for the pecans?  Or does that change the flavor or tecture too much?

btw, what area of pa are you in?

[Bec in Illinois]

The cream cheese lust continues...

Here is one of my favorite things to do with a block of cream cheese. I made this recipe up years ago when we grew so much zucchini we didn't know what to do. I miss those days. Now I have to pay for it.

Clean and thinly slice (in rounds) as many zucchini as you want. At least 4-5 of the smaller ones.
In a 2 qt. pot, place the zucchini and just a little water so it won't stick.
Steam the zucchini until completely tender.
Take a block of cream cheese (the whole 8 oz. if you want - or just half if you want to show restraint) and cut it up into the zucchini. Keep on low heat and stir it around to melt into a nice sauce.
Sprinkle generously with dill weed, pepper and salt to taste.

Sometimes I throw in some frozen peas toward the end of cooking the zucchini.
You could also throw in some chopped peppers (yellow, green, or red).
I can just about eat the whole pot full.

Calories in zucchini - about ZERO   Calories in cream cheese? Well at least the zucchini barely has any.

[Susan in PA]

Sorry, just noticed that Rubo has a Banana Nut Bread recipe too -

[Susan in PA]

Sauerkraut, I'm sure you could use different kinds of nuts - we always used pecans because my mother didn't like walnuts!  (This recipe is from my mother's mother  )

I'm in Chester County, PA - are you in central PA somewhere?

[the problem child]

I'm equally allergic to both pecans and walnuts So I'm sure they work equally well. They really are a very similar texture...

[Sauerkraut]

Yes, Susan.  I live in James Carville's favorite part of PA, although I prefer to call it pennsyltucky rather than "alabama."  I live down the road from the pooping amish pony that never stops... pooping.

Especially when he's in front of my mailbox.

Which is where I get the phrase "road apples" from.