Forest Street Kitchen

At the risk of channeling Barry Manilow, I am proud to say that I have posted every single solitary day during the month of November. It was not always Pulitzer-worthy, it was not always fun for me, but I did it.

Next month I’m doing it again, only this time its for Holidailies. It helped me, this month, to have a routine, and Lord knows things will be even crazier around here in December than they were in November, so here’s my tentative schedule (she said, as the audience inched towards the very edges of their respective seats, breathless with anticipation):

Saturdays: Book Talk. I will write about a cookbook or food-related book I’ve read recently, and either recommend it or…not. Or I will whine about a cookbook I want that I do not, presently own. Or I will mock a cookbook I have seen at the book store or on amazon that seems to me to be patently ridiculous.
Sundays: Holiday Goodies. I’ll give you a tried and true recipe to make during the holiday season that could be anything from my grandmother’s pecan squares to a great salad to take to a holiday potluck. Or latkes. Or easy cookies to save you from being the Bad Mom with the Entemann’s box at the Holiday Party. If your kids are a) allowed to have a Holiday Party and b) allowed to consumed anything other than fruit, vegetables and bottled water at said Holiday Party.

Mondays: Rants and Raves. It may be a rave about something I love (more local and organic produce available at the grocery store) or a rant about something I hate (people who are snotty, judgemental and rude about people who can’t afford the locally grown and organic produce at the grocery store).

Tuesdays: Random Dinner Snapshot. I liked doing this, and I’m going to keep going. If it was good, I’ll include the recipe as long as I can do it ethically.

Wednesdays: Winter Recipe Day. A soup, a stew, a braise, something hearty and warm that relies on reasonably seasonal ingredients. Something to make your house smell like heaven after day of skiing or sledding or an afternoon of shovelling.

Thursdays: Menu Planning Day, because that’s when I do it.

Fridays: Blogs I Love Day. On this day I will sing the praises of another food blog I like and read regularly. I will try to focus on blogs we do not already know and love.  You know  the famous ones; I like the idea of discovering a hidden gem and bringing it to the attention of eager readers everywhere.

Now that I’ve taken care of business, I owe you one more dessert recipe for the month of November. This came to me via recipe exchange, and while it is not “gourmet,” its genius for two reasons:

1. Kids can easily help make them
2. If you keep the ingredients in the house you can always have something ready for all of those “bring something” occasions that are forgotten by you, your children and your spouse until its the morning of the event and you already have a dentist appointment, a deposition and a migraine.

Here you go:

Holiday Buttons

from Wilma

1. Round or ring pretzels (only found during holidays)
2. Hershey’s kisses
3. M&M’s (if peanut allergies are an issue at home or at school, replace m&m’s with Kissables)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Spread aluminum foil on a cookie sheet. Place round pretzels on the foil. (Usually around 50 fit on a small cookie sheet). Place kisses in the center of each pretzel ring and place in the oven for about 2 minutes. The kisses will NOT lose their shape; they get shiny when they melt. Take them out of the
oven and IMMEDIATELY press an m&m into the center of each kiss so the kiss spreads out and adheres to the pretzel evenly. If there is some resistance, put them back in the oven for 30 seconds. (Note: If you over cook them, the kisses will get too hard to work with; so you can’t leave them alone!)

If you use mini round pretzels you can substitute the bakers kisses that are already unwrapped! But you will get less of the salty pretzel taste and more of the chocolate this way.

HINT: if your kids like this recipe buy all the round pretzels you can find, because they usually sell out before Christmas and don’t return until next November.

Nothing too exciting about the coming week except that, as my father says, “Christmas is at our throats again” with all of its attendant parties, concerts, shopping, etc.. I go into the week with half a pork loin to cut into chops, half a turkey carcass for broth, and the (sad) knowledge that there just isn’t a whole lot that’s all that seasonal in Michigan right this minute other than head colds. I am, as always, shooting for one vegetarian meal, no more than two red meat meals, and anything fresh and local (sniff), and on sale that I can find. Here’s what we’re eating on Forest Street:

Saturday

Panini and Greens with Gorgonzola Dressing 

Deli meat, Italian bread and Provolone are all on sale, so I’ll make panini in the Foreman grill along with salad and homemade Gorgonzola dressing. (No; Sam will not eat the salad, but he will eat 50 Clementines, so I’m calling it good for that part of the food pyramid).

Sunday

Tortellini en Brodo, Garlic Bread and Romaine with Oil & Vinegar

This is our vegetarian meal, although I will be making the stock from the turkey carcass. Its still vegetarian enough for my purposes. The soup alone won’t be enough for the guys, so I’ll also make my own garlic bread which is just Italian (or other good quality) bread brushed with Extra Virgin Olive oil, rubbed with a cut clove of garlic, and toasted. For the salad, I’m trying Giada di Laurentiis’ Basil Dressing (from my brand new gift) and making a double quantity to marinate pork chops for tomorrow night.

Monday

Marinated, Pan-Fried pork Chops, Risotto and Sauteed Spinach with Red Onion

The chops (cut by me from my great hunk o’ pork) will marinate in Basil Dressing and then sautee in olive oil and garlic while I make some pretty plain risotto. The sauteed spinach recipe is also Giada’s.

Tuesday

Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes and Peas

All American, beloved by all except, well, Sam who doesn’t like meatloaf.

Wednesday

Breakfast Dinner: Eggs to Order, Bacon and English Muffins

Rob likes to make this kind of dinner, and since he’ll be gone most of next week, leaving me to mind the zoo, I really have no moral problems with letting him make me a little omelette and an English muffin with Smart Balance.

Thursday

Marinated, Sauteed Chicken Thighs, Polenta and Green Beans

 I’ll probably just marinate the boneless, skinless thighs in some Italian dressing, sautee them with garlic and Rosemary, and keep them warm while I make a little sauce with white wine, stock and mushrooms. Should be good with polenta, which may or may not be eaten by the guys. I am broadening their horizons, by force if necessary.

Friday 

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce and Romaine Salad with Carrot Ribbons and Scallions

This is the part where I make Tuesday’s leftover meatloaf reappear in the guise of hideously deformed “meatballs,” to be served in homemade marinara with a salad of chopped Romaine, ribbons of grated carrot, sliced scallions and whatever else I find in the vegetable bin.

Thursdays during NaBloPoMo have thus far been dedicated to Thanksgiving planning, but that’s sort of redundant at this point. I am pretty tightly wrapped, (and fancy myself a paragon of organization) but even I don’t start planning the next Thanksgiving a week after the last one.

Since I am free to write what I want, I have decided to share with you all my IMMENSE and glorious good fortune yesterday which is entirely due to the generosity of others, and their willingness to indulge me in the belief that I am actually a chef. I’m probably kind of pathetic about it (little boys dressed in chaps, spurs and Howdy Doody hats with toy guns come to mind) but in my rich, inner life I wear orange clogs and chef’s whites and might be asked at any moment to compete on “Iron Chef.” I can hear it now: “from her Midwestern home kitchen where she prepares dinners nightly that are rich and varied but do not involve the use of anything on the Forbidden Food List…Chef Annie!”

Anyway, as a thank you for preparing the Thanksgiving feast, my mother took me to Williams-Sonoma to pick out “a few things.” No, wait: first, because she knows that I can only rarely prepare fish or any seafood on Forest Street, she first took me to lunch at Mitchell’s Fish Market where I had a cup of perfect lobster bisque, an almost breadless crab cake and a huge shrimp from her salad. Then we went to Williams-Sonoma, where she bought me:

1. A real 8″ chef’s knife. Wusthof. I have been cooking for years with a decent 4″ knife but a terrible, El Cheap-o chef’s knife that is incredibly dull but too cheap to sharpen. The new knife has a sharp blade, a heft in my hand, and makes me want to conquer pounds of potatoes. I am in love.
2. Vanilla beans and vanilla paste, both of which I use regularly but both of which are pretty expensive. I had just run out of both making pies, and was forlornly contemplating a return to the stuff from the grocery store.
3. A microplane grater for hard and soft cheeses, and onions. We used it last night to grate practically transparent shards of Gran Padano onto our pasta, effortlessly.
4. A hand-held Kyocera mini-mandoline thingie. It slices wafer thin at high speed, is small enough to store easily, and has a hand protector. So far, Sam has had transparent banana slices on his cereal, and I have discovered that I really, really have to use the hand protector.
5. A decent set of concentric, round cookie cutters, which I use for everything from doughnuts to poaching eggs (the old set was missing a couple of sizes that were involved first in a ring toss game and then in a tragic lawn mower accident).

Arriving home from this merry festival of seafood and spending, I found a package addressed to me from amazon.com. Inside was a copy of Giadia di Laurentiis’ newest cookbook, Everyday Pasta. This was yet another glossy and beautiful addition to my cookbook collection from my father in law in San Francisco, who buys me books that i covet and drool over but can’t justify buying for myself. As many of you know, in addition to pretending to be a chef, I often pretend to be Italian. Unfortunately, I do not look like Giada even when I’m deep under cover, but at least I can use her recipes.

I am so lucky, and so grateful to be the recipient of such generosity. I am generally thrifty, and can “make do” in ways that would make my raised-in-the-Depression dad proud, but I still love shiny, new things. Is it wierd to love a knife?

This is basically a version of Buccatini All’Amatriciana, and my favorite recipe for this dish is Lidia Bastianich’s, which is right here. I tried a different recipe this time; the main difference was that the bacon was cooked first and the onion and garlic were cooked in the leftover bacon drippings instead of olive oil. Next time I’ll probably go back to Lidia’s.

The last time I made this, I had to use regular spaghetti because I couldn’t find the right kind of pasta - buccatini or percatelli - both of which are basically spaghetti that is a hollow tube. I found Pertatelli, and am delighted to say that this was fantastic. I served it with Gran Padano to grate over it, fresh Semolina bread, and a salad of Romaine, chives and carrot peelings with olive oil and Balsamic vinegar.

Mondays are “Heirloom Recipe” days, and today I have finally (!) shaken one out of my mother. This recipe is actually from her Aunt Dorothy (”Dosh,” in the family), one of my grandmother’s sister; she is one of the most elegant entertainers I know from the starched tablecloths to the silver-topped glass container for Equal packets. I am told that I am her spiritual heir in Martha Stewart-ship, and I’m honored. This is a recipe that’s great for holiday entertaining; its a little flashy, easy, and really, really delicious. If you serve it, try to come up with a proper spreader - Dosh will know if you don’t.

Aunt Dorothy’s Smoked Salmon Mousse

(Note: This needs to chill several hours)

1. 1 16 ounce can red salmon
2. 1 8 ounce package (REAL) cream cheese, softened
3. 1 tablespoon lemon juice
4. 2 tablespoons grated onion
5. 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
6. 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
7. 1/4 teaspoon salt
8. 1/2 cup chopped pecans
9. 3 tablespoons chopped, fresh parsley

Drain salmon, remove skin and bones, and flake meat. Combine ingredients 1 through 7 (I’d use a stand or hand mixer) and refrigerate at least 8 hours, or overnight.

Remove chilled mixture from refrigerator and roll into a ball. Mix pecans and parsley and roll mouse in mixture to cover. Serve as a ball or flatten into a dome shape and serve with black bread or good rye. (Crackers are okay, too).

Okay; that just means “turkey sandwich,” but its a good one. You have to admit it sounds better in Italian.

Today I had an odd assortment of things to use up, and had just discovered that you can use a Foreman Grill as a pretty good panini maker. Here’s what I did (no pic - it was eaten rapidimente):

Panino Tacchino

1. Two big slices of hearty, crusty Italian bread, ciabatta or foccacia (best cut in half horizontally for maximum crust rather than in conventional slices)
2. Leftover roast turkey (you could use deli meat, but please not the slimy kind)
3. Three slices Provolone
4. Fresh Basil
5. Fresh Rosemary
6. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
7. 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, Romano or other hard Italian cheese
8. Salt

Heat Foreman Grill, panini maker, or pan. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over insides of both slices of bread and rub both sides with garlic. Discard garlic. Sprinkle grated cheese on one slice of bread. One top of grated cheese layer turkey, several un-cut basil leaves, about 1 tablespoon Rosemary, a sprinkling of salt, and three overlapping pieces of Provolone. Put slices together to form sandwich, and cook in Foreman Grill, Panini maker or in pan with a second, heavy pan on top. If you use the two-pan method, you will at some point need to flip the sandwich; otherwise, cook until the cheese is melted, slice in half and serve.

Saturday is designated as “Best and Worst” day, so I decided to look around my kitchen here on Forest Street, and think about the things I use constantly and truly love, and those items which could disappear without my knowledge. There aren’t many of the latter; I am a pretty good weeder, but they exist. Here goes:

The Best Things in Forest Street Kitchen (Besides the Food)

1. My KitchenAid stand mixer, which was a gift from my husband a few years back. Its big, and strong, and red and shiny and makes my life easier every single day. It mixes my batter, kneads my bread dough, whips my heavy cream and egg whites, and does all of this while I am doing something else.
2. My kitchen scissors. If you don’t have a pair, get up right now and get some. I’m serious. I use them to cut chicken bones, bunches of herbs, San Marzano tomatoes in the can, scallions, bacon, cooked poultry for salads and casseroles, salad greens…you get the idea.
3. Onions, garlic, olive oil and kosher salt. Every day. There is just pretty much nothing that I cook that doesn’t involve at least one of these things.
4. Silicone baking sheets. I have nothing against parchment paper, and I keep it in the house for “cut-to-fit” baking like the bottoms of cake pans, but for cookies, this is where its at. Nothing sticks, they’re easy to clean, and there’s never that moment when you realize that the little overhanging part is on fire in the oven. (Not that I’ve ever actually had that experience, mind you). Also great for oven roasted including potatoes, vegetables, and for making those little rounds of shredded Parmesan that I can’t remember the name of.
5. Flexible, washable, plastic cutting boards. I have a set of four, and I go through all of them during a busy session in the kitchen. One for the chopped veggies, one for the meat, one for the side vegetables, one for the salad veggies, and they all go into the dishwasher like good little soldiers to be sanitized. They eventually get bent up and yucky from washings, but they are so cheap that I feel no compunctions about pitching them and buying a new set when I no longer like the looks of them.
6. The Pot I stole from my mom. This doesn’t look like much; its a big (I think 8 quart), lightweight pot with a strainer insert that fits inside, a shallow steamer basket that fits in the top, and a lid. This is the best example I can find. Despite its humble exterior, this is a major workhorse in my kitchen. I use the bottom to boil pasta, and potatoes, and while I am boiling the starch part of dinner I can steam a vegetable on the top. Pasta cooks while the broccoli steams, potatoes boil while the zucchini slices team; you get the picture. As a bonus, its a great way to boil vegetables for blanching. I boil green beans, broccoli, cauliflower or whatever I want to blanch in the pot while I make a big ice bath, and when the color is bright and the vegetable is tender crisp, I pull the strainer out and set it into the icy water.
7. The Pampered Chef Gooey Stuff Measuring Cup. I do not readily own up to owning Pampered Chef products, but this is a great invention. (I also own their Batter Bowl which is nice, but not as earth-shattering as this thing). I would buy it for peanut butter measuring alone; from Thai sauces to no-bake cookies I am enthralled by just spooning peanut butter into this thing and then ejecting it, no mess, into the mix. Its also nice for molasses and honey and probably other stuff I’m forgetting.
8. Wooden Spoons. If I could have a million of them, I would. I use them to stir, scrape, and to lift pot lids. I use the, to taste and then throw them into the sink and reach for another. I use them to caress risotto and polenta into life, and to mix pretty much anything that doesn’t require a whisk.
9. 4″ Knives. I do lots of things with these that should properly be done with a chef’s knife, but these feel so right in my hands that I find myself using them to mince garlic, dice onions, and cut carrots and celery. I am hoping (she hinted broadly) to get a decent chef’s knife for Christmas. I have one, but its
10. Pizza Cutters. I have two of these, and they are indispensable for cutting through a variety of things that are destroyed by sawing with a knife. I use it to cut most bar cookies cleanly (although I sometimes have to finish the edges with a knife), to cut dough into strips for lattices, or just to trim a piece of dough to size, and to cut crusty breads like foccacia and ciabatta with pressure. They are also great for cutting sandwiches into quarters and (don’t ask) for cutting off crust in a hurry. Oh, and pizza.
11. Round cookie cutters. Obviously, they can be used to make round cookies, and you can make great “O”’s - important, since both my high school and my college have names that start with “O.” You can also use them to make doughnuts, biscuits, and perfectly shaped eggs - just set a round cookie cutter of the right size in the pan, slide in your egg and let it set into the perfect circle.
12. My cast-iron skillet. Perfectly seasoned, this serves a variety of purposes from cooking eggs, pancakes and bacon, meat and with a nice brown crust to warming up tortillas and serving as a panini weight.
13. A glass jar with a lid. I think this was a spaghetti sauce jar in its past life. I use this to mix up salad dressing, peanut sauce, marinades, and all manner of things that do not have to be run through the food processor.
14. Big Zip-Top Plastic Bags. What did the Pilgrims do?! I use these to coat things for frying, to marinate, to mix up certain squishy things (just bag ‘em up and squish ‘em around), and I fill them with batter when I make cupcakes or muffins so that I can snip off a corner and control the amount that goes into each compartment in the tin. In a pinch, you can use them to pipe frosting. They are also useful for getting cheese filling into stuffed shells.

The Worst Things in Forest Street Kitchen

1. Square silicone hot pads. I have two versions of silicone hot oven mitts. I quite like the set that looks like castanets, but I find the thin, square version to be useless for most tasks. They don’t let me get a good grip on the edge of a pot or pan because they aren’t very flexible, and they tend to get slippery. I have relegated them to use as trivets.
2. A sifter. Its vintage, and pretty, but I very rarely sift anything, even when I’m supposed to.
3. The nonstick pan that sticks. Like a fool in love, I keep trying this again on the theory that it was so expensive that it really should work. No matter how many chances I give it with layers of cooking spray, oil and/or butter, and no matter how lovingly I hand wash it and refrain from scratching it, everything sticks and is destroyed.

Friday is “Rant and Rave Day” during the Merry Month of NaBloPoMo. I was going to be nice and just “rave” about something wonderful today, but I am unable to rid myself of the annoyance I feel about the programming decisions made by The Food Network.

I have only two source for foodie TV; one is The Food Network, and the other is the cooking lineup on PBS’ “Create.” I gave up on the former and pledged eternal devotion to the latter when I discovered that PBS could offer me Lidia Bastianich, Mark Bittman and Chris Kimball instead of Rachael Ray, Emeril and Guy Fieri, but our local PBS station recently decided that there wasn’t sufficient viewer support for “Create” during the evening, so it now ends at 6:00 p.m.. I am now back to The Food Network, and frustration. (Note: some of the rapier-sharp among you may be tempted to point out that I do not, in fact, have to watch anything on TV. At all. I could take a walk, make popsicle-stick crafts with my kid, or read improving literature. I get that, really I do, but sometimes I want to watch someone torch a creme brulee.)

Here are the shows I enjoy on The Food Network (or would enjoy if I could find them):

1. Nigella Lawson Biting, Expressing or Feasting
2. Tyler’s Ultimate
3. Good Eats
4. The Barefoot Contessa
5. Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello
6. Molto Mario
7. Iron Chef America
8. Everyday Italian
9. Anthony Bourdain doing anything
10. 2 Dudes Catering
11. Feasting on Asphalt
12. Sara’s Secrets
13. Giada’s Weekend Getaways
14. Dinner Impossible

Here are the shows (and types of shows) I do not enjoy or want to see:

1. Rachael Ray cooking, travelling or conducting interviews
2. Emeril Lagasse
3. Sandra Lee
4. Contests involving Disney Princess cakes, ice sculptures, or desserts embodying the spirit of Las Vegas
5. Guy Fieri eating the same food at 75 different “Diners, Dives and Drive-Ins” distinguishable only by the location of the deep fryer in the kitchen
6. Paula’s Party (I’m neutral on Paula’s Homemade)
7. “The Secret Life of” anything
8. Unwrapped
9. Shows about gadgets
10. Shows about kitchen remodeling
11. Shows that have aired more than 5 times during the previous week, usually during the same time slot

This is entirely subjective and unreasonable. I enjoy watching Giada di Laurentis travel and sample new dishes, I am enthralled by Alton Brown’s travels across the country, but I am bored to tears by Guy Fieri doing the same thing. I am open to Tyler Florence creating a feast, but cringe at Emeril doing the same thing with his band, his garlic-obsessed audience and his over-the-top, well, everything.

If there is a rubric, it is very idiosyncratic: I choose substance over style, not cute over cute, not gimmicky over gimmicky, subtle over flashy, instructive over merely entertaining, and classic over current. Most of all, I like pretty smart over a wee bit dumb. If I am watching TV about food and cooking, I want to see people cooking who are making things I’d like to make, and who are good enough at it that I can learn from them. I happen to know that Nigella Lawson, in addition to being stunning and funny, is an extraordinarily smart woman and a fine writer. I have used Tyler Florence’s, Sara Moulton’s and Ina Garten’s recipes for years, and love them for their sophistication and vision. Alton Brown is another smart, funny, mince-no-words type from whom I have learned much, as is Anthony Bourdain. I enjoy Iron Chef America because, while it is unlikely that I will ever be required to cook five dishes including swordfish or mangoes as the main ingredient, it is an inspiration to me to see first-rate chefs at the top of their game.

Then there are the Italians: Michael Chiarello is just an elegant human being, and a pleasure to watch, Mario is funny and feisty and respected by his peers, and Giada is offering clear, attainable versions of Italian classics. 2 Dudes Catering and Kitchen Impossible are just for fun, although I do learn a great deal about menu planning and grace under pressure from both. Plus, I heart Robert Irvine.

I do not watch television during the day unless I am sick, so my viewing hours tend to be between 7:00 and 12:00 p.m.. Tonight, I can watch:

1. “Iron Chef America: The Thanksgiving Battle” for the 32d time this week
2. “Emeril Live”
3. “Gotta Get It: Gadget Gifts” (Selling gadgets)
4. “Gotta Get It”: Entertaining” (See #3, above)
5. “Gotta Get It: On the Go” (Id).
6. “Gotta Get It: Breakfast” (Id).
7. “Iron Chef America: The Thanksgiving Battle” for the 33d time this week

Lest you should think that this is a problem limited to holiday weekends, I wish to point out that next Monday’s offerings between 7:00 and 12:00 include 1 hour of Emeril, 2 hours of Food Network Specials, and 30 minutes each of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” “The Secret Life Of,” “Good Eats,” and “Unwrapped.” That gives me 30 minutes of “might-see TV” with Alton.

I’m done ranting, and I have to make our own, actual food in my real kitchen before there is a mutiny. In closing, I am not obsessed with TV. I see “The Food Network” as a great opportunity which, at this point, is being squandered. I am hip to the fact that networks program based on what sells ads, and this must be what the majority wants to see. I wish them joy of it, but I don’t get it. In the mean time, I will ferret out the bizarre times when I might catch Nigella, Ina, Tyler or Michael (they’ve banished Mario), and try to be happy. I do, after all, have more time free for making crafts out of popsicle sticks….

I hope that all of you had a lovely, relaxing Thanksgiving day spent however and with whomever it pleased you to spend it. If the actual holiday involved hours in the car, pearl onions and/or grumpy relatives, I hope that today brings you better things.

Our Thanksgiving was not as I expected, for a number of reasons. First off, all of our guests got sick, which meant that we were down to 5 people, and had to run plates and bags to our under-the-weather absent friends before we could eat. Dinner was delicious (if I do say so myself) but I learned a couple of valuable things:

1. The turkey has crisper skin if you don’t cook it upside down.  [Note: I really, really, really do know how to cook; this is just a problematic area for me and bear in mind that I didn't have to confess this]. I have spatial relationship problems with whole poultry, and usually have to consult Rob as to whether I have put the bird du jour in the pan breast-side up. Maybe he’s better at this because he grew up on a farm? He was unavailable when I started the process, the bird was cooking at my parents’ house 5 miles away, and when I took it out of the oven I was HORRIFIED at how dry the “breast” looked - the timer had just gone off, and I was within 15 minutes of my calculated timing, but it looked like the turkey in “National Lampoon Christmas Vacation” that is basically sawdust-filled skin. As it turned out, the breast was less than plump and juicy because it was the back. When flipped, the bird was perfect; the brining and massaging paid off, and it was the best turkey we had ever eaten. No crispy breast skin, though. I tried to convince the family that I had cooked the turkey upside down to prevent them from being tempted by the cardiac-threatening skin. They smiled sadly, as if to acknowledge my disability without making me feel bad.
2. Some pies can be made a day ahead and reheated, and some don’t fare as well. My pumpkin pecan pie was lovely re-heated, but when my son said something about how the blueberry crumble-top pie “didn’t have a bottom crust” I discovered that, due to the juiciness of the filling, the bottom crust had essentially become one with the filling. I hear it was delicious, it just had no crust other than the rim around the top.

Still, for the first Thanksgiving dinner that I ever cooked entirely on my own, I was pretty darned pleased.

Now, on to menu planning. We’re eating lots of leftovers today (you can make an awesome panini in the Foreman Grill), and I will start next week with a frozen carcass, leftover turkey, cream (I forgot to whip it for the pies), lots of celery, carrots, and onions,  some canned pumpkin puree and half a bag of fresh cranberries. In addition to using these things up, I am, as always, interested in seasonal, local foods, what’s on sale, no more than 2 red meat meals and at least 1 vegetarian meal. I am cooking this week entirely out of “Cook’s Country” Magazine, which is a splendid combination of family-friendly recipes and the careful vetting of America’s Test Kitchen.  Here’s what we’re eating on Forest Street this week:

Saturday

French Bread Pizza and Salad

This is exactly as it sounds; a simple, kid-friendly meal and one that the kid can actually help to create. The recipe doesn’t call for pepperoni, but I’ll put some on 3/4 of the pizza for the guys.

Sunday

Creamy Turkey and Wild Rice Soup and Homemade Rolls

This will use up the carcass and a lot of those little bits of turkey that aren’t really big enough for sandwiches, as well as some carrots, celery, onions and cream.

Monday

Crispy Pork Cutlets with Buttered Noodles and Baked Sweet Potatoes

Pork tenderloins are on sale, so I’ll make my own “cutlets.” Sweet potatoes are still on sale, too, and although this is kind of a starchy meal, the sweet potatoes are pretty darned healthy with a little Smart Balance on them and nothing else.

Tuesday

Pasta with Tomato, Bacon & Onion; Green Salad and Herbed Bread Sticks

This is basically another (slightly less caloric) riff on Pasta All’Amatriciana, which we adore.

Wedenesday

Dijon Chicken Breasts, Green Beans and Quinoa

Green Beans on sale, Chicken breasts in the freezer and an unused box of Quinoa from some dinner I planned and never cooked.

Thursday

My Dad’s Birthday Dinner

Friday 

Stuffed Shells, Semolina Bread and Broccoli

Vegetarian and delicious. Homemade marinara, of course.