Turnip Gratin

Among the various wrapped gifts I received at Christmas, I was also given a plastic grocery bag full of turnips.  That may not seem like a very exciting thing, but they were much appreciated.  I happen to really like turnips, but in the grocery store these roots are often marred, tiny, and overpriced (for the quality you are getting.)  This meal was supposed to be my last indulgence of dairy (i.e. cheese) for a while.  Well, my subtle, unspoken resolution of eating less cheese is already a bust.  It is the morning of day 4 of 2013 and I have eaten cheese the past three days, with no hope in sight for today.

Turnip Gratin
5-6 med-lrg turnips
2 med potatoes
1 C-1 1/2 C shredded cheese (we used a cheddar/jack blend)
1 1/2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp flour
2 cloves garlic, minced (~2 tsp)
1 1/4 C heavy cream
1/2 C water
1 oz cream cheese
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried thyme
pinch of cayenne
3/4 C crushed crackers (I used mini Bretons)
1 1/2 Tbsp oil or melted butter

   Peel and thinly slice turnips and potatoes.  A mandolin* is the perfect tool for this job.
   Heat butter over med heat and saute garlic for about 1 minute.  Add flour, whisk so there are no lumps.  Slowly add cream and water to flour and butter, whisk constantly while adding so lumps don't form.  Melt in cream cheese.  Add salt, thyme, and cayenne.  Cook over med heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring regularly so the dairy does not scorch.
   In a lightly sprayed baking dish (9x9 or small crock like mine, which is roughly 9x6x3) start layering turnips and potatoes.  After 2-3 layers, sprinkle some cheese.  Continue this process until the baking dish is full or you run out of vegetables.  Pour cream mixture over the top.
   Bake covered at 375 deg F for 30-40 minutes.
   Mix crushed crackers and oil.
   Top gratin with crackers after it has finished its first baking.  Return to 375 deg F oven for 20-25 minutes.  A butter knife should easily slide into the center of the gratin, that is how you will know it is done.
   Serves 6.
   We served this alongside green cabbage braised with bacon and Aidell's Roasted Garlic and Gruyere Chicken Sausages.

Kitchen Mandoline- an adjustable slicer that allows you to quickly and easily make very thin slices.  They can be veeeeery pricey, but decent ones can be found for about $30.  Mine is a really crappy $12 Walmart one that doesn't work so hot.  The blades could be sharper and the inserts that have the places tend to pop out of place if you are not careful.  But even that piece of shit can handle some turnips and white potatoes... nothing much harder though.  One of my next kitchen purchases will be a nicer piece so I can slice things thin enough to make chips in my new deep fryer!

Christmas Plunder & Dinners

I hope everyone had a great December and whatever holiday you choose to celebrate (unless it was that Nonsecular Human Light Existence of whatever... that is stupid. Just celebrate the damn solstice.)  I feel like my Christmas started a little early when the hubs shot a deer!  With all the deer running around Mid-TN you'd think they'd be easier to kill.  We don't have the meat back from the processor yet, but we got some fantastic things to help us use all the lovely, red, gamey meat.

My mom got us a deep fryer, which I have surprisingly never owned.  It is a nice one with a basket and digital temp read-out.  But more exciting than that... we got a meat grinder!!!  It has sausage filling attachments too.  To go with the grinder, seasoning blends, and various casings, we have what seems to be the charcuterie bible, Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing!  This books has every type of curing you can possibly think of in it from tasso ham to jaegerwurst to pate en croute.

Christmas Eve night, we went to my parent's hose.  Seafood has always been kind of a tradition for Christmas in our house.  Thanksgiving is our big traditional American meal and Christmas is a little more subdued, especially if we were travelling to see family because that usually involved a huge dinner.  This year, my mom decided to do an Italian inspired feast of seven fishes meal (we have no Italian blood in us whatsoever.)

Christmas Eve Seafood Feast

Sauerkraut Balls (not seafood, but always delicious) 

Hot Crab Dip w/ Spinach & Artichokes

Seared Sea Scallop w/ Fennel & Orange Salad

Linguine w/ Clam Sauce

Cioppino w/ Mahi Mahi, Mussels, Shrimp, & Lobster (similar recipe here)

Christmas day was our combined families and a bit more of a traditional meal.  If both sets of parents will be in attendance at any given occasion, we are basically required to bring smoked salmon.  But we got my dad a smoker, so maybe we will be relieved of that duty on occasion.

Christmas Dinner

Smoked Salmon w/ Roasted Garlic & Caper Spread

Garlic & Rosemary Roasted Cornish Hens

Yellow Rice (w/ Wild Rice)

Brussel Sprouts w/ Goat Cheese & Balsamic Reduction

Chicken & Cornbread Dressing

Fruit Salad w/ Honey Mustard Vinaigrette

White Chocolate Bread Pudding

Apple Tart w/ Cinnamon Pear Balsamic

Stop the Abuse

Ladies and Gentlemen,

   I am very sorry that this will not be a regularly scheduled recipe post.  I have some very sad news about a wave of violence that has plagued our world since the late 50's.  It is a quiet violence that I am sure most are unaware of, yet they probably commit the heinous act several times a week.  It was recently, and painfully, brought to my attention that this may not be common knowledge....

STOP USING METAL ON NON-STICK COOKWARE!!!

Marvel at my graphic design skills.

   Your pots and pans will last forever if you just take proper care of them.  This includes not dragging metal implements over the non-stick surface.  Once the coating is compromised the non-stick properties dwindle.  The scratches give foods a place to grab on and thus, stick.  There is a reason plastic, wood, silicon, nylon, and coated utensils are available in stores.  Even traditional plain metal items such as whisks and tongs are now available in non-stick  safe materials.

   I love my cookware more than my shoes.  It is very high quality and I intend to not buy a new set for at least 10+ years.  If you take proper care of your cookware, especially non-stick pieces, you will not need to replace skillets and pans every couple years.  You can afford a nice set if you don't destroy things inside of a year.  Cookware is an investment that will pay off if you treat it with care and love.  These are my 5 stupidly easy rules concerning non-stick cookware (and from now on, people will need to sign a release before I let them use any of my kitchen equipment.)

Lauren's Rules for Non-Stick Cookware

1.  NO METAL!!!  This includes: metal fiber scrubbers, knives, and forks.  Even stay away from metal spoons.  If metal will touch the surface, don't use it.

2.  Do not put items in the dishwasher no matter what the packaging says.  Things can knock around in dish washers and scratch your surface.

3.  Do not leave a dry (meaning no liquid or fat) on the heat for more than a minute or so.  Your cookware can scorch.  Some TV chefs will have the pan waiting for them, but I prefer to have everything ready then start heating the pan.  I stay more organized and feel less rushed.  Also, I can watch the heat and start the actual cooking right when the pan is ready.

4.  Don't transfer to a very hot oven.  The high heat of ovens can damage the non-stick surface.  Generally, non-stick skillets and pans are good up to 450 deg F, but I try to keep it at 400 deg F or under.  Subsequently, do not put them under a hot broiler.

5.  Always clean your cookware well.  Preferably, shortly after cooking.  (I am guilty of not washing dishes until the morning after, but I at least rinse all my pots and pans very well the night of.)  Use warm, sudsy water and a soft cleaning implement (sponge, dish cloth, soft bristled dish brush).  Don't use abrasive cleaners such as baking soda; if residue is stubborn, soak in warm soapy water for 30 minutes or so.


(Check Save the Artist later today for a fun post!)



New Toy! (Brinkmann Smoke 'n' Grill)

   Meet our new toy!  The Brinkmann Smoke 'n' Grill.  It is a simple yet effective compact design that is perfect for any size backyard.  Our last visit to Tennessee of course included a trip to Home Depot with my mom so she could get the military discount.  While she was debating over--lightbulbs?-- I wandered over to the grill isle and saw this beauty.  The price got me really excited:  $39.95!  (If you don't want to assemble it yourself you can pay another $10 for someone to do it for you.)  With our 10% military discount, the deal was too good to pass up.

   Once the box was in our cart, I became even more excited because I could see the actual setup of the grill.  On the bottom you have the charcoal/wood pan which will hold about 10 lbs of charcoal.  Halfway up is the water pan to keep everything moist and regulate the temperture.  On top of that is the first grill rack then at the top is a second grill rack.  You can fit a lot of food onto this thing.  The pans and racks aren't in fixed positions so they are easy to remove for cleaning and for moving the charcoal pan up for traditional grilling.  Also, there is a convenient little door on the front to easily add more wood or charcoal.  Included is a basic cooking guide with some simple recipes and time table.

   My only complaints about this grill are very minor ones.  The first rack is basically impossible to get to if you have food on the top rack.  (More expensive models with horizontal configurations have hinged racks that are really convenient.)  Now, this isn't a problem if you properly plan out your smoking times.  Larger items that are going to take longer have to go down in the middle of the smoker and smaller items need to go on the top.   Just make sure you don't plan on removing middle rack items before top rack items.  The positive side to this is that the smoke flavor is more concentrated because it has less travel time (and therefore less time to diffuse) from heat source to food.  Secondly is the fact that the cooking time table is rather incomplete.  It has the basics but does not include strategies for smoking a large variety of items.  I suggest buying a true cookbook dedicated to smoking because the internet is also seriously lacking in decent information for anything out of the normal relm of smoked foods.  (Ex:  It was really hard to find the time for shrimp smoked in the shell.  The time I did find was wrong.  That experiment needs to be repeated.)

   If you are considering purchasing this fantastic little smoker, you will want to buy a chimney starter, heat proof/grilling gloves, good quality charcoal (nothing flavored and nothing that says instant or match light), and hardwood chunks.  The chips burn too fast and they put out our embers when we soaked the chips.  The chunks last a good while and produce great flavor! 

   Yeah, soooo, Mother's Day just passed, which means Father's Day is coming up.  This would be the perfect gift for the dad who loves outdoor cooking!  Louis says there is nothing that can make you feel manlier in a short amount of time than grilling.  I guess you can feel even more masculine if you assemble it yourself. (Although, I will say form our experience, tiny fingers work better.)  The assembly is really easy and straight forward.  If you can use a screw driver, you can put this puppy together.  Even if your dad/husband doesn't like outdoor cooking, you may find that you do.  And isn't always nice to buy a present for someone that you can use and enjoy?

   This is pretty much our whole back patio.  See?  Very compact.  We bought a metal drip pan from an auto store for easier clean-up (and would protect the wood of your deck) and to give us a cleaner surface for placing the lid.

This is decidedly not Sparta.

My Affair

   I may be a happily married lady, but I have my affairs.  Everyone needs a fling.  This particular whim-of-a-weekend turned into a loving, passionate relationship that has been going strong for two and a half years now.  Smooth, black, and 5 inches of steel!  *Swoon*

   I am talking about my knife.

   My perfectly edged, elegant, curvaceous, ...expensive... knife.

 Just look at how clean those aspargus are sliced!

   I shelled out a healthy hunk of cash for this baby (roughly $120... god, I know....)  But it was worth every penny!  This is the Cutco 5 inch santoku knife.  It will do pretty much anything.  Breaking down a large watermelon is the only task it is not up to (but that doesn't mean I haven't done it.)  The heat resistant high density poly-resin handle is streamline and comfortable.  It is the perfect fit for my hand, reducing the nasty callous just below the ring finger side-effect.  The blade is a high carbon steel with full tang (meaning the metal runs the full length of the handle.)  Because Cutco knifemakers use smithing techniques perfected by the Japanese how ever many thousands of years ago, the steel is much more durable than regular steel and will hold an edge twice as long as any other knife I have used. 

   Cutco is a fantastic cutlery company.  I have a serrated knife that is at least as old I am and it is still the most amazing serrated knife ever.  As sharp as the day my mom got it.  (But that is another post for a later time.)  The only thing about Cutco is they are the door to door type sales company, and have been for over 60 years.  You can order over the phone or request a catalogue.  However, I don't really mind the door to door thing.  And it isn't really door to door... you have to set up an appointment with a rep.  The concept is more Oreck or Mary Kay or Sugar and Spice.  (Oh, yeah.... went there.)  It is nice to feel the weight and shape of these knives before you purchase because they are very different from what you can buy in stores.  This is a company that truly cares about its products and customers.  Clearly evident in the Forever Gaurantee.

   If you are tired of the cheap knives you buy at the grocery store and are ready to upgrade to an adult set of pointy stabby things, I strongly urge you to consider Cutco.  Yes, they are expensive, but they will literally last forever.  (Provided you take reasonably good care of them.)  Quality costs money.  And, once you buy an item from the company, register on the website to recieve exclusive offers on other products.  Often, they have bundle deals going on too, so be sure to check those out!

Vinturi Wine Aerator

   I have been playing Wii for too long now so I thought I'd make myself take a break and tell you about the awesome gift my brother got me for Christmas.  The Vinturi Aerator.  It was really cute how excited he was about this giving this gift to me.

   Red wine is supposed to "breathe" before you drink it.  That is the purpose of a decanter.  Pour the wine into the crystal decanter, pour into wine glass.... that mixes in the right amount of air.  However, most of us don't have a crystal decanter lying around and probably don't want one.  I don't.  That is way too breakable to have around while drinking.  The Vinture is acrylic.  And is cheaper than a nice decanter.

   I saw one of these a few weeks ago.  My first reaction was,  "Hey!  That is cool!"  My second reaction was, "That is probably bullshit."  But it isn't!  It is crazy the difference that it makes.  We tried it on a $6 bottle of Little Penguin Merlot and holy crap... pouring it through the aerator added like $15 to the wine!  I was amazed.  The little amount of air that is mixed in makes the wine taste more like it is supposed to taste; the same concept as adding salt to sweet desserts.  I can't wait to try this on a nicer bottle of wine.  Because I will say that the funneling my Bota Box (boxed...) wine through this made me feel a little trashy, even though it is perfectly decent, lovely wine!  Didn't stop me though.  My only negative about this is you have to be really careful not to pour the wine too fast or else it leaks out of the teeny air spouts on the side.  Likewise you can't pour too slow because then the wine goes straight through and the air isn't mixed in.  When it makes a weird sucking sound, you are doing it perfectly.  I absolutely recommend this to any wine lover!

Set Includes: aerator funnel, sleek modern stand, a fine mesh basket if you happen to drink really fancy wines that may have a bit of sediment, and a travel pouch for the aerator for wine drinkers on the go.

Christmas Loot and Joy

   I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!  Even though the hubs wasn't here it was a very awesome Christmas.  He got me a Wii and the in-laws got me Cooking Mama: Cook Off which is why there haven't been pasts the last couple of days.  As far as presents, this year was probably the best ever!  I've mentioned the Wii already and I also got brand new Giada DeLaurentis cookware, a wine aerator, and Rocco Disperito's Italian American cookbook.  The cook book is fantastic and loaded with delicious recipes, but it was a sort of a joke present from my mom.  About 90% of the food she makes is Italian; she doesn't like me to make fun of her for it.

   Believe it or not, but I have never owned a cohesive set of pots and pans.  My kitchen stock is made mostly of things my mom didn't want anymore.  Also, many of the items were practically ruined by a former roommate and her squatter boyfriend.  I don't care what they say, you DO NOT put non stick pans or knives in the dishwasher!  But everything has changed now, the set is gorgeous!  Everything is shiny stainless steel with simple, clean lines.  The nonstick is silky smooth and perfect free of the garish gouges in my current ones.  The bottoms are nice and heavy to ensure even heating and heat-retention.  And everything that needs to have a lib has one; no more covering my little sauce pan with aluminum foil to cook rice!  It is everything I need when combined with the only pieces of equipments I want to keep from my current supply.  (Full review once I actually get to use them!)  I am now SO happy I didn't get any of the cookware from my wedding registry because this stuff is so much better (and wasn't available a year ago.) 
Pieces received:  8 qt mutlicooker (steam tray and stock pot), 10 in nonstick saute pan, 4.5 qt nonstick chef's pan, 10 piece Tri-clad Professional Series set (8 in saute pan, 9.5 in saute pan, 5 qt dutch oven, 3 qt, 2 qt, and 1 qt sauce pans) 

Available from Target

  My mother-, father-, and sister-in-law braved the unusual Tennessee Christmas snow to come spend the evening with us.  We had a lovely meal.  Starting off with a mishmash of super yummy appetizers:  blackberry baked brie that my sister-in-law Sarah made, sauerkraut balls, and smoked salmon with cream cheese, capers, and red onion.  For dinner, we roasted about 5 lbs of perfectly gorgeous beef tenderloin.

Simple sides complimented the medium-rare (some medium slices) beef.  My mother-in-law made a salad with strawberries and mandarin oranges (and everyone knows that mandarin oranges are one of the best things you can put with lettuce).  We had ridiculously easy thyme roasted zucchini, summer squash, and tomatoes.  And the main side dish of mushroom pasta was loaded with buttons, shitakes, and [dried] chanterelles. 

I am sorry that I didn't snap any pictures of dessert because it was really pretty.  Sarah made white chocolate bread pudding and we topped it with cherries jubilee.  Ultra decadent!