You've Got To Taste This

During the fall, when one holiday tends to roll into the next, I find myself constantly looking for shortcuts.  Fast appetizers.  No-cook desserts.  Make-ahead sides.  This year, I've decided to put my time-saving efforts to the test and cook a complete, from scratch Thanksgiving meal in two hours or less. 

On paper it can be done.  I know because I've devised a very detailed time-line starting at 5pm with "Prepare turkey" and ending at 7pm with "Dinner is served!".

The first thing I did was pick the menu.  Because I'm cooking in my apartment (ergo, no second oven or specialty equipment), I had to find a turkey that would cook all the way through in less than two hours, so I'd have time to make the gravy and cook the rolls in the oven before time was up.  My best whisk for a microwaveable roll recipe!

This Monday, November 3, I'll get cooking in the kitchen with the help of one loyal friend and maybe a glass or two of wine.  At 7, our friends will arrive to sample the goods and, hopefully, take home some of the leftovers.  Don't forget, this is a serious Thanksgiving dinner.  No turkey breast for us, we're going with the 12-pound bird.

Check out the menu, then check back all next week for updates on the shopping list, the grocery trip, the cooking plan, and the minute-by-minute execution.  Perhaps I should also point out that, while this is not my first Thanksgiving to orchestrate, it is my first time cooking a turkey. Case in point, I just realized that I should probably already have one thawing in my fridge.

The Menu

Blast Furnace-Roasted Turkey

Garlicky Green Beans with Pine Nuts

Creamed Corn

Stovetop Mac and Cheese

Sweet-Potato Mash

Wild Rice Stuffing

Last-Minute Gravy

Apple-Pecan Crisp

Quick Yeast Rolls

Ambrosia

With the weather dipping below the freezing point for the first time this season, I am now officially craving chili. Although I do love a spicy tomato-based chili, my favorite kind is white chili  with chicken or turkey, white beans and green chiles. There are lots of great versions of white chili, and I often experiment around and combine ideas from several different recipes.

But when I get home from work late and need a quick and easy chili, the White Bean Chili from the All-New Complete Step-by-Step Diabetic Cookbook from Oxmoor House is one I turn to regularly.  It has only 8 ingredients, and they're all items that I usually keep on hand. If I don't have cannellini beans, I use navy beans, and if I don't have an onion, I use frozen chopped onion. I used rotisserie chicken last night, but sometimes I use leftover chicken or turkey. The cook time is less than 30 minutes and it has great flavor for a chili that cooks so quickly.

The real secret to the thickness of this chili is mashing one can of the beans.  Don't take a shortcut and leave out this step because it won't be as good.  I also like to "doctor up" this recipe by topping  it with low-fat sour cream or some shredded Monterey Jack cheese.  Stirring in some cheese or the sour cream thickens it even more.  There's just nothing better on a nippy fall night.   

For some other variations, check out all the white chili recipes on MyRecipes.  Let me know which ones are your favorites.

My six-year-old son goes through phases with his eating habits.  Some days he can outeat The Husband.  Other days it seems like he's only eaten pretzel sticks and water.  So recently, after a spate of pure pickiness, he requested spaghetti and meatballs.  Wanting to make him a dinner that he would eat with great relish, I readily agreed.  Who doesn't love spaghetti and meatballs?

Usually I just use my own wing-it recipe when it comes to meatballs, but this time I turned to Cooking Light for inspiration.  I ended up going with this recipe, and it took just minutes to make.  Juicy, tender and it totally brought to mind the refrain from that popular kid song we all loved growing up:

"On top of Spaghetti all covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed.
It fell off the table and onto the floor,
The last time I saw it, it rolled out the door."

Loved that little ditty (you can find the wonderful history behind the fun song right here) and it was the perfect time to get Nicholas hooked on it as well.  So now the next time you have meatballs, that song will be rattling through your head as well ... and I can't think of a better excuse to have spaghetti and meatballs for dinner.  Dig in!

Sushi is one of my all-time favorite foods and when I backpacked through Osaka, Kobe, Nara, and Tokyo I truly indulged in this Japanese specialty everyday. The bite-sized delights are an art form, and you can find the freshest and highest quality of fish at Tsukiji Market, the largest seafood market in central Tokyo.

Japanese chefs are trained to slice and roll the delicate raw fish in a variety of ways for an exquisite display and remarkable dining experience. For anyone who is a little intimidated to make sushi and/or order it, don’t worry you’re not alone.

Here are a few terms/links next time you’re stuck skimming over the sushi menu:

Maki rolls are probably the most favored in sushi restaurants. An assortment of vegetables, raw fish or tofu along with rice is held together by various seaweed pieces, nori. Hosomaki are thin sushi rolls and futomaki are thick sushi rolls. The California roll, crunchy shrimp, and spicy tuna are my chosen maki staples. I’ve decided to get a bamboo-rolling mat and attempt making hand-rolled sushi rolls at home. It should be a debacle, but I’m up for a challenge.

Nigiri sushi is thinly sliced raw fish layered on top of a small, oval-shaped clump of sushi rice. For this type of sushi the highest quality of fresh fish is a necessity. I enjoy octopus, salmon, or tuna nigiri dipped in soy sauce and seasoned with a touch of wasabi. Yum!

Sashimi is very simple and elegant single slices of raw fish. Yellowtail and tuna are quite common, and they have a soft fish taste.

For more information check out:
Sushi Links
Sushi Faq

What are some of your favorite sushi selections or tips on preparing sushi?

I like iced tea as much as the next Southerner, but always shied away from making it because of the effort and time involved.  In other words, I didn't like it enough to wait for the water to boil, let the tea steep long enough, and then let the whole concoction cool off long enough to transfer to a proper pitcher and refrigerate.  The whole process seemed so cumbersome to me that I ended up not even drinking any of the tea because I wanted to conserve it as long as possible - thus completely defeating the purpose of making it in the first place!

Enter an automatic iced tea maker.  Now, I know these contraptions are probably old news to most readers, but my new Hamilton Beach Electric Iced Tea Maker has been a god-send lately.  When I started my last trimester of pregnancy in August, I wanted to start drinking Red Raspberry Leaf tea, an herbal tea that women have used for thousands of years to help with pregnancy and labor.  However, the thought of drinking several cups of hot tea in Alabama in August, while pregnant, was simply laughable.    So once again, I was faced with the task of making iced tea.  Thinking there must surely be an easier way to do this, I did a quick search on Amazon.com and found this iced tea maker.  Reviewers vastly preferred it over the Mr. Coffee version, and it seemed like a good buy. 

Needless to say, I've used the tea maker nearly every day since it landed on our doorstep!  It's super easy to use and produces delicious tea, though most people have to fiddle a little bit with how much tea, sugar, etc to use, and what strength to brew (the maker offers 3 different options).  I use 3 tablespoons of loose leaf Red Rasberry Leaf tea and instead of adding ice, run water through twice to make 2 quarts of tea, and chill in the fridge.  I've also started adding a few tablespoons of sugar or Splenda to the pitcher before brewing for a hint of sweetness.  I'm drinking about 4 cups of tea a day now, so I have to make a new batch about every two days, but that's no problem with my new iced tea maker!  No longer do hard-won pitchers of stove-brewed tea sit lonely in my fridge, and that's a great thing.   

Until about three months ago, I had never paid much attention to wedding cakes.  Sure, they were tasty and, of course, pretty, and, that's right, the groom's cake is usually chocolate. Then I got engaged.

Since that day, I've found myself boning up on cake flavors, cake fillings, and icings and, let me tell you, picking out a wedding cake is no piece of cake!

I put in the call to my sister-in-law, definitely the family member with the best taste, and asked her opinion.  She, along with the friends, family, and random strangers at the deli that I polled, had some good advice when picking a wedding cake, and a baker:

1.  Ask to sample what he thinks he does best.  It's probably most popular for a reason.

2. Take a sample cake, uncut if possible, home and let it sit for a few days then try it.  Some cakes take days to decorate and can get very dry.

3. Pick what you want.  One friend served her cake with cookie dough ice cream.  People may not remember the filling on her cake, but they still rave about the ice cream!

Lucky for me, I'm surrounded by food, and people who love food, all day, so I'm able to check out some of the MyRecipes research on the topic.  In Wedding Cake Confidential, I got an insider's view into the life and thoughts of a wedding cake designer and his take on the season's trends. Once I got my research done, I moved onto the fun part--the design.  I love just looking at the photos in the Wonderful Wedding Cakes gallery.

This afternoon, my fiance and I are having our cake tasting, so here's hoping we find exactly what we're looking for, even though I'm still not quite sure what that is.  Any tips or stories about picking your wedding cake?  Let me know if you have a favorite flavor or style.  I might just make it mine, too!

When you're not good with clever costumes and you can't eat candy, Halloween loses a bit of its luster.  I was diagnosed with diabetes when I was 12 years old and, since I was at the end of my trick-or-treating career, giving up eating sackfuls of candy was not a huge problem.  Now, unlike way back then, low-sugar candies are everywhere,  but I was still surprised to discover sugar-free Halloween Peeps.  I had mistakenly thought that Peeps were only for Easter, but then saw some pumpkin peeps at the grocery store. Then one of our food stylists told me about the sugar-free version.  No way!

Now I'll confess that I've never been a huge peeps fan, and I understand that most people either love them or hate them. I suspect that true Peeps lovers are incensed about these sugar-free versions (they also have sugar-free Easter peeps), and perhaps they have good reason to be.  But hey, it's about time that those of us with diabetes can at least join in the conversation.

These orange-colored marshmallow pumpkins come in a package of three, and a serving size is 3 pumpkins. They're sweetened with Splenda, malitol, isomalt, and sorbitol and one serving is 60 calories, has 0 grams of fat, and 23 grams of carbohydrate.  Note, however, that all of the carbohydrate comes from sugar alcohols, so you would not absorb that much carbohydrate.  If you've ever eaten many products sweetened with sugar alcohols, you know that they can cause mild stomach problems.

I think these are a fun addition to the Halloween candy lineup, but I actually would prefer a bite of chocolate or some peanuts. I'd love to hear if anyone else has some low-sugar Halloween ideas.

Jitlada, in Thai Town, on the border of L.A.'s Little Armenia is one of the best Thai food restaurants I've been to in a long time.  Jazz, co-owner with her brother Tui, welcomed me by first reading my palm: "You are going to be very rich," she assured me.  "You lucky woman.  You're going to be OK, but don't think too much."   

I didn't have to think twice about the beautiful offerings Jazz started setting before us, dishes from Jitlada's menu of lesser-known southern Thai specialties.  We started out with a rice salad, khao yam, tossed with toasted coconut, shredded lemongrass, dried shrimp, kaffir lime leaf and a sweet sauce called naam khoei.  Then Jazz brought out a crunchy fish salad, a bowl of pungent and creamy green curry thick with egg yolk-stuffed fish balls,Tamarind-drizzled prawns, and Thai iced coffees.  I always save room for fresh Mango and Coconut-scented Sticky Rice; Jitlada's version is divine!

Co-owner, Jazz (right), serving forth her famous crispy catfish salad.  Watch Jazz and Tui as they show me how to make Coconut Chicken Soup and Pad Thai in the latest Local Flavor video.

JITLADA Thai Cuisine

5233 1/2 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA    90027-5709
  Phone: (323) 667-9809

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE THAI RESTAURANTS AND RECIPES?

Kim Sunée is the author of TRAIL OF CRUMBS: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home.  She is also the food editor of Cottage Living magazine and the host of LOCAL FLAVOR with Kim Sunée.  Visit her site at www.kimsunee.com.

This past weekend I was the maid-of-honor in my best friend, Kristen’s wedding. My mother and I planned a Wedding Day Brunch for around 15 ladies. If anyone knows my mother then they have gathered that she is the quintessential party hostess and wedding shower warrior. And if anyone knows me then they understand I don't plan anything. So my mother and I teamed up!

For this fall themed Wedding Brunch she had everything down to a formula, from the overabundance of rich autumn colored serving platters and pumpkin decorations to the perfectly ironed antique linen napkins. It was a beautiful spread of the autumn season draped across our dinning room table. Yet, the brunch menu had to be the most hassle-free.

We decided on a sasauge and cheese Breakfast Casserole, because it is easy to assemble and feeds a lot of guests. This simple casserole is one of my all-time favorite entertaining recipes. We always have great reviews. Who doesn’t love anything with bread, melted cheese, sausage, and eggs?

Bite-size muffins were perfect for nibbling on while talking about the Kristen’s big day. We made the classic Blueberry Muffins and crumbly Cheese Muffins. My mother grabbed a Baked Cheese Grits recipe from one of her Southern Living cookbooks.

We assembled a light and fresh fruit platter featuring grapes, cantaloupe, strawberries, and honeydew. This is always an easy favorite and much cheaper if you go the do-it-yourself route. The girls washed it all down with a simple yet tasty mimosa punch, concocted by combining champagne, orange juice, and a splash of cherry grenadine to add a little color.

Yes, it was a nice, relaxing brunch with the wedding party before everyone scattered to get ready. It was the calm before the storm. I hope to host a few more in the future and around the holidays since I’ve experienced how easy they can be.

Check out some more of my favorite Breakfast and Brunch dishes that didn’t make the cut, but are amazingly delicious:

Ham and Biscuits
Best Friends Iced Coffee Frappe
Cinnamon Rolls
Hash Brown Casserole
Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
Pear Mimosas

What are some of your favorite brunch memories and recipes?

One of the great things about marrying into a family that hunts is the pretty much constant supply of free, nutritious meat -- especially venison.  Of course, this can also present a challenge: how to use up all of the venison from last year, plus surplus from my father-in-law?  Deer season is almost upon us here in Alabama, and we still have a good stock of venison burger, sausage, and steak.  We've managed to use quite a bit of the burger in hamburgers, hamburger helper, spaghetti, and the like, and venison sausage is delicious on Saturday mornings.  The steaks, however, are a bit harder to get through.  Venison has so little fat in the meat that it's a challenge not to overcook it.  I've tried adding using the steaks in stir-fries and slow-cooker recipes, but have never found a dish that I like more than Dixie Creek Roll-Ups, one of my husband's specialties.

These roll-ups are similar to chicken cordon bleu, except without the chicken, ham, or swiss cheese.  (Ok, so maybe not so much like chicken cordon bleu after all.)  They're super easy to prepare, and are simply my favorite way to cook venison:

Dixie Creek Roll-Ups:
1-2 lbs cubed venison steak (depending on how many roll-ups you want to make)
Bottle of marinade (we prefer Moore's)
1 8oz package of pepperjack cheese
Green onion, cut into strips
1 lb bacon

1. Marinate defrosted steaks in the marinade of your choice for 1 hour. Discard marinade.
2. Place a chunk of cheese and a few strips of green onion at one of the long ends of a steak. You'll want to be able to see the end of the cheese, but without it poking out the sides.
3. Roll up the steak, cheese, and green onion until tight.
4. Take a piece of bacon and wrap around the roll-up from end to end, covering as much of the outside of the roll-up as possible. Secure roll-up with several toothpicks.
5. Grill roll-ups until done (generally they are done when the cheese is melted).