Wild Rice-Turkey Soup

4 cups Broth from Turkey bones & turkey meat (Simmer on low for at least two hours)

2 cups chopped Celery

1 cup flat leaf Parsley

1 clove Garlic-minced

1 small Yellow Onion-diced

1 sprig Rosemary

Salt & Pepper

2 cups chopped Turkey meat

1 cup diced Carrots

1 cup Wild Rice blend-uncooked

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons Olive Oil

Directions:

Over medium heat, heat olive oil & butter. Sauté garlic & onions till golden brown. Add rice & cook until fragrant. Add celery, carrots, parsley, and rosemary. Cook until tender. Add cooked veggies to stock. Add turkey meat & cook over low heat until tender. Serve immediately.

Creamy Pumpkin Cheesecake

Creamy Pumpkin Cheesecake

**Adapted from a By Sprinkle Bakes recipe 

Ginger-Pecan Crust:

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1/3 cup pecans (1.2 oz.)

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 cup cold butter

1 tablespoon cold water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan in an 18 inch square of heavy duty aluminum.  

2. Place flour, sugar, salt, pecans and ginger in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the pecans are finely ground. Add cold butter and process until crumbs form. Add water and process in bursts until the dough starts to come together in clumps. Press dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.

3. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool completely. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Filling:

1 cup pumpkin puree (canned is fine)

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons Rum

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 lbs (20 oz, or 2 1/2 eight oz. bricks) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

2 tbsp cornstarch

4 large eggs

1. In a medium bowl whisk together pumpkin puree, heavy cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon , ginger and salt. Set aside.

2. In a standing mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at medium-low until creamy (approx. 2 mins). Gradually add sugars and beat until blended. Add pumpkin mixture and beat until blended. Add cornstarch and beat until just combined. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down bowl as necessary.

3. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter onto the cooled crust. Place the aluminum-wrapped pan in a roasting pan or large baking pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come up 1 inch up the sides of the springform pan. Bake 70-80 minutes, or until set and slightly wobbly. The cake will completely set as it cools.

Whipped Cream Topping

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1. In a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, beat heavy cream until it begins to thicken slightly. Add in granulated sugar a little at a time.

2. Beat until stiff peaks form. Use to top cheesecake, or pipe in decorative swirls. You may also serve this on the side.

Cranberry-Apple Herbed Stuffing

Cranberry-Apple Herbed Stuffing

1 large loaf French or other white bread
1 yellow Onion-diced
1 cup fresh flat leaf Parsley-Minced
2 ½ cups Celery-Chopped
2 large Garlic cloves-peeled (for stock)
2 fresh Garlic cloves-minced (for stuffing)
3-4 sprigs fresh Rosemary
1/8 cup fresh Sage-chopped
2-3 large sprigs Thyme
3 tablespoons Butter for sautéing veggies
3 tablespoons Butter for topping stuffing
1 quart Chicken or Vegetable stock
½ cup golden Raisins
1 red Apple-peeled & chopped into small pieces
1 cup dried Cranberries
¼ cup Olive Oil
1/8 cup green Peppercorns
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

**Make ahead of time:
Cut French bread loaf (large) into large bite sized pieces. Toast at 275 degrees in oven after drizzling with olive oil. Remove once golden brown & crispy. Cool & store in large zip lock bags.

Chop all herbs. Place peppercorns, herbs, whole peeled garlic, cranberries and raisins into chicken stock over stop top & simmer on medium low heat for about 30 minutes. Season. Set aside.

Over medium-high heat, melt 3 tablespoons butter& 1/4 cup olive oil. Sauté onions and garlic until golden brown. Add parsley, celery, and apples. Cook until tender, season.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a large, deep baking dish. In a large bowl, combine bread and veggies. Gradually add chicken stock, mixing well, until all ingredients and well combined, and bread is damp, but not soggy. Place into baking dish. Pour remaining stock over stuffing, and drizzle remaining melted butter over stuffing. Cover & bake for about 45 minutes.

Thanksgiving 2011

This year’s Thanksgiving holidays were awesome as usual. Family, friends, vacation, activities. We literally stayed busy every minute of the entire week, including fitting in baking for the troops, pre-baking for Thanksgiving, & doing activities with the kids. Now that it is all over, I realize I haven’t blogged anything for over an entire week. Darn. Well, although these recipes will not help you now, I am documenting for next year (less work next holiday season)…so that you might be able to use them for your own holiday feast! Enjoy.

Here’s what I made:

Cranberry-Apple Herbed Stuffing

Cheese Potatoes

Squash & Asiago Béchamel Mac & Cheese

Meyers Lemon-Chess Pie

Creamy Pumpkin Cheesecake

Pumpkin Pie

Chocolate Chip-Banana Bread

Pumpkin Spice Bread

Banana Bread

Lemon-Poppy Seed Pound Cake

Recipes & photos to follow………………

Baking for the Troops...with Duncan Hines & Foodbuzz

Being an Air Force wife, there are many opportunities for us to volunteer and help make a difference. Since being married to my husband and getting to know the military better, it has given me a renewed appreciation for what they do, and the sacrifices they make.

As part of a Foodbuzz Tastemakers program with Duncan Hines, we were provided an array of coupons to purchase free Duncan Hines products. We used some of the easy to use mixes, combined with a few other ingredients, to make a variety of different flavored breads. My daughter and I spent the day Sunday baking the breads, which will be mailed to soldiers stationed overseas and domestically, in an effort to brighten the holidays. This is especially nice for some of the enlisted soldiers who may not have the funds to go home for Thanksgiving this year. Many other military wives and families participate annually in these types of efforts. This is just a small way we can say thanks for what they all do each day to keep us safe and protected. They make a difference in our lives, and this is a small way we can make one in theirs.

We made Banana Bread, Lemon-Poppy Seed Pound Cake, Pumpkin-Spice bread, & Banana-Chocolate Chip bread!