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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 3, 2009 at 3:48pm

So none of you cook. I see.

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Permalink Reply by Young Minds EarlyLearningCentre on December 3, 2009 at 4:07pm

Hey, one of my favourite recipes for this time of year is bulgur wheat stuffed cornish hens, with a sage and lime marinade.
I make a simple stuffing using onions, garlic, bulgur and chicken stock (finish with fresh italian parsley).
I make and even simpler marinade for my little hens to bathe in for a couple of hours, lime juice and zest, minced garlic, minced fresh sage, little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper.
I stuff the hens with the bulgur/onions/parsley mixture and use the rest of the stuffing as a bed for the hens to roast on. The stuffing will taste even more delicious after the cornish hens have been sitting on it for an hour in the oven. I like roasting it a 375 and using the excess marinating liquid to baste the birds.
Delish.

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 3, 2009 at 4:11pm

Nancy, you star! I'd love to see what you got! Lookin forward to it.

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 3, 2009 at 4:15pm

Whoah. OK there's a challenge.

So onions/garlic/bulgur wheat/chicken stock/parsley for a filling.

Marinade birds in lime juice/lime zest/minced garlic/minced sage/EVOO/Salt/pepper

Stuff and sit birds

Roast 375 while marinating

I'll get back to ya. Thanks for the post!

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Permalink Reply by Pat on December 3, 2009 at 9:13pm

Neither of these is good for you. I'm just sayin'. But they're usually a big hit at parties.

Paté #1
This is the basic recipe -- you can add spices and herbs to it to do what you want. I've used basil, Italian herbs, green peppercorns, and even did it once with curry powder.
1/2 lb butter
1 medium onion, chopped
about 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
2 apples peeled, cored, diced
2 oz calvados
1 lb chicken livers

Making paté takes time. Take the time to do it right: if you try to rush things, you'll have too much moisture in the paté, and it will be too soft. In a small frying pan, melt a couple of tablespoons of butter and add the apples. Cook them slowly until most of the moisture is gone from them and they have carmelized on the outside. This will take about a half-hour or so.
While that's happening, in a 10" frying pan (cast iron's really good for this) melt a couple of tablespoons of butter and add the mushrooms. Cook them down until they've released all their water and become dark and meaty. Add the onion and sweat it. Add the calvados, and cook the liquid down until it's almost all gone. Add the rest of the butter, and when the water in it has boiled away, add the chicken livers. Add the apples. Cook until the livers are pink inside, and remove from heat. When cooled, process in a food processor until smooth. Spoon the mixture into a plastic-lined loaf pan, cover with plastic laying directly on the pate (otherwise it oxidizes and turns gray). Refrigerate.

Paté #2
Stolen idea from Jacques Pepin, but I'm using chicken liver instead of duck (and most cleaned ducks these days don't seem to come with the livers in them!)
1/2 lb duck fat
2 shallots, finely chopped
3/4 lb chicken livers

Heat the duck fat, and give it 15-20 minutes over a medium-low heat, until it starts to get a little bit of color to it. Add the shallots, and give them a minute. Then (slowly! you don't want hot fat splashing) add the chicken livers. Cook until pink inside, then remove from heat. When cool, process in a food processor, and press through a sieve. Spoon into a plastic-lined loaf pan, or small jars if giving as a gift, or a crock.

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Permalink Reply by Pat on December 3, 2009 at 9:24pm

Cranberry sauce
1 bag organic cranberries (it's about 8 oz)
1-1/2 cups apple cider
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
In a saucepan, simmer the cider down to half its volume.
Add the cranberries, and when they're nice and shiny (but before they start popping) add the toasted slivered almonds. Continue to simmer until about half of the cranberries have popped. Remove from heat, refrigerate until serving.
Worked really nicely this summer on some sandwiches I made of baguette and confit of duck.
Pictures of the whole duck confit operation here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/patanderson/3750278601/in/set-72157621...
Sandwich shot: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bettybrown/3832188894/

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 4, 2009 at 5:57am

LOL things that are good for me, I usually don't like. Also, tis the season for "things bad for me".

Wow I never thought of paté. I'll have to give it a try. Of the two I will probably chase up the duck livers. My family has a bit of history with that stuff.

When you say shallots, do you mean the garlic/onion type, or the green onion type? I'm thinking the first. UPDATE: Saw your Flickr photos, so now I know. I cry too over onions. Poor onions.

Cheers

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 4, 2009 at 6:06am

Seriously slow food. Well done.

Question: Can you get duck fat from butchers? Where would I find some?

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Permalink Reply by Pat on December 4, 2009 at 9:25am

St. Lawrence market. Both DeLiso's and Whitehouse carry it.

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 4, 2009 at 9:26am

Oh I know where to find butchers. I'm a long time visitor of St. Lawrence, but I've never bought duck fat. I just didn't know how common it was.

Cheers

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Permalink Reply by Nancy on December 5, 2009 at 8:32am

First of two vegetarian delights.

Cheese Fondue

All quantities are approximate. It's very forgiving.

1lb Ementhal
1/2 lb Gruyere
2 - 3 tbsp flour
3 c dry white wine
I clove of garlic
3 tbs kirsch
pepper
nutmeg

1 baguette
broccoli
cauliflower
small pickled onions
2 Granny Smith apples
lemon juice

Cut baguette into bite sized cube with some crust on each cube.
Wash and dry broccoli and cauliflower. Cut florets into bite sized pieces.
Dry the pickled onions.
Cut apples into bite sized pieces then place in a plastic bag with some lemon juice. Shake to ensure apple is covered with lemon juice. This will stop it from going brown.

Grate the cheese and sprinkle with the flour. Toss to ensure most of the cheese is coated.
Smash and chop the garlic clove and put it in the fondue pot. Add the wine and heat to a simmer.
Start adding the cheese one handful at a time, stirring till it melts before adding the next handful.
When all the cheese has been added stir in the kirsch, nutmeg and pepper.

Put the pot on a fondue burner at the table. Set the flame to low.
Dip the bread, vegetables, onions and apples into the fondue and eat!

This recipe will feed 4 - 6 people depending on what else is served. Leftovers are great the next day so I try to make too much rather than too little.

This is a family favourite. The recipe evolved from one we got at the Swiss Pavilion at Expo '67 in Montreal. It's been a regular Xmas Eve dinner since then.

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BBQ Eggplant Burgers

One large eggplant
2 or 3 large vidalia onions
old cheddar cheese
bbq sauce
oil

Peel the eggplant and slice about 3/4" thick. Salt and place in a collander to drain for 1/2 hr.
Peel and slice the onions about 1/2" thick. Stick 2 toothpicks into each slice to hold the rings together.
Slice the cheese.
Turn the BBQ on.

Rinse and dry the eggplant slices and brush with olive oil. It will really suck up the oil.

BBQ the eggplant and onion slices till the eggplant starts getting soft. Brush both with BBQ sauce of your choice (I like President's Choice Gourmet). Flip them back and forth to cook and sauce on both sides. Add more sauce if the eggplant looks dry. When the eggplant is very soft it's done. Onion should be soft and brown edged to. Put a slice of cheese on each eggplant slice and heat till it starts to melt. Toast buns if you like.

Assemble -
Bun bottom
Eggplant
Onion (toothpicks removed)
Bun top

So wonderful, my mouth is watering just typing this out.

Very messy though, both on the grill and to eat..... but worth it.

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Permalink Reply by Scratch Egg on December 5, 2009 at 4:19pm

Did just that today. Whipping up 4 birds tonight.

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