Early Thanksgiving Tradition Part II

Today's post is all about gravy. Since I've been cooking Thanksgiving meals, my husband, Daniel, has learned to make some pretty amazing gravy. Everyone always raves over it and it has really become his specialty.   Gravy is one of those things that is kind of hard to cook. If you don't get it just right, it can turn out to be quite a mess. The method below allows you to add the flavorings that you want and helps you ensure that you'll have lump-free, amazing gravy every time. This is obviously NOT healthy. Everything in moderation, right?

This recipe makes 4-5 servings and should be doubled to serve a large family gathering.

What you'll need:

1 1/2 cups of drippings from chicken or turkey

1 c of water

1/2 c of all purpose flour

Seasoning and lemons that you used to flavor bird

Chicken Broth (as needed)

1. Place your drippings in a sauce pan and heat on medium heat. Use a slotted spoon to get out any large pieces. Add in about 1/2 c. of chicken broth to thin out. Bring to a low boil.

2. In the meantime, you can start working on your flour mixture. Add flour and water in a plastic container that has a lid. Now for Daniel's favorite part, put the lid on and shake vigorously for 2 minutes. 

3. Your flour/water mixture, known as a slurry in the food world, should be fairly thin and have no lumps. If there are lumps, continue to shake! 

4. Now, some people like their gravy thick and some like it thinner. You may not use all of the slurry and that's okay. This is all about making the gravy how you and your family enjoy it. Start by adding about 2 tbsp. of the flour/water mixture into your boiling meat drippings. Turn the heat down to medium low. Whisk around in the pan for about 1-2 minutes to allow it to thicken. Continue to add 2 tbsp. of the slurry mixture to make it thicker. If you get it too thick, add some chicken broth to thin it out.

I love being in the kitchen with him.

5. Continue to whisk and add the slurry as needed. Once you get it to the thickness you want, add 1 tsp. lemon juice, 1 tsp. pepper and salt, and about 1 tsp. total of seasonings that you used on the turkey/chicken, in this case, rosemary and a bay leaf. Continue to cook the mixture for about 5 minutes after you get it to your desired consistency.

Now, this gravy is really my favorite. The lemon and rosemary from the chicken really put it over the top. This gravy is topping my dressing. You'll have to come back in a couple of days to learn how to make it. :)

Garden Fresh Tomatoes

As I've mentioned before, we grow our own tomatoes during the summer. I actually do not enjoy raw tomatoes at all, weird, right? But, I do love cooked tomatoes in all kinds of varieties. We've been loaded down with fresh tomatoes lately. Here's a way to savor summer's best tomatoes in a multi-use sauce.

Only use ripe tomatoes. If they are a little green at the top, that's fine. If they are too green, put them in a window for a couple of days and they should be perfect. Mine have splits in them because they are home grown. 

Peel the tomatoes and take out all of the seeds and extra liquid. This is a messy process and requires you to get your hands messy!  The seeds and a lot of the liquid are where you see the yellow-ish areas.

Here are my tomatoes with all the seeds removed. You want to take out the seeds because they hold a lot of liquid around them. Tomatoes already have tons of water and leaving in the seeds will just makes your sauce too soupy. From this point, slice the tomatoes up into big chunks. Usually, I cut each tomato into four parts unless one is really big.

Put the tomatoes in a pot with about 2 tbsp. of water. Bring to a boil. Simmer for about 15 minutes.

The juice will naturally start to come out and make a sauce.

 After it has simmered, stir the tomatoes gently. The tomatoes will start to fall apart. The longer you cook, the thinner your sauce will become. 

At this point, you have a few choices. You can add some oregano and basil and serve over pasta. You can put into jars and freeze to enjoy summer fresh tomatoes all year. 

 

What I did this time... add fresh okra and corn right off the cob.  It's a quick vegetable soup!

 Enjoy with some cornbread.

Happy Weekend!!

Things I love about Summer... Part 1

Happy Monday! Let me start off by saying, summer is my favorite season! I thrive during the summer.

One of my favorite things about summer is growing veggies and herbs in our yard. Actually, until this year, we've had our "garden" in pots because we've lived in apartments. This year, we're in our house and actually have land to plant things in! Anyway, one of my favorite things to grow is basil. I could eat basil plain! It's sweet, yet kind of peppery. You can throw basil in jarred spaghetti sauce, pasta, scones, etc. But, my favorite thing to do with basil is make pesto!

During the winter months, I crave fresh produce and sauces! So, a few years ago, I decided to freeze pesto and see what happens. Turns out, it's just as delicious as when you first made it.

If you don't have a recipe for pesto or if you've never made it- here and here are good, easy recipes! If you want a healthier pesto- substitute half of the olive oil with lemon juice.

Make a big batch of pesto... and place about 1/2 cup of pesto in individual ziplock freezer bags and roll up so that all of the pesto is in the bottom of the bag. Place in freezer!

Now, in January when you're craving summer- like I do... take one bag out and place in a bowl of warm (not hot) water for about 15 minutes to thaw it. Hot water can sometimes turn it brown. Then, use pesto as you normally would.

My favorite way to eat it: on whole wheat pasta with chicken! You can clip one corner of the plastic bag off and squeeze out. No mess!

Are there any other sauces that you like to freeze?

Tangy Guacamole

One thing that I love is guacamole! But, I'm very picky about it. I don't like crunchy onions and I like it really tangy. This is my recipe for my favorite guacamole.

This recipe makes enough for a snack or appetizer for two people, or for one person to be enjoyed over a day or two :)

For this recipe you'll need: one ripe avocado, one lime, 1/4 of a medium tomato (or just a small one), one small jalapeno, salt, pepper, dried cilantro, and onion powder.

Half the avocado, dice it while its still inside the peeling, then turn it inside out. Then, it all falls out in perfect cubes.

Avocado will turn brown very, very quickly. And this is where the tangy part comes in. Add the juice of one whole lime and stir well with the avocado chunks making sure that each piece gets covered in lime juice. This will not only make it tangy, but keep it from turning brown.

Then, add the following to the bowl:
1) Tomato- (as much or as little as you like, I go with about 1/6 cup) use the firm part of the tomato from close to the skin
2) 1 tbsp. jalapeno chopped very finely
3) 1/2 tsp. onion powder
4) 1 1/2 tsp. cilantro (If using fresh, you may need a little more)
5) 1/2 tsp. salt
6) 1/4 tsp. black pepper

Put all ingredients in the bowl. Use a fork to mash the avocado. Mash until it has a few small chunks left. Stir together well to make sure all ingredients are combined. Cover with plastic wrap and press the wrap down until it touches the guacamole.

You can eat it right away but it tastes best after sitting in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
I hope you enjoy this yummy, healthy treat!