Thanksgiving Leftovers-Post 2 Cranberry Cream Cheese Muffins

I love muffins with cranberries. I enjoy the tart flavor breaking through the sweetness of the muffin. One problem, there are never enough cranberries for me when I get a cranberry muffin. Also, if I could, every muffin would have cream cheese in it if I had my way.

So I used some cranberry sauce to make my own. So I actually made cranberry sauce to make these muffins, so technically mine were not made of leftovers. But I wanted to make the cranberry sauce tarter than you would eat plain to put in the muffins.

The cream cheese part actually, may not be necessary next time. The cranberry flavor was nice enough. But take it or leave it depending on your tastes in muffins.
This makes 12 regular muffins, or 6 Jumbo muffins. I made jumbo muffins, because for some reason, I have no regular muffin pans.

Ingredients:
About 1 cup cranberry sauce
3/4 block of cream cheese, softened
1 TBSP maple syrup
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (or 1 1/3 cups flour and 3/4 cup oats)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsps baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 milk
1/4 cup cooking oil (I used Canola)

Put the softened cream cheese in a food processor/mixer with the maple syrup. Whip until smooth.

Here is my cranberry sauce-just finished cooking. I used 100% cranberry juice to make it, so it was pretty tart. It was sweetened with some maple syrup though, I based the recipe on Pioneer Woman's.

Grease your muffin tins or line with paper cups, set aside. Pre-heat the oven to 350.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. (I used raw sugar)

In another bowl combine egg, milk, and oil.

Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened.

I layered the batter with the cranberry and cream cheese.

Then I mixed it up a little to get some good cranberry distribution. Bake for about 30 minutes.

Thanksgiving Leftovers: Post 1

November was not a good month for me, blogging wise. I am here to make that up with several posts on how to use Thanksgiving leftovers.
I made a turkey this year, so I had plenty to use up. This first recipe also has the bonus of using leftover mashed potatoes to make a shepherd's pie. I love shepherd's pie, but on a regular weeknight making a dinner that also requires making mashed potatoes doesn't happen. So this is a nice use of leftovers. I even used leftover white wine from Thanksgiving dinner!


Thanksgiving Leftover Shepherd's Pie

1 onion, chopped
1 bulb fennel, cored and chopped into bite sized pieces
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 TBSP butter
1 TBSP olive oil
2 carrots, halved and cut into 1/4" slices
4 celery stalks, chopped
2 tsp chopped fresh sage
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 TBSP butter
3 TBSP all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper
1 1/2-ish cups diced leftover cooked turkey
Leftover mashed potatoes (about 1 1/2 cups)

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

Here is the chopped onion and fennel. I just love fennel, it gives winter food a Je ne sais quoi.

Melt 1 TBSP butter and olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion and fennel. Saute on med-high about 5 minutes or so, until they start to get soft. Then add the gah-lic and cook for another minute or two. Then add the other veggies and the sage.

You could use any other veggies you have lying around that you want also. I think a red bell pepper would be nice.

Turn down and let it cook a little, adding some salt and pepper.
While the veggies finish cooking, add the 3 TBSP of butter to a saucepan. Once it is melted, whisk in the flour to make the base for your sauce. This is what will make it thick. After the flour and butter come together cook it for about a minute.

Here is the butter and flour getting cozy. For this, you can't cut down the amount of butter, or it won't work. You need an equal amount of fat and flour to make this base.

Then slowly add the broth and wine, whisking it in to combine.

I didn't measure exact amounts of wine and broth, to be honest. Just keep adding until you get the consistency you want in your sauce

Add a little salt and pepper. My sauce tasted pretty salty when I tasted it, but once I ate the final product it didn't. Remember, the sauce will be with all those veggies and it will balance.



Add the turkey to the veggies, then stir in the sauce. Pour it all into a small casserole dish.

then top with the mashed potatoes.

Then top with the mashed potatoes.

Sprinkle on the grated parmesan or romano cheese.

Put it in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes look a little browned.

Barefoot Bloggers: Butternut Squash Risotto

I knew I would like this recipe because a) I love to make risotto, b) anything with pancetta is good and c) I really enjoy butternut squash in the fall.
I love seasonal food. It makes everything seem more special. So eating my first dish this year with butternut squash in it was like a little fall celebration.
I am putting up the original amounts, but I cut them in half. It is only my and my hubby.
ALSO I did not peel and cut the squash before roasting it in the oven. I hate trying to peel and cut raw butternut squash. I get cut and annoyed. So I just cut the squash in half, put it in the oven skin down and roasted it for about the same amount of time as in the original recipe.

Butternut Squash Risotto

• 1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
• 2 ounces pancetta, diced
• 1/2 cup minced shallots (2 large)
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (10 ounces)
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into 3/4-inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss it with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.

OR:Cut the butternut squash in half, scoop out seeds, and place skin down on a baking sheet. Spread some olive oil on the squash and roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Then dice the squash and remove skin.

Back to the regular directions now!

Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.

Here is the pancetta and (ahem) onion. I didn't have shallots :(

In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the pancetta and shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned.

Right before I add the rice.

Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes.

Then, AGAIN they left out this important step. Pour yourself a glass of wine and drink while you cook. Or else the recipe will not be as good.

Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan. Mix well and serve.

The beautiful finished product!

I liked this risotto, I personally would have preferred the pancetta to be crispier. Maybe if I make it again I will cook that first in the pan so it can cook longer and get crisp.

Pumpkin Polenta with Sausage and Fennel

Rach!
A morning show I used to listen to made fun of Rachel Ray all the time, especially the way the commercials for her show would always say, "Next time, on RACH!"
I have seen a few of her 40 Dollars a Day show, but not her talk show. She is strangely perky.
BUT-but, I love her magazine and I do like her recipes. And I have made a lot of them, and almost all of them have been extremely tasty.
On her website, there was a link for Fall Comfort Food. Now fall is my favorite season. And since I try to eat most foods seasonally, I get even more excited when fall food time comes around.
So this sounded really really tasty. I like sausage. And fennel. And polenta with cheese.
Some ingredient notes: Rachel always uses quick cooking polenta. I never see this at the grocery store. I see pre-made polenta which won't work, or the regular stuff which is corn grits/polenta. You are supposed to cook the regular stuff for 30 minutes. So if you use the real stuff like I did, you should probably start that before the sausage mixture.
Also, I just used freshly grated nutmeg for the first time! I grated it on my micro-plane which is really fast and easy.
And lastly, I used basil instead of parsley to garnish.
So try this out. Have it with some apple cider and watch the leaves fall.

Rachel Ray's Pumpkin Polenta with Italian Sausage and Fennel
1 Tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
3 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 14-oz can pumpkin puree
1 cup polenta (quick cooking or regular)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme (I left this out)
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup shredded romano cheese
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley (or basil) chopped
1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (Rach says to eyeball it!)

1. Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and brown the sausage. Transfer the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate. Add 1 tablespoon of EVOO (1 turn of the pan) to the skillet and then the onion and fennel. Cook the vegetables over moderate heat until tender but not brown. Add the wine and return the sausage to the skillet. Cook the wine away, a minute or so.
2. 2. In a large saucepan, bring the chicken stock and butter to a boil and stir in the pumpkin. Return to a boil, whisk in the polenta and stir until it masses together, 2 minutes. (Watch out for splatters.)
*For regular polenta, start first and cook stirring frequently for about 30 minutes.*
Remove the polenta from the heat and stir in the nutmeg, thyme, salt, pepper and Pecorino Romano cheese. Top the pumpkin polenta with the sausage and fennel. Garnish with the chopped parsley and serve.

Barefoot Bloggers: Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup

So this is the sad state of my life right now. I am way too busy to blog!! This summer I loved to blog my recipes, now work and other commitments keep me so busy. This is why I am grateful for being a part of the Barefoot Bloggers group. It makes me take the time to blog!
I also liked the recipe this week, because it is not something I would have picked out to make myself. My husband doesn't like mushrooms, and while I like mushrooms a lot more than I used to I wouldn't have just decided to make this for dinner normally.
This was a great recipes for a cool fall day. I really enjoyed it. And my friend Jocelyn liked it too yay!
Note: I halved this recipe, since it was basically me eating it for dinner, and then leftovers, myself.

Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup
Source: The Barefoot Contessa

5 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms (I used dried)
5 ounces fresh portobello mushrooms
5 ounces fresh cremini (or porcini) mushrooms (I used dried porcini)
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1/4 pound (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 carrot, chopped
1 sprig fresh thyme plus 1 teaspoon minced thyme leaves, divided (I used dried lemon thyme.)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 leeks)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

Clean the mushrooms by wiping them with a dry paper towel. Don't wash them! Separate the stems, trim off any bad parts, and coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4-inch thick and, if there are big, cut them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

To make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped mushroom stems, the onion, carrot, the sprig of thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.

Here are my stock veggies cooking away! I didn't add the thyme yet. I used dried lemon thyme I got from the Spice man at Central Market.

Add 6 cups water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid. You should have about 4 1/2 cups of stock. If not, add some water.

Here is the stock later, before I strain it. It smelled um-um good.

The pretty mushrooms! I did not have all fresh mushrooms. The porcini and the shitake were dried (again from the wonderful spice man at market). So I soaked them in water for a about 25 minutes then cut them.I like how the baby bellas and the other mushrooms make it look like there is a shadow.

Meanwhile, in another large pot, heat the remaining 1/4 pound of butter and add the leeks. Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the leeks begin to brown. Add the sliced mushroom caps and cook for 10 minutes, or until they are browned and tender. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the white wine and stir for another minute, scraping the bottom of the pot.
They left out this part of the recipe. "After adding the cup of wine to the soup, it is necessary to pour yourself a small glass of wine to drink as you finish the recipe."
I think this is crucial. :)
And also, in case you are wondering, I used a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.

Add the mushroom stock, minced thyme leaves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Here is the soup pre-cream. Doesn't look quite as pretty yet, but still smells AMAZING.

Add the half-and-half, cream, and parsley, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and heat through but do not boil. Serve hot.
What a nice earthy flavor. I think next time I personally would chop the mushrooms smaller. I like the flavor of mushrooms, but the chewy texture on the big pieces wasn't my favorite. But the wine, the leeks, the cream, everything together with them was great!