Hope you guys all had a great Thanksgiving and even tried some or all of my recipes. Myself, herself and head da ball headed to Texasland to see the in-laws (or out-laws depending on who you ask). It was defo a wam-bam visit but we managed to eat some good southern chow while there. Apart from the usual Mexican fare with the freshly made tortillas, which is an great site to see, I was fixin’ for some real authentic Texas BBQ. (As you can see I picked up some slang while I was there–when in Rome an’ all.) We were brought to a very famous eatery by my father-in-law called The Salt Lick. Some of you Texas folk might know of this place. We got there around 1pm on Sat and the place was jointed. The restaurant was full with, no shit, at least 150 people waiting outside. They even had some honky tonk musicians to keep us entertained while waiting. The place is located in the middle of nowhere but as soon as you drove in you could smell the smoking. They don’t sell beer but encourage you to bring a cooler of said alcoholic beverage (I really enjoyed that Shiner beer) and being a guest of the state of Texas I didn’t want to offend!

You pay just $18.95 for ALL YOU CAN EAT and boy did I.

Potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, slow cooked brisket, ribs, sausages & habanero sauce…mmm mmmm (just look at Ross’s face below!)…and don’t forget all topped of nicely with 1 or 2 (dozen) beers.
Now, you don’t always associate bbq food with healthy, especially the sides but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised when neither the potato salad nor the coleslaw were covered in mayo.

This was defo the highlight of my 3 day excursion for sure, well food-wise anyway. As for nightlife, besides the stellar live music, you’d be hard pressed to beat the craic on 6th street in Austin.
The Irishmen likey!

Ah, another Thanksgiving has come and gone. By now you’re all probably completely and utterly over turkey. I wouldn’t blame you. With the size of turkeys nowadays there’s enough meat on there to feed a whole African village! We began our gorging with the actual turkey which lead into turkey sandwiches the next day and the next. Finally taking off whatever meat is left in order to make stock with the bones, the next obvious step is to make a delicious easy soup with the stock (and if you have turkey still left over–good luck!!)
Here’s how it’s done:

RECIPE:
Serves 4

2 cups leftover turkey – cubed
1 cup carrot- peeled, cubed
1 leek (white only) – sliced 1/4″, washed, drained
1 cup parsnip – peeled, cubed
1 cup white potatoes – peeled, cubed
2 bay leaves
1 quart (4 cups) turkey broth
1 tbsp parsley – chopped
S&P to taste
2 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

This soup is as easy as opening a can but so much better.
Preheat soup pot for 30 seconds on medium heat. Add 2 tbsps olive oil. Saute leeks for 2 minutes, stirring so as not to brown. Next add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT chopped parsley. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to a simmer and partially cover with lid.
Cook for 30 minutes or until veg are soft through but not braking apart.

Taste and season and add chopped parsley to garnish.

Booya!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

Fast forward to Friday afternoon or Saturday. Thanksgiving’s over. You can’t fit another turkey sandwich in you and to be honest really don’t want to. The carcass is sitting in the fridge and you’re sick of the sight of it. You’re tinking ‘get this thing outta my fridge and into the bin’ but……. hoooooold up wait a minute. Instead of doing that how ’bout putting it in a pot with some veggies and making your own stock. It really isn’t that big of a deal and will not only save you some cash but you can say you made your own stock. I usually make a batch of veggie or chicken stock, put them in little tupperware containers, let the stock cool and pop them in the freezer. Then when I want to make something I just pull one out. Believe me you’ll be glad you did.

Organic Chicken Stock recipe.

Organic Veggie Stock recipe.

RECIPE:

1 leftover turkey carcass
2 carrots – chopped
1 leek – chopped, washed
2 large onion – peeled, chopped
3 bay leaves
thyme – whatever you have
parsley – one bunch (or whatever you have)
10 peppercorns
5/6 celery stalks – chopped, washed

DIRECTIONS:

Pop everything in a large soup pot or if you have one of those turkeys that’s as big a baby horse, cut it up and use two pots. Fill the pot with lots of veggies. When I’m cooking throughout the week I keep all the stalks and bits of leftover veg from my prep. Then when it’s time to make stock I have lots of bits n pieces to go in there. The more veggies you add the better flavour you’ll get.
Note: Rule of thumb. Don’t add anything into your stock that you wouldn’t eat so no rotten veggies.

Bring stock to a boil and once boiling reduce to a simmer and cook for 2 hours. If the liquid is reducing to quickly turn the heat down more.

HAPPY TANKSGIVING!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

The countdown to turkey time is on, not to mention the nap that comes after it so I figured I’d give you guys a light healthy salad as well as an option for the veggies who might be headed your way. I’ve been doing a few things with persimmons recently (Persimmon stuffed turkey) since I got them in my CSA box. With my missus being a veggie I thought I’d make her a salad for lunch the last day so this is what the end result was. We grow our own lettuce so I have to say it’s quite cool being able to go out and just pick the lettuce from the back yard. The crunchiness of the persimmons are dynamite here as well and really work well with the other ingredients.

RECIPE:
Serves 4

1 large head of butter lettuce, Boston lettuce or any lettuce from your garden as I used
3 medium-size firm but ripe Fuyu persimmons – peeled & diced
1 ripe avocado – peeled & diced
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts

CHAMPAGNE VINAIGRETTE
2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon shallot – minced
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tsp agave
1/3 cup olive oil
S&P to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Combine vinegar, shallot, agave and mustard in small bowl or food processor. Gradually whisk in oil. Taste and season dressing with S&P.

Place lettuce in large bowl. Sprinkle with persimmons, cheese, nuts and avo. Drizzle champagne vinaigrette over the top and you’ve got yourself one gorgeous delicious Thanksgiving salad!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

If you’re looking for something a little different this year for Thanksgiving here’s a cool alternative. I love roast pork so this recipe is a play on the roast and stuffing but I decided to use a lean cut of pork instead. There are great seasonal flavours in the stuffing which work great with the moist crusted pork. This is also a great way to use up the leftover stuffing from turkey day. Let the cooking begin!

RECIPE:

1 1/2 lbs organic or grass fed pork loin
Olive oil

1/2 cup white onion – fine dice
1/2 cup celery – fine dice
1 cup Granny Smith apple – diced
1 tbsp fresh sage – chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme – chopped
1 cup toasted breadcrumbs
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken/veg broth
2 tbsp olive oil

3 oz Hazelnuts (Filberts) – pulsed in food processor to breadcrumb consistency

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat saute pan on medium heat for 1 minute. Add 2 tbsp olive oil along with onion and celery. Saute for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add diced apple and herbs and continue sauteing for another 3 minutes. Once softened add breadcrumbs and broth and mix everything together. Taste and season with S&P. Remove to a plate to cool.

Place pork loin on a clean cutting board and using a sharp knife slice along the side opening the loin like a book. Do not separate the top from the bottom. Once the ‘book’ is open lay some plastic wrap on top and using a mallet (or in my case a pot) flatten the loin. Season the loin with S&P.
Cut 5 equal length pieces of kitchen twine, approx 12 inches. Lay them parallel to each 2″ apart. Place the seasoned loin on top and spoon the filling in the center. Fold the top over the bottom. Tie each string tightly. Any excess filling that falls out, stuff it back in. Season the outside and drizzle with olive oil. This will help the hazelnuts to stick to the outside. Rub the seasoning in.

Preheat oven 350°F.

For the crust: Pulse the hazelnuts and place on a plate. Gently roll the loin in the hazelnuts to coat all sides.

Lay on foiled oven tray and pop in the oven for 1 1/4 hours approx or until internal temp 160°F.

When ready remove and let rest for 5 minutes to let the juices redistribute in the meat.

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible

Gobble Gobble (as the actress said to the bishop). It’s Turkey time! If you saw my turkey post recently you’ll now know what type of turkey you should be getting as we know there’s going to be lots eaten over the next month or so. There will be soups, sandwiches, stews, stocks, casseroles and God knows what else we can think to make with Mr. Turkey. Salting, roasting, brining–each American family has their own style to cook the bird. But what if your family is small and you’d rather not cook an entire turkey? I’ve got you covered!

I’ve made stuffed turkey breasts before (here and here) but for this recipe I wanted to give you the idea of stuffing the breast with something a bit more out of the ordinary yet still in keeping with Thanksgiving flavours. Guess you could say it’s a modern twist on the classic turkey & stuffing. I came across Persimmons in my CSA box and though I don’t have much experience with them after one bite I knew I had to use them.  In November and December persimmons are at their peak. I kept expecting the fruit to soften like a peach but as it turns out this type of persimmon, the Fuyu, is eaten like an apple. The taste of the flesh inside reminded me of a sweeter cantaloupe with the texture of a firm pear. The persimmon’s delightful flavour and texture turned out to be lovely addition to this dish.

RECIPE:
Serves 6

1 1/2 lb Organic, Grass fed, or Sustainable boneless turkey breast
1 cup organic chicken broth

1 cup couscous – dry
2 cups organic chicken broth
1/2 lemon – zested
1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup celery – fine dice
1/2 white onion – fine dice
2 Fuyu persimmons – sliced and small diced
1 tbsp fresh thyme – chopped
1 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

Begin by bringing 1 cup of the chicken broth, lemon zest and salt to a boil. Once boiling turn off heat and add couscous. Cover with lid.

Preheat saute pan on medium heat for 30 seconds and add 1 tbsp olive oil. Add celery and onion and saute for 5 mins, stirring, until softened. Once soft add diced persimmons and thyme.
Saute together for 4-5 additional minutes until persimmons are soft. Taste and season with S&P.

Add the cooked couscous to the persimmon mixture along with a drizzle of olive oil. Taste and season. Let cool before adding to turkey.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

To Assemble the Turkey: Lay the turkey on a clean cutting board. Using a sharp knife butterfly the breast by slicing along the side creating a book effect. Do not slice all the way through. Open the ‘book’. Place some plastic wrap on your work surface and lay the open turkey skin side down. Lay another layer of plastic wrap on top. Using a kitchen mallet or in my case a heavy bottomed saucepan, give the breast a few poundings to flatten. Don’t beat the living daylights out of it but you just want to thin it a little.

Lay 5 pieces of kitchen twine, about 12″ in length parallel to each other 2″ apart (If you’re saying, huh?….look at the photo). Lay the open turkey breast on top of the string, skin side down and season with S&P. Spoon enough of the couscous in the center to fill. You may have extra so don’t worry. Pat down the filling.

Fold over the top half and stuff any of the filling that falls out back in. Tie the strings tightly but not where the stuffing falls out too much.

Place turkey on a foiled oven tray. Drizzle olive oil over skin and season with S&P. Rub seasoned oil into flesh.
Add broth to oven tray and pop in the oven for up to 1 hour or until internal temperature of 155F.

Remove and let rest for 5-6 minutes to let juices redistribute back into meat.

Notice those glazed pearl onions? Recipe here. Cheers!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

Making holiday meals can be a lot of work. Do you spend most of your day in the kitchen slaving over the stove? Or maybe you’re responsible for a dish to bring and you’re not so much the cook? Either way this is a super simple side dish that’s quick and fresh. (And you can drink the port after dinner so it’s a win-win for everyone!)

RECIPE:
Serves 4

1 x 10 oz package red pearl onions – peeled, tips trimmed
1 x 10 oz package white pearl onions – peeled, tips trimmed
1/2 cup port
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Blanch the onions in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 minutes. Drain. Toss the onions in a bowl with the other ingredients and put on foiled oven tray.

Place in oven for 15 minutes, approx to cook and caramelize. They should be tender and sweet when done.

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

All the veg we associate with Autumn and Winter are finally in abundance and ready for soup season! Pumpkin, butternut squash, broccoli and potato soups are some of my faves.

In the States we’re getting ready for Thanksgiving, which is right around the corner. There’s just a hint of time left to start planning those holiday meals (one week and counting!) but don’t worry–I’ve got you covered. I’ve got some delicious healthy recipes I’ll be posting right up until the big day.

If you’re like me you’re used to having the classic butternut squash soup on your menu for the holidays but I thought a great substitution would be this aromatic, satisfying and over all damn tasty pumpkin soup. Impress your guests and serve the soup in a hollowed out pumpkin or you could use the smaller individual sized pumpkins or squash for bowls like I did here:

As you know, I don’t use cream, butter or sugar in my soups. It’s important we stay healthy as much as we can during the holiday season (easier said than done right?) Little tricks like adding an apple sweetens the pumpkin naturally and adding in curry powder adds a delicious layer of spice. You could try using freshly grated nutmeg or cinnamon instead or as well as we know how good spices are for us!

Serves 4-6

RECIPE:
3 1/2 cups pureed pumpkin*
5 cups low-sodium chicken/veg broth
1 red apple – cored and cubed
2 tsp curry powder
S&P to taste

*NOTE: I used fresh roasted pumpkin puree but you can use canned. Be sure to read the labels though. Some canned pumpkin have added sugar–go for the 100% pure pumpkin puree.

DIRECTIONS:

Add all pumpkin puree to a large preheated soup pot along with 1 quart (4 cups) broth. (Add additional broth if necessary). Stir to combine. Once warmed through add the apple and curry powder and stir.
TIP: If you go with canned puree, mix in some fresh chopped earthy flavored herbs such as thyme, rosemary &/or oregano.
Bring to a simmer and partially cover. Cook until apples are soft, 15 mins approx. Using a hand blender if you have one or a food processor, puree soup until smooth. Add additional broth if needed.

Taste and season.

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

I’ll admit, sometimes it’s easier to make food choices with blinders on. Choosing a restaurant that makes sustainable efforts is downright work let alone choosing the ‘right’ ingredients at the market. It can be a drag trying to figure out what all the labels mean, but it’s work well done especially when picking out your holiday meals. If you’ve seen the movie, Food, Inc. you know why it’s important to know where your food comes from and it’s important we have a voice in what food we eat. Our purchases are our voice. Plus, there’s nothing better than cooking food from your heart for the ones you love, even if your loved ones are nuts (that’s what the Americans tell me!)

Picking out the right turkey can be a bit confusing. Gone are the days of “fresh or frozen,” which were my choices growing up in Ireland. Today there’s a plethora of labels to go with the many different birds available for consumers. How do you know which one is right for you?

If you’re like me, you’re looking into Local Organic, Sustainable or Heritage varieties. What’s the difference? Even I was confused with all the new labels in these categories. I found a great article on the National Resource Defense Council’s site which cleared up a lot of confusion.

CERTIFIED ORGANIC Turkeys must be raised without antibiotics or growth hormones, eat only organic feed that did not contain chemical fertilizers or pesticides and they must be given access to the outdoors. Organic farming generally falls within the accepted definition of sustainable agriculture, though there is a difference between the two.

SUSTAINABLE Turkeys are usually certified organic turkeys but sometimes a small farm that is not organic-certified might be using organic guidelines and be self-sufficient by recycling all the farm’s waste. This is why it’s important to know where your turkey comes from and what guidelines that particular farm adheres to. “Sustainable” refers more to a philosophy about agriculture than “organic,” which is bound by its legal definition. Sustainable describes the practices of farmers who preserve the land, treat their animals and workers humanely and help support the local community.

There is no single set of standards for sustainable agriculture, there are several labels for which high standards have been set, which go beyond the “organic” label. I was surprised and delighted to see these labels, even more delighted to know exactly what they meant.

• Animal Welfare Approved: Sets high standards for health, shelter and handling, including a requirement that animals spend most of their life in pasture. Prohibits growth hormones; allows antibiotics only for sick animals.
• Certified Humane: Sets high standards for health, shelter and handling; prohibits growth hormones; allows antibiotics only for sick animals.
• Food Alliance Certified: Requires low- or no-pesticide policy; advocates worker welfare, habitat protection, well-managed agriculture and humane care of livestock.
• American Grassfed: Requires that animals eat grass only, and if they receive antibiotics due to illness they must be removed from the program. Growth hormones are prohibited.

HERITAGE Turkeys are like the heirloom tomatoes of the turkey world. In the States there’s a movement to bring back old-fashioned, diversified breeds from small turkey farmers. Ninety-nine percent of all turkeys raised in the US at the present time are the Broadbreasted White variety, sometimes called the Large White. While conventional wisdom would suggest that the heritage turkey might be stringy and the Broadbreasted White juicier, in a blind taste test quite the opposite turned out to be true: Heritage birds–the Midget White and Bourbon Red in particular–proved superior in flavor to factory-farm birds. I hear Jersey Buff’s aren’t bad either. Buying heritage turkeys are more expensive but think about what you’re helping to accomplish, which is helping to preserve small farms and endangered breeds while helping to break the monopoly corporations now have on our food supply. Though it might be too late to order yours for this Thanksgiving think ahead to Christmas or even next year’s feast. Bookmark heritagefoodsusa.com.

What a dynamite weekend we had! On Friday night we were invited to our friends, Van & Kelly’s house for some homemade pizza from their brand new wood burning pizza oven. Two years ago we spent Thanksgiving with them–you may remember the spread they put on for nearly 30 of us! They love to entertain so they built an amazing outdoor kitchen (my dream!) which we were excited to check out. One word: MUSTARD!

The deal was they’d make the dough, sauce and provide the cheese, salad & wine. (Did I mention they just got back from a wine trip to France & Italy? Result!) We were to bring the toppings and the beers. It was a lot fun getting creative with the toppings. We brought over grilled veg, roast chicken, broiled balsamic radicchio, Prosciutto, homemade peanut sauce, fresh herbs and shredded carrots. Sounds crazy right? We made a veggie pizza, a chicken & veggie pizza, a hot pepper (straight from their garden) & Prosciutto pizza, a Thai pizza (using the fresh peanut sauce, shredded carrots, Thai basil & cilantro), a radicchio pizza (using the shredded carrots to balance out the bitterness from the radicchio) and well, a mix of everything really for the others.

What a perfect idea for a dinner party even if you don’t have your own wood burning oven. Everyone gets to take a turn making a pizza which is great craic really.

Here’s the standard recipe for homemade pizza:

RECIPE:
Makes 4 pizza crusts

1 pkg active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 cups flour + additional for dusting

DIRECTIONS:

Mix the yeast and warm water in a mixing bowl. Let stand for 5-10 minutes approx, or until the yeast becomes active (it’ll start to bubble). Once it’s ready, add it to an electric mixer and gradually add in the olive oil, flour & salt. Mix with the dough hook until the dough comes together. Remove from mixer and on a floured surface (to prevent sticking) roll into a large ball. Divide the dough into 4 equally sized balls and place on an oiled oven tray. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and put the tray in a warm dry place until it rises, 45 minutes approx.

Preheat oven to 450°F.

When ready to make your pizzas, sprinkle flour on a clean work surface and roll out the dough to a thin crust using a rolling pin. Be sure to dust your rolling pin with flour to also prevent from sticking. NOTE: The dough rises when baking which is why you want roll it into a thin crust prior.
Place the pizza base on a floured oven tray and add your toppings.

As for how long your pizzas take to bake, just keep an eye on it. I like the bottom of mine to be crispy but not burned.
TIP: The key here is to have your meat and vegetable toppings already cooked. You’re basically baking the dough and warming up the rest so there’s no worry if the meats are cooked through or not.

We had such an amazing time as always. Thinking about asking Santa for a pizza oven—I say I have two hopes: No hope and Bob Hope. Good thing Van & Kelly live close by!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.