Trinculo's Cafe: Exploring the Epicurean with The Stray Gourmet

BEDEVILED EGGS 8 hard-boiled large eggs, peeled 1/4 cup tartar sauce 1 tsp. vinegar 1 TBSP spicy brown mustard 1 1/4 tsp. Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce paprika Cut eggs in half lengthwise. Scoop out yolks; place in small bowl. Add tartar sauce, mustard and Tabasco; mash with fork. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon mixture into egg white halves, dividing equally. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover lightly with plastic wrap or wax paper and chill 'til serving. Makes 8 appetizer servings. GARLIC-ROSEMARY TURKEY WITH MUSHROOM GRAVY Garlic paste 6 large heads of garlic, unpeeled, top 1/3" cut off to expose garlic 6 TBSP olive oil 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room temperature unsalted butter 2 TBSP chopped fresh rosemary 2 TBSP Dijon mustard 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper Turkey & Gravy 1 18-19 lb. turkey neck, gizzard and heart reserved 1 large onion, chopped 2 large celery stalks, chopped 1 large carrot, chopped 2 1/2 cups dry white wine 7 cups chicken broth 2 lbs. mushrooms, thickly sliced 1/3 cup all purpose flour For garlic paste: Preheat oven to 350°F. Arrange garlic, cut side up, in 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Drizzle with 6 tablespoons oil. Cover dish with foil. Bake until garlic is very tender but not yet brown, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Uncover and cool 45 minutes. Squeeze garlic cloves to remove from peel. Place cloves in food processor and add butter, rosemary, mustard, salt, and pepper. Process until almost smooth. Transfer paste to small bowl. Cover & chill 'til serving. For turkey and gravy: Set rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Rinse turkey inside and out; pat dry. Starting at neck end, carefully slide hand between skin and breast meat to loosen skin. Rub 1/2 cup garlic paste over breast meat under skin. If stuffing turkey, spoon stuffing into neck and main cavities. Tuck wings under; tie legs together loosely to hold shape. Place turkey on small rack set in large roasting pan. Rub 2/3 cup garlic paste all over outside of turkey; reserve remaining paste for gravy. Place reserved turkey parts, onion, celery, and carrot in pan around turkey. Boil wine in medium saucepan for 2 minutes. Pour 1 cup of wine and 1 cup of broth into pan. Roast turkey 1 hour. Pour 1 cup broth over turkey; cover turkey breast loosely with foil. Roast 1 hour. Pour 1 of cup wine and 1 cup of broth over turkey. Cover breast and top of drumsticks loosely with foil. Roast turkey 1 hour. Pour 1/2 of cup broth over turkey. Roast uncovered until thermometer inserted into thickest part of the thigh registers 175°F, covering any exposed parts of turkey with foil as necessary if over-browning (about 1 hour longer for unstuffed turkey and 1 hour 45 minutes for stuffed). Remove from oven. Using bulb baster, transfer any juices from main cavity of unstuffed turkey to turkey roasting pan. Transfer turkey to platter; let stand 30 minutes (internal temperature of turkey will increase 5 to 10 degrees). Pour turkey pan juices into a medium bowl; scrape in any browned bits from pan. Spoon off fat from top of juices, reserving 3 tablespoons of fat. Strain juices into large glass measuring cup, pressing hard on solids. Add remaining 1/2 cup of wine and enough chicken broth to turkey pan juices to measure 6 cups. Heat the reserved turkey fat in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; sauté until brown and juices evaporate (about 15 minutes). Mix in remaining garlic paste. Sprinkle with flour and stir until flour begins to brown. Gradually whisk in 6 cups broth mixture. Bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Boil until gravy coats spoon lightly. Season with salt and pepper. Serve turkey with gravy. Makes 12 to 14 servings. MIDLANTIC MUSHROOM AND CHESTNUT STUFFING 1 1/2 1-pound loaves old-fashioned white bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 16 cups) 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 3 large onions, chopped 1 lb. mushrooms, sliced 5 celery stalks, chopped 1 1/2 lbs. (about 3 cups) fresh chestnuts, roasted, shelled, chopped 1/4 cup chopped fresh thyme 3 TBSP. chopped fresh rosemary 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg 1 1/2 cups chicken broth Preheat oven to 400°F. Divide bread between 2 large baking sheets. Bake until golden, stirring occasionally. Transfer to large bowl. Melt butter in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add onions and cook until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium. Add mushrooms; stir until mushrooms begin to soften and release juices. Add celery and stir 2 minutes. Mix contents of skillet into bread cubes. Mix in chestnuts, thyme, rosemary and nutmeg. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Can be prepared one day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. To bake stuffing in turkey: Mix 1/2 cup chicken broth into stuffing. Fill main turkey cavity with stuffing. Mix enough chicken broth into remaining stuffing to moisten (about 1/2 to 3/4 cup chicken broth, depending on amount of remaining stuffing). Spoon remaining stuffing into buttered baking dish. Cover stuffing with buttered aluminum foil. Bake stuffing in a dish alongside turkey until heated through, about 45 minutes. To bake all stuffing in pan: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 15x10x2-inch baking dish. Mix 1 1/2 cups broth into stuffing. Transfer to prepared dish. Cover with buttered foil. Bake until heated through, about 1 hour 15 minutes. CORN CHIVE PUDDING 2 10-ounce packages frozen corn kernels, thawed 1/4 cup sugar 1 1/4 tsp. salt 2 cups milk 4 large eggs 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 3 TBSP. all-purpose flour 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives pinch of nutmeg Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 1 1/2-quart quiche dish or pie plate. In a food processor pulse half of corn until coarsely chopped. In a bowl stir together chopped corn and remaining corn kernels and sprinkle with sugar and salt, stirring until combined well. In another bowl whisk together milk, eggs, vanilla seeds, butter, flour and chives and stir into corn until combined well. Pour pudding into quiche dish or pie plate and sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake pudding in middle of oven until center is just set, about 45 minutes. Garnish pudding with additional chopped fresh chives. Serves 8. ROASTED ONIONS AND POTATOES 2 pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed & cut into wedges 2 onions, cut into chunks 1/3 cup olive oil 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted 1 envelope onion soup mix 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled 1 teaspoon dried marjoram, crumbled Preheat oven to 450°F. Combine all ingredients in large roasting pan. Toss well. Bake until potatoes are crisp and golden brown, stirring occasionally (about 1 hour). Season potatoes to taste with salt and pepper. Serves 8. YAM AND CARROT CASSEROLE 8 large carrots (about 3 pounds), peeled & coarsely grated 1 large russet potato peeled & coarsely grated 1 large yam, peeled & coarsely grated 2/3 cup raisins 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 2/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar 4 large eggs 1 1/4 tsp. salt 1 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Combine carrots, potato, yam and raisins in large bowl. Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat. Add sugar and whisk until sugar dissolves and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and cool completely. Whisk eggs, salt, baking powder and cinnamon into butter mixture. Pour over vegetables and mix well. Season with pepper. Transfer to prepared dish. Bake until vegetables are tender and mixture is set in center and golden brown on top (about 90 minutes). Serves 8. PUMPKIN SPICE PIE Filling: 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin 3/4 cup pure maple syrup 3/4 cup whipping cream 3 large eggs 2 TBSP. (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg 1/4 tsp. ground cloves 1/4 tsp. salt 1 single pie crust Whipped cream: 1 cup chilled whipping cream 3 TBSP powdered sugar 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1 tsp. vanilla extract Pie: Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk pumpkin, maple syrup, whipping cream, eggs, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt in large bowl to blend well. Pour pumpkin mixture into prepared pie crust. Bake until filling is just set in center and crust is golden (60 minutes). Transfer pie to rack and cool completely. Cover pie and refrigerate until cold. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.) Whipped cream: Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup chilled whipping cream, 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in large bowl until soft peaks form. Serve pie cold or at room temperature with whipped cream. Makes 8 servings. CITRUS SUGAR COOKIES 2 cups unbleached all purpose flour 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. salt 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature 1 1/4 tsp. finely-grated lemon peel 1 1/4 finely-grated orange peel 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup powdered sugar Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and citrus peel in large bowl until light. Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup powdered sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in egg. Add dry ingredients. Using spoon, stir until mixture forms dough (dough will be soft). Divide dough into thirds. Gather each third into ball; flatten into disks. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously flour work surface and rolling pin. Place 1 dough disk on work surface (keep remaining dough refrigerated). Press rolling pin into dough several times to flatten slightly for easier rolling. Roll out dough to 1/4" thickness, frequently lifting and turning dough to prevent sticking. Using assorted cookie cutters dipped into flour, cut out cookies. Transfer cookies to ungreased nonstick baking sheets, spacing 1/2" apart. Gather dough scraps together and reserve. Bake about 15 minutes or until cookie edges brown. Let cookies stand on sheets 1 minute. Using metal spatula, transfer cookies to racks and cool completely. Repeat rolling, cutting and baking with remaining dough as described above, being sure to cool cookie sheets before making each batch. Combine all reserved dough scraps and shape into a ball; flatten into disk. Wrap disk in plastic and freeze until firm enough to roll. Repeat rolling, cutting and baking as described above. Store cooled cookies in airtight container at room temperature. Serve with French vanilla or eggnog ice cream.