Slow Cooker White Bean and Kielbasa Stew
Ingredients
1 pound dried great northern beans (or other white bean)
14 ounces kielbasa, cut in half lengthwise and each half cut into 1/2-inch slices
4 cups chicken stock or broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
1 large onion, diced
1 cloves garlic, chopped (or 1 tablespoon jarred chopped garlic))
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
5 ounces baby spinach (about 6 cups)
(amount here) (ingredient name here)
Directions
In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, add beans, kielbasa, chicken stock, diced tomatoes, onion, garlic and turn on cooker.
Cook until the beans are tender (low: about 7 or 8 hours; high: 5 or 6 hours). Cooking times can vary based on how hot your particular slow cooker gets.
Right before serving, add the spinach, stir it in, and allow it to wilt for a few minutes.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Pumpkin Rosemary Hummus
Pumpkin Rosemary Hummus
Ingredients
1 15-ounce can of chickpeas (or dried ones that have soaked overnight)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
4 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon tahini
Juice of half a lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Prep time: 10 minutes
"Cook" time: 2 minutes
Directions
Prepare all ingredients and add to food processor. Pulse until mixture reaches your desired smoothness. You may wish to add more olive oil if you prefer a creamier hummus (less if you like yours thick). Serve with crackers, pita chips, veggies or whatever you like.
Note
The original author of this recipe did not call for tahini, so you may be fine without it. In its place, increase the amount of olive oil (to 5 tablespoons or more).
Ingredients
1 15-ounce can of chickpeas (or dried ones that have soaked overnight)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
4 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon tahini
Juice of half a lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Prep time: 10 minutes
"Cook" time: 2 minutes
Directions
Prepare all ingredients and add to food processor. Pulse until mixture reaches your desired smoothness. You may wish to add more olive oil if you prefer a creamier hummus (less if you like yours thick). Serve with crackers, pita chips, veggies or whatever you like.
Note
The original author of this recipe did not call for tahini, so you may be fine without it. In its place, increase the amount of olive oil (to 5 tablespoons or more).
Apple Cider Brined Turkey Breast
I made a version of this several years ago when I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for my dad and his side of the family, but I'll be damned if I can find the recipe now. I did a quick Google search and found a very similar recipe. If you've never brined your bird, you don't know what you're missing. I'm a big fan of brining and have brined various poultry, pork, etc. Anyway, I digress . . .
Apple Cider Brined Turkey Breast
Yield: Serves 4-6.
Prep Time: 30 minutesTotal Time: 2 hours + overnight brine
Ingredients:
Note: If you want to do a whole turkey, just double this recipe.
1 whole turkey breast (5-6 pounds)
Absolutely required:
1 quart apple cider
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
Not mandatory, but does up the flavor quotient:
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon Szechuan peppercorns
4 whole star anise pods
3 garlic cloves
3 scallions, sliced
3 inches fresh ginger, sliced thick
3 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 cinnamon stick
A few sprigs of cilantro
10 cups cold water
For cooking:
1 green apples
1 lemon
Helpful Equipment:
Digital Probe Thermometer
Preparing the Brine
I’m not going to get into the science of why brining is good, but basically it results in a cooked turkey that’s much more moist than its unbrined brother due to the way that salt reacts with the proteins in the meat. Just trust me. It’s good and worth the time.
I’ll admit, there are a lot of ingredients in this brine. They all serve a purpose, but if you can’t find them all, don’t feel like you can’t make this brine. At the end of the day, I’d say 80% of the flavor comes from the apple cider. As long as you have that, you can make this happen.
Of course, if possible, any of these spices will just up the flavor complexity of the brine. Use as many of them as you can, but don’t freak out if you’re missing one.
Bring the cider, brown sugar, soy sauce, and salt to a simmer in a medium or large pot. Then add in all your spices and herbs. The only prep I did to my spices was chop my garlic cloves and scallions in half and slice my ginger into coins. Then just toss everything in the pot.
Let this simmer for about 5 minutes, then kill the heat and let it slowly cool to room temperature. This will give plenty of time for the flavors to infuse into the brine.
Once the brine is room temperature, add the cold water and you’re ready to brine.
Brining the Bird
If you’re doing a full bird, make sure you have a large bucket or pot that can fit your entire bird.
Whatever device you use, cover it well and place it in a refrigerated place overnight. Depending on the temperature, sometimes I’ll just stash my turkey cooler setup outside somewhere or in a cool garage for the night. Just make sure your temperature outside is around or under 40 degrees and make sure rodents can’t get to it.
Cooking the Bird
When it’s time to cook, take your bird out of the brine and discard your brine. There’s no reason to keep it. It’s done all it can do to help us out.
Then rinse off your turkey really well with cold water. The brine is very salty and you don’t want it coating the bird. There’s plenty of flavor soaked into the bird. Trust me.
So rinse off the bird and then pat it dry with some paper towels.
At this point I’d recommend adding some lemons and apple slices to the cavity of the bird. This will just give it a bit more flavor and moisture as it cooks.
Basically, you start the turkey in a super-hot, 475 degree oven for 30 minutes. Then pull the turkey out and insert your probe thermometer if you have one. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and continue to cook it until it reaches 165 degrees internally (thickest part of the breast in my case here, or thickest part of the thigh if you’re cooking a full bird).
NOTE: If you’re using a probe thermometer you can’t have it in for this part of the cooking. It could melt.
Resting and Slicing
Once your bird hits its temperature, pull it out, cover it in foil and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. This is maybe the most important part of the whole process. If you slice right into it, all the juices will run out and you’ll have a much dryer bird.
Apple Cider Brined Turkey Breast
Yield: Serves 4-6.
Prep Time: 30 minutesTotal Time: 2 hours + overnight brine
Ingredients:
Note: If you want to do a whole turkey, just double this recipe.
1 whole turkey breast (5-6 pounds)
Absolutely required:
1 quart apple cider
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
Not mandatory, but does up the flavor quotient:
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon Szechuan peppercorns
4 whole star anise pods
3 garlic cloves
3 scallions, sliced
3 inches fresh ginger, sliced thick
3 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 cinnamon stick
A few sprigs of cilantro
10 cups cold water
For cooking:
1 green apples
1 lemon
Helpful Equipment:
Digital Probe Thermometer
Preparing the Brine
I’m not going to get into the science of why brining is good, but basically it results in a cooked turkey that’s much more moist than its unbrined brother due to the way that salt reacts with the proteins in the meat. Just trust me. It’s good and worth the time.
I’ll admit, there are a lot of ingredients in this brine. They all serve a purpose, but if you can’t find them all, don’t feel like you can’t make this brine. At the end of the day, I’d say 80% of the flavor comes from the apple cider. As long as you have that, you can make this happen.
Of course, if possible, any of these spices will just up the flavor complexity of the brine. Use as many of them as you can, but don’t freak out if you’re missing one.
Bring the cider, brown sugar, soy sauce, and salt to a simmer in a medium or large pot. Then add in all your spices and herbs. The only prep I did to my spices was chop my garlic cloves and scallions in half and slice my ginger into coins. Then just toss everything in the pot.
Let this simmer for about 5 minutes, then kill the heat and let it slowly cool to room temperature. This will give plenty of time for the flavors to infuse into the brine.
Once the brine is room temperature, add the cold water and you’re ready to brine.
Brining the Bird
If you’re doing a full bird, make sure you have a large bucket or pot that can fit your entire bird.
Whatever device you use, cover it well and place it in a refrigerated place overnight. Depending on the temperature, sometimes I’ll just stash my turkey cooler setup outside somewhere or in a cool garage for the night. Just make sure your temperature outside is around or under 40 degrees and make sure rodents can’t get to it.
Cooking the Bird
When it’s time to cook, take your bird out of the brine and discard your brine. There’s no reason to keep it. It’s done all it can do to help us out.
Then rinse off your turkey really well with cold water. The brine is very salty and you don’t want it coating the bird. There’s plenty of flavor soaked into the bird. Trust me.
So rinse off the bird and then pat it dry with some paper towels.
At this point I’d recommend adding some lemons and apple slices to the cavity of the bird. This will just give it a bit more flavor and moisture as it cooks.
Basically, you start the turkey in a super-hot, 475 degree oven for 30 minutes. Then pull the turkey out and insert your probe thermometer if you have one. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and continue to cook it until it reaches 165 degrees internally (thickest part of the breast in my case here, or thickest part of the thigh if you’re cooking a full bird).
NOTE: If you’re using a probe thermometer you can’t have it in for this part of the cooking. It could melt.
Resting and Slicing
Once your bird hits its temperature, pull it out, cover it in foil and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. This is maybe the most important part of the whole process. If you slice right into it, all the juices will run out and you’ll have a much dryer bird.
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