Category Archives: Recipe
WENDY’S PUMPKIN SOUP
EDITOR’S NOTE: This was a big hit at our potluck last Saturday evening.
Note From Wendy: I doubled this recipe but here is the base. Most of it came to me without many measurements (only the first 4 ingredients had measurements) but I will tell you approximately what I used:
1/2 stick butter
1 onion
16 oz pumpkin (I used fresh pumpkin that I cooked and strained)
4 cups stock (I made my own vegetable stock)
1 bay leaf
sugar (I used about 1 tablespoon maple syrup instead of sugar for the double recipe but the amount of sugar is up to you)
curry (I used a tablespoon for the double recipe but the amount was not given to me in this recipe)
nutmeg (I ground my own and used about 1 teaspoon for the double recipe)
salt – a pinch
The recipe also calls for 2 cups sour cream that I didn’t use at all. I have made it using half and half and that was good too.
That is how the recipe came to me. I sautéed the onion in the butter, then added the rest of the ingredients, simmered for about 30 minutes and then used my blender stick to puree it (after I took out the bay leaf).
It came from my neighbor – we exchange recipes quite a bit.
Contributed by Wendy Weissman
THREE APRICOT BRISKET RECIPES TO TRY
EASY SWEET AND SOUR BRISKET
From http://www.allrecipes.com
INGREDIENTS
1 4-6–pound brisket
1 12-ounce jar of apricot preserves
1 envelope of dried onion soup mix
DIRECTIONS
1. Place a large piece of extra-wide heavy-duty foil shiny side up in a roasting pan.
2. Sprinkle half the contents of the onion soup envelope on the foil.
3. Spread ½ of the jar of apricot preserves over the soup mix. Place the meat fat side up (if there is a fat side) in the pan over the preserves and dried soup mix.
4. Sprinkle the remaining soup mix over the meat, and dot with the remaining preserves, being careful that the spoon for the preserves never touches the meat.
5. Make a butcher’s fold with the foil: bring the long sides of the foil together and make 3 or 4 folds to seal close to but not tight on the meat. At either end, flatten the foil, fold up 2 times, fold the points in like you would wrapping a present, and then fold across the end 2 more times to seal the end. Repeat on the other side.
6. Place in a 300F oven and roast for 4 hours
7. Carefully open a corner of the foil and pierce the meat with a fork. If the fork goes in easily the meat is done. If not, seal foil and return to the oven for another 30 minutes. When the meat is fully cooked, carefully re-open the foil and pour the gravy into a container. Chill the meat in the foil in the refrigerator until it is cold. Freeze for later use, or slice the cold meat on a slight diagonal against the grain.
8. When ready to serve, skim the fat off the gravy, pour the gravy over the meat, place in a microwave-safe container and cover with plastic wrap, and microwave on high for 5-6 minutes or until heated through.
APRICOT BRISKET
from http://www.allrecipes.com
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 pounds beef brisket
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix
1 pound dried apricots
PREP: 15 mins
COOK: 3 hrs 30 mins
READY IN: 3 hrs 45 mins
DIRECTIONS
1. In a large heavy skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, brown the beef on all sides. If the brisket is too large, cut it in half first, and brown in two stages. Place the meat in a large Dutch oven with a lid.
2. Add onions to the drippings in the skillet. Saute over medium heat until the onions are beginning to brown. Stir in garlic, and cook for 2 or 3 more minutes. Pour over the brisket in the Dutch oven.
3. Empty one package of dry, instant onion soup mix over the browned onions and meat. Arrange all of the apricots on top of the soup mix. Pour enough water around outside of meat, not on top, to cover the sides of brisket. Cover.
4. Bake at 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) for 1 hour. Check liquid; if dish is starting to look dry, add a bit more water around meat. Cover, and cook another hour. Remove lid, and stir apricots into gravy. Leave uncovered, and cook for another hour. Stir gravy again, and add more water if the gravy is too thick. Meat should be very tender. If necessary, bake for an additional 1/2 hour. Cut across grain to serve. Serves six.
Note: Try making this in a crockpot or slow cooker.
BRISKET WITH DRIED APRICOTS, PRUNES, AND AROMATIC SPICES
From http://www.food.com
Total Time: 3hrs 30mins
Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 3 hrs
Servings 8
This is an extraordinary flavourful, moist, and tender brisket. Recipe is from Jayne Cohen, printed in “Bon Appétit Magazine” (April 2002). It is Kosher for Passover.
Begin this at least one day ahead. Try chilling the meat separately from the gravy; it makes removing the fat from the gravy much easier. Read through entire directions before beginning.
INGREDIENTS
2/3 cup quartered dried apricots, (about 4 ounces)
9 large garlic cloves
3-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4-1/2-5 lbs flat-cut beef brisket
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups chopped onions
2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup dry red wine
3 cups homemade beef stock or 3 cups canned low sodium beef broth
2/3 cup pitted prunes, quartered
chopped fresh cilantro
DIRECTIONS
1. Combine 1/3 cup apricots, 3 garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon cumin, salt, cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in processor. Using on/off turns, chop to coarse puree. Using small sharp knife, make 1/2-inch-deep slits all over brisket. Set aside 1 tablespoon apricot mixture. Press remaining apricot mixture into slits.
2. Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 300°F
3. Heat oil in heavy large ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Sprinkle brisket all over with salt and pepper. Add brisket to pot and sauté until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to plate, fat side up; spread with reserved 1 tablespoon apricot mixture.
4. Add onions to same pot. Sauté over medium-high heat 5 minutes. Add carrots, ginger, coriander, cayenne pepper, remaining 6 garlic cloves and 2 1/2 teaspoons cumin; sauté 3 minutes. Add wine and boil until reduced almost to glaze, stirring up any browned bits, about 5 minutes.
5. Return brisket to pot. Add stock and bring to simmer. Spoon some of vegetable mixture over brisket.
6. Cover pot and place in oven. Roast brisket 2 1/2 hours, basting every 30 minutes with pan juices. Add prunes and remaining 1/3 cup apricots. Cover; roast until brisket is tender, about 30 minutes longer. Cool brisket uncovered 1 hour. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled overnight.
7. Spoon off any solid fat from top of gravy; discard fat. Scrape gravy off brisket into pot. Place brisket on work surface. Slice brisket thinly across grain.
8. Bring gravy in pot to boil over medium-high heat. Boil to thicken slightly, if desired. Season gravy with salt and pepper.
9. Arrange sliced brisket in large ovenproof dish. Spoon gravy over. Cover with foil. (Can be made 2 days ahead; refrigerate.).
10. Rewarm covered brisket in 350°F oven about 30 minutes (or 40 minutes if chilled). Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.
Kosher Turkeys at West Side Albertson’s
The Albertson’s on the West side of Great Falls has a few kosher turkeys for sale! Price is $3.99/lb and they seem to have 3-4 in stock.
MAMA STAMBERG’S THANKSGIVUKKAH? RELISH
NOTE: Perhaps, this year, try it on latkes?
“Mama Stamberg’s Cranberry Relish”
Dan Mitchell, NPR Online
Every year as Thanksgiving approaches, fans ask NPR’s Susan Stamberg for her mother-in-law’s recipe for cranberry relish. It’s a recipe that she has read on the air every year since 1971 -– and here, in Stamberg’s own words, is how she came by it:
“At the first Thanksgiving of my married life, in Allentown, Pa., my mother-in-law, Marjorie Stamberg, served a fabulous and fascinating cranberry relish. I asked for the recipe, which she kindly provided. I put the recipe for ‘Mama Stamberg’s Cranberry Relish’ on the air every year a few weeks before Thanksgiving, first at WAMU-FM, the local public radio station where I did my earliest air work, and later at NPR for the immediate nation to enjoy.”
(Years after she had begun sharing it, Stamberg learned the recipe had been clipped from the New York Times by her mother-in-law’s sister-in-law Marie Salinger. When, on the air, Stamberg told Times food editor Craig Claiborne about mis-attributing his recipe to her mother-in-law, Claiborne said, “I’ve gotten more mileage out of that recipe through NPR than I have since it was first published in the Times in 1959!”)
Here, with Stamberg’s footnotes, npr.org offers two recipes –- the on-air classic, and another dish that Stamberg confesses is her “truly favorite cranberry side dish.”
Mama Stamberg’s Cranberry Relish
2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed
1 small onion
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons horseradish from a jar (“red is a bit milder than white”)
Grind the raw berries and onion together. (“I use an old-fashioned meat grinder,” says Stamberg. “I’m sure there’s a setting on the food processor that will give you a chunky grind — not a puree.”)
Add everything else and mix.
Put in a plastic container and freeze.
Early Thanksgiving morning, move it from freezer to refrigerator compartment to thaw. (“It should still have some little icy slivers left.”)
The relish will be thick, creamy, and shocking pink. (“OK, Pepto Bismol pink. It has a tangy taste that cuts through and perks up whatever you put it on.”)
Makes 1-1/2 pints.
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Garlicky Cranberry Chutney
Susan Stamberg calls this recipe “my truly favorite cranberry side dish.” It’s from Madhur Jaffrey’s cookbook East/West Menus for Family and Friends (Harper & Row, 1987).
1-inch piece fresh ginger
3 cloves finely chopped garlic
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoons sugar
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1-pound can cranberry sauce with berries
1/2 teaspoon salt (or less)
ground black pepper
Cut ginger into paperthin slices, stack them together and cut into really thin slivers.
Combine ginger, garlic, vinegar, sugar and cayenne in a small pot. Bring to a simmer, simmer on medium flame about 15 minutes or until there are about four tablespoons of liquid left.
Add can of cranberry sauce, salt and pepper. Mix and bring to a simmer. Lumps are ok. Simmer on a gentle heat for about 10 minutes.
Cool, store and refrigerate. (“It will keep for several days, if you don’t finish it all after first taste!”)
The Aitz Chaim Ram's Horn 