Thanksgiving is almost here: for many the celebration is gathering with friends and loved ones to prepare and share food.
What dishes are always on your Thanksgiving table, and what dishes are you trying for the first time this year?
If you’re not a big gourmet, what makes the Thanksgiving holiday special for you?
On The Point, we talk holiday food with these foodies:
Greg Margolis, lifelong chef and proprietor of The Corner Table + Nantucket Culinary Center.
PJ Hamel, a baker who’s developed and written recipes, blogs, and cookbooks for the King Arthur Baking company for over three decades.
Annie B. Copps, a Boston-based chef, cooking instructor, consultant, international culinary tour guide, journalist, and food activist with more than 30 years of experience in the local and international food, travel, and public health arenas. She is the author of two cookbooks, A Little Taste of Cape Cod and Little Local Maine; and the co-founder of The Readable Feast a New England cookbook and food writing celebration.
Below are listed some of the recepies mentioned on the program.
PJ Hamel’s suggestion for Fresh Blueberry Pie
PJ Hamel’s Potato Roll Recipe
Green Beans Casserole with Fried Onions
2 pounds green beans
Kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
1 small onion
1 pound cremini or any combination of mushrooms, sliced
4 large sprigs thyme
4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
a few scrapes of nutmeg
a wee pinch of cayenne
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1¼ cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup grated Parmesan/Gruyere
Freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup Trader Joes fried onions
Heat the oven to 375°.
In a large pot of boiling salted water, working in batches, cook blanch, shock, and dry the green beans. Drain and let cool; trim stem ends.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add the butter and oil. Add the onion and cook until softened and fragrant. Raise the heat and add the mushrooms in as much of a single layer as possible. Cook without stirring, until they begin to sweat, then season with salt and pepper, add the thyme sprigs and toss a few times to coat all the ingredients with each. Continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes more. Add the garlic and cook just until the garlic is fragrant; about 1 minute.
In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the remaining butter. Add the nutmeg and cayenne. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking occasionally, until the roux is golden brown and smells mildly nutty; about 4 minutes. Whisk in the milk and cream. Increase the heat and bring to a simmer, whisking often, and cook until the béchamel sauce is thick and bubbling; about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in the Parmesan; check for seasoning.
Arrange the green beans and mushrooms in a 2-quart baking dish. Pour the sauce over (it may not look like enough, but it will get saucier as it bakes). Cover tightly with foil and bake until the sauce is bubbling; 25 to 30 minutes. Uncover and top with the fried onions and continue to bake just until the onions are slightly darker and fragrant; about 10 minutes. Let sit 10 minutes to set before serving.
Clover Rolls
1 (1/4-ounce/2 1/4 teaspoons/7 grams) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 cups/255 grams all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
½ cup/120 milliliters whole milk, warmed to 105 to 110 degrees
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the pan
1 large egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached, combine the yeast, sugar, flour and salt. With the mixer on low, add the milk, butter, and egg and knead until the dry ingredients have been incorporated (you may have to help it along at first with a spatula) and the dough is smooth, about 5 to 10 minutes. The dough will be shiny and elastic; if it’s at all sticky, scrape down the sides of the bowl and gather the dough into a neat ball (no need to add extra flour). Cover the bowl with plastic and set aside to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 to 2 hours.
Butter a standard 12-cup muffin tin. Gently tip the dough out onto a work surface. You shouldn’t need flour at this point. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Work with one piece at a time and keep the other pieces covered. Divide each piece into 3 equal pieces, roll each piece into a tight ball and place into one cup. Repeat with the remaining dough. Cover the tray lightly with plastic wrap and set aside to double again, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. The dough should look puffy and spring back slowly when pressed gently.
Heat the oven to 375 degrees.
Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Remove the plastic wrap and without deflating the dough, gently brush the rolls with the butter. Bake until puffed and golden, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with more butter and sprinkle with salt. Serve warm.
Julie Sahni’s Cranberry Chutney
1 12-ounce package cranberries
1 orange cut supreme (peel and membrane removed), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced shallots
about 3 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper or minced jalapeno
1 teaspoon mustard seeds, lightly crushed
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup shelled pistachio nuts
1/2 cup finely chopped dried figs (dates or raisins)
In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, combine the fruits, juice, shallots, seasonings, and sugar. Bring to a simmer, stirring often, until sugar has dissolved and cranberries begin to pop.
Remove from heat and let cool. Fold in pistachios and figs.
Chef Greg Margolis's Dressing (Savory Challah Bread Pudding)
1 ea. Challah (Something Natural )
1 qt. Heavy Cream
6 ea. Whole eggs
2 ea. Egg Yolks
2 ea. Large Yellow Onions Diced
3 ea. Stalks celery diced
1 ea. Garlic Bulb sliced thin
¼ cup Parley chopped
¼ cup Thyme Picked
¼ cup Sage chopped
½ # butter melted plus more
½ cup White wine
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Pre heat oven to 325 degrees.
Tear the Challah into 1-inch pieces and toss with the melted butter. Toast until golden brown and reserve for later.
Remember to season as you go by adding a pinch of salt with every new addition to the pan.
Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in large sauté pan over medium heat. When butter is fully melted and starts to bubble add sliced garlic and cook until it just start to brown. Add onions and celery and sauté until fully cooked through. The mixture should be tender, delicious, and starting to leave little brown bits on the pan.
Deglaze the vegetable mixture with white wine being sure to scrape up all the bits stuck to the pan. Continue to cook until the wine is cooked off then add ¼ pound of room temperature butter to the pan and turn off the heat. Add all fresh herbs to the mixture and reserve.
Continue to move the mixture around until the butter is fully melted. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. The herbs will be overpowering at this point but don’t worry they will mellow out as the stuffing cooks.
In a large bowl combine toasted bread and vegetable mixture and set aside.
Combine the cream and eggs and whisk thoroughly making sure to fully combine all eggs into the cream. Season mixture with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Fold cream and egg mixture with bread and vegetable mixture using a large rubber spatula. Make sure to be gentle as not to break up the toasted bread too much. Let the bread soak up the mixture until it is thoroughly saturated.
Grease deep casserole pan with butter and fill with stuffing mix to the top.
Bake at 325 until the mixture puffs up in the middle and a cake tester of knife inserted into the middle of the mixture comes out dry. Approximately 45 minutes.
Allow to cool on a wire rack for at least ten minutes before serving.
