The dinner I cooked for this year’s Thanksgiving was definitely the best one we’ve ever had. With the exception of sauces and dessert, which I will probably vary in the future, I’ve worked out recipes I plan using again and again in the future.

1. Roast Turkey
The third time’s the charm! I prepare and roast my turkey using a combination of methods gleaned from the November 2008 issue of Martha Stewart Living and the 2006 edition of Joy of Cooking, as well as personal taste. After two years of brining the bird, I’ve finally worked out the perfect ratio of salt to liquid. This time around, I rubbed spice butter under and over the skin of the turkey before roasting―the amount of crushed pepper flakes was, of course, halved. Brining the turkey pretty much guarantees perfectly seasoned and moist meat.

2. Mushroom and Walnut Stuffing
Not wishing to repeat the disaster that was the sweet potato stuffing from last year, I decided to give the traditional mushroom and nuts combination a try. It was a resounding success and is now my stuffing of choice.

3. Fluffy Mashed Potatoes with White Wine Gravy
I pretty much just eyeball my mashed potatoes―half russet potatoes and half white sweet potatoes boiled until tender, mashed with a fork, and whipped with an electric mixer with about half a pint of heavy cream. It is important not to salt the mashed potatoes though; since the gravy is made from drippings of a turkey that was brined, it turns out much saltier than one would expect.

4. Cranberry-Pomegranate Relish
While skeptical about putting cranberries, pomegranate, sugar, and shallots together, I still decided to give this sauce a try, and I’m glad I did! It tasted amazing with the turkey.

5. Mulled Cider
The grocery store decided to hide all the jugs of Martinelli’s, so I just used regular apple juice for this. It is simply heated with a couple sticks of cinnamon and a dozen crushed pods of cardamom, giving it a wonderful hint of spice.

6. Frozen Maple-Mousse Pie with Candied Cranberries
Although it is closer to soft maple ice cream with pieces of pecan, this pie is nonetheless absolutely heavenly, with the added benefit of not requiring the use of an oven. Word of warning about topping it with candied cranberries: all the sweetness might make your teeth stick together. ;)

Sunday lunch: skewers edition.

1. Herb-Marinated Chicken Skewers with Harissa
I got a free subscription to Food & Wine magazine through the purchase of my Artisan and the issues finally started arriving! This dish from the November 2010 issue looked simple enough to make and guaranteed lots of flavor from the herbs and spices. I substituted a deseeded and deveined red jalapeño for the Thai chile to avoid death by spiciness.

2. Jasmine rice
My newest obsession, along with chickpeas and goat cheese. It smells wonderful and goes with pretty much everything.

3. Simple salad
Sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, and spinach. Top with your favorite dressing or eat plain for a great dose of vitamins and iron.

Sunday lunch: white people’s Indian edition. Although half my family can’t handle spicy food, Indian cuisine is still delicious, provided the fire is turned way down.

1. Indian Spiced Chicken with Raita
An amazing marinade and baking on a bed of onions makes the chicken super tender and tasty. I would actually up the amount of cayenne in the marinade if I was to make this again. A bit of kick would make the dish better and burning mouths could be abated with lots of the dairy-based raita.

2. Chana Masala
One can never go wrong with chickpeas. I think I’ve developed an obsession for chickpea based dishes. If I knew where to get my hands on some tahini, this house would surely be overrun by hummus.

3. Chopped Cucumber and Peanut Salad
Although I know that removing the seeds from the cucumber prevents the salad from becoming drowned in its own water, I just can’t bring myself to do it; the seeds are the best part of it! The resulting bag of cucumber peels is also great to soothe and moisturize skin—lunch and a facial all in one.

4. Chai
Recipe from my beloved Joy of Cooking (Scribner, 2006). Very simple to make, provided you have the requisite spices and keep a close enough watch on your milk that it doesn’t boil over.

Sunday lunch: ‘I needed to feed my starter’ edition.

1. Turkey sandwiches with homemade sourdough bread. Super easy to make, minus the fuss with the bread and my Pyrex dish exploding.

1½ to 2 pounds of deli sliced, hickory smoked turkey breast
8 ounces goat cheese
4 plum tomatoes
arugula
sourdough or focaccia bread

Microwave the goat cheese for a few seconds to get it to spreadable consistency. Spread on one side of two slices of bread. Layer one bread slice with arugula, a quarter of a plum tomato, sliced, and two to three slices of turkey. Top with bread and skewer with a toothpick. Makes about 16 sandwiches.

2. Macaroni salad

I simplified this by including only macaroni, celery, egg, and mayo, along with adding sliced, pimento stuffed olives and Dijon mustard. Seasoned simply with salt and pepper.

3. Sparkling lemonade, which is about three tablespoons to a quarter cup of lightly sweetened lemon simple syrup + a cup of club soda.

Lightly Sweetened Lemon Simple Syrup

grated zest of one lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
½ cup water
½ cup sugar

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Let cool. Strain through a fine mesh sieve to remove zest.

To make this more sweet and intensely lemony, use a full cup of lemon juice and a full cup of sugar. Omit the water. Makes about 1 cup of syrup.

Sunday lunch: November 2010 issue of Everyday Food edition.

1. Herb-Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
My grocery store for some reason didn’t have leeks this week (note to self: must find elsewhere to shop), which were supposed to be included with the carrots and red potatoes, so I had to leave them out. I also stuffed some fresh thyme and lemon slices under the skin of the chicken.

2. Spinach, Bacon, and Onion Dip with Baguette Toasts
This dip was so good! I think I’ll add more bacon next time though.

3. Cranberry Simple Syrup + White Wine Cocktail
November means that frozen cranberries are finally being sold again. I bought practically all the bags that they had and will continue stocking up in the coming weeks so that I can enjoy cranberry scones and other goodies even in the middle of spring. This cocktail is pretty self explanatory: make some simple syrup with a couple cups of frozen cranberries, add to white or sparkling wine, enjoy!

4. Apple Pie
The apples are finally dwindling down. The end is near! :D

Sunday dinner: homemade pizza.

1. Kalamata olives, sun-dried tomatoes, caramelized onions, and Fontina + Parmesan cheese blend.

2. Green bell pepper, red onion, garlic, cherry tomatoes from the garden, and mozzarella, with a sprinkling of sea salt on top.

Dough is homemade according to the Joy of Cooking (Scribner 2006) recipe.

Today’s Homemade Lunch:

Arancini di Riso with a Basic Salad and Simple Lemon Dressing

Arancini recipe from Giada for Food Network.

Basic Salad
Baby arugula
Sliced cucumbers
Halved cherry tomatoes

Source: own

Simple Lemon Dressing
1 part freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 part olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Briskly whisk the combination until emulsified and drizzle over salad.

Source: own

One of the sides I made for yesterday’s barbecue dinner.

homemadelunch:

Grilled Tomatoes, Stuffed with Orzo, Goat Cheese, Green Onions, and Basil

Recipe from the Neelys for Food Network.

As always, you’re welcome to submit your homemade meals to the blog!

homemadelunch:

Bistro Sliders with Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Sliders recipe from July/August 2010 issue of Everyday Food.

Sweet potato fries recipe from Paula Deen for Food Network. I used a suggestion from the comments and baked them at 450°F for 15 minutes, then reduced to 350°F for another 15. If you don’t want to make the full 1.5 cups of the House Seasoning, use the following proportions:

House Seasoning
makes 1 tablespoon

2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Last week, for my birthday, a couple of friends and I celebrated with drinks and a mini lemon cheesecake at Park Place in Cupertino:

Left to right: Ruby Martini, Sazerac, and Cypress Kiss

In addition to drinks, we had the most heavenly wild mushroom flatbread—so good, we got two—and potato croquettes. Inspired, I set out to create a reasonable facsimile of the flatbreads. The result was quite successful and very easy to make:

Mushroom Pizzas

2 packages thin crust pizzas (22 oz)
1 cup grated Parmesan or Grana cheese (4 oz)
1 cup grated Fontina cheese (4 oz)
1 tsp fresh thyme (optional)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces Baby Bell mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
two handfuls of arugula
pepper

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Line two cookie sheets with parchment. Unroll each pizza dough package onto the sheets and pre-bake according to package instructions for a crispy crust (about 5 minutes). Meanwhile, mix cheeses and thyme, if using, in a small bowl.

Place olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Lightly sauté mushrooms with lemon juice and pepper to taste until they’re slightly softened. Divide cheese and mushrooms between pre-baked crusts and return to oven; bake according to package directions (about 8-10 minutes). Top with arugula and serve.

yields two pizzas, approximately 10” x 15” each

And the great thing is that the saltiness and sharpness of the cheeses means that you don’t need to add salt anywhere else in the dish. Enjoy!