anj68 – Page 29 – Alice the Cook

September 22, 2009March 5, 2012

Spiced Turkey (not spicy)

Festive holidays bring friends and family together. In my household, holidays also mean feasts. Below is a recipe I used for cooking turkey. This past weekend, we did a unique twist to the recipe and smoked the meat as well. You can do this recipe easily in the oven, if you don’t want to smoke it, but smoking it adds to the flavor. Below is the recipe from this weekend and I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients:
1 turkey (between 13-15 lbs)
6 oranges
1/3 cup of whole cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp of garam masala
3 cups of applewood chips
6 cups of water
Large cast iron pot with ring insert
fire

Process:
begin soaking the wood chips in the water overnight. While they soak, zest two of the six oranges and reserve the zest. Pierce the skin of the unzested oranges with the cloves. They should look like pomanders or Christmas decorations when done. Place in the refrigerator until the next day.

The next day, make sure the turkey is thawed and its body cavity is rinsed out and clean. Cut the two of the four cloved oranges in half and place in to the turkey’s cavity. All four halves should fit, if not, push them in more forcibly and sew the bird shut.

If smoking the bird, place the wet wood chips into the cast iron pot with the ring insert above the wood chips. Before placing the bird on top of the ring, sprinkle the cinnamon and garam masala spices onto the exterior of the bird. Lay the bird, breast side down in the pot and place the last of the oranges outside of the bird in the pot and cover. Once covered, place the pot on direct heat.

Check every twenty minutes and add about a cup of water to the wood (do not pour it on the bird). The water will create a steamy smoke that will help season the bird and keep it moist. The bird should reach an internal temperature of 175 degrees. At festival, this took 3.5 hours for a 14 lb turkey.

If you choose not to smoke the bird, use the ring, to keep the bird off the direct heat of the pot. In the oven, cook at 400 degrees until the turkey reaches 175 degrees internally.

Pull the oranges out (do not serve) and let sit the meat set for 5 minutes before carving.

August 31, 2009March 5, 2012

Chicken and Black Bean Stew

This past weekend, Nicholas and Raphael (two of my four assistants) and I were busily working and cooking. We made some nice things such as beef stew, sweet & spicy squash soup, and chicken and black bean stew.

Many of those who ate wanted the recipe for their own use. The trouble is, I made enough for 75 people and I need to break it down for a family. Below is the recipe and I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients:
1 chicken cut up
1 cup of chicken stock
3 TB olive oil
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed 3 times
1 lb of carrots, cubed
1/2 lb green beans, cleaned, stemmed, and cut into 1 inch length
2 lbs of red potatoes, cubed
1 small onion or 1 leek, rough chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp of cumin seeds
1 tsp of chili powder (I prefer chipotle or ancho powder)
1/4 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp of fresh ground pepper
Kosher or sea salt to taste

Remove the tips of the wings and debone the breasts and discard. Bones should remain intact for the thighs, legs and remainder of the wings as the marrow will increase the flavor of the broth and they can be removed prior to serving. Cut the chicken breasts up in 1 inch cubes.

In a large pot, begin heating the oil. Once heated, add the chicken to brown slightly, stirring occasionally and add the leeks or onions and the garlic. Continue to saute them for five minutes. Add enough water to cover the chicken. While continuing to stir, add the black beans and carrots. Continue to stir and simmer for five minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the potatoes, stock, and the cumin, chili powder, cinnamon, and black pepper. stir once to blend and cover the pot to continue to cook (about 15 minutes). Stir and check the tenderness of the potatoes. At this point, add the green beans and salt to the mixture and continue cooking for another 5-7 minutes. Keep in mind, potatoes will often absorb the salt, so you should continue to taste the dish.

The potatoes will thicken the dish turning it into a stew. I really enjoyed serving this dish over rice. Other items may be added to this recipe. Stewed tomatoes may often be added giving this dish a “chili” like appearance.

Have fun trying this dish at home. Don’t forget, copies of the cookbooks are available through various vendors and you can check them out Here.

August 24, 2009March 5, 2012

Ratatouille Recipe

This past weekend, Alice the Cook and her assistants were busily preparing food for the villiagers at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. Keep in mind, each weekend during the run, I prepare enough food to feed 85-120 people each day. It’s very hard work.

On Saturday, we prepared Kielbasa Stew and Ratatouille. Since Ratatouille is not in either of my cookbooks, many of my fans asked me to post it so that they can recreate it at home. I took the recipe and recalculated it for a more personal setting.

Ratatouille is a French peasant dish that has been around since the 11th century in one form or another. Below is a more modern interpretation of the recipe. I hope you like it.

Ingredients:
1 medium sized onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium or large eggplant, diced
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 medium zucchini diced into large chunks
2 medium yellow squash, diced into large chunks
add herbs as desired (try basil)
olive oil (enough to sauté onion/garlic)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until tender. Add the eggplant and tomatoes and bring it to simmer for 15 minutes. Add the zucchini and yellow squash and simmer for another 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are tender and remove from the heat. Stir in the herbs and let sit to cool a bit for 10 minutes before serving. This will allow the herbs to add flavor to the dish. For my recipe this past weekend, I added several button mushrooms that were diced for more flavor.

NOTE: Avoid copper or steel pots when making this dish as the tomatoes will absorb the acids of the tomatoes. I prefer using a well seasoned cast iron pot, but you may have other seasoned pots that you may use.

This recipe can be served over rice, pasta, or potatoes and can be served hot or cold. I hope you enjoy it.

August 18, 2009

Ship Provisions during the early 17th century

A friend/colleague forwarded me some information regarding the typical provisions on ships (particularly the Dutch East India Company) during the early 17th century. It was forwarded to me by MacGregor’s Historical Games.

Source: It is taken from the Halve Maen (Half Moon) interpretive manual found at http://www.hrmm.org/halfmoon/manual.htm

I thought fan of food and historical research may appreciate this list.

1. Meat (Beef)
2. Bacon (Pork)
3. Wine
4. Brandy
5. Oil
6. Klein beer (i.e. small beer)
7. “Good” beer
8. Spanish Wine
9. French Wine
10. Vinegar
11. Water
12. Ham (for officers)
13. Smoked Beef (for officers)
14. Smoked tongue (for officers)
15. Biscuit
16. Groats
17. White peas
18. Gray peas
19. Beans
20. Butter
21. Stock-fish (usually dried cod)
22. Cream Cheese
23. Hard Cheese
24. Salted Pork
25. Salted Beef
26. Pickled Herring
27. Whale Blubber
28. Brandy
29. Salt
30. Mustard Seed

I find it interesting that brandy is listed twice on the list.

August 14, 2009March 5, 2012

Brandied Apricot Pork (July Renaissance Magazine Article)

Below is the article Brandon and I wrote for Renaissance Magazine’s July edition. I hope you enjoy it. I’ve blogged previously about the process of making this dish, and you can read about it HERE.

During the Renaissance, meats and fruits were in several dishes together from various cultures. Originally, the sweetness of the fruits were used to hide the acrid smells of spoiled meat and/or to remove the saltiness of preserved (salted) meat. Most common used fruits in cooking include apples, pears, citrus, apricots, figs, and dates.

The brandy soaked apricots compliment the roasted pork in a way that the fussiest eater will even enjoy this dish. This dish is one of the simplest I have to offer. In my opinion, family time should not be spent, working in a hot kitchen, but spending time with those you love.

Apricot Brandy Stuffed Pork Roast
Ingredients
3 lbs pork roast, boneless
2 cups dried apricots
2 cups brandy
2 cups water
3 tbsp butter

Begin this recipe by soaking the apricots in brandy and water for an hour and a half or until the apricots are noticeably plump; preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Cut open pork roast so it lies open and begin to flatten the pork by pounding it with a meat tenderizer until evenly flat (approximately 1 and a half to 1 inch thick. Soak four wooden skewers in water. Roughly chop up the reconstituted apricots and return them to the watered down brandy. Place chopped apricots in middle of the flattened pork roast, reserving the liquid, and fold over the long ends of the pork and secure them with two wooden skewers.

Fold in open ends of roast and secure with the last two wooden skewers. Place the 2 tbsp butter in a heated Dutch oven until melted and then add the stuffed pork roast. Sear the pork roast fat side up and add the reserved liquid. Place the lid of the pot and place in oven. Cook for one hour. When the roast is done, take it out of the pot and set on a cutting board covered for 5 minutes. Return the pot to a stove top and add 1 tbsp butter and begin cooking down the sauce. Remove the skewers and slice up the roast, served with the sauce.

In the photograph, the dish was served with braised leeks and carrots as a side dish. This recipe can be found on her cookbook “Renaissance Cooking II: Visiting the Silk Road” and on her website at http://www.alicethecook.com. You can find it by searching for “braised leeks.”