Turkey Roulade

Maybe you’re “turkeyed-out” after the Thanksgiving holiday, but not me. I didn’t have the traditional bird on the big day. Instead, I was tempted by too many other offerings at Commander’s Palace, a landmark restaurant in New Orleans. My husband and I spent a few days in New Orleans during the holiday week, visiting relatives and expanding our waistlines. (Those of you who follow me on Instagram saw photos of lots of the food we ate, plus the wacky hats and costumes people wore at the racetrack on turkey day).  We ate so many delicious meals at so many wonderful restaurants each day, recommended by my husband’s son and wife, who moved there from New York a couple of years ago.

As much as I love dining out, I also missed the smells and tastes of a good old-fashioned turkey dinner. So after returning home, I restocked at the grocery store yesterday and made a scaled-down version of a Thanksgiving meal for the two of us last night. Instead of a full turkey, I bought a boneless turkey breast and stuffed it with a sausage/dried cherry/pecan stuffing. It was a lot easier to prepare than you’d think (and way easier than cooking a whole turkey) and would make a great meal for company around the Christmas holiday too.

Start out by preparing the stuffing. I used a mixture of bread cubes, cooked and crumbled Italian sausage, dried cherries soaked in rum, toasted pecans, eggs, plus some fresh herbs and spices. If you don’t like dried cherries, use whatever dried fruit you like – cranberries, apricots, or figs for instance.) Don’t like pecans? Then use walnuts, pine nuts or hazelnuts instead.

I bought a turkey breast that weighed 1 1/2 pounds and when stuffed, could easily serve four people (maybe five, depending on appetites). Make sure you buy a breast with the skin still attached.

The breast is too thick to stuff, so you have to do a little prep work. It’ll take you only five minutes to complete.

Slice the breast parallel to the counter surface, so that the meat opens like a book. It’s still too thick at this point, so use a mallet (first cover the meat with plastic wrap) and pound it flatter.This is how mine looked after pounding, and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Be mindful that the skin that was on the meat before you started pounding it, will now be on only a small part of the meat after you’ve pounded it. Here you can see it sticking out at the bottom of the meat. So when you start rolling it up, start from the side that doesn’t have the skin. Spread the filling around the surface and dot with a little bit of butter. Roll it up, starting with the length of meat that doesn’t have any skin attached to it. You’ll want the skin to end up on the outside, so if you started with rolling up where the skin is, you’ll have the skin inside the meat, which you don’t want. I hope that’s not too confusing. The skin is right where it should be when you flip it over. Tie it up well with butcher’s string so that it stays together when roasting.

Then season with with salt, pepper, paprika, some thyme and rosemary (the fresh herbs actually burned midway through the roasting, so I’m not sure I’d do that again). Scatter some onions all around, then pour in some white wine (I would have added some chicken broth too, but I didn’t have any). 

Drizzle some olive oil over the onions and the meat and roast at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes, or until a meat thermometer registers 150 degrees. Actually, when the thermometer reads 140-145 degrees, take it out, since it needs to rest about ten minutes and the temperature will continue to rise a bit when it’s resting. Remove the twine and slice.

Enjoy! Happy Belated Thanksgiving. Hope you had a wonderful time with family and friends.

Check out Ciao Chow Linda on Instagram here to find out what’s cooking in my kitchen each day (and more).

Turkey Roulade

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

Serves: serves 4-5

A boneless turkey breast, rolled and stuffed with sausage, pecans and dried cherries.

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 1 boneless turkey breast, with skin on (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 1/4 cup dried cherries
• rum, to cover the cherries
• 1/2 cup toasted pecans
• 1 link of Italian sausage
• about 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup diced celery
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 3 cups bread cubes
• about 4 tablespoons melted butter
• salt, pepper
• fresh sage and parsley, minced
• 2 onions, cut in large chunks
• olive oil to drizzle
• 1 cup white wine, or chicken broth, or a combination of the two

Instructions

1. Start by soaking the dried cherries in rum.
2. Melt one tablespoon butter in a sauce pan and add the onions and celery.
3. Sauté until wilted, then add the sausage and crumble with a spoon.
4. When sausage is fully cooked, add it and the onions to a bowl.
5. Drain the cherries from the rum and discard the liquid.
6. To the bowl with the sausage, onions and celery, add the cherries, the bread cubes, the eggs, the toasted pecans and seasonings.
7. Melt the remaining butter and add to the bowl and mix well.
8. Slice the turkey breast open like a “book.”
9. Using a mallet, pound it flatter, using plastic wrap to protect the meat.
10. Spread the stuffing over the meat , adding a couple of pats of butter.
11. Roll up the meat, making sure you end up with the skin on the outside.
12. Tied it with butcher’s string to hold everything in place.
13. Place in a roasting pan and roast at 400 degrees for 50 minutes to one hour, or until a thermometer reads about 140 – 145 degrees.
14. The temperature will continue to rise for a short while and should reach 150 degrees.
15. Let the meat rest, covered with aluminum foil, for at least ten minutes.
16. Slice and serve.

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Eggplant Parmigiana

I’ve been making eggplant parmigiana for decades, and if you’re like me, you’re making it the way most people (and cookbooks) instruct you to do, that is, frying the eggplant after coating the slices separately in flour, beaten eggs and then bread crumbs. The eggplant tastes great when it comes out of the fryer, with its crunchy coating and makes a delicious side dish as is.  But why fry it crispy, only to coat it in layers of tomato sauce and cheese, that will in essence, render the crispy eggplant completely soggy?

It’s only in the last couple of years that I’ve said “arrivederci” to the three step process of coating eggplant slices for parmigiana in favor of grilling eggplant for this classic casserole instead. You don’t have to  use an outdoor grill – a stovetop grill pan works just fine.

This method of making eggplant parmigiana is easier, and much lighter, and closer to the way it’s served in Italy. I recently made a couple of casseroles of this for a party, and everyone went back for seconds. I don’t think I’ll go back to the triple coating and frying method again – unless it’s to serve them straight out of the fryer as a side dish. 

Place some tomato sauce on the bottom of an ovenproof dish (I use a very basic marinara – no meat, and it’s better if it’s a little on the thin, or runny side since it thickens up when it bakes with the eggplant and cheeses). 

Layer with slices of eggplant, shredded mozzarella and parmigiana cheese. Continue for two or three more layers, depending on how much eggplant, sauce and cheese you have. When you’ve used the last of your eggplant slices, cover them with more tomato sauce and cheese and place in the oven.

Bake at 375 degrees until bubbly hot and browned on top. If needed, crank the oven temperature to 425 degrees for the last five minutes, but keep a close watch on it because it can easily burn,

Check out Ciao Chow Linda on Instagram here to find out what’s cooking in my kitchen each day (and more).

Eggplant Parmigiana

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

Grilling eggplant, instead of breading and frying, leads to a much lighter eggplant parmigiana.

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• Two large eggplant
• about 1 – 2 cups tomato sauce (on the thin side because it will thicken in the oven)
• olive oil to coat the eggplant slices
• salt, pepper
• seasoned salt
• dried basil
• 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Peel the eggplant, but not entirely.
2. Peel “stripes” in the eggplant, so some peel remains.
3. Drizzle olive oil over the slices, and season with salt pepper, (herbed salt if you have it) and dried basil.
4. Use an indoor grill pan to grill the eggplant slices (I don’t like using an outdoor grill for this recipe since I don’t want a “smoky” flavor).
5. Remove the eggplant slices when cooked through, and set aside.
6. Spread some tomato sauce in a casserole and place a layer of eggplant slices over the sauce.
7. Spread with a layer of the mozzarella cheese, then a layer of the parmesan.
8. Repeat with more sauce, another layer of the eggplant and cheeses
9. If you have enough eggplant, make a third layer, even if it’s only a partial layer, in order to use up the rest of the eggplant.
10. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until the cheese is golden.
11. If the top is still not golden, turn the heat up higher to 425 degrees, but keep a close watch so it doesn’t burn.

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Upside Down Apple Cake

What? Another apple cake recipe, when there seem to be a plethora of them at this time of year? Well yes, because A) Like cheesecake, you can never have enough apple cake recipes and B) This one is an upside-down apple cake, a cake oozing with sticky, buttery and sugary goodness that I can’t get enough of.

If you’ve followed my blog over the years, you know I’ve made upside-down cakes using lots of different fruits, including the classic pineapple, but also pears, figs, blood oranges, plums, cranberries, peaches, and there are still more to try.

This cake would make a nice addition to the traditional pumpkin pie on your Thanksgiving table, too. I made it twice in the last week or so, once with walnuts added (top photo) and the second time without walnuts, (photos below) but with an extra caramel sauce drizzled on top. It doesn’t really need either item, but the caramel sauce helped disguise a crack in the center of the cake after I flipped it too vigorously onto the plate.

And speaking of the plate, isn’t she a beauty? That two-toned blue and beige platter was made by a friend of mine – a gifted potter named Jacalynn McCord. I hadn’t seen her since we graduated from high school eons ago, but we recently reconnected at a reunion and had a blast catching up. Back when Cher was still not allowed to show her naval on TV,  Jackie and I (along with some other classmates) were members of a folk-singing group. We played the world-famous nursing home/bar mitzvah circuit, singing covers of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan songs – and even cut a record! But that was two or three lifetimes ago.

Jackie went on to study art and become a talented potter and runs a business called Lion Paw Pottery. The name derives from her alma mater, Penn State University, whose mascot is the Nittany Lion. Many, but not all, of her designs feature lion paw prints (for those diehard PSU fans) and she’ll custom-make an item too. You can peruse her website here.  I think her platter shows off this cake beautifully, and I’m sure you readers will be seeing it on future posts featuring other foods as wellJust a word about the cake – It’s delicious at any temperature, but best the day it’s made, and when it’s warm from the oven, it’s irresistible.

Upside Down Apple Cake

Author: From Delish.com

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• FOR THE APPLES:
• 3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• pinch kosher salt
• 2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/2″ thick
• FOR THE CAKE:
• 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup milk

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease with butter and dust with flour an 8″ round cake pan. (I used a springform pan, but some of the butter leaked causing spillage in the oven. If you use a springform pan, place it on a cookie sheet with a sheet of aluminum foil, or parchment paper underneath it.)
2. In a small saucepan over medium heat melt brown sugar, butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Cook until slightly thickened, about two minutes.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder cinnamon, salt and nutmeg.
5. In another large bowl, using a mixer, beat together butter and sugars until softened.
6. Add eggs one at a time. then add vanilla.
7. Add half the dry ingredients to wet ingredients, beating until just combined.
8. Pour in milk and mix until fully incorporated.
9. Add remaining dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
10. Pour batter over apples and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean 1 hour.
11. Let cool in pan 15 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack and let cool completely before slicing.

3.5.3251

 

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Chicken Involtini in Lemon/Wine Sauce

Tired of boring, dried out chicken breasts? Here’s a way to pack some flavor into these bland cuts of meat and keep them moist at the same time. Start out with a couple of skinless, boneless chicken breasts and cut each one in half, then pound them with a meat mallet between sheets of waxed paper, to make them as even as possible.

Next, spread some seasoned bread crumb filling on each one, topping with small bits of butter, less than one tablespoon for all four pieces.

Secure with toothpicks and mix the ingredients for the liquid – chicken broth, white wine, lemon juice and spices and herbs. Season with salt and pepper, and place a small pat of butter on each chicken piece – about one tablespoon divided among the four pieces. Cook for only about ten minutes.

Doesn’t look like much yet. But just wait. 

Top it with the reserved bread crumb mixture and place back in the oven for another five minutes, or until the topping is browned.

Reduce the sauce on the stove top if it’s too liquidy, but the bread crumbs do get absorbed and thicken the sauce. Serve the involtini with some of the sauce and enjoy!

Chicken Involtini

Author: adapted from “Lidia’s Italian American Kitchen”

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 5 ounces each)
• 1/4 cup fine, dry bread crumbs
• 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably the Sicilian or Greek type, dried on the branch, crumbled
• salt, pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1/8 cup fresh lemon juice
• a sprinkle of crushed hot red pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled

Instructions

1. Cut each chicken breast half in half crosswise to yield two pieces of roughly equal size.
2. Place a piece of waxed paper over each piece , and pound with a meat pounder or mallet to flatten slightly.
3. Toss the bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of the oregano and salt, in a bowl until blended.
4. Sprinkle each chicken breast with salt and pepper to taste, and spread with a bit of the bread crumb mixture, reserving half the crumbs.
5. Roll each chicken piece, securing them with a toothpick.
6. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.
7. Arrange the filled chicken breasts in an ovenproof baking dish.
8. Stir the wine, stock, lemon juice, hot pepper, the remaining olive oil and oregano and some salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl.
9. Pour into the baking dish. whack the garlic cloves with the flat side of a knife and scatter them along the chicken pieces.
10. Bake 10 minutes.
11. Top the chicken with the butter, the remaining bread crumb mixture.
12. Return to the oven and bake until the bread crumb topping is golden brown, about 5 minutes more or so.
13. Remove the casserole from the oven, and if it is flameproof, put it over a medium high heat on the range to thicken and reduce the pan juices, adding more parsley.
14. If the casserole is not flameproof, remove the chicken pieces and keep warm.
15. Place the liquid in a pot, then reduce over a medium high flame.
16. Serve the chicken pieces, removing the toothpicks and spreading the sauce around the chicken, in order to keep the topping crunchy.

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