Years ago, various types of poultry were literally stuffed until almost bursting for an upcoming Thanksgiving feast, and unless one was very careful, the potential existed for serious issues with food safety. Today, to discourage unwanted food safety issues, we discourage packing a bread stuffing inside of any poultry cavity as the poultry cooks. It really is unnecessary to place stuffing inside a poultry cavity to achieve good flavor in the stuffing, and the risk of food safety issues is just too great to take the risk at home and try to stuff a very large turkey to the gunwales!
Category: Menu
Sweet Potato-Apple Stuffing
The inspiration for this soft, moist stuffing came after reading a recipe where the ingredients were originally destined to become a soup, but I thought, why not a moist, flavorful stuffing instead?! Sometimes you can “re-purpose” a recipe and this is an example of that concept.
Three Rice Pilaf Casserole
By mixing several types of rice together, you get a pleasing mouthfeel, taste and visual appeal with this rice pilaf dish.
Baked Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes were made for baking as their flavor intensifies inside their jacket skins as they bake. It is your choice how you chose to bake them. Some folks like the convenience of using the microwave; others prefer to have them in a conventional oven, and some even like to use a potato baker on the cooktop. In a warmer climate you might even be able to grill them at Thanksgiving time.
Cranberry Relish or Jellied Sauce
Even fully ripe cranberries that ripen between September and November in North America (ripe color range is from bright to dark red–actual colors depend upon the variety) in and of themselves are not naturally sweet. In reality, they are quite bitter, and unripe pale ones are especially bitter and shouldn’t be eaten. To prepare a tasty relish or sauce with them, you need to add something more.
Winter Baby Spinach And Mandarin Orange Salad
Sometimes, it is the inclusion of just one little something different as an unexpected ingredient in a recipe that gives that recipe a little “zing” it otherwise would not have had. For example, there is one ingredient you cannot leave out of the dressing for this salad, because without it, the interplay of flavors will change and that “little something extra” that would then be missing would be noticed! That ingredient happens to be a little bit of beef flavored bouillon granules! For a pleasant holiday twist, top this simple salad with a few maraschino cherry halves as desired just before serving.
Sweet Potato Souffle
This recipe dates back in time to before I was married and is proof that moderation is key and a little bit of a treat is sometimes worth having–the key is a little bit! At the time, I had just completed my M.S. degree elsewhere and was working as the assistant to the State Extension Specialist in Food and Nutrition in the State of PA and we had received inquiries for some new recipes featuring sweet potatoes and/or yams. One of the other Extension Specialists actually loved to cook, whereas my boss did not really enjoy spending time in the
Warm Wassail Wishes (Spiced Wassail)
To help celebrate the blog site going live this week, I wanted to share this recipe for a classic sensory packed variation on wassail. It can be served as a non-alcoholic beverage or it can be laced with white rum–your choice. Everyone feels welcome walking in the door if greeted by the aroma of a simmering pot of wassail. Sniffing wisps of the pungent spices (cinnamon, cloves and allspice) with top notes of fruity aromas is likely to bring on a flood of pleasant memories from childhood past.
Sensory Perception and Wine Pairing with Food
The key purpose of pairing wine with food is to increase your enjoyment of both. Demystify all the mystique surrounding wine pairing with food choices by simplifying it all down to one simple concept of balance.
Sensory Perception and Wine Evaluation
Since we are about to head into the Holiday season, it is quite likely that you might be considering food and wine pairing when planning any holiday meal(s). It seemed like this might be a good time to share some thoughts about sensory perception and wine evaluation as you start thinking ahead to any Thanksgiving Celebration and beyond. Local wine stores or perhaps actual wineries (if you happen, like me, to live in or near a wine growing region) may feature special holiday tastings and celebrations. You can taste a variety of wines and make notes about any tastings and then decide