Grandma's Gravy -- and Other Thanksgiving Goodies

     Thanksgiving: the perfect time to trot out your old favorite recipes...and a new one or two. 

Some of the basics, however, are always needed -- like gravy. Good gravy remains a mystery for some cooks. How do you make it, so it's flavorful, yet not lumpy? 

As a kid, I loved a pile of velvety turkey giblet gravy poured smoothly over mashed potatoes and stuffing. (Still do, for that matter.) As the mother of eight kids, who (with the exception of my mom) each had 6 or so kids themselves, Grandma had a lot of gravy to make. Her holiday table was HUGE, and stretched the length of the living room into the dining room...all the way to the deer head that hung on the wall (with a Rudolph red ball on his nose at Christmas), and almost to Tweety, the yellow canary whose cage basked in the thin winter sun in the alcove on the other side of the house. 

     Cousins, uncles and aunts all vied for the food, passed in huge bowls and platters: turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, squash, 'relishes' like celery, carrots and black olives. (The olives were usually gone by the time they reached the younger cousins, like me.) I made sure the jello zipped by (usually it had disgusting things in it, like cottage cheese), and grabbed extras of the stuffing. And, of course, the gravy...which by then, had been refilled by whatever aunt was manning the kitchen.

     One stellar year, Grandma had gravy leftover at one event. So she froze it, planning to whip it out at Thanksgiving, mixing it in with the newmade stuff. My grandma was New England-born, and had a Mayflower ancestor. She was proud of that heritage. For Thanksgiving, therefore, everything had to be Absolutely Perfect. 

     The usual chaos ensued after the prayer: silverware clinking, voices, bowls passing at the speed of light. Then it happened. Everything stopped, for just a heartbeat.

     Grandma was back in the kitchen. A cautious voice: "Who made the gravy??" Others answered, "Grandma did." 

     "It's terrible!" Voice #1 moaned. Groans ensued as others tried it. (Yes, me, too.) It was bitter! (Burned, no doubt.) Too bad, our moms insisted. We weren't going to hurt Grandma's feelings, no matter what. So everyone scraped as much gravy off their respective food as they could, and choked down the bits they couldn't. The kids had a wonderful time making gagging faces and whispering, "Grandma's gravy!"  at each other. Fortunately, Grandma was so busy, she didn't really notice too much.

     Naturally, Grandma had a LOT of gravy leftover that holiday. No doubt she wondered why no one ate much of it...but I really hope she didn't freeze that batch, as well. 

     'Grandma's Gravy' hasn't been repeated, though it's now a cherished family tradition. I did learn how to make excellent gravy, however, from my mom. 

NEW ENGLAND-STYLE POULTRY GRAVY

*drippings from the pan you roasted a large chicken or turkey in

(add 1-2 cups water during the roasting period, to help keep the meat moist and make extra for gravy)

*giblets -- liver, heart, gizzards -- cut in small cubes, and simmered in a saucepan 1/3 water, for at least an hour

*some kind of extra flavoring   (Mom used Kitchen Bouquet -- or I add a bouillon cube or two with the giblets)

*1/2 cup flour, plus salt and pepper to taste

     Scrape the pan, to get every luscious bit out. Add to the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, mix the flour with water (this is called a "slurry") and pour into the saucepan, whisking as you go. Continue whisking until the gravy begins to thicken and bubble. Salt and pepper, then serve. 

(Leftover gravy may be kept in the fridge, or frozen for later use. Check to see it's not 'Grandma's Gravy' before you serve it!)

Solving Gravy Problems:

*Lumps: this is the biggest issue for beginner cooks. Usually it happens because the slurry has been stirred in, then left to just -- sit. Constant stirring (whisking is better) will solve the problem. Or:

        *Melt a few tablespoons of butter, then mix the flour in that before adding water. 

        *Substitute 1/4 cup of cornstarch. It makes a glossy-looking surface, and thickens quickly.

*Bland Flavor: the other problem, but this is easily solved. Add another chicken bouillon cube, some chopped mushrooms, a few tablespoons of butter, dried onion, onion or celery salt. Even more salt and pepper helps. Some cooks, like this one, add milk -- though neither Grandma nor Mom ever did. No sour cream, either.

nicely cooked, and ready for you to harvest the drippings.

Roast Turkey, courtesy of allrecipes

For more favorite Thanksgiving recipes, visit One Hundred Dollars A Month. Mavis has some great ones in this post. 

Enjoy.   (This post also ran on the Brickworks blog site.)

Ballad of a Sausage Roll

  I've got a one-pound roll of breakfast sausage...and a goal to stretch it as far as possible.

Now the Bricks are -- and have been, for generations -- meat-eaters. That's one reason our family hunts -- because we like protein. So if I stretch my meat allowance, I have to make it seem as if I didn't.

I used this single pound of meat in four different meals -- and I did it by adding other ingredients that soaked up its flavor, like mushrooms and onions. The key is cooking it with the other ingredients, instead of beforehand, like most cookbooks suggest. Yes, you're adding a little extra fat -- but not that much. And fat is what adds flavor. And the second tip? Using a divide-and-conquer approach that doesn't waste a bit, and lets you use up vegetables in the crisper, as well.

    A plus: these are all rib-sticking meals, good for chilly days and evenings.

Meal #1:  Biscuits and Gravy

Cut your roll in half. (Put the rest away.) Start sauteing the meat while you start the biscuits. (This recipe explains it all.) Once they're baking, scrape up the excess flour/dough bits and dump them in with the meat. Stir until blended, pour in a cup of milk, and stir again. By the time your milk gravy is thickened and bubbling, the biscuits should be done.  

    Split them, and pour the gravy over. (Save any leftover gravy -- use leftover biscuits for jam and butter for 'dessert.') Great for breakfast -- and can be done as quickly as 20 min., if you start making the biscuits right after the meat.

Meal #2:  Porcupine Rice

   Go here for the recipe...but cut the half-roll in thirds, and use one, instead of the pound of meat suggested. Add 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms and your choice of veggies. (Celery, onion and peppers are particularly good; so is zucchini.) Stir in leftover gravy. 

Meal #3:  Minestrone

    This one's perfect for the slow-cooker. Combine the second third-of-a-half sausage with a 15 oz. can of diced tomato or tomato puree, 4 cups water, 1 beef bouillon cube and 2-3 cups chopped veggies, your choice. (One or two chopped potatoes adds heft.) Add 2 teaspoons of garlic powder and a tablespoon of oregano or Italian spice mix. (Basil mixed with oregano is good, too.) Cook for 7-8 hours on low; one hour before serving, break up the meat, if needed, and add a handful of macaroni (or broken-up spaghetti, or...). Serve sprinkled with parmesan or mozzarella cheese.

Save your leftovers, because they're going into:

Meal #4:  Beans and Rice

    Use the slow-cooker or a simmering kettle for 2 cups pinto beans, plus water to cover, and the rest of your meat. Cook for 7-8 hours on low...or 3-4 hours on a higher temp. Drain, if needed, then add what's left of your soup -- or another can of diced tomatoes and a few teaspoons of garlic powder. (I like a good-sized shot of Frank's Hot Sauce, as well.) Heat til bubbling, then serve over rice. Or leftover biscuits.

Or skip the beans, add the meat to the rice when you're cooking it..
and make Spanish Rice, instead!

And that brings us back to the beginning. Congratulations -- you have have just fed four hungry people four meals, with only one pound of meat! 

You can do this with ground beef, as well as a pound of ham, or chopped raw chicken. One of my blogger friends uses bacon for biscuits and gravy -- and bacon would work for the other dishes, as well. But the sausage really seems to give extra flavor. 

Try it yourself, on some cold and hungry week, when you feel poor. 

Or the paycheck's late. Or you just need some comfort.

Enjoy. 

(This ran in my other blog, A Brickworks Looks At Life)

Cold-Weather Series: Chicken Noodle Soup

  Yes, we're starting up again! And since snow is projected...

...what better meal than a bowl of chickeny-golden goodness. A bowl helps with sniffles (it's a fact!) and reminds you that Life can't be all bad. 

Try it with the biscuits in the previous post. Or toast. Or crackers. Dip them in the broth and slurp them down -- I won't tell.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP 

LIKE MAMA (HOPEFULLY) USED TO MAKE

1 chicken breast, chopped (if you deboned a breast, keep the bone, as well)

2 chicken bouillon cubes

8 cups water (add more later, if needed)

1-2 chopped carrots (about a cupful)

chopped onions (ditto)

chopped celery (ditto ditto - leaves included)

--plus any bits and pieces of leftover veggies you've got in the crisper--

1 teaspoon basil, marjoram -- or both

slight bit of garlic (about 1/8 tsp)

2 teaspoons each of salt and pepper (fresh-ground, if possible)

1/2 package noodles

Dump everything but the noodles in a kettle or slow cooker. Simmer for at least 3 hours -- and preferably 7-8 on low. Ten minutes before you plan to eat, turn the heat up remove the bone and add the noodles. Serves up to 6 hungry people -- the soup will stretch to 8, if you add more water, two more bouillon cubes, more veggies (if you've got them) and the full package of noodles.

You don't have to go without, if your time is limited. Try this semi-homemade version, instead-- here.

Note: This also ran in my Cheap Tasty Good blog.

Decorate Your Tree -- In Frosting!

After admiring the Christmas tree cupcakes mentioned yesterday, I came across this Christmas tree cake, decorated on the same principle, from Dessert Recipes Grill.

Wow.

(Here are the cupcakes, in case you've forgotten. They're cute, too.)

     You'll need icing decorating tips and, of all things -- ice cream cones.  Unlike the cupcakes, the cones are cut in half, then fixed to the side of the cake.

Go here for decorating instructions, and the recipe for the cake.  This video, on making the Christmas Tree cupcakes, helps too. (The link to the cupcakes recipe is here.)

Wouldn't these be pretty on your holiday dinner table?

We're Coming Back!

Look for Thanksgiving suggestions in the next few weeks... then it's on to Christmas.

It's nice to be home again.

Sylvia Plath's Spongecake

After a few days of coolness, including a big rainstorm, we're back to Hot, Sticky and Still. Yuck.

Time to head to the air-conditioned trailer with a cup of coffee, and some of the wonderful fruit that's out there right now. I've been thinking about shortcake to go with it. Normally, I make a kind of biscuit for this, heavily buttered and the fruit poured over. But when we had supper with our friends, they served it on squares of 'hot milk spongecake.' This plain cake is tasty on its own, but absorbs fruit juice nicely. There are dozens of recipes out there, but this version is simple, frugal...and  good. 

NANNIE'S HOT MILK SPONGECAKE

(from AllRecipes.com, with photo)

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 cup milk

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat milk until almost boiling; while it's heating, beat everything but flour together. Gradually pour in milk, then flour, a little at a time, until thoroughly mixed. (Make the flour measurements heaping, if you live at high altitude, like we do.) Pour mixture into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, bake for 45 min. until light brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Serve lathered with sliced strawberries, cherries or peaches mixed with a little sugar, and a generous topping of whipped cream. Ummm…

Just to get away mentally, I've been reading a biography* of Ted Hughes, a brilliant poet who was anything but kind when it came to his many women. (Why do talented writers have to be such pigs sometimes??) Simultaneously, I've been dipping into a volume of letters** by Sylvia Plath, his first wife. She could also be demanding,  and more than a little narcissistic. But boy, could she write -- and cook. Lo and behold, Sylvia made spongecake, too. In a letter to her sister-in-law Olwyn**, she wrote:

"Here is a heavenly sponge cake recipe which you should make in a high cake pan with a funnel in the center so the cake has a hole in the middle:

6 eggs (separate)

1 1/2 cups sugar (sifted)

1 1/3 cups cake flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

1 teaspoon vanilla

"Directions for sponge cake: Beat yolks until lemon colored. Add sugar gradually. Add water nd flavoring. Beat. Add flour gradually, beating. Beat egg whites to froth; add baking powder and salt to frothy egg whites. Beat until very stiff. Fold gently, but thoroly [sic] into egg yolk mixture. Sprinkle granulated sugar lightly over top of cake before putting it in the oven.

    Bake for one hour at 325 degrees. Do not remove cake from pan till cake is cold. Happy eating..."

Hughes and Plath during their marriage -- go here for more

This post ran on the Brickworks blog, as well.

*Ted Hughes: The Unauthorized Life by Jonathan Bate (Harper/Harper Collins, 2015). Extremely well-documented and fascinating...until the scum builds up. Huges was not exactly a Nice Man -- but then again, Plath wasn't always a Nice Woman, either, though she hid it better.

**The Letters of Sylvia Plath, Vol. 2: 1956-1963   (edited Peter Steinberg and Karen Y. Kukil, Harper/Harper/Collins, 2018). Sylvia's recipe is on pp. 323-324.

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Garbage Plates...And Cincinnati Chili

It's been a long day, with lots of clouds and wind. The fridge is full of leftovers, and you've had plenty to do, without even thinking about what you're going to eat tonight.

It may be time for a Garbage Plate.

Before you register a mental 'ewwww,' bear in mind that garbage plates have a long and honored tradition. The first mention seems to be Nick Tahou Hots in Rochester, NY; Alex Tahou, Nick's dad, is said to have invented the original Garbage Plate in 1918.

    The Garbage Plate, according to Nick Tahou Hots, starts "with a base of any combination of home fries, macaroni salad, baked beans or french fries topped by your choice of meats and dressed to your liking with spicy mustard, chopped onions and our signature Nick Tahou's hot sauce. Each plates comes wiht two thick slices of fresh Italian bread and butter."

    Sounds like the perfect dish for a customer who can't make up their mind. ("Hey Nick -- give me a little of everything!") 
     Another site described Tahou's mixture as "two hamburger patties and a choice of two sides -- usually some combination of home fries, macaroni salad, and beans. The contents are often laced heavily with ketchup and hot sauce, and mixed together before eating. Rolls or white bread are served on the side."

New York's Tom Wahl's burger chain makes a similar dish, but calls it the "55 Junker Plate." So, to my surprise, does the national Culver's chain. According to one review, their "Hot Plate" is made up of three cheeseburgers, home fries and macaroni salad lumped together on a platter, with "sneaky good" meat sauce ladled over all. (Bread is extra.)

Culver's 'hot plate'

No fuss, garnishing or arranging here -- the food is lumped on, sauce poured over and the plate is slapped out on the counter. (I remember George Orwell asserting, in his 'arranged' memoir, Down and Out in Paris and London, that the less fuss paid to a dish, the more it was probably not dropped on the floor, picked up, moved around with sweaty fingers that had been licked, etc etc. Yum.)
     This actually looks a lot like what The Mama called 'Slop:' various leftovers mixed together in a frypan, then served topped with sauce or gravy, if we had any. Her comment, after that, was usually "Shut up and eat." Even now, that command is still used, with much giggling, at family gatherings. (The Mama generally blushes when it's trotted out.)

All this slopping and pouring reminds me of another regional specialty:

 Cincinnati Chili. This interesting dish features spaghetti heaped with a spicy tomato sauce that's not traditional chili... but something else. Word is it was invented, c.1920, by two Macedonian Greek immigrants for their restaurant, The Empress. (They'd been using the same sauce on their 'coney' dogs shortly before.)

I'm pretty sure this is 5-way -- see below

This is not your typical chili -- it's considered a Mediterranean thin soup, rather than a stew. It uses spices not associated with traditional chili, including cinnamon, allspice, bay leaf, cloves and nutmeg. Cumin and chili powder are in there too...but they show up in a lot of chili recipes, including Colorado's famous green chili. Some recipes even include a little dark chocolate, though Dann Woellert, author ot The Authentic History of Cincinnati Chili, says that's not the case for any chili parlor in Cincinnati.

The 'ways' are important in this dish. According to Wikipedia, they are:

• Two-way: spaghetti topped with chili^[4] (also called "chili spaghetti")
• Three-way: spaghetti, chili, and cheese^[4]
• Four-way onion: spaghetti, chili, onions, and cheese^[4]
• Four-way bean: spaghetti, chili, beans*, and cheese^[4]
• Five-way: spaghetti, chili, beans, onions, and cheese^[4]

*usually kidney beans

So what's served with it? Oyster crackers, of course!

Here's the recipe, as interpreted from AllRecipes.com, direct from a Cincinnati native.

CINCINNATI CHILI

2 pounds lean ground beef
2 chopped onions
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 square (1 oz) unsweetened chocolate  (optional)
1/4 cup chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
5 whole cloves
5 whole allspice berries (or a teaspoon of allspice)
1 bay leaf  (optional - I am not a fan)

Directions:

Step 1:  BOIL THE MEAT. (Yes, you read that correctly.) Cover the hamburger with water, then boil until cooked, breaking up the meat to give it a fine texture. Cool (preferably overnight), then skim the fat off. Keep the broth -- you'll need it.

Step 2:  Stir in everything else, bring to a boil, and reduce to simmer for three hours. Check occasionally to see if more water is needed. Pull out your bay leaf, if you used it, and serve as a topping for freshly-cooked spaghetti. Makes enough for 4-8 hungry eaters, depending on how many 'ways' you add. (Variation: Serve 'coneys' first, with the sauce spooned over hot dogs in buns -- then use the rest of the sauce later in the week for Cincinnati Chili.)

     Plan ahead, and you can have just enough leftovers from other dishes to make a quick Garbage Plate or Cincinnati Chili some cold and overcast March evening. Top your meal off with a goold old Irish Eton Mess, and you've got a messy, satisfying meal.

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(This post was also published in my general blog, A Brick Looks At Life. Our third blog, Christmas Goodies, is taking its annual long winter nap.)