Monday, January 3, 2011

Eating Well in Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo

In the fall, on assignment for Peter Greenberg, I travelled to the southern tip of Baja California. I had the good fortune to visit not just Cabo San Lucas, the most common tourist destination in the area, but also the nearby village of San Jose del Cabo, which, if truth be told, was more to my liking. 


In both cities, there are many restaurants and bars catering to the tourists who arrive by plane and on cruise ships. For the most part, the food in such establishments is unexceptional. But, with a little bit of effort, you can find restaurants that will satisfy your appetite and reward your soul.


I've attached the article I wrote for Peter's web site. To read the other articles about the trip, please visit:
Earth, Sun, Water and Art on the Southern Tip of Baja California
San Jose Del Cabo's Tequila Shrimp




Culinary Experiences: The Truly Local Restaurants of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo
Culinary Experiences: The Truly Local Restaurants of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo
Cabo San Lucas Restaurants - tortilla-maker - photo by David LattNot many travelers head to Los Cabos, Mexico, in search of their next great meal. (The next great margarita, however, is another story.)

But leave it to roving foodie David Latt to discover the authentic finds in Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, where travelers can immerse themselves in the local scene, one meal at a time. 


Cabo San Lucas has dozens of restaurants worth a visit. 

Mariscos Mazatlan
, located at Narciso Mendoza at 20th de Noviembre, is worthy of notice as much for the interior as the food, with its soaring, 30-foot ceilings.

The shellfish on the menu is fresh, although rarely caught in local waters.

Mariscos Mazatlan Decor - photo by David LattIn Cabo, most of the seafood comes from the mainland, especially Mazatlan, just across the Sea of Cortez (also known as the Gulf of California).

For appetizers, you can't go wrong with seafood cocktails made with shrimp, octopus, oyster, or sea conch. Shrimp or fish ceviche, raw clams and oysters or avocados stuffed with shrimp are also a great way to begin a meal.

Fish at Mariscos Mazatlan is served grilled, breaded, fried, and stewed, accompanied simply with pico de gallo or overwhelmed with cheese sauces preferred by many locals.

The specialty of the house is shrimp and they are difficult to resist, cooked a variety of ways, with coconut, tomatoes and chilies, garlic, or potatoes.

If you're in Mexico, tacos should be a must-eat, but some visitors shy away because of health issues. For a taste of authentic tacos without the worry, try Tacos Gardenias located at Camino al Hacienda and Ninos Heroes.

Housed in a rustic concrete building, with a dirt parking lot on the side, the restaurant is only open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. because their customers are usually on the way to the nearby beach or just coming back.
Want to find great places to eat on the road? Visit the Restaurants section.
Locals and tourists (hence the menu in English and Spanish) love the freshly made tacos (shrimp, fish, chicken, pork, beef, fried pork rind, and cactus) and quesadillas (shrimp and chicken).

Tacos from Tacos Gardenias - photo by David LattThe tacos are served the way locals like them.

A homemade tortilla with a topping of your choosing is accompanied with julienned fresh lettuce and cabbage, grilled jalapeƱo peppers, limes, cilantro and onions, pico de gallo, pickled onions, chile sauce, and squeeze bottles of mayonnaise and hot sauce.

If you order the fish taco (which I recommend), you will be given a fat filet of flounder fried crunchy in a light batter and served on a homemade tortilla. It's up to you how many condiments you pile on top.

Shrimp is also a specialty, hot or cold. The Molcajete de Camaron, known as the restaurant's "signature dish," is brought to the table in a heated, three-legged stone bowl called a molcajete. The shrimp are lightly cooked in a savory sauce made with cheese, onions, peppers. The shrimp cocktail, always served with the Mexican saltine, Saladitas, in their distinctive bright blue wrapper, has onions, cilantro, and a soupy tomato sauce that is irresistible.

This being Mexico, cocktails (margarita, Bloody Mary, Cuba Libre, and tequila shooters) and beer are served all day.

One way to get an overview of the area is to hire a guide for a day. For a little over US$100, companies likeTerramar supply not only a guide but a car and driver as well. With a guide you'll be given an insider's look at Cabo San Lucas, nearby San Jose del Cabo, and the surrounding area.
Need a free guide to Mexico? Visit Destinations: Mexico & Central America.
El Torito Dishes - photo by David LattWith the help of Terramar's Enrique Lopez, I discovered El Torito del los Mariscos, located on Janette Wilson 1530 Colonia Ejidal, which is described as "the most popular seafood restaurant for locals."

The menu at El Torito is only in Spanish because although some tourists have discovered the restaurant, this is where the locals go to eat. Their reasons are simple: The food is good, portions are large, prices are affordable, and there is a large children's play area in back.

El Torito has its roots in Sinaloa where the owners, Jorge and Monserrat Garate have another restaurant in Mazatlan.

Rustic, family style seafood dishes are the focus, with a variety of sauces and a lot of deep frying.

In fact, the most popular dish at the restaurant is the deep-fried bacon wrapped shrimp with cheese. The gastronomically incorrect shrimp are surprisingly light and delicious, not to mention soul satisfyingly crunchy.

Ceviches are popular, as are aguachile, in which raw shrimp, fish, octopus, and squid are "cooked" by a sauce made with limes and Serrano chiles.

Everything at El Torito is handmade. All the salsas, sauces, and tortillas are made according to Monserrat's recipes as she taught them to Jorge, who is the executive chef.
Want to get the inside scoop on a destination? Try the Ask the Locals Guides.
El Torito Staff - photo by David LattWhat distinguishes El Torito from other seafood restaurants is the size of the portions.

When you order a shrimp cocktail from another restaurant you will be presented with a glass goblet filled with peeled, deveined shrimp. Here a dozen or more large, unpeeled shrimp with their heads still on are perched on the rim of a molcajete, the bowl filled with a sweet-hot-salty tomato sauce flavored with chunks of onion and pieces of fresh cilantro. You'll get your hands dirty when you eat here and you won't mind a bit.

El Torito opened five years ago as a small, concrete block, cantina-style shack, with no more than a dozen tables. In December, the restaurant will move to a larger space next door. Even though the interior will be more finished, El Torito will keep the cantina feeling with open spaces beneath an elevated roof, even in the bathrooms. Besides good, affordable food, what keeps the restaurant popular is the friendly staff and the feeling that even though this is a restaurant, you're being served as if you were at home.

Twenty minutes to the east, San Jose del Cabo is the exact opposite of Cabo San Lucas.

Where one is big, bold, noisy, sexy, and modern, the other has its identity sunk deeply in the history and traditions of the area. The Plaza Mijares and Mission San Jose del Cabo anchor the downtown with its narrow streets, many restaurants, and small stores selling jewelry, handmade local goods, and quality art.
Learn more about San Jose del Cabo from David Latt: Cabo San Lucas Vs. San Jose Del Cabo: Adventures in Baja California
Salsitas decor worth a look - photo by David LattThe authenticity of the city is reflected in the decor and menu of Salsitas, at Alvaro Obregon 1732, an intimate bar, restaurant, and art gallery open for lunch and dinner on the border of the historic Art District.

The specialty cocktail of the restaurant takes two hands to drink. Served in a large clay bowl filled to the brim, a very generous helping of reposadotequila (aged between 2 and 11 months) is flavored with slices of grapefruit, orange, and lime and chilled by a handful of ice cubes.

On a warm evening, the refreshingly cool drink was the perfect accompaniment for the chips and four salsas that started the meal.

The other appetizer was a traditional Mexican taste treat: deep-fried peppers stuffed with tuna, seasoned with lime.

Even if you aren't hungry or thirsty, Salsitas is a great place to stop and enjoy the colorful rooms and beautiful Mexican art.

Also open for lunch and dinner, La Panga Antigua Restaurant & Bar is an intimate restaurant with a reputation for friendly service and quality food.

The dinner menu is somewhat pricey, but the prix fixe lunch menu, with a starter, entree, and dessert is a bargain at under US $20.

After a long morning walking around the Art District, La Panga's shaded patio offered a good meal in a pleasant setting.
Also in Baja California: one of the 5 Unexpected Gay Pride Festivals.
La Panga Patio - photo by David LattThe organic green leaf lettuce salad with grilled whole cherry tomatoes (a nice touch), escabeche pickled onions, and cracked pepper dressed with a honey vinaigrette was delicious. A basket of freshly baked grilled focaccia bread with onions and basil went well with the salad and the entree: a pan sauteed, salt crusted white fish (basa) with roasted new potatoes and mixed vegetables (carrots, asparagus, bell peppers, and zucchini) and basil-oil dipping sauce.

A bit less salt on the fish would have been preferable, but the dish was otherwise well-prepared and delicious. Dessert was a light cheese cake with caramel and fresh strawberries. A cafe con leche caliente finished the meal.

If you can stay in San Jose Los Cabos for dinner, make reservations at Don Emiliano Restaurant at Boulevard Mijares 27, where Chef Margarita C. de Salinas presents dishes she describes as "Mexican haute cuisine," with traditional ingredients benefiting from the chef's training at the Culinary Institute of America and Le Cordon Bleu.

Expect to spend several hours enjoying a meal in the lovely courtyard, sampling not only dishes from the menu but premium Mexican wines from their extensive cellar.

More casual, Tequila Restaurant has a small dining room just inside the front door.

Tequila Restaurant - photo by David LattBut the main dining room is in the large courtyard at the rear of the building, shaded by giant avocado, mango, African tulip, and guava trees planted in the 1920s.

Lights hung in the branches create the feeling of a place out of time.

Trained as an agricultural engineer, Enrique Silva, chef and co-owner with Fernando Hernandez, opened the restaurant in 1996 because he wanted to serve organic, locally sourced food.

He buys much of his seafood from the fish market at Puerto Los Cabos, the nearby fishing village, with the rest bought from fisherman who sail out of Palmilla and La Paz and Puerto San Carlos on the Pacific.

Most of his produce comes from his own certified fair trade, organic farm called Huerta Los Tamarindos, just outside of town. He grows herbs, lettuces, arugula, heirloom tomatoes and many varieties of peppers. Because he has his own farm he can cook with fresh guajillo and cascabel peppers, typically only available dried.

According to Silva, farms in lower Baja California have been growing organic produce for 30 years. The area is a pioneer in Latin America, where farms began by growing herbs and then vegetables, and has evolved into a hundred-million-dollar business.

Since he never went to culinary school, Chef Silva didn't learn how to make stocks, but rather learned to use fresh ingredients and herbs to create food that tastes fresher and lighter."
Find more great eating experiences, visit our Culinary Travel section.
Tequila Restaurant Creations & Chefs - photo by David LattThe menu proudly features fresh produce from his farm in the many salads.

Seafood and vegetables are prepared Italian style, grilled and flavored simply with olive oil and fresh spices. A Mediterranean bias appears in the use of rosemary, the inclusion of pastas and risottos, and fish baked with wine and basil.

The tequila shrimp locates the dish thoroughly in Mexico with tequila sauce and sides of plantains and black beans. The large shrimp were sweet and delicious. A braised octopus used the fresh guajillo peppers from the restaurant's farm, together with chilies and garlic in a dark, rich sauce.

While the food at all these restaurants is good and definitely better and (mostly) less expensive than what is offered at the hotels, the additional pleasure is in the setting. Adding to the appeal of good food is the pleasure of Salsitas' art-filled, colorful interior, the open, casual cantina feeling of El Torito, Mariscos Mazatlan's deep blue walls with their fish-filled scenes, and the lush landscaping of the patios at La Panga Antigua and Tequila Restaurant.

At any one of the restaurants I visited, I could easily spend hours with friends, eating, drinking, and hanging out in the welcoming environments. 

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

For New Year's Eve: A Favorite Cocktail

The holidays are a great time to break the work routine, slow down the daily tempo, and hang out with friends and family.

Cold weather makes the outdoors less hospitable. A warm kitchen invites like no other room in the house.  Pulling together appetizers, a salad, main dish, and a couple of desserts, is a lot of work but also great fun. 

With New Year's Eve fast approaching, the search is on to plan a festive meal. What better way to begin the celebration than with a drink that evokes the sweetness of the tropics.

Because there are edible pieces of fruit at the bottom, include a spoon so the cocktail can be enjoyed as a drink and an appetizer all in one.

Tropical Rum Cocktail

Yield: 4

Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup white rum
2 Fuyu persimmons, ripe, slightly soft, finely chopped
1 cup fresh orange juice, sweet
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
16 ice cubes

Method

Pour the white rum into a pitcher, add the powdered sugar, and stir well to dissolve. Add the finely chopped persimmons, orange and lime juice, and stir well to combine.

Put 4 ice cubes and a spoon into each glass, pour in the drink, making certain that the persimmon pieces are divided equally and serve.

Variations

Top with a fresh sprig of mint

Adjust the proportion of orange and lime juice, to taste

Substitute finely chopped mango, strawberries, kiwi, or fresh passion fruit for persimmons

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Tempura Vegetables and Shrimp Congee

Congee is rice served "wet" in a broth with vegetables, tofu, meat, seafood, or poultry.

Congee is the Asian equivalent of Jewish chicken soup, perfect when the weather is cold and damp or you're fighting off a cold.  Served in a variety of ways, depending on the country of origin or what's in season, the basic dish is made with cooked rice, a liquid, and flavorings.
You'll find dozens of authentic, regional recipes in cookbooks and online, but in our kitchen "congee" is another way of saying repurposed deliciousness.

Whatever we don't eat at a Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, or Thai restaurant we bring home. Invariably, a container of rice is included along with the kung pao chicken, tempera shrimp and vegetables, stir fried beef with broccoli, or sweet and sour pork that we couldn't finish. 

Reheating these dishes at home is one option, but transforming them into congee is better.  For example, converting vegetable and shrimp tempura into an aromatic, deeply satisfying and delicious congee is one way this simple technique can turn left-overs into the best comfort food you've ever eaten. 

Tempura Vegetable and Shrimp Congee

Serves 2

Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 tempura shrimp, tail removed
4-6 pieces tempura vegetables
1 cup cooked rice
1 garlic clove, skin removed, finely chopped
4 cups spinach leaves, washed to remove grit, stems and leaves finely chopped
4 shiitake mushrooms, washed, tips of the stems removed, thinly sliced
1/2 cup corn kernels, fresh or from a can
2 cups water or miso soup or a combination of both
1 tablespoon olive or sesame oil
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Method

Cut the shrimp and tempura vegetables into bite-sized pieces and set aside.  Saute on a medium-low flame the garlic, shiitake mushrooms, and corn kernels until lightly browned. 

Add the cut up spinach and water or a mix of miso soup and water. Raise the flame and simmer 10 minutes.

Add the cut up tempura vegetables and shrimp to the broth. Stir well and simmer 10 minutes.

Add the cooked rice, stir well and simmer a final 5 minutes.


Serve hot.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Easy-to-Make Custards, Perfect for the Holidays

When the weather turns cold and my family needs a good dose of comfort food, I turn to a reliable, easy-to-make desserts, a custard with sautƩed apples and golden raisins and one with crystalized ginger.

I posted the recipes on Zesterdaily.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Keep Them Simple, Keep Them Coming: Thanksgiving Appetizers, Side Dishes, and Salads

While turkey is the centerpiece on Thanksgiving, the appetizers, side dishes, salads and desserts reign supreme. Cranberry sauce, cornbread stuffing with sausages and dried apricots, mushroom and giblets gravy, green salads, beet salad, homemade pickles, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, string beans, squash...and the desserts: cakes, pies, custards, fresh fruit, cheese... 

The easier the recipes, the more you'll make. If Thanksgiving is nothing else, it is a celebration of variety and plenty, so here are some easy-to-make recipes we'll be making on Thursday.

Blackened Peppers with Capers, Parsley, and Garlic

The peppers should be made a day or two ahead.  To start, simply grill the peppers on top of a gas range, remove the blackened skin, discard the seeds, and put them in a sealed jar where they'll keep a week in the refrigerator or for months in the freezer.

Overnight the peppers will miraculously create their own "oil."

Use a mix of peppers so the result is that much more colorful. Chef's note: I haven't had as much success grilling green or purple peppers, so I stick to the red, yellow, and orange ones.


Yield: 6-8 servings

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

3-4 red, yellow, or orange peppers, washed, pat dried
4 garlic cloves, skin on
1 tablespoon capers, drained, finely chopped
1 tablespoon parsley leaves, washed, dried, finely chopped
1/4 cup oil from the grilled peppers
4 anchovy fillets, finely chopped, optional

Method

The garlic can be used either raw or grilled. If cooked, they'll have a milder flavor, which I prefer. Leave the outer skin or paper on the garlic and skewer the cloves. Blacken them on an open flame on top of the stove until the skins have all but burnt away. Remove and finely chop.

Toss together the peppers, garlic, parsley, and capers. Return to the sealed jar and keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Marinated Peppers as an Appetizer

Yield: 8 servings

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
2 cups marinated peppers (julienned or finely chopped)
1/2 pound soft cheese
Olive oil
Pepper flakes
Sea salt and pepper
Toast rounds or crackers

Method
Start with a thin slice of goat cheese, a triple cream, or mozzarella, lay on a strand of marinated pepper, 
and drizzle some of the pepper's own oil. There are variations to play with: add chopped avocado or scallions or cherry tomatoes or grilled corn...

Top with a little olive oil and season with sea salt and pepper.

Roasted Whole Tomatoes

A side dish, full of flavor and perfect to serve alongside turkey and stuffing.


Ripe and over ripe tomatoes work best. If you shop at farmers' markets, keep an eye out for discounted tomatoes. 

When they're roasting, tomatoes give off a clear liquid. The flavor is pure essence of tomato. The wonderful chef, cookbook writer, and founder of Fra'ManiPaul Bertolli was famous for hanging tomatoes in cheese cloth and capturing the clear tomato water that he called "the blood of the fruit."

Yield: 4 servings

Time: 90 minutes

Ingredients

3 pounds ripe tomatoes (washed, stems removed)
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the whole tomatoes on a Silpat sheet or a piece of aluminum foil on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with sea salt and pepper. Roast for 90 minutes. When the tomatoes are removed from the pan, be certain to spatula off all the seasoned olive oil and tomato water. That liquid is full of flavor. Spoon the liquid over the tomatoes.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Yield: 4 servings

Time: 30-45 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound Brussels sprouts, washed, stems trimmed, quartered
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method

Toss the Brussels sprouts with olive oil and seasoning, put in a roasting pan with enough room so they don't sit on top of each other. Roast in a preheated 350 F degree oven 30-45 minutes, turning every 5-10 minutes for even cooking.

They'll come out of the oven so warm and sweet, they'll get eaten before they arrive at the table.


Baked Sweet Potatoes with SautƩed Shallots, Garlic, and Mushrooms

I prefer sweet potatoes that have a bright orange flesh. Find ones about the same size that are slender, appropriate as a single serving. 

Yield: 4 servings

Time: 2 1/2 hours

Ingredients

4 sweet potatoes, washed, skins on
2 teaspoons sweet butter
1 cup shallots, peeled, thinly sliced
1 cup brown or shiitake mushrooms, washed, dried, thinly sliced
6 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped
1/4 cup Italian parsley leaves only, washed, finely chopped
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper
Cayenne (optional)

Method

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Wrap each sweet potato in tin foil, place in the oven, turn every 30 minutes. 

Depending on your oven and the size of the sweet potatoes, they can take anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours. When the sweet potatoes are soft to the touch, they are done.

While the sweet potatoes are in the oven, drizzle olive oil in a frying pan, season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, and sautƩ the shallots, garlic, parsley, and mushrooms until lightly browned.

Remove and discard the tin foil. Using a sharp paring knife slice each sweet potato the long way. With your fingers, push the sweet potato in from the ends so the cut section opens like a flower. 

Add 1/2 teaspoon of butter and a light dusting of cayenne (optional). Top with the shallot-mushroom sautƩ and serve.

Grilled Vegetables Couscous

Yield: 4-6 servings

Time: 30 minutes

Incredibly versatile, couscous can be as simple as you want with one or two ingredients or as complex and layered as you have time to prepare. 

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups couscous,  quick-cook style
1 1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons olives, cracked green or kalamata, pitted, finely chopped
1 basket cherry tomatoes, washed, quartered
1/4 cup capers, chopped
1 cup Italian parsley, leaves only, washed, finely chopped
1 ear of corn, husks and silks removed, washed
1 carrot, washed, peeled, trimmed, cut into slabs 4"x1/4"
2 garlic cloves, washed, trimmed
7 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Method

Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil onto a flat plate, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, roll the corn on the plate to coat with the seasoned oil. Do the same with the carrot slabs and garlic cloves. Reserve the seasoned oil.

Lightly brown on a hot grill or roast in a 350 F degree oven for 10-20 minutes, turning to avoid burning. Let cool , finely chop the carrots and garlic. Cut the kernels off the cob.

Boil the water. In a non-reactive, stainless steel or glass bowl mix together the couscous with the hot water, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and a dusting of black pepper, cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap, toss with a fork to break up all the pieces.

To the couscous, add the carrots, corn, garlic, parsley, capers, olives, cherry tomatoes, the seasoned oil used to marinate the vegetables and another 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Toss well. Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt or black pepper. 

Can be served chilled or at room temperature.

Variations

Add grilled broccoli, marinated and cooked the same way as the carrots).

Serve with arugula.

Serve with a sliced avocado.

Arugula Salad with Hazelnuts, Carrots, Avocado, and Croutons

Yield: 4 servings

Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1 bunch arugula, washed, stems removed, leaves torn into bite sized pieces
1/4 cup raw hazelnuts
1 carrot, washed, peeled, cut into thin rounds
1 avocado, peeled, pit removed, roughly chopped
1/4 cup croutons
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
Sea salt and pepper

Method

On a low flame reduce the balsamic vinegar to 1 tablespoon. Set aside to cool. Roast the hazelnuts in a 350 F degree oven for 20 minutes, shaking the pan every 5 minutes to cook evenly. Remove, put into a dish cloth, rub roughly to remove the skins, let cool, and crush with the side of a chefs knife.

Put the arugula, hazelnuts, carrot rounds, croutons, and avocado into a salad bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and reduced balsamic vinegar. Season with sea salt and pepper. Toss and serve immediately.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Why I Love Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was my mother's favorite holiday. She loved the chance to have her family and friends seated around the table, catching up, telling stories,and eating favorite treats.

Most of the time I do the cooking since I work at home and because we have a kitchen the size of a New York closet. Thanksgiving is my wife's day and I happily step to the side, working as a sous chef, assisting her in executing a meal that usually serves between 15-20.

Even though Thanksgiving is a lot of work, the key is organization. Writing up a menu is the first step, then a shopping list, and finally a time-line for the day before Thanksgiving and the day of the meal.

Along with those first steps, we cover the bottom of the oven with aluminum foil so clean up after the meal is easier. Cleaning out the refrigerator makes room for the turkey after we pick it up from the grocery store and so there's space for all those delicious left-overs after the meal.

Besides shopping at the grocery store we visit our local farmers' market to pick up fresh vegetables for the sides dishes: beets, sweet potatoes, lettuce, celery, carrots, mushrooms, Brussels sprouts, corn, leeks, and onions.

But the most important part of the meal is the turkey and no turkey is complete without a great stuffing.

Corn Bread Stuffing with Sausages, Dried Apricots, and Pecans

Over the years my wife has developed a crowd-pleasing stuffing with a contrast of textures: soft (corn bread), spicy (sausage), chewy (dried apricots), and crunchy (pecans).

Yield: 15-20 servings

Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 boxes corn bread mix
3 celery stalks, washed, ends trimmed, leaves discarded
1 pound mushrooms, brown, shiitake, or portabella, washed, pat dried, finely chopped
2 medium yellow onions, peeled, ends removed, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped
1 stick sweet butter
1/2 - 1 cup turkey or chicken stock
4 Italian style sweet sausages
1 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
1/2 cup pecans, roughly chopped
Sea salt and pepper

Method

Make the corn bread the night before and leave the pan on the counter so the corn bread dries out. Use any cornbread mix you like. My wife uses Jiffy. It's inexpensive and tastes great. The instructions are on the box.

Saute the sausages whole in a frying pan with a little olive oil until browned, remove, cut into bite-sized pieces, and set aside. Pour off the excess fat. Add the celery, mushrooms, onion, and garlic into the pan with the stick of butter and saute. Season with sea salt and pepper. Cook until lightly browned, then add 1/2 cup of the stock, toss well and summer 15 minutes. Add more stock as needed. Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt and black pepper. 

Cut the cornbread into chunks and crumble into a large mixing bowl. Add the apricots, pecans, and the saute. Stir well and set aside until you're ready to stuff the turkey.

Roast Turkey
The most difficult part about cooking a turkey is size. Even a 15 pound turkey is larger than any roast you'll ever cook, so it's important to have somebody around to help strong-arm the turkey.

The rule of thumb about cooking time is 15-20 minutes per pound at 325 degrees but there are so many variables, you can also use a roasting thermometer and, our preferred method, jiggle-the-leg and if it almost comes off, the turkey's done.

There's a lot of talk about whether to brine or not to brine. In the Los Angeles Times, Russ Parsons argued for what he calls a "dry" brine, which means salting the turkey inside and out, then wrapping it in a sealable bag and refrigerating it for one to two days.

Yield: 20-25 servings

Time: 7-8 hours

Ingredients

1 turkey, 23-25 pounds
Olive oil
Sea salt and pepper

Method

Unwrap the turkey. Remove the packet with the liver, neck, heart, and giblet. Use a pair of pliers to remove the piece of wire that holds the legs. It can be a real pain to get the wire off. Wash the turkey inside and out. Pat dry on the outside.

Reserve the liver to make a turkey chopped liver. Put the neck, heart, and giblet into a large saucepan with a lot of water, at least five inches higher than the turkey pieces. Replenish whatever water boils off.  Simmer for 2-3 hours or until the meat on the neck falls off if you touch it with a fork. Strain the stock and reserve to use for gravy. Pull the meat off the neck and save to make turkey soup. Use the giblets in the gravy.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

The next step is easier with a friend. Drizzle olive oil on the outside of the turkey. Using your hands spread the oil over the entire bird, front and back. Sprinkle sea salt and black pepper inside the cavity and on the outside.

To put in the stuffing, either my wife or I holds the turkey upright and steady while the other loosely packs the stuffing inside the large cavity, one handful at a time.

Use 8-12 metal skewers and kitchen string to close the large cavity. Carefully turn the turkey over so you can put stuffing into the top area. Use 6-8 skewers and string to close that cavity.

Use any kind of roasting pan. Whether you use a disposable aluminum foil pan or an expensive stainless steel roasting pan from William Sonoma, the result will be the same. The important thing to remember is the pan must be at least 2" wider than the turkey, otherwise as the bird cooks, its juices will drip onto the bottom of your stove and make a mess. To insure that the turkey browns evenly, you'll need a wire rack.

Place the turkey on the rack, breast down and put into the oven. After 30 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees.

After that, every 30 minutes, baste the turkey with the fat that drips down into the pan. If the skin starts to brown too quickly, put an aluminum tent over the top.

After 3 hours, turn the turkey over. With a large bird this is easier said than done because now the turkey is not only heavy, it's very hot.

Another set of hands is a big help here. My wife and I have choreographed this crucial moment. I lift the roasting pan with the turkey out of the oven, placing it on the cutting board. Michelle stands at the ready with a pot holder in each hand. As I lift the rack with the turkey, she removes the pan. I flip the rack with the turkey onto the cutting board, having first put a kitchen towel along the edge to prevent juices from falling to the floor.

We pour all the juices and fat from the pan into a basting bowl, scrapping off the flavor bits on the bottom of the pan to make gravy.

The rack goes back into the pan. The turkey goes onto the rack, breast side up. After a good basting, the turkey goes back in the oven, covered with an aluminum foil tent.

As the turkey continues to cook, if the wing tips and drumstick ends brown too quickly, wrap them in aluminum foil.

Continue basting every 30 minutes. When the turkey is finished, remove from the oven and let rest 5 minutes.

Carve the turkey on a cutting board, removing the wings first, then the legs, thighs, and the breasts. Either place the pieces on the platter whole, to be carved at the table, or sliced for easy serving. Open the cavities and spoon out the stuffing.

Mushroom-Giblet Gravy

While the turkey is cooking, start the gravy.

Yield: 15-20 servings

Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 medium yellow onions, peeled, ends removed, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped
1 turkey giblet, cooked, grizzle removed, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, tarragon, or Italian parsley
1/2 pound mushrooms, brown, shiitake, or portabella, washed, finely chopped or sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups turkey stock
Sea salt and pepper

Method

Saute the giblet, onions, garlic, fresh herbs, and mushrooms until lightly browned. Add turkey stock and the flavor bits you scraped off the roasting pan, simmer and reduce by 1/3. Taste and adjust the flavors. If too salty, add more stock and a pat of sweet (unsalted) butter.

Reheat before serving.

Turkey Stock

When you're eating Thanksgiving dinner, odds are you aren't thinking about your next meal, but I am. Admittedly, it's a bit obsessive, but before I sit down to join the dinner, all the bones and scraps go into a large pot filled with water. By the time we're clearing the table, the stock is finished.

Turkey stock is rich and flavorful. Perfect for making soups, stews, and pasta sauce, and like chicken stock, freezes beautifully.

Yield: 15-20 servings

Time: 1 hour
Ingredients

1 turkey carcass, skin, scraps
Water

Method

Put the carcass into a large pot. If any of stuffing makes it into the pot, all the better for flavor and richness. Cover the bones with water. Simmer 1 hour. Strain and refrigerate. Pick the meat off the bones to use in a soup or stew.

The stock keeps in the freezer for six months.

Pickle Me Up! It's Thanksgiving!

Pickles are delicious anytime of the year. For Thanksgiving they are especially good. Their crunch and acidity counterbalances the delicious...