Custom Search

2005

TODAY's CASES:

Giblet Gravy

On 11 Sep 2005 at 19:25, Norman wrote:

> Good Evening/  When I was young, a very popular gravy was called
> giblet gravy.  Typically served on thanksgiving it was a yellow gravy
> and delicious.  I havent seen  it lately and cant find a receipe.  I
> suspect it might not have had anything to do with giblets.  Any Ideas?
> Norman

Hello Norman,

Sure. We've always had giblet gravy at Thanksgiving.

It does indeed usually involve giblets, which are the innards of a turkey or chicken - gizzard, liver, heart, etc. Basically, these are chopped and cooked and added to chicken or turkey broth, along with a chopped boiled egg or two and a bit of flour to thicken. The actual giblets used vary from recipe to recipe - some call for just the liver, some omit the liver, some use other parts such as the turkey neck instead of the actual giblets.

See below for a variety of recipes.

Phaed

Turkey  Giblet  Gravy

 Ingredients :
 2 c. broth
 1 gizzard, cooked & chopped
 1 liver, cooked & chopped
 1/4 tsp. black pepper
 3 boiled eggs, chopped
 1/4 tsp. salt
 3 tbsp. self-rising flour

 Preparation :
    Combine all ingredients in heavy boiler and cook thick enough 
to serve.
----------------------------------
Chicken  Giblet  Gravy

 Ingredients :
 2 tbsp. fat from roasting chicken
 2 tbsp. flour
 1 c. cold water (or more)
 Chicken giblets, cooked & finely chopped
 Salt & pepper to taste

 Preparation :
    Gravy should be made in the pan in which chicken was roasted.  
If there are more than 2 tablespoons fat in the pan, add a little 
more flour or drain off excess fat.  If there is not as much as 
2 tablespoons fat, add a little melted butter.  Add flour; stir 
to mix thoroughly.  Add water and giblets; cook over medium heat,
stirring constantly until gravy boils.  If too thick, add a little 
more water.  Boil for 2-3 minutes, stirring and rubbing the spoon 
over the brown residue that has baked onto the pan.  This will 
gradually dissolve and color and flavor the gravy. Season with 
salt and pepper.
----------------------------------
Giblet  Gravy

 Ingredients :
 Turkey giblets and neck (except liver)
 1 med. chopped onion and handful of chopped celery tops
 1 tsp. salt and 1 bay leaf
 4 c. water

 Preparation :
   
 Combine and simmer 1 hour (add liver last 20 minutes). Strain 
 broth and add water, if necessary, to make 4 cups.  Discard 
 everything except meat; chop fine--add some to the broth, but 
 use most of it in a bread dressing or stuffing recipe.  Cool 
 broth, then refrigerate until ready to make gravy.  After 
 turkey has been removed from roasting pan, tip pan and let 
 fat rise in one corner.  Pour fat into a cup, leaving juices 
 in pan.  Measure 16 tablespoons fat and return to pan; whisk 
 in 1 cup flour.  Cook, stirring constantly, until bubbly.  
 Stir in 4 cups stock; continue cooking and stirring, scraping 
 baked-on juices from pan, until gravy thickens and boils 1
 minute.  Season with salt and pepper.
----------------------------------
Giblet  Gravy

 Ingredients :
 1 1/2 c. chopped stewed chicken
 1/4 c. oil
 1/4 c. flour
 Salt & pepper
 2 boiled eggs
 3 c. chicken broth

 Preparation :
    Combine oil, flour, salt and pepper in skillet and brown.  
 Pour slowly the chicken broth in, add chopped chicken and 
 grated boiled eggs.  Let cook slowly until it attains the 
 desired thickness.  
----------------------------------
Cajun  Giblet  Gravy

 Ingredients :
 1 tsp. salt
 1/4 to 1/3 tsp. cayenne
 1 tsp. sage
 1 tsp. thyme leaves
 1/3 tsp. white pepper
 1/2 tsp. oregano leaves
 1/4 tsp. black pepper
 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
 1/4 lb. gizzards, ground
 1/2 c. onion, chopped
 1/2 c. celery, chopped
 1/2 c. green pepper, chopped
 2 tsp. garlic, minced
 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
 3 1/2 c. chicken stock
 1/2 lb. chicken livers, ground

 Preparation :
    Combine seasoning mix in small bowl. Set aside. Melt butter 
 in skillet on high heat.  Add gizzards, onions, celery and 
 green peppers; saute until gizzards browned (about 5 minutes), 
 stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, 
 seasoning mix and flour; cook until flour is a rich brown color 
 (about 3 minutes). Stir frequently and scrape pan bottom well.  
 Add stock; bring to boil on high heat and simmer for about 
 5 minutes; keep stirring. Stir in livers and continue simmering 
 until gravy reduced to about 3 cups (about 10 minutes). Continue 
 to stir.  

Garden Special

On 13 Sep 2005 at 6:45, Liz wrote:

> Hi,  Years ago my grandmother made something in the fall called
> "garden special"  which consisted of fresh tomatoes, green peppers 
> and onions. She canned it for the winter.  I loved it and cannot 
> find her recipe.  I would really appreciate it if you could find 
> this old recipe.  It was so good.  Many thanks.  Liz
> 

Hi Liz,

See below.

Phaed

Garden  Special

 Ingredients :
 4 qt. ripe tomatoes
 1 qt. celery
 1 qt. onions
 1 qt. water
 6 sweet peppers
 3 tbsp. salt
 2 tbsp. sugar

 Preparation :
    Start by dicing peppers, onions, celery (coarse stalks and leaves
 may be used).  Add water and cook together 20 minutes.  Next add the
 tomatoes, peeled and cut, with the seasonings.  After the mixture
 boils, put it into hot jars and process in a hot water bath 30
 minutes for quarts, and 25 minutes for pints.
----------------------------------
 Garden  Special

 Ingredients :
 4 qt. tomatoes, peeled and cut
 1 qt. onion, sliced
 1 qt. celery, sliced
 6 green peppers, chopped
 1 qt. water

 Preparation :
    Cook onion, celery and green pepper in water for 20 minutes.  To
 the prepared tomatoes in large bowl, add 1 tablespoon salt and 3
 tablespoons sugar.  Let stand until onion mixture is cooked.  Then
 add tomatoes and bring to boil.  Put in jars and seal.  Process
 pints 25 minutes and quarts 30 minutes in hot water bath.  
----------------------------------
Garden  Special

 Ingredients :
 4 qt. peeled, cut up ripe tomatoes
 1 qt. diced celery
 1 qt. finely chopped onions
 6 green peppers
 3 tbsp. salt
 2 tbsp. sugar
 1 pt. water

 Preparation :
    Cook celery, onions, green peppers, and seasonings in the water
 for 20 minutes. Add tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Process as for
 canned tomatoes - 15 minutes boiling water bath - or freeze.
----------------------------------
Garden  Special

 Ingredients :
 4 qt. ripe, peeled tomatoes
 1 qt. diced celery
 1 qt. diced onion
 1 qt. water
 6 diced green peppers
 3 tbsp. salt
 2 tbsp. sugar

 Preparation :
    Add peppers, celery, onion to water and cook 20 minutes.  Add cut
 and peeled tomatoes and seasonings.  Bring to boil.  Put in hot jars
 and process in hot water bath.  Quarts - 40 minutes.  Pints - 30
 minutes.

Kerr Canning Book

On 11 Sep 2005 at 11:20, Denise wrote:

> Years ago I owned a old wartime Kerr canning cookbook. Included in the
> recipe section along with hints for rationing your ration coupons was
> the directions and techniques for canning tamales. Could you help me
> regaing this recipe? Thank you Denise
>

Hello Denise,

That old recipe isn't on the Internet, but you can buy the 1941 Kerr Canning book here:

1941 Kerr Canning Book

You might also look for it on E-Bay.

Phaed


Tomato Conserve

On 12 Sep 2005 at 12:04, June wrote:

> Hi There!    
>   I wonder if you have ever hear of a recipe for Tomato  Conserve. 
>   My  sister used to make it during the 30's and I would love to  
>  make some. I remember it had Oranges or Marmalade, and walnuts, 
>  along with  the tomatoes.
> 
>     It would be wonderful if you could find it.
> 
>     Thank you,
>        June
> 

Hello June,

See below for what I found that was close to what you describe.

Phaed

Ripe  Tomato  Conserve

 Ingredients :
 3 lb. firm ripe tomatoes
 3 c. sugar
 3 c. corn syrup
 Grated rind and juice of 2 lemons
 4 oranges, sliced thin
 1 tsp. cinnamon
 1 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

 Preparation :
    Scald and peel tomatoes; press out juice.  Reserve juice for
 future use.  Cut tomatoes into chunks; place in kettle. Cook for 
 35 minutes. Add sugar, syrup, lemons, oranges and cinnamon; simmer 
 for about 1 hour or until thick and clear, stirring frequently to
 prevent sticking.  Stir in walnuts; place in sterilized jars.  
 If canning, process 15 minutes in boiling water bath.   
 Yields 3 pints.

Scones

On 10 Sep 2005 at 10:28, Fran wrote:

> Hello Phaedrus,
> You helped me last year in finding a special macaroni salad recipe, so
> I'm hoping you'll be able to find this special scone recipe I tasted
> today.   A neighbor was selling these scones to help benefit the
> people in the hurricane disaster (all proceeds to the American Red
> Cross). They were simply mouth watering good.   I didn't want to ask
> her about the recipe, but I heard her tell someone that the recipes
> for the Lemon and Current (and plain) scones came primarily from the
> cookbook "The Pie And Pastry Bible" by Rose Levy Beranbaum.   It would
> be wonderful if you could find the recipes for me in her cookbook as I
> am having a brunch for my mother-in-law's 75th birthday and would love
> to bake maybe 100 of them.   Thanks so much for all your wonderful
> work!
> 
> Fran
> 

Hello Fran,

Below are the currant scone and a ginger scone recipe from Ms Berenbaum. However, the lemon scone recipe does not appear to be on the Internet. You could, of course, buy the book. Amazon has it. See:

The Pie and Pastry Bible

Phaed

Currant Scones
Recipe from: "The Pie and Pastry Bible" by Rose Levy Beranbaum

These scones are ample, warm, and comforting -- crisp on the 
outside, soft, moist, and layered inside with purely butter/flour 
flavor and just the right touch of sweet stickiness from the currants.
I've tried many other recipes and discarded them all. These are the 
best. They are prepared by layering butter flakes into the dough much 
in the style of puff pastry, which gives the dough a slightly flaky
texture, but since they contain only about one third butter to flour 
(in contrast to puff pastry, which employs equal parts) and heavy 
cream instead of water, they offer a far more substantial,
soul-satisfying texture. If you want each scone to be a perfect 
even triangle, there will be some waster. Personally, I prefer to 
use every scrap of the delicious dough and embrace the rustic 
misshapen ones along with the more even variety.

Makes: twelve to sixteen 4- by 1 1/2-inch-high scones 
Oven Temperature: 400 degrees F 
Baking Time: 15 to 20 minutes 
Internal Temperature: 200 degrees F 
Equipment: Two cookie sheets or inverted half-size sheet pans, lined 
with parchment

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold (8 ounces/227 grams) 
About 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, preferable Hecker's 
     (21.25  ounces/608 grams) 
1/2 cup sugar (3.5 ounces/100 grams) 
2 teaspoons baking powder (9.8 grams) 
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
2 liquid cups heavy cream (16.3 ounces/464 grams) 
1 cup currants (4.6 ounces/131 grams) 

Cut the butter into 1-inch cubes and refrigerate them for at least 
30 minutes or freeze them for 10 minutes. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, 
baking soda, and salt. Add the butter and, with your fingertips, 
press the cubes into large flakes. (Or use an electric mixer on 
low speed and mix until the butter is the size of small walnuts.) 
Mix in the cream just until the flour is moistened and the dough 
starts to come together in large clumps. Mix in the currants. 
Knead the dough in the bowl just until it holds together and turn 
it out onto a lightly floured board. 

Lightly flour the top of the dough, or use a rolling pin with a 
floured pastry sleeve, and roll out the dough into a rectangle 
1 inch thick and about 8 inches by 12 inches. Use a bench scraper 
to keep the edges even. Fold the dough in thirds, like a business 
letter. Lightly flour the board and rotate the dough so that the 
smooth side faces to the left. Roll it out again to an 8- by 
12-inch rectangle and repeat the "turn" 3 times (for a total of 
4 turns), refrigerating the dough, covered with plastic wrap, for 
about 15 minutes if it begins to soften and stick. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. at least 20 minutes before 
baking. Set an oven rack at the middle level before preheating. 

Roll out the dough once more and trim off the folded edges so 
that it will rise evenly.* Cut it lengthwise in half so you have 
2 pieces, each about 4 inches by 12 inches. Cut each piece of 
dough on the diagonal to form triangles with about a 3-inch-wide 
base and place them about 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie 
sheets. (The dough rises but does not expand sideways.) 

Bake the scones for 15 to 20 minutes or until the edges begin to 
brown and the tops are golden brown and firm enough so that they 
barely give when pressed lightly with a finger. Check the scones 
after 10 minutes of baking, and if they are not baking evenly, 
rotate the cookie sheets from top to bottom and front to back. 
Do not overbake, as the scones continue baking slightly after 
removal from the oven and are best when slightly moist and soft 
inside. 

Place a linen towel on each of two large racks and place the 
baked scones on top. Fold the towels over loosely and allow 
the scones to cool until warm or room temperature. (Since linen 
breathes, the scones will not become soggy, but they will have 
enough protection to keep from becoming dry and hard on the 
surface.)

Variations 

Dried Cranberry Scones The same amount of dried cranberries can 
be substituted for the currants for more tang. 
Lemon Poppy Seed Scones Omit the currants and add 3 tablespoons 
(1 ounce/28 grams) poppy seeds and 2 tablespoons (0.5 ounce/12 grams)
finely grated lemon zest to the flour mixture. 

Store 

Airtight, room temperature, up to 2 days; frozen, up to 3 months. 
To reheat frozen scones, heat in a preheated 300 degree F. oven 
for 20 minutes. A cake tester inserted in the center and removed 
will feel warm and the outside will be crunchy. 

Understanding 

Hecker's flour has a protein content somewhere between that of 
Gold Medal unbleached all-purpose and King Arthur all-purpose, 
which is slightly higher. Any of the three flours will produce 
excellent scones, but Hecker's is my preference because it results 
in the best compromise between tenderness and flakiness. A slightly
stronger flour can be used for scones than for puff pastry because 
the sugar and baking powder tenderize the dough. 
------------------------------------------------
Ginger Scones
"This recipe for ginger scones is from Rose Levy Beranbaum's 
'The Bread Bible' and was posted on the Craigslist food forum 
by 'claymonkey'." 

2 cups all-purpose flour 
1/3 cup sugar 
1 tbsp. baking powder 
1 tsp. ground ginger 
a dash of salt 
1 tsp. grated lemon zest 
12 tbsp. butter, cold 
3/4 cup whipping cream, whipped 
2/3 cup crystallized ginger, chopped ground ginger - 1 tsp 
2 tsp. whipping cream 
1 tbsp. sugar 
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Oil and flour a large baking sheet.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, ground 
ginger, salt and lemon zest. Cut the butter into pats, add 
them and mix by hand until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. 
Mix in the crystallized ginger. 

Make a hole in the center and add the cream. Mix with a rubber 
spatula until the flour is moistened. Knead the dough inside 
the bowl until it holds together and then turn it onto a lightly 
floured working surface. Knead it into a smooth ball and chill it.

Remove the dough from the fridge, divide in two and shape each 
half into a ball. Press each ball into a disk, about 3/4" high 
and 6" across. Wrap with plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes.

With a sharp knife, cut each disk into 8 wedges. Brush with the 
cream and sprinkle with sugar. Place the wedges onto the baking 
sheet. Place the pan in the center of the oven and bake until 
the edges start to brown, about 15 minutes. 

""


Copyright (c) 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Phaedrus