Telfair Enterprise Food Column for 12/09

Fried apple pies are a tried and true favorite of many Southerners.

Lamb tagine offers a savory alternative to the usual turkey, ham, and chicken.

Geese not alone in this boat!

Christmas was coming

The goose was getting fat

So I put it on the Atkins diet

And now it's had a heart attack!

~ Unknown

“Christmas is coming, the geese are getting fat...” ~ from an old Mother Goose rhyme

Unfortunately, the geese may not the only one who will be getting fat if most of us hold true to form with our holiday eating patterns. It’s really difficult to say no to all those delicious goodies, especially when it seems they are coming from every nook and cranny. However, there are a few things you can do to help curtail the amount you do consume.

Ø Do not try to diet during this type holiday where eating is a main focus. Maintain your weight if you can but the temptation of such an abundance of special goodies makes it next to impossible to actually lose weight during this time.

Ø Don’t starve yourself or you may find that even that fruitcake you have been using for a doorstop is starting to look good.

Ø First, do not try going “cold turkey” when it comes to holiday treats. You will feel deprived and that often leads to binging when your resistance does break down.

Ø Eat in moderation but don’t deprive yourself. Allow yourself a small sample of anything you wish but try not to overdo if you can help it. Sometimes a taste is all it takes to avoid cravings later on.

Ø Try to alter your perception of holiday meals. Think of Christmas dinner as just another meal, not a special occasion to stuff yourself. If you think it is normal to overindulge just because it is Christmas, then you probably will.

Ø Graze like Santa’s reindeer. Try to eat right and eat more often. Instead of three big meals per day, eat smaller portions of something healthy about two hours, or about six mini-meals per day.

Ø Your body will able to digest the food more easily when taken in smaller amounts and this pattern will leave you feeling satisfied instead of hungry during the entire day.

Ø Chew your food thoroughly and eat slowly. This takes even more work off your stomach, and minimizes stress on the intestines and other internal organs. You will also feel full while actually eating less.

Ø If you do give in to temptation and overeat, try to follow big meals with light cardiovascular exercise, such as walking. You will burn calories, and the increased flow of oxygen will help renew your energy.

Ø Never go to a party hungry. Eat a light, healthy snack before you go. This will help keep your blood sugar from dropping as well as curbing your appetite.

Ø Remember that alcohol stimulates the appetite and lowers your resistance to impulse eating. Alcoholic drinks are high in sugar too, adding even more calories to your intake. When you get to the party, try carrying a glass of lemon water or low calorie beverage around with you. (You will also eat less if you only have one hand free.).

Disclaimer: Remember this is more of a do-as-I-say than a do-as-I-do type article so in spite of the “good” advice above, and in complete contradiction to good common sense, I’m still going to share some shamelessly unhealthy Christmas recipes with you. If we’re going to be in the boat with the geese, we might as well enjoy the ride!

This year though, I will vary a bit with some slightly different recipes but will also include some old tried and true things we see every year. Enjoy but remember moderation (if you can).

Merry Christmas Everyone!

*********

My aunt, the late Irene Grimes Kinnett, made fried apple pies for family gatherings no matter the occasion. She too used used dried apples and one of my fondest memories is that she always made sure I got at least one. She’s been gone a really long time but I still think of her when I see or smell homemade fried apple pies.

Fried Apple Pies

10 ounces dried apples

8 cups water, divided

Granulated sugar, to taste (if desired )

2 cups canola oil

2 1/2 cups self-rising flour; more for dusting

2 t. allspice

Sugar

1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening, chilled

2/3 cup buttermilk, chilled

Confectioners' sugar, opt.

Place the apples in a large bowl. Add 6 cups cold water. Set aside to rehydrate at least 4 hours or overnight. Place the soaked apples, with any remaining liquid, in a large saucepan. Add remaining 2 cups water and allspice and sugar to taste. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to simmer. Cook until thickened and the apples are beginning to break down, about 1 hour. Transfer to a shallow bowl to cool to room temperature. Set aside

When ready to fry the pies, heat the oil in a large heavy-duty skillet over medium heat. The temperature should read 350 degrees on a deep-fat thermometer.

Meanwhile, place the flour in a medium bowl. Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut the shortening into the flour until it resembles coarse meal. Add the buttermilk and stir until dough forms. Transfer to a clean work surface lightly dusted with flour. Knead until firm.

Pull off a biscuit-size piece of dough. On the lightly floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a circle 4 inches across, about the size of a teacup saucer. Place 1-2 tablespoons of the room-temperature apple mixture in the center of the circle. Fold the dough over to form a half moon. Press with your fingertips to seal the edges. Dip the tines of a fork in flour, then press the tines around the edges of the dough to seal completely.

Transfer the pie to the heated oil and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining dough and apples. Dust with confectioners sugar if desired. Serve hot.

Chocolate Ice Box Pie

Crust:

24 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed in processor

3 T. unsalted butter, melted

1/8 salt

1 t. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients and press into a lightly greased 9-inch pie plate and bake 8 minutes. Cool. You may also use a prepared 9-inch chocolate cookie piecrust if you wish.

Filling:

1 lb. bittersweet dark chocolate

1-1/2 heavy cream, divided

1/2 c. powdered sugar

Melt chocolate with 1/2 c. cream in top of a double boiler, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool. Whip remaining 2 c. cream, gradually adding powdered sugar and beating until stiff peaks form. Fold cream into cooled chocolate, 1/3 at the time. Pour into cooled crust and chill about 4 hours or until firm. Easy but quite decadent.

If you’ve had enough turkey and/or chicken to last you for a while, maybe a Moroccan style tagine will be just what you are craving.

Lamb Tagine with Lemon and Pomegranate Couscous

For the tagine:

4 T. olive oil

8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

4 onions, peeled and chopped

4 t. grated, fresh ginger

1½ T. coriander seeds, crushed

3 t. ground cinnamon

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 7-lb shoulder of lamb, boned, fat removed and cut into 1-1/2-in cubes

2 T. tomato purée

4-1/2 lbs ripe tomatoes or 4 14-oz can tomatoes, coarsely chopped

4-5 T. honey

For the couscous:

1 large or 2 small pomegranates

1-3/4 lb couscous

6 tbsp olive oil

2 lemons, juice only

1-3/4 pints boiling chicken stock or water

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 T. chopped, fresh mint or coriander

For serving:

1 lime, cut into wedges

Greek yoghurt

For the tagine: Preheat oven to 325°F. Heat a large ovenproof casserole or heavy saucepan on a medium to high heat. Add olive oil, garlic, onions, ginger and spices and season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then cook, covered, on a low heat for about ten minutes, until the onions are soft.

Add lamb, tomato purée, chopped tomatoes and honey to the pot and stir thoroughly. Bring to a simmer and place in the oven for 1½ hours, until the lamb is tender. Remove saucepan lid halfway through the cooking time to let the liquid reduce and thicken.

If the sauce is still a bit thin, place uncovered pot on top of the stove over medium heat. Cook and stir occasionally until liquid reduces and a thick sauce begins to appear.

For couscous: Cut pomegranates in half and scoop out the seeds with a small spoon. Remove white membrane from around the seeds and set aside.

Place couscous in a bowl and stir in olive oil and lemon juice. Pour boiling stock or water onto couscous, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and allow the couscous to sit in a warm place for 5-10 minutes until the liquid has been absorbed. Stir chopped herbs and pomegranate seeds into the couscous.

To serve: Place the tagine on serving plates with couscous and a wedge of lime. Serve a bowl of thick Greek yoghurt on the side.

And if you don’t want poultry or red meat, why not try a delicious seafood paella?

Seafood Paella

8 oz. onions or shallots

4 oz. celery

3 garlic cloves

1 qt. fish stock

10 oz. white wine

1/4 t. saffron

1 bay leaf

1 lb. skinless filets (cod, salmon, haddock)

4 oz. wild rice

2 oz. olive oil

12 oz. long grain rice, long-grain

Salt and pepper to taste

1 oz. butter

1 11-12 oz. jar wild mushrooms packed in oil

4 oz. brown cap mushrooms

2 bunches watercress

l lb. king prawns, peeled and cooked

Crush peeled garlic and chop the celery and the onions. Combine the fish, bay leaf, wine, saffron and stock. Heat to a boil and let stand for 10 minutes. Drain fish and reserve the liquid. Use a fork to flake fish into large pieces.

Prepare cooked wild rice in salted boiling water for about 40 minutes. Remove from the liquid and set aside. While rice is cooking sauté the garlic, celery and onions in the oil until soft. Add long-grain rice and heat for two minutes before adding the reserved fish stock. Bring to a boil, add seasoning, cover and cook at over medium heat for 30 minutes.

Melt butter in a wide metal pan and cook all the mushrooms in it for about 2 minutes Remove mushrooms and add watercress, stirring until wilted. Add prawns, fish, watercress, mushrooms and wild rice into the long-grain rice mixture and season to taste. Let stand in a warm oven for a couple of minutes before serving.

New York Apple Pecan Stuffing

3 cups chopped Jonagold apples

1/2 cup fresh apple cider

6 T. butter, divided

2/3 c. diced celery

2/3 c. diced onion

3 c. plain bread stuffing

1/8 t. sage, marjoram thyme

1 T. chopped fresh parsley

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 c.

Melt 4 T. butter in skillet. Add celery and onions and sauté until tender. Stir in bread stuffing and set aside. Melt 2 T butter, add apple chunks and sauté until golden brown. Combine with bread mixture and add spices, nuts and cider and mix well. Stuff inside turkey or place in casserole dish and bake at 350° F for 30 minutes. This recipe provides a savory alternative or may be used in addition to the cornbread stuffing/dressing normally served with turkey here in the south.

Cream Cheese Potatoes

10 medium red-skinned potatoes

1/2 c. butter

1 t. salt (or more, to taste)

1/4 t. pepper

1 T. grated onion

1 c. scalded whole milk

1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese

Scrub potatoes, cover potatoes with water and simmer until soft. Whip until smooth. Add other ingredients and place in a greased casserole dish and bake for 30 minutes at 325° F. Fat-free cream cheese will work in this recipe but I don’t recommend it personally.

This version of Brussels Sprouts doesn’t fall too much in the decadent category except for the addition of bacon but is an excellent variation from plain old steamed ones.

Caramelised Brussels Sprouts

1 lb. small Brussels sprouts

1/2 lb. smoked bacon, diced

2 T. olive oil, divided

2 T. butter, divided

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place Brussels sprouts into a pan of salted boiling water and cook until crisp tender. Remove from water with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of icy cold water to stop the cooking process. When the sprouts are completely cool, remove from cold water and drain well before cutting each one in half.

Combine a tablespoon each of butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until golden brown. Remove the bacon from pan and let drain lightly. Add a little more butter and olive oil to pan drippings if necessary and sauté the sprouts until they are lightly caramelised. Return bacon to the pan and season to taste with salt pepper. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Hot Cinnamon Apple Cider

(Wassail)

One-half gallon cider (8 cups)

2 cups orange juice

l cup lemon juice

5 cups pineapple juice

1 t. whole cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

ombine all ingredients in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Strain and serve hot in coffee cups or mugs. This yields about 20 servings and can be spiked or not according to personal preference.