Bake and Booze

Last Tuesday was the annual Walkers' Bake and Booze, a five-year tradition.  This is the night when the Walking Girls (Nancy, Bev, Terry, Barb, Deb, Lynn, Kris and Andrea) gather for festive cocktails, appetizers, and to bake Christmas cookies to share with each other and a local charity.  This year's tapas spread was particularly delectable, with cheeses, dumplings, meatballs, grilled beef satays with Chipotle Sauce, and more.  The evening was a great success:  only two boxes of cookies ended up on the floor.....say no more!  For the previous 2 years, we baked cookies to fill orders for our friend Lindsay's non-profit organization Eat to Feed Liberians, which provides nutritious lunches for students in a Liberian refugee camp in Ghana. This year we returned to the original model, sharing with a local shelter for teenagers, ROOF.

This year's cocktail was particularly boozy, but surely all those antioxidants in the pomegranate juice made up for it!


Pomegranate Martinis

1 part lime juice
2 parts pomegranate juice
1 part vodka
1/2 part Cointreau
Shake the above ingredients with ice, and pour over 1/2 of a martini glass of prosecco.  Enjoy!

Bev's Grilled Beef Satays with Chipotle Sauce were a big hit!  She threaded strips of beef tenderloin on bamboo skewers, seasoned them with salt and pepper, and grilled them quickly of MEDIUM heat for 2 minutes per side.   

Chipotle  Sauce

  This smokey, spicy mayo is wonderful with chicken, pork, fish or

  beef, or even as a dip for grilled vegetables.  Save leftovers for an

  outstanding sandwich spread.

                                1           cup  mayonnaise

                                2           cloves  garlic, minced

                                1           tablespoon  lemon juice

                                1           teaspoon  pureed chipotle peppers

                                1/2         teaspoon  ground cumin

                                  3         tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped

Combine all ingredients, cover well, and store in refrigerator until ready

to use.  May be stored for up to 3 days.

As promised last week, we want to share with you some of the tips and tricks for cooking your Christmas turkey.  Refer to our Thanksgiving post for 2 ways to cook a turkey (smoked and on the barbecue).  Cooking in the great outdoors can present some challenges and variability, especially in the cold Canadian winter. Aside from delicious flavour, the biggest benefit to barbecuing your turkey is the oven space that is freed for preparing side dishes and desserts.

•  For your best result, start with a fresh, not frozen bird.  However, if your turkey is frozen,  it is very important that the turkey is completely thawed before cooking. Place it in the refrigerator 2 days ahead.  If still not completely thawed, place it in a sink full of cold water until it is.
• Try to position your barbecue out of the wind, bearing in mind you should not light it inside any building, including a garage or shed.
• Base the cooking time on an estimate of 15 minutes per pound of cooking time with the temperature around 350 F.
• Open the lid as infrequently as possible.  
• It is very important to always use a meat thermometer to determine when the turkey is fully cooked.  Insert the thermometer in the meaty part between the breast and the leg, avoiding contact with the bones.  Cook to an end point temperature of 177 F for breast meat or 180 F for dark. 
• Allow 20 -30 minutes resting time, covering your bird with aluminum foil and a kitchen towel.  Keep in mind that the internal temperature will continue to rise during this time, and the juices will be reabsorbed for maximum tenderness and juiciness(So we usually take the turkey out at 170 F, to allow for this final rise in temperature)

We have also been thinking about the post-feast leftovers, and would like to share our turkey soup recipe.

Turkey Soup

A delicious way to transform leftovers into a healthy and nutritious next meal.

For the Stock:

1 turkey carcass, including all skin and bones

1 large onion, skin on, quartered

2 large carrots, cut into large chunks

3 stalks celery, cut into large chunks

3 sprigs each, thyme and parsley

1 bay leaf

2 teaspoons salt (preferably kosher)

5 peppercorns

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For the Soup:

2 more carrots, diced

3 more stalks celery, diced

1 red pepper, diced

2 cups cooked rice

2 cups cooked turkey, cut into chunks

For the stock, place the turkey carcass in a large stock pot and add cold water to cover all the bones by about an inch.  Add vegetables, herbs and spices, and place over medium-high heat.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, skimming foam and stirring occasionally for 1 ½ hours.  Let cool slightly, then place a large cheesecloth-lined sieve over a dutch oven.  Strain the stock, then return to the stovetop, and cook over medium high heat until reduced by about 1/3.  Test-add salt to taste.  Reserve 2 cups of stock for another use if desired.

For the soup, add the diced vegetables, and simmer until tender, about ½ hour.  Add the cooked rice and turkey and stir occasionally until heated through. 

Finally, we wanted to share with you a great initiative that we were involved in this week. The Rotary Club of Kitchener-Conestoga partnered with the House of Friendship to raise funds to supply turkeys along with the Christmas hampers for families at need in Kitchener-Waterloo. A stunning $220,000 was raised and we were so lucky to be involved in helping to distribute some of the turkeys.

Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season!