Special Recipes for the Winter Holidays You Celebrate

archer wrote: Loving all the recipes, absolutely have to try the ham recipe, Otis. Do you by chance have any really good, not too complicated recipes for pheasant? My son-in-law is coming back from a hunting trip with several, my daughter has never cooked one.

Check the birds for shot and make sure you get all of the pellets out before you start cooking. If you can cook a chicken you can cook a pheasant. Have a good look at the bird and determine how well it was eating before you got the privilege of eating it; fat birds need a bit more time, skinny birds not so much.

Try this one out, where it says turkey insert pheasant:

A couple of days from now I won't want to see another slice of Turkey until Easter but I always end up with a healthy amount of Thanksgiving leftovers. What to do when you are experiencing Turkey burnout?

Turkey and Wild Rice Casserole

Get This:

2 pounds of roast turkey in slices or chunks
2 pounds of unseasoned ground pork
2 cups of instant wild rice (Uncle Ben's or other brand)
4 cups turkey or chicken broth (fake it you have to using bullion)
2 cups of sliced fresh mushrooms
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
10 ounces of heavy whipping cream
1 cup diced onion
Rubbed Sage to taste
Poultry seasoning to taste
Fresh ground black pepper to taste


Do This:

Break out your cast iron dutch oven or favorite heavy pot, fry the ground pork and add the onions when the pork is mostly done then add the mushrooms and cook another two minutes.

When the onions are almost clear and the mushrooms are starting to cook down, remove the contents to a bowl and add the rice and stock to the dutch oven. Cook the rice according to the directions on the box.

Once the rice is done add the cream of mushroom soup and cream and mix until well combined with the rice. Return the ground pork, onions, and mushrooms to the dutch oven then add the turkey and spices and mix until all ingredients are well combined. Cover and cook over low heat, stir every 15 minutes, and serve once everything is heated through.

Got left over corn or green bean casserole? Add it in or serve it on the side. Best paired with a rare American Pilsner beer such as Blatz, Iron City, or Carlings Black Label.

Most of the guys I hunt with will only take the breasts, I think that's wasteful. I feed the Wundermutt the odd parts and he rewards me by bringing the downed birds back to me time and time again.

Thanks Otis, iI will pass this on to them. I know their dog will appreciate your last suggestion, she worked just as hard to bring those birds home.

Need a fairly inexpensive hearty meal that is easy to make but looks impressive? The majority of my family and my in laws hail from the Midwest where eating is regarded as a sport. Sure, we could order in a couple of pizzas or Chinese food to my little brother's place in Littleton but that's not a meat and potatoes real meal - that would be regarded as a snack by several of the visiting teenage and adult males.

The problem: I need to feed a crowd, the prep can't be too time consuming, and it needs to be inexpensive but also filling. The solution: Whip up a couple of pans of...

Beef Rouladen

Get This Stuff:

6 slices top round, cut in to 3/8ths of an inch thickness horizontally across the roast*
3 slices lean bacon (substitute thin smoked ham if you are afraid of raw bacon)
1 onion, sliced
3 garlic dill pickles, sliced into spears (or cheat and pay extra by buying them already sliced)
2 tbsp butter, have more on hand - is there really such a thing as too much butter?
mustard, I like course stone ground brown or dijon
salt and pepper
corn starch
1 - 2 cups water

Git'r Dun:

Season beef slices with salt and freshly ground pepper. Thinly spread mustard on top of each slice. Divide bacon, pickle, and onion slices on one end of each slice of beef. Roll up slices, tucking the ends in and securing with toothpicks.

Heat butter in skillet. Brown rouladen well on all sides. Do not crowd rouladen in the pan(s) or they will not brown completely. Cook in small batches and/or multiple pans if necessary. Add extra butter when needed. When browned remove from pan and hold uncovered on a plate.

Once all rouladen are well browned and being held out of the pan(s), add 1 - 2 cups of hot water to each pan, gently stirring up browned bits from the bottom of the pan(s), it's not cheating to add a splash of Kitchen Bouquet during this step. Return all rouladen and any accumulated juices to the pan(s), bring to simmer and cover. Simmer for about 1 1/2 hours.

Remove rouladen. Use the remaining liquid in the pan(s) for gravy. To thicken gravy, combine about 1-2 tbsp corn starch in a half cup of cold water and stir gently into cooking liquid. Bring the liquid to a boil and stir constantly until liquid is thickened, remove from heat.

Season gravy to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. If you wish, add sour cream to the gravy. Remove the toothpicks to serve rouladen with their gravy.

* - Pay a visit to the meat counter at your favorite grocery store and have the nice folks working behind the counter cut the meat for you. What you want is to have a couple of top round roasts cut into a stack of thinner roasts. Why? You will be using the beef as a wrapper for the rest of the ingredients in the dish; think beef tortilla to be filled with other tasty stuff then rolled up. Each roulade should measure at least 6 inches by 4 inches. Gently pound meat until it is about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Be careful not to put holes in the meat. The larger the roulade, the easier it is to roll up.

This is a good meal to prep in advance, sale on top round or several top rounds available in the bargain bin? Buy the meat now and have the folks behind the meat counter cut it for you, season it once you get home and put it in freezer bags for use at a later date.

It's just as easy to make a dozen or two dozen rouladen as it does to make six so, the only variable is time spent in the kitchen. Got house guests loitering in the kitchen? Have them scrub up and setup an assembly line, little guys enjoy helping out and they can say that they helped make dinner while everyone is stuffing their faces later on. The extras freeze well, as long as they are covered in their gravy. Thaw them in the fridge and then reheat.

I usually serve two rouladen per person, but this really depends on the size of the top round slices and the apatite of your guests. Sometimes they are quite large and one roulade is all that's needed for a serving. There are an untold number of variations, change the stuffing or don't stuff or roll, add spices to the gravy, change it up and make it your own creation.

Must be served with Rotkohl! I'll post the recipe for Rotkohl later... Where's the spuds? Add on your favorite spud dish or buttered egg noodles or serve up a side of wild rice stuffing if there's any left over from the Christmas goose!

Name a staple of German cooking, cabbage will always be high on the list. I love the traditional dishes that my family prepares over the course of the seasons each year but Rotkohl seems to have a special place in the Fall, Winter, and early Spring. Rotkohl isn't the superstar of the Christmas season but it would be immediately noticed if it was missing from the holiday table!

Rotkohl

Get This Stuff:

1 large head red cabbage, shredded
2 - 3 tbsp butter or lard
1 large onion, diced
3 apples, peeled, cored, shredded or diced, I like Granny Smiths but sometimes I switch one out for a Macintosh or Fiji
1/2 cup red wine, you can get away with the cheap stuff in this dish
3 tbsp cider or balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg, ground
1/4 tsp pepper, freshly ground
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp corn starch

Do This:

In large pot, heat butter or lard. Lightly saute onion. Add red cabbage and apples. Continue to saute for several minutes. Add 1 cup water, red wine, cider vinegar, sugar, salt, nutmeg, and pepper then stir. Bring to simmer, cover. Simmer about 30 - 60 minutes or until cabbage is tender.

Add lemon juice. Taste and season with more salt, cloves, pepper, sugar, and vinegar as needed. Mix about 2 tbsp cornstarch with cold water and slowly stir in just enough to thicken red cabbage liquid.

Thüringer Klösse are THE traditional German potato dumpling made from raw potatoes. In Thuringia, a state in the center of Germany, it is said that "a Sunday without dumplings is no Sunday at all."

What would Mutti serve with these dumplings? Almost anything with gravy. If you noticed Mutti assembling rouladen then there was never any reason to check to see if you would also be having rotkohl and Thüringer Klösse because you can't have one without the others.

Thüringer Klösse

Get This Stuff:

1 lb potatoes, baking-type - I like russets for this dish
1 cup milk - whole milk or even better whipping cream
4 tbsp butter
2 tsp salt
5 tbsp Cream of Wheat (semolina)
4 slices bread (day old)

Make it by Doing This:

Make croutons by cutting bread into cubes and browning in 2 tbsp butter (it would be ok if some sage and/or poultry seasoning "accidently" fell in to the pan...).

Peel (or don't, I just remove the eyes and cut off the bad parts but that's why my dumplings are ugly) and grate potatoes into pan of cold water. Put grated potatoes into cheesecloth or clean dishtowel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

Bring milk to boil. Add 1 tsp salt, 2 tbs. butter, and Cream of Wheat. Simmer and stir until mixture forms a ball and leaves sides of pan. Mix Cream of Wheat mixture with grated potatoes.

Shape into potato-sized dumplings (sprinkle flour on hands to keep from sticking to dough). Press 1 or 2 croutons into center of each dumpling. Gently drop into boiling water and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and serve, especially with meat and gravy!
Test cook one dumpling to make sure it stays together before you cook the rest. If you end up with a pan full of floating potato shreds there's too much water in your spud mix, squeeze out more water or go find that uncle that has a really firm handshake and ask him to help you out.

Christmas Eve is a busy time, who wants to try and attempt a big formal meal AND make it to Church AND open gifts all on the same night? How about a quick and easy meal that is available to everyone whenever they get hungry on Christmas Eve?

Sauerkraut, Chops, and Sausages

Gather this stuff up:

Canned or your favorite kind of Sauerkraut
Pork chops
Kielbasa
Bratwurst
Weisswurst
Bockwurst

Git'r dun:

Break out the big pot put the raw chops on the bottom, cover with sauerkraut, add in some sausages, cover with sauerkraut... You get the idea! Add water, about 3:1 water to sauerkraut, bring the pot to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Check the chops to make sure they are cooked before serving. This is a low and slow recipe so you will need to check on it every so often and add more water.

My family keeps such a pot on the burner from Christmas Eve day through the day after Christmas along with a bowl of whole boiled potatoes, loaves of good crusty bread, and butter. Since Christmas is a busy time and people are coming and going at all hours of the night and day this works well to keep everyone fed.

This is the kind of meal that you can perpetuate, just add more ingredients when you need to but take care not to add more raw meat unless you will take the time to bring the pot back to a boil first and check the meat to ensure it's fully cooked.

Meatloaf? That's not special. D-lux tatters? Maybe just a little better than the average mash. Not quite Christmas and the time between Christmas and New Years Day but the house is filling up with family and friends? Sometimes a nice comfort food meal is exactly what everyone needs:

Meatloaf and Smashed D-lux Tatters

What You Need:

Meatloaf:
1 pound ground Chuck
1 pound ground Veal
1 pound ground Pork
1 sleeve Ritz crackers
2 eggs
Ketchup
Course ground brown Mustard
1 large yellow Onion
2-3 cloves of Garlic
Fresh Rosemary, Thyme, and/or other spices you like
Salt and Pepper

Smashed D-lux Tatters:
Yukon gold tatters
Butter (not margarine)
Shredded sharp Cheddar
Cooked Bacon
2-3 cloves of Garlic
Heavy whipping Cream

Git'r Done:

Making the meatloaf:
Mix the ground meats together, smash the crackers until you have fine crumbs, coarse chop onion and garlic. Combine the meat, cracker crumbs, garlic, and onions in a large bowl. Add eggs, ketchup, mustard, and spices. Add ketchup and mustard in equal amounts until the mixture starts to become loose but not soupy. Use your paws to do the mixing and make sure to mix thoroughly so all ingredients are equally distributed.

Preheat your oven at 350F, form the meat mixture into a loaf on a sheet pan or in a loaf pan, bake for one hour.


Smashing the D-lux Tatters:
Wash the tatters and quarter them (skin on, remove any eyes and bad spots), fry the bacon, and dice the garlic fine. Flash fry the garlic in bacon fat, dice the bacon, and bring the tatters to a boil in a pot then simmer on high heat until fork tender. Drain tatters once they are done and return to the pot, add butter and cream then smash 'em with the appropriate kitchen tool adding more cream to arrive at a smooth consistency. Mix in the diced bacon, garlic, and shredded Cheddar.

If you make the meatloaf first and work on the tatters second they should both be done at about the same time. Got leftover meatloaf? Whip up some brown gravy, toss in a few sliced mushrooms, and serve slices of meatloaf on toasted sourdough bread covered in gravy. Prefer different flavors? Change the ground pork out for Italian sausage and use marinara sauce in place of the ketchup and mustard, serve with pasta and extra sauce.

Another favorite meal for the days between Christmas Eve and New Years day:

Roast Leg of Lamb

Ingredients

1 leg of lamb (6 to 9 pounds), trimmed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon canola oil

Directions

Place roast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Cut 12-14 slits 1/2 inch deep in the roast. Combine garlic, thyme, marjoram, oregano, salt and pepper; spoon the mixture into the slits. Brush roast with oil and rub with remaining herb mixture.

Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 2-3 hours or until meat reaches desired doneness (for medium-rare, a thermometer should read 145°, medium, 160°, if you're going to cook it any farther throw away the ruined meat and eat a charcoal briquet instead - you'll enjoy the charcoal better than actual food). Let meat stand 15 minutes before slicing. Should result in 10 to 12 servings depending on who you're feeding.

Got mint jelly? Serve with rice or spuds and a green veg like french cut green beans. Pair with a fine Colorado craft beer such as Flat Tire, 90 schilling, or Red Hook.

I love lamb. Thanks for that recipe. But I'll skip the mint jelly.

pacamom wrote: I love lamb. Thanks for that recipe. But I'll skip the mint jelly.

No mint jelly?! I'll admit I can't have a nice brown gravy from the pan drippings and mint jelly on the same plate, it has to be one or the other. The leftover lamb makes a killer cheese steak samitch with the right bread and cheese( I'll have to post that recipe later...)!

I should have been a bit more precise with my ingredients list, I usually go with a boned, rolled, and tied (BRT) leg of lamb when I make this meal. No reason to avoid a bone in whole leg of lamb but expect to adjust the cooking time, it will take a smidge longer with the bone in the leg.