We purchased a huge bird for Thanksgiving, in order to ensure that there would be plenty of leftovers for the rest of the holiday weekend.  And leftovers there were…lots of them.

After four days of turkey sandwiches, I decided I needed a change in my diet.  I don’t like to waste anything, so I was determined to use every piece of Tom the Turkey.  Normally, I would just make a big batch of chili with my leftovers, but I had made chili prior to our family’s arrival, so we’d been eating our fair share of chili too.

Now that it’s cold outside, though, the idea of a hearty soup or stew sounds yummy to me.  So I went through my mental cookbook and decided to make Brunswick stew.  This dish always reminds me of winters during my childhood.  Who would think that lima beans could be yummy in a soup?  Well let me tell you; they are.

I made up this recipe, based on what I remember my mom’s Brunswick stew to taste and look like.  I was afraid that my stew would be overwhelmed by the turkey (as I was already weary of eating any more bird), but the other veggies and spices made a nice mix.  I really liked the combination of cayenne pepper and Worcestershire, but added the brown sugar to balance out the heat.  Don’t worry too much about the specific size bag or box of frozen corn and lima beans.  Just use whatever the store has.  This is one of those stews that I was just throwing in whatever I happened to have in my kitchen.  (Same goes for the tomatoes.)

Brunswick Stew (Makes 8-10 servings)

• 3 cups (or as much as you’ve got) leftover turkey, chopped into small pieces (you can use cooked chicken as well)
• 4 cups GF chicken broth (I use Pacific brand)
• Chopped bacon or pancetta (this is totally optional but I had leftover pancetta that I wanted to use…a great addition!)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 16 ounce bag frozen corn
• 1 16 ounce bag frozen lima beans
• 1 16 ounce can whole tomatoes
• 1 16 ounce can stewed tomatoes
• 2 pounds red potatoes, chopped into 1-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins is gluten-free)
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• Salt & Pepper

Heat olive oil in dutch oven on medium heat.  Add bacon and cook for about 5 minutes.  Add chopped onions and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add chicken broth, tomatoes and potatoes.  Bring to a slow boil.  Let simmer for 20 minutes.  Add cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, lima beans, corn and turkey.  Stir, bring to a simmer and cook for another 30 minutes.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  You can’t really overcook this soup so I found that making it a day ahead, and then reheating, made the stew even better and the turkey more tender.  This dish  is a great use for your dark turkey meat too.

Makes a perfect week night dinner, served with GF cornbread or biscuits.  Or top stew with leftover gluten-free stuffing.  This dish freezes well so I will be enjoying my Brunswick stew throughout the winter months.

What do you like to do with your leftovers?

I’ve been in a food coma for the last week…

We had a very successful and fun Thanksgiving with all of the Metcalves, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to write about the food yet.  David and I are still going through the leftovers, but we’re almost to the end of the feast remains.  (Stay tuned to learn what I did with the leftover turkey once I got to the point where I could no longer look at another turkey sandwich.)

Here are a few pics from the meal…

Brussels sprouts with pancetta

Manchego & Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

Simple Green Beans

Butternut Squash

And of course, Tom the Turkey

I think the family would agree that it was yummy.

I’m particularly proud of my first experiment making stuffing.  Sally’s gluten-free sandwich bread worked perfectly, and I added some Whole Foods Gluten-Free Bake House stuffing cubes to ensure that I made enough food.  In retrospect one loaf of Sally’s is plenty for a family of eight.

I followed the basic stuffing recipe from the November issue of Real Simple.  In the article, they include ten variations on stuffing, but since we already had a lot of action at the dinner table (i.e. Brussels sprouts with pancetta and turkey wrapped in a bacon lattice), I decided to keep it simple.  I think it worked well.

Gluten-Free Stuffing (adapted from Real Simple Magazine)

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large loaf gluten-free sandwich bread, cut into ¾ inch pieces (I wouldn’t go with the frozen, store bought bread.  I’d either use homemade or a loaf purchased from a GF bakery)
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 3 celery stalks, thinly sliced
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• S & P

Heat oven to 375/  Butter a baking or casserole dish.  Divide the bread between two baking sheets.  Bake until dry and browning a little, 10-12 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a large pan over medium heat.  Add onions, celery, 1 teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender and beginning to brown, about 10-12 minutes.  Add the wine and cook until evaporated, 2 to 4 more minutes.  Transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

Add bread, broth, eggs, and ½ teaspoon of salt to the veggies.  Toss to combine.  Transfer to greased baking dish.  Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Uncover and bake until browned, 20-30 minutes more.

I made the stuffing on Thanksgiving morning and reheated before serving for dinner.  Before reheating, we added the vegetables that the turkey cooked in, and its pan juices, as a top layer for the stuffing.  Amazing.

The stuffing was delicious and a great addition to the feast.  And it was a perfect addition to turkey sandwiches the next day.  When reheating the stuffing, I would add a little more chicken broth, so that it wouldn’t dry out.  I was very impressed by how well the gluten-free bread held up and was easily used in this typically gluten-filled recipe.

T minus 7 days until Thanksgiving supper…

Turkey Day  is happening at Casa Metcalf this year.  Yep, that’s right; David and I are hosting his family.  I can’t wait to host everyone in our new house and have an excuse to cook.

So, what are we making this year?

Turkey on the grill: David did such a great job with the turkey last year, so I see no reason to change the preparation method.  Also, grilling our bird, frees up our oven for more baking.  David plans on brining our bird 24 hours in advance.  David has also mentioned covering the turkey with bacon while grilling.  I won’t argue with that.  After much debate, we went with a fresh turkey from Publix.  I had grand plans that we would get a local turkey, that lived a happy and freely roaming life, but the price tag was too steep ($120!!).  Does that make me an awful person?

Brussels sprouts: I just can’t get enough of those little bites of goodness!  Maybe with a little pancetta?  My friend, Hannah, tried brussels sprouts with grapes recently, something I saw in Real Simple.  I’m interested.

Canned cranberry: I could attempt making cranberry from scratch, but I’ve always preferred the canned version as I grew up with the oddly smooth cranberry on orange slices.  Fortunately, canned cranberry’s GF.

Mashed Potatoes with baby red potatoes, skin on.  I love the texture the skin adds.

Butternut Squash (my mother-in-law’s recipe)

Stuffing: This is adventurous, and we’ve never GF stuffing before, but we’re going to try a recipe, substituting Sally’s Sandwich Bread for real bread.  Of course our stuffing will have sausage in it!

Apple & Pumpkin Pie (Thank goodness for Whole Foods’ Gluten-Free Bakey Pie Crusts)

I will be serving (but not making) pecan pie and dinner rolls, courtesy of Sally’s Bakery.

I’ve also learned that when hosting Thanksgiving, it’s not just the actual Thanksgiving dinner that you have to think about.  The Metcalves will be with us from Thursday through Sunday, so just a turkey and some cranberry won’t last us.

Here are some other items I’m going to make to keep our bellies happy when the last bit of turkey has been consumed and there’s no more pie left for breakfast:

Granola and pumpkin bread for breakfasts and snacking

Chicken chili for lunches, once the leftovers run out

Honey mustard chicken for a weekend dinner.  It’s just so easy.

What are you planning for your Thanksgiving feast?  What are your favorite gluten-free holiday recipes?

Quinoa: A staple at Casa Metcalf

Quinoa is a go-to item in my weekly meal planning.  Not only is it yummy, but it has many nutrients and lots of fiber so we can definitely call it a super food.  I love this seed/grain as you can take it in many different culinary directions.

I’ve enjoyed it for breakfast, with cinnamon, blueberries and strawberries…

Quinoa goes well with edamame, red onions, and local cherry tomatoes…

You can make a hearty quinoa dish, similar to risotta with fresh tomatoes and parmesan cheese…

My friend, Mary Stuart, has introduced me to Costco and when I accompanied her on a recent trip to this mega-store, she pointed out the large bags of quinoa to me.  Of course I added the hefty bag to the cart.  We’ll be eating a lot of quinoa in the next few months.

Who knew Costco had quinoa?

Earlier this week, I made a batch of quinoa with sautéed onions and served it as a side dish with honey mustard chicken.  Of course I doubled the recipe so for lunch all week, I’ve been enjoying my quinoa with roasted sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts.  Mmmm…

Last week I tried a new quinoa combo.  I made the Gluten Free Goddesses’ (also known as one of my favorite blogs, Karina’s Kitchen) recipe for Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach, Chickpeas and Maple Vinaigrette.  Quite a combination, right?  It was so delicious and the textures worked really well together.  I particularly enjoyed the toasted pecans.  (I just toasted mine on the stove with a little olive oil on medium high heat for a few minutes.  You want to toss them as they cook to prevent uneven cooking.)

Gluten-Free Goddesses’ Quinoa Salad: (Serves 4 as a main dish, 6 as a side)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup organic quinoa
  Sea salt
• 2 good handfuls of organic baby spinach leaves, washed, drained
  1 large ripe pear, washed, stemmed and cored, cut into pieces
  1/2 cup chilled chick peas, rinsed, drained
  Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
  A handful of pecans, pan toasted and salted to taste
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  3 tablespoons golden balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Place the quinoa in a saucepan or a rice cooker. Add 2 cups fresh water, and a pinch of sea salt. Cover and cook on a low simmer until all the water is evaporated and the quinoa is tender- roughly 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and dump it into a large salad bowl.

Toss is the pear, spinach, and chick peas.

Mix in a separate bowl the maple syrup, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Pour on salad and toss gently.  Add S & P to taste.

Enjoy!

Note: If you want the leftovers to keep during the week, I would suggest adding the spinach on an ‘as needed’ basis or even just using it as a bed on your plate for the rest of your salad.  Then it won’t get soggy during the week.

Not only did I make this dish for dinner, but the next night I enjoyed Mary Stuart’s version of the same recipe.  Of course she and I both thought sweet potatoes would go well with the dish.  She also made an amazing GF quiche but more details on that later…

What do you like to add to your quinoa?

We’re moved into our new house and have an amazing opportunity to travel for a few weeks before David starts his new job.  I’m sad to leave our home but excited for the adventures that lie ahead in the next few weeks.  Life is rough, right?  We’re leaving today to head west, where we will spend a couple of weeks camping, exploring and seeing friends in Wyoming and Montana.

Our new porch!

I’ve decided not to take my computer with me, which will be weird but I’m happy about it.  I think it will be good (and freeing!) to get off the grid for awhile.  (Who am I kidding?  David will have his fancy new computer and I’ll still have my Iphone so ‘going off the grid’ might be a bit of an exaggeration.)  That’s all to say that I probably won’t be updating the blog very often for the next few weeks, but don’t worry, I’ll be taking lots of photos and eating yummy meals that I’ll be ready to report back on in late September.  In the meantime, here are some recipes from the last year if you’re looking for some cooking ideas:

Savory Bites:

Balsamic Glazed Salmon

Black Bean Chicken Chili

Roasted Pork Loin Wrapped in Pancetta

Golden Crusted Brussels Sprouts

Baked Butternut Squash

Lentil Soup

For Your Sweet Tooth:

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Blondies

Cinnamon Ginger Chocolate Chip Cookies

Granola

See you soon!

Dear Mini-Food Processor,

You have been a wonderful kitchen gadget for our family.  Making hummus with you has been a favorite Sunday activity.  Your salad dressings are delicious and you always know just the right amount to make.  The perfect size for a batch of pesto, you’ve been a great friend in our tiny apartment.  Even though we keep you on the top shelf, almost weekly I stand on my tip toes, grab you, and put you to work.

You’ve been working overtime recently, as we’ve had an endless supply of basil.  Thank you for your hard work.  You never disappoint.  Even when I fine a large chunk of garlic in my hummus that you forgot to chop up, I don’t mind because I know that I ask a lot of you.

I have a confession to make, Mini Food Processor.  You’re going to have a new home.  It’s not that we don’t love you, but it’s time for us to buy a bigger food processor.  You will always be our first and I  have many fond memories of our time together.  Now that we’re moving into a home with a more spacious kitchen, it only seems right to buy a larger model.  I’m looking forward to working with our new food processor, chopping onions and other veggies, but just know that you will never be forgotten.

Your new home with the Williams will be much more spacious than the living conditions you’ve had for the past year.  Meredith will take good care of you, I promise, and make many yummy foods with you.  Keep chopping away.

Love,

Betsy

Basil Dressing (in the Mini Food Processor)

This is a great dressing for salad and delicious to add to other summer dishes. Lighter than pesto, so it absorbs better into whatever you’re making.  Also, let’s be honest: Sometimes I’m a little cheap to make pesto.  Pine nuts are pricey so this is a solid alternative to pesto and not as rich.

Great to use with:

• Roasted potatoes
• Pork chops
• Grilled bone-in chicken breasts
• Tossed in a cold quinoa salad
• Salad dressing

Ingredients:

• 1 cup tightly packed basil leaves
• juice from ½ a lemon (add more if you want it to be more tart)
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons parmesan cheese
• 2 cloves garlic
• s&p

Put all of the ingredients, except olive oil, into food processor and mix.  Once blended, add olive oil.  If you want it to be more liquid thank thick (less like pesto and more like salad dressing), add more olive oil and white wine vinegar and less cheese.

Other Great Uses for the Mini Food Processor:

Hummus

Pesto for pasta or pizza

Recently a group of us hosted a luncheon to celebrate my good friend, Mary Stuart, and her baby that’s on the way.  On a steamy, summer day, it can be difficult to create a menu.  When it’s hot outside, we’re not looking to eat heavy, rich, foods.  Instead your food should be light and refreshing.  Also, this luncheon was not at my house, so I had to take transportation into account when planning.  I  didn’t want to be assembling my dish upon arrival, so my ‘quinoa for a crowd’ actually tastes better when made a day in advance.

As the name implies, this recipe makes a lot of food, and I always make too much food when I’m playing host.  Leftovers are delicious and this quinoa makes for a great lunch during the week.  In our Atlanta group of friends, I’m not the only gluten-free eater, so we labeled the items for the luncheon that were gluten-free and kept them at the beginning of the buffet line, in order to best avoid contamination.

Quinoa for a Crowd (Serves about 10-12)

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups quinoa
• 5 cups vegetable broth (or water)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoons salt & ¼ teaspoon pepper

• 1 red onion
• 1 bag frozen, shelled edamame
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes

Vinaigrette

• ½ cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 table spoon white wine vinegar

Rinse and drain quinoa if package instructs you to.  (Some do and others don’t.)  I have a very fine strainer that I use for rinsing my quinoa.

Heat olive oil on medium heat.  Add quinoa and stir for a minute while cooking.  Add 1 cup broth and stir while the quinoa absorbs the liquid.  Once liquid is absorbed, add 3 more cups.  Lower heat to medium-low.  Let cook, stirring occasionally.  Add salt and pepper.  Add more liquid as needed.  You’ll know the quinoa is done because it will ‘pop.’  Not like popcorn, but you’ll see that the quinoa becomes bigger and there will be a little line in the middle of each grain.  It will take about 20 minutes for quinoa to cook.  (Unlike risotto, I think it’s hard to overcook quinoa.)

Remove quinoa from heat and let cool to room temperature.  Meanwhile, finely chop red onion.  Heat shelled edamame (according to cooking instructions on bag).  Drain and let cool.  Cut tomatoes in half.  Put onion, edamame and tomatoes into a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk lemon juice, honey, olive oil, white wine vinegar and Dijon mustard.  Taste.  Depending on how tart or sweet you like your food, add more honey and olive oil (for sweetness) or add more mustard or lemon juice (for tartness).  This is completely about your flavor preference.  I find that anytime I make a vinaigrette, I keep sampling it until I’m content with the flavors.  (Not very precise or scientific, I know!)

Once your quinoa has cooled, add the grain to your large bowl.  Mix with tomatoes, edamame, and onions.  Add your vinaigrette and toss.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  If your salad dries out a little, just add some more lemon juice or olive oil before serving.

As I mentioned, this quinoa, is the gift that keeps on giving, so I brought the leftovers to a dinner that same night.  Still delicious.  And I ate it for lunch the next day.  And the next.

Another highlight of the luncheon was the chicken salad that my friend Meredith made, using one of Emeril’s recipes.  I loved the cashew and apple combination.  Salty, sweet and tart, all in one.  Not too much mayo either.  You can see this naturally gluten-free recipe here.  (The only change Meredith made was omitting the parsley.)  Of course, thoughtful Meredith even remembered to bring gluten-free crackers for the chicken salad!

What do you like to make when cooking for a crowd?

I just learned from the Gluten-Free Examiner, Jennifer Harris, that there will be a gluten-free expo on Saturday, August 7 from 12-4, at the Buckhead Whole Foods.  There will be demonstrations and gluten-free vendors so you should definitely check out this GF event.

Whole Foods has been a very successful grocery chain, with mixed reviews.  Some criticize it for pushing out smaller, local, natural food stores while others applaud it for bringing quality ingredients to communities and supporting some (not all) local farms.  A January article in the New Yorker entitled, “Food Fighter” featured Whole Foods’ founder and CEO, John Mackey.  This article provides an interesting perspective on the store and Mackey.  It’s worth the read.

Whole Foods' CEO John Mackey

Despite the controversy associated with this high-end grocery store, I always appreciate Whole Foods’ large selection of gluten-free foods, and random ingredients like quinoa, almond flour, bean sprouts, and every nut you can imagine.

Here are some of my favorite things about Whole Foods:

• Great selection and prices on wine (10% off if you buy in bulk.)
• Whole Foods Gluten-Free Bakehouse Pie Crust (Great for Tomato Pie & Quiche)
• Each item in salad bar is clearly labeled with ingredients
• Amazing cheese selection
• The best store bought gluten-free cupcakes, ever.
• People say Whole Foods is expensive (and it is) but there are good deals to be found.  Cedar’s hummus is often “Bo-Go” and Lara Bars are often the best price in town.  (You get an extra 10% off if you buy the whole box.)
• Whole Foods meets all of the shopping needs for the contestants on Top Chef.  (Sometimes the tilapia’s frozen or one contestant buys out all of the lamb chops before his opponent can get to them, but for the most part Whole Foods has everything.)

Thoughts on Whole Foods?  Favorite Saturday splurge when wandering the aisles?

The 4^th of July gives us a great excuse to break out the grill, cook for a crowd and do some low key entertaining.  Here are a few photos and recipe ideas to get your creative juices flowing for the 4^th.

Old Bay Burgers

Pulled Pork Barbecue

Grilled Salmon

Roasted Okra

Heirloom Tomatoes with Feta Cheese, Olive Oil & Balsamic Vinegar

Peanut Butter Cookies

Peach Blueberry Crisp

Happy Independence Day!  A special Happy 4th to my family and friends who will be celebrating outside the US of A, in Japan, Austria, and Mexico.  You are missed!

Summer squash is a favorite of mine.  I love the different colors, textures and shapes.  Squash can be roasted simply but I also use it in squash casserole.  Yes, ‘squash casserole’ sounds a bit funny, but I promise, it’s delicious.  This is my grandmother, Dot’s, recipe and even though I never actually ate her version of it (because I was too young to appreciate squash casserole), it reminds me of her.  This recipe also makes me think of my mom because she always makes it in the summer, when I’m around.  My dad doesn’t like squash so when I’m in town, there’s someone else to enjoy it with her!

I found myself with a bounty of squash and onions this weekend so I made squash casserole for a dinner group.  You can bake it before hand so it transports easily.  I posted this recipe last summer, but I realized when making it on Sunday, and following my blog recipe, that I forgot to mention that you should melt the butter.

Oops.  It still turned out alright but I had to laugh at myself for messing up my own recipe.  (It looked a little funny but tasted yummy.)

Dot’s Summer Squash Casserole

Inngredients:
3 pounds summer squash, chunked
3 medium onions, chopped
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup water
salt & pepper
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs
1/2 cup 2% or whole milk
Parmesan cheese (the original recipe also calls for crumbled crackers on top but we just skip that step now to make it GF! Instead I sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top)

Directions:
Cook squash & onions with water, sugar, salt and pepper until mashable (about 45 minutes).
Beat two eggs lightly.
Add milk to eggs and mix well with squash. Add butter and mix.
Bake at 325 for about 30 minutes. (With 10 minutes left in cooking, remove from oven and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.)

Perfect for a 4th of July cookout!  Transports with no trouble and reheats easily.  You make make it and freeze, and just reheat before serving.  Happy cooking!