Grammy's View

Tag: Holiday

  • Recipe Experiments

    Thanksgiving is the most American of holidays and one that families of all faiths can embrace. Food is a major component and at this time every year I’m happy to stay in and cook. I don’t actually make the dinner anymore but I contribute something to the meal and even more, it starts me thinking about trying new things. This week I made one of my traditional Thanksgiving recipes, Cranberry Chutney (posted 11/15/2011) and made the pastry for pies. I put an apple pie in the freezer. Once those preparations were done I needed to use up some apples. They were peeled but too few for another pie and had been too many for the one I made, about three cups. I remembered that I had some Stone’s Ginger Wine in the cupboard from our workers who always bring us a bottle when they arrive from Jamaica in the spring. There were possibilities.

    I put the apples in a saucepan with a half cup or so of the wine and simmered them. There was also a little piece of ginger root left from another recipe so I minced that fine and added it. Finally the tiniest pinch of red pepper flakes went into the pot. It all simmered until the apples were the consistency of coarse applesauce. Served with a grilled pork chop it turned out to be the perfect compliment to the meat.

    While in the mood for experimenting I adapted a recipe for winter squash from a Mark Bittman column in the New York Times. There was half of a butternut squash in the fridge. I peeled it and cut it into slices about ½ inch thick, tossed it with a bit olive oil and salt. spread the slices on a baking sheet and roasted at 375 degrees until soft. I turned the pieces over once as they browned.

    In the meantime I chopped ½ an onion, sauteéd it in olive oil until it softened and started to brown, then added a tablespoon of maple syrup and a tablespoon of cider vinegar. This I reduced down, stirring frequently until the mixture was the consistency of thick jam (about 15 minutes). When the squash was soft I mashed it coarsely, added the onion mixture, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Stirred together well and served hot it turned out to be a delicious and different combination. The original recipe called for adding a garnish of chopped mint but our mint hasn’t survived the frosty nights. Yummy anyway.

  • Thanksgiving Day

    The pies are cooling on the counter and we’ll leave soon to join our Andover family for a day of feasting and fun. It has been years since I’ve gotten up at dawn to stuff the turkey and get it in the oven. One of the benefits of having the next generation host dinner.
    I stopped making Thanksgiving dinner in 1980. It was our second year on the farm and the first year that we sold pies. After baking pies all night we just wanted to go to bed. It has become the custom for different family members to spend the holiday with their partner’s families. The Russells gather enfamille on Christmas Eve.
    For many years we have joined our son Matt’s family for Thanksgiving. Two other families join us as well as our daughter Laura. This year we are happy to have granddaughter Leah with us for the first time in eight years and her husband William for the first time ever.
    Dinner is a communal project. Susan prepares the traditional turkey and stuffing. Others bring their special dishes. After dinner we are joined by another family or two and hold a Yankee Swap with silly gifts. It is a lot of fun with much hilarity. Dessert comes after the swap and we end the day sitting in front of the fire enjoying each other’s company. A perfect holiday.
    We have so much to be thankful for.

  • November

    After the frantic pace of September and October, I always think that November will be quiet. When it finally rolls around and I turn the page of my calendar, I see that it is not going to be such a laid back month after all.
    There was the Wine and Apple Festival the first weekend, three grandchildren have birthdays coming up, and then there’s Thanksgiving. I also start planning for December, making lists of gifts to buy, cards to send, baking to do.
    Thanksgiving dinner when I was growing up always meant Cranberry Relish. My mother’s Cranberry Relish usually was part of a day long orgy of preparation and cooking the day before Thanksgiving. I was often the one turning the crank on the old food grinder. It screwed onto the edge of the kitchen table; a bowl placed on the floor under it to catch the juice dripping down as the fruit was ground. It was an easy recipe but really messy. A package of cranberries, two oranges, rind and all, and two unpeeled apples. It all went through the grinder and then was mixed with a cup of sugar.
    The food grinder is long gone but my grandson David still makes it every year in the food processor.
    Years ago I found a recipe for Cranberry Apricot Chutney. It now joins David’s relish on the Thanksgiving table. It’s especially good on a turkey and stuffing sandwich. I made it yesterday, we’ll have to sample it a few times before the holiday. I like it with chicken or pork as well as turkey. It is simple to make and keeps well in the refrigerator. It also can be frozen.

    Cranberry and Apricot Chutney
    12 ounce package of whole cranberries
    1 cup sugar
    1/2 cup water
    3/4 cup snipped dried apricots
    1/4 cup minced ginger root (I love ginger, you can add less if you prefer)
    3 tablespoons brown sugar
    1/4 cup cider vinegar

    In a 3 quart heavy saucepan combine sugar and water. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until sugar is dissolved. Bring to boil without stirring.
    Stir in cranberries, apricots, vinegar, brown sugar and ginger. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 or 20 minutes or until berries have popped and mixture starts to thicken, stirring occasionally.
    Remove from heat and allow to cool. Refrigerate but bring to room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Makes 3 ½ cups.

    It can also be frozen.

  • Monhegan Island

    We just returned from a week on Monhegan Island. I’d always wanted to visit the island so when Max joined a week’s painting workshop, it seemed like the ideal time. We had three days of rain and fog before the sun finally appeared. Once sun came out we could appreciate the wild flowers. They were everywhere in full bloom, and spectacular.
    We stayed in a charming rustic inn with no electricity in our room (oil lamp lighting, no heat) but terrific food. Many artists make the island their summer headquarters and it’s easy to see why. There doesn’t seem to be anything but picturesque views in every direction no matter where one is on the island. Most of the island is protected land, wild and criss-crossed with trails. Some meander through tall trees with pine needle carpets, others are more rugged and require a bit of effort to get to the magnificent rock cliffs on the south shore.ab
    Our rhubarb season has passed but it was growing in huge clumps on Monhegan. I’ve never seen rhubarb looking quite so abundant. Before our crop was finished, I managed to snag about twenty pounds of it. Enough to make a bunch of recipes as well as put some in the freezer. I’m attaching a recipe for the absolutely best Rhubarb Pie.
    RHUBARB PIE
    4 cups rhubarb cut into ½ inch slices
    ½ cup brown sugar
    ½ cup white sugar
    Grated rind of one orange
    4 tablespoons tapioca
    Pastry for 9 inch two crust pie

    Preheat oven to 425 degrees

    In a large bowl, toss together the rhubarb, sugars, ginger, orange zest and tapioca. Allow to stand while preparing the pastry.

    Line a 9 inch pie pan with pastry. Pour filling into the pastry and cover with the top crust. Crimp edges and slash top crust. Glaze if desired, with milk, cream, or orange juice. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 350 degrees and continue baking for 35 minutes. Serve at room temperature.

    Notes: I prefer instant tapioca to thicken fruit pies but you can use 3 or 4 tablespoons of flour instead.
    If using frozen rhubarb it will need to bake longer.

  • Thanksgiving Pies

    This year has passed in a flash, it seems like we were just starting to pick strawberries and now the apples are all off the trees and we begin our final week at the orchard store. It is a big week for the bakery. Watching Pam and her pie crew prepare for the Thanksgiving pies makes me think of the first few years in the bakery.
    The store in 1980 occupied just the small room with the fireplace. The main barn held the apple sorting tables and storage. A small tack room from a much earlier era had been transformed into a kitchen.
    It was exciting to have our pies become so popular and we were happy when the orders came in but to have them all fresh and on schedule for pick-up was a challenge. We had managed to buy an oven that would hold 16 pies at a time and 16 was about the number of apple pies that we could make in an hour.
    My mother had been famous for her pies and I learned how to make them at her side from the time I was a little girl. I was determined that the pies from the bakery would be as good as those that I would serve at our own table.
    Thanksgiving meant apple, pumpkin, mince, and pecan pies.
    In addition to the apples, peeled by hand, we had grown pumpkins that year so, no canned pumpkin. I baked up dozens of pumpkins, scraped out the flesh and pureed them in the food processor. Mince meat was also a challenge. I made it also using a recipe from an ancient cookbook. The preparation to be ready to actually make the pies was daunting and labor intensive.
    Customers started picking up their pies on Tuesday, Wednesday was a busier day but Thursday morning we had the crush. The ovens were going around the clock for days. By the time we closed at noon on Thanksgiving Day, all we wanted to do was fall into bed.
    Thirty years later, we’ve discovered that canned pumpkin actually makes a better pie, an automated peeler peels the apples, and there is a “pie crew” that can turn out dozens of pies in a few hours. The Thanksgiving pie baking has become organized an efficient.

  • Fourth of July

    Sunshine streaming through the skylight wakened me this morning. Oh happy day! It seems like it has been raining for months. It is a good day to start this blog.

    It is the Fourth of July, the summer holiday that marks the beginning of the New England vacation season. The kids are out of school and the weather (usually) is hot making our lakes and coast a destination.

    As a kid my family didn’t take vacations. My father got one week off from work and spent it at home resting but the Fourth of July was a big occasion. Mama would pack a big basket with potato salad, homemade bread, cole slaw, a berry pie, chocolate chip cookies and, best of all, fried chicken. Our fried chicken wasn’t coated with anything, this was long before KFC.

    The day before the Fourth Mama would go to a local farm for a fresh chicken. The farmer picked one from many scratching in the chicken yard, a hefty hen that wasn’t laying eggs any more. Early the morning of the holiday, the chicken was simmered in a big pot of water until it was tender, then fried in butter until it was brown and gooey and chewy. I loved it.

    The picnic stowed, we drove to a small lake not too far from home where we met aunts and uncles and cousins. They always arrived early enough to claim the choice picnic tables. We children swam and played on the tiny sandy beach. The men played horseshoes and catch while the women talked and relaxed. After eating we had to stay out of the water for an interminable hour.

    At last dusk settled, we donned sweaters and snuggled on blankets ready for the highlight of the day, the fireworks. They were much too short and finally we packed the car and headed home, sandy, sleepy, but happy.