Cooking for the Holidays

During this time of year we tend to get together with family and friends to celebrate the Holiday’s. What I love most is that food is always one of the focal points of all of these celebrations. Whether you are an invited guest and are bringing a side dish or you are having your own holiday feast and preparing an entire spread, you have to love the fact that great food is what we celebrate these occasions over. With this in mind, I wanted to take a moment to give you some tips and recipes that will make your next holiday event a special one.

Let’s talk turkey. I remember when I was a kid my mom getting up at the crack of dawn to prepare the turkey because it was going to take 6-7 hours to cook the thing. Well, I am going to give you a recipe and technique that will cut your cooking time in half. Yes, in half. Some of the traditionalists may say that this is not a true roasted turkey, but I promise it will be as tender, juicy, and delicious as any turkey you ever tasted.

I always loved the combination of cranberry sauce with turkey. The tart/sweetness of the berries with the flavor of the turkey is a marriage made in heaven. So here is a recipe to make a caramelized onion and cranberry chutney from scratch instead of using the gelatinized canned stuff you normally get at the supermarket. Sorry Ocean Spray.

I hope that you enjoy these recipes and will be able to spend some great times with friends and loved ones to make this season an enjoyable one. Happy Holiday’s.

Chipotle Rubbed Turkey

1 - Whole Turkey (15-20 lbs)

1 - each Onion (rough chopped)

2 - each Carrots (rough chopped)

2 - each Celery stalks (rough chopped)

1 - Orange (wedged)

1 - Lemon (wedged)

3 - Jalapenos (whole)

1 – 7 oz can Chipotle Peppers (blended)

¼ - cup Salt

3 - TB Pepper

2 - Quarts chicken broth

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove giblets and rinse turkey inside and out.
2. Mix blended chipotle with salt and pepper.
3. With gloves, rub the chipotle mixture all over the turkey.
4. Stuff the cavity with the oranges, lemons, and jalapenos
5. In a roasting pan place the chopped vegetables on the bottom and rest the turkey on top.
6. Pour the stock into the roasting pan.
7. Tightly cover the roasting pan with plastic wrap first then aluminum foil on top of that. This will trap in the heat and allow the turkey to cook faster.
8. Place in the oven for approx two hours and check the temperature with an instant read thermometer. When it reaches 150, remove the plastic and foil and return to the oven until golden brown. The turkey will be ready when the thermometer reaches 165.

Caramelized Onion and Cranberry Chutney

3 - Yellow Onions (julienned)

3 - cups Dried Cranberries

2 - cups Orange Juice

2 - TB Orange Zest

½ - cup sugar

4 - TB Salad Oil (to caramelize the onions)

1 - cup water

1. In a sauté pan over medium heat, heat the oil and add the onions.
2. Stirring periodically, cook onions until they become caramel colored.
3. In a medium sauce pot, add cranberries, orange juice, orange zest, sugar, water and caramelized onions.
4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until reduced to jam consistency.
5. Let cool and serve.