eG Foodblog: Marlene Maple Leaves, Bacon & Pecans - A Canadian go

[Marlene]

Ah well, best laid plans and all that . I'd completely forgotten the cleaners were coming this morning, (as they do every Friday, so you'd think I'd know ). Thus, I can't get into my kitchen until they are done, which means Ryan got a quick peanut butter and jam sandwich and Don and i have yet to eat.

Given the time, all my cooking preps and pie making will now take place this afternoon

[Jake]

Hi Marlene, just wanted to stop in and wish you, Don and Ryan Merry Christmas!! I have been catching up on your blog in between food prep for tonight (his immediate family = 32 people) and we're (well, I am) doing Christmas dinner for 16 tomorrow (mix of both families...)! Thanks for the blog, it has been wonderful. I look forward to the rest.

[maggiethecat]

Marlene, just a favor--when the cleaners are done at your place, would you mind shooing them over here? Cleaners! I am so jealous--and needy. The house is a mess, and the daughter is flying in from L.A. at about six o'clock. Poor Honor - I wonder if she remembers what -4 feels like!

I was thinking about you as I rolled out my pastry for the mince tarts and tourtiere(which is my Christmas Eve tradition.) Here's my truc: roll out your pastry between lightly floured sheets of plastic wrap or waxed paper. It combines the virtues of less mess, less flour needed to dust the pastry, and easier lifting onto the pin when you pick it up.

Merry Christmas to you and your Lads, MEB!

[Marlene]

I"m working away and will post pics when I'm all done. I'm about to roll out the pie crust and I've just made the squash casserole. Southern recipes never cease to amaze me. They're kinda intituive at best. For example, here's Brooks' recipe for Squash Casserole:

Delta Delight-Squash Casserole

2 cups sliced yellow squash

1 cup chopped white onion

1 stack Ritz crackers

1 Cup good cheddar, grated fine

1 Large egg

½ cup milk

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

¼ lb. Melted Butter

Cook squash with onions until done (transluscent onions). Crush crackers and mix with grated cheese. Beat eggs with milk. Add to cooked and well drained squash and onions mixture. Pour into greased casserole and sprinkle with remaining cheese cracker mixture. Bake a 400F for twenty min. or until bubbly and slightly brown.

I'll bet any Southerner can take one look at this and know exactly what to do. Me? I had questions.

"Cook squash with onions until done".

Ok, but how do I cook them: boil, saute? etc. It took me a while to figure out that I should saute them in the butter. Becasue no where in this recipe does it tell me what to do with the 1/4 lb of butter it calls for.

Great, next: "Crush crackers and mix with grated cheese. Beat eggs with milk. Add to cooked and well drained onion mixture. "

I had to assume that I mixed the crackers, cheese, squash, milk salt and pepper together. Only because near the end of the recipe it says, top he casserole with cheese and cracker mix. Since it also didn't tell me what to do with the salt and pepper, I just assumed it went into the mix too

And finally, can anyone tell me how many crackers constitute a "stack"?

The recipe for the Turkey is the same. It gives me all the ingredients for the paste, but not the quantities. So I'm gonna have to guess.

I don't speak Southern very well I guess!

[highchef]

Marlene..a stack of crackers is one wax paper wrapper from the box of 4 or 2, however you buy them. I think it's a couple of dozen, but haven't gotton around to counting them.

Substitute mirltons in that recipe and you have another southern fav. with shrimp...lovely!

Good luck, btw your assumptions about that saute thing were good...we saute veggies down while we're making a roux...it's the first things you do when you start damn near any recipe from Louisiana.

Merry Christmas everyone...

[Marlene]

Hi Marlene, just wanted to stop in and wish you, Don and Ryan Merry Christmas!!  I have been catching up on your blog in between food prep for tonight (his immediate family = 32 people) and we're (well, I am) doing Christmas dinner for 16 tomorrow (mix of both families...)!  Thanks for the blog, it has been wonderful.  I look forward to the rest.

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And to you and yours Jake! I'm tired just thinking about you cooking for all those people!

I was thinking about you as I rolled out my pastry for the mince tarts and tourtiere(which is my Christmas Eve tradition.) Here's my truc: roll out your pastry between lightly floured sheets of plastic wrap or waxed paper.  It combines the virtues of less mess, less flour needed to dust the pastry, and easier lifting onto the pin when you pick it up.

Merry Christmas to you and your Lads, MEB!

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She says blighely being the Queen of Crust. I'm on my third batch of dough here folks. And counting.......

I hope your Christmas is wonderful Dark Lady. I want a mincemeat tart!

Marlene..a stack of crackers is one wax paper wrapper from the box of 4 or 2, however you buy them. I think it's a couple of dozen, but haven't gotton around to counting them.

Substitute mirltons in that recipe and you have another southern fav. with shrimp...lovely!

Good luck, btw your assumptions about that saute thing were good...we saute veggies down while we're making a roux...it's the first things you do when you start damn near any recipe from Louisiana.

Merry Christmas everyone...

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Aha! See my box of ritz crackers doesn't come like that. They're all just jumbled together.

Merry Christmas back at you!

[Safran]

Ah...maggiethecat is making tourtière! That is also our "réveillon" meal!

Marlene, that walk in the snow sounds especially nice! May your Christmas Eve be very very special. Merry Christmas to you and your family!

[lovebenton0]

Just grab a double handful, Marlene, that'll do for the crackers.

[patti]

Substitute mirltons in that recipe and you have another southern fav. with shrimp...lovely!

Good luck, btw your assumptions about that saute thing were good...we saute veggies down while we're making a roux...it's the first things you do when you start damn near any recipe from Louisiana.

Merry Christmas everyone...

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Mmmm, shrimp and mirliton casserole, one of my faves.

Yep, listen to highchef, she knows of what she speaks.

Marlene, you are a far braver and harder working woman than I. I can't believe how many new things you're tackling, not only for the holidays, but also for a blog in front of everybody. You rock!

Merry Christmas!

(Edited to correct highchef's gender. Sorry!)

Edited December 24, 2004 by patti (log)

[Marlene]

All right folks, I'm on a roll. I finally found a dough recipe that seemed to work for me. I had enough for two pies so that's what I made. Pies are in the oven, pics of everything will follow in just a bit.

Now I've got to make the rub for the turkey and clean up my kitchen (again.).

[highchef]

Substitute mirltons in that recipe and you have another southern fav. with shrimp...lovely!

Good luck, btw your assumptions about that saute thing were good...we saute veggies down while we're making a roux...it's the first things you do when you start damn near any recipe from Louisiana.

Merry Christmas everyone...

←

Mmmm, shrimp and mirliton casserole, one of my faves.

Yep, listen to highchef, he knows of what he speaks.

Marlene, you are a far braver and more hard working woman than I. I can't believe how many new things you're tackling, not only for the holidays, but also for a blog in front of everybody. You rock!

Merry Christmas!

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Thanks, but he's a she! I couldnt' figure out how to alter my profile, I'll get to it after the holidays, and add from Louisiana. Mirlton's are 2 for a dollar! so guess what I'm cooking tomorrow!

[jschyun]

hehe, a lot of online people seem to think I'm a guy too. In my case, maybe it's because I use the words "dude" and "chick" a lot.

I've never had or seen first rate pecan pie, so can't wait...but no pressure.

[Dave the Cook]

. . . . I'm gonna have to guess. 

I don't speak Southern very well I guess!

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It's not speaking Southern that's giving you trouble, Marlene. It's speaking Brooks.

[Marlene]

Here we go folks. But first a view of some of the snow we got the other day.

I don't think it's going to melt anytime soon.

First I made the squash casserole. I haven't baked it yet and tomorrow, some of the cracker and cheese crumb topping will go on top before baking.

Next it was pie crust time. I made dough three times in all. The dough I made last night just didn't work for me. Then I made another batch, same thing. It was way too dry and crumbly and I couldn't get it to roll out. In desperation I turned to a cookbook from the 1950's and there it was - "Bride's Pastry" for the woman who has never made successful pastry. Hey it worked! I didn't know how to "flute" the edge, so I used a fork. Maggie's tip for rolling it out between sheets of waxed paper worked like a charm. I wasn't brave enough to try to pick the dough up with the pin though so I picked up the dough, waxed paper and all and inverted it into the pie plate, then peeled the wax paper off.

And voila! Pecan Pie

I also started the turkey prep for tomorrow. The recipe a la southern style calls for a mustard rub to be applied the day before.

Tomorrow I'll lay the bacon strips on, put butter between the thighs and cover it with an EVOO saturated cheesecloth as per Brooks' and lovebenton0's instructions.

I will try to get back here tonight with dinner pics, but if not it will be in the morning along with breakfast pics while we wait for Ryan to arrive.

Until then, Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

[Safran]

Where there's a will, there's a way. The pie looks fabulous, Marlene!

[Rachel Perlow]

The pie and turkey prep looks good, but I have a question regarding the squash casserole: what kind of squash did you use? It looks like acorn or butternut, the recipe calls for yellow squash, which I'd interpret as the soft kind, like yellow zucchini.

[Marlene]

Hell, there's different squashes? Who knew? It is indeed butternut squash, so maybe this will really suck

[lovebenton0]

Turkey lurkey, lookin' good!

Pretty Southern looking pecan pie there -- I'd eat that. Hey, if Bride's pastry works, that's all that counts. Pie dough is something you have to get a feel for, Marlene. Yours looks fine in the pan and the pie.

Merry Christmas Eve!

And thanks for the snow pic -- I love looking at it from somewheere else.

[Marlene]

Dinner! We've been for our walk (it's just a little cold out there), but we missed church after all. There's just been too much to do. Oh well.

Don did a stir fry tonight. Here's the prep and results:

FOr a man who cooks once or twice a year, his knife skills are way better than mine

He's got garlic, snow peas, bean sprouts, peppers and onion here.

Bless his soul, the man knew I'd been missing my beef all week

Cooking or should I say woking?

The final product

Me, trying to eat with chopsticks while I finalize Sunday plans with my brother on the phone. Even worse, I'm trying to eat right handed and I'm left handed. Again, Don's skill with chopsticks far surpasses mine, although I'm getting better.

It's Christmas Eve and our tradition is to open one present each on Christmas Eve.

One of our three cats, Muffin watches us

I got a very cool three pack of 1/2 bottles of Wolf Blass Wines

A wonderful evening. We played pool, walked in the snow, my husband cooked for me. What more could a girl ask for?

I'll see you folk Christmas morning. May you receive all you ask for and may you give more than you get.

[phifly04]

Merry Chistmas

[Rachel Perlow]

Mmm, pepper steak.

[lovebenton0]

Mery Christmas, Marlene, to all of you! And to all eGers blog lurking and celebrating today, may your meals be merry and bright.

What's for breakfast/brunch on Christmas morning, Marlene?

[Marlene]

Merry Christmas everyone! Breakfast will be peameal bacon and eggs which Don is cooking up right now. Ryan will arrive at noon and then we will open stockings and presents. Right after that, the turkey will go in the oven.

I'll be back in a little while with breakfast pictures.

[Marlene]

Breakfast is done, the dishwasher loaded (yet again) and I'm waiting impatiently for Ryan to get here. In the meantime, I'll occupy myself by getting the breakfast pics up.

This is much better peameal bacon than we had the other day. We bought this from the butcher so we could slice it ourselves. Note the coating of cornmeal.

We slice it fairly thickly

and breakfast is served.

Peameal bacon is quite salty, and those crispy bits are to die for.

We both like to dip our toast in the egg yolk, but then Don tends to eat the whites and leave the yolks, while I'm the opposite. I'll eat the yolk and leave the white. Between us, we can eat one whole egg.

Today will be relaxed because we don't have company until tomorrow. In keeping with my Southern Christmas dinner, I've got my favourite country music station on (did I mention I'm a country girl at heart? I even have 3 pairs of cowboy boots). Today just seems like a day to have music to prep by.

I'll be along in a little while to relate the loot I receive and to update you on the turkey, squash and dressing preparations.

In the meantime, can y'all think gumbo? I need gumbo recipes for Monday!

[Mayhaw Man]

Merry Christmas Everyone!

I kind of forgot to mention what kind of squash, but I bet it turns out great.

I'll be around this afternoon, Marlene, if you have any burning questions that need to be answered in "Brookspeak". Dave will be available for translation after that.