Turkey Enchiladas

On Friday, November 20th, we left on a 1,500 mile trek to Southern California to spend Thanksgiving with our daughter and her family. However, we still wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving with our local family and friends; so, on Sunday, November 15th, we had a pre-Thanksgiving dinner. We had our two children and their families who live locally as well as a couple of friends over for a potluck style dinner. Oh my goodness! We had so much food. We had two turkeys: One cooked in an oil-less turkey fryer and the other was a pre-cooked smoked turkey (bought on sale) that we heated in the oven. We made cornbread-sausage-apple stuffing. There was also 4 different salads, green bean casserole (using fresh green beans), homemade rolls, and 6 different kinds of pie. This isn't including all of the appetizer stuff we filled up on before dinner.

Anyway, my son took home the two turkey carcasses to make soup with and we divided up the left over turkey with each of the families. We ended up with about a little over a pound of turkey meat. After eating turkey sandwiches Monday and Tuesday on the leftover dinner rolls, I decided to make Turkey Enchiladas with what was left of the turkey meat (just under a pound).

I wanted something that had a lot of other flavors to it - because, frankly, I don't like leftover turkey. I can't explain why, I just don't like the flavor. I like cooked turkey fresh out of the oven. I'm OK with turkey sandwiches. But, beyond that, I don't like turkey (don't even get me started on turkey soup - can't stand the stuff).

So, here is my recipe for Turkey Enchiladas that I threw together using mostly stuff we had on hand. The only thing I had to go to the store to buy was the tortilla's.

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced (using garlic press)
• oil (a Tbl or so)
• 1 pound leftover turkey meat, chopped up
  
• 1 14oz can Mexican Style stewed tomatoes
• 1 4oz can of chopped green chilies
• 1 10oz can enchilada sauce
• 1 chipotle in adobo sauce, finely chopped (optional)
  
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• corn tortilla's (14-16)
• cheese (cheddar, or whatever you have on hand), grated
  

Directions

1. Saute onions and garlic in oil until soft. Mix in stewed tomatoes, chopped green chilies, chipotle in adobo sauce and corn. Add turkey, mix and heat through
2. Pour enchilada sauce in a flat bowl and heat in microwave for 1 minute
3. Heat tortillas in microwave to soften
4. Pour a little of the enchilida sauce in the pan, enough to coat the bottom
   

To assemble

1. Dip a tortilla in the enchilada sauce, add meat mixture (1-2 Tbl) and some cheese, roll up and place in pan seam side down
2. Repeat until all of the meat mixture is used
3. Top with cheese

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and lightly toasted on top. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

Notes

• I used Del Monte brand Mexican style stewed tomatoes which had surprisingly large chunks of tomato which had to be broken up into smaller pieces while cooking.
  
• I used Old El Paso green enchilada sauce, simply because it was what we had on hand. Any good enchilada sauce should do fine.
  
• I made two 8" square pans of enchilada's - we cooked one for dinner and put the other in the freezer. I suppose it would also fill an 8" x 13" pan.

Peanut Flour

The October 2009 issue of "Southern Living" magazine has an ad by the National Peanut Board that included some peanut recipes. One that looked particularly intriguing is "Peanut Oven-Fried Chicken with Citrus-Ginger Sauce". We have pretty much all of the ingredients on hand, except for one: Peanut flour. Seriously, we even have the aromatic roasted peanut oil; so, I thought, I guess we're gonna have to get us some peanut flour.

First we first tried Sunflower Shoppe in Colleyville, a large health food store. They had almond flour, hazelnut flour, pecan flour, coconut flour - but no peanut flour. Next we tried Central Market in Southlake, an upscale gourmet grocery store. They had a similar selection of different flours - but no, alas, peanut flour.

So, I went to the web site for the National Peanut Board, found the recipe on their web site, and added a comment asking where I might be able to find peanut flour in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Lo and behold, I received an email within 24 hours from a Communications Specialist for the National Peanut Board with the following message:

Thanks for reading the National Peanut Board blog and for your interest in trying some of our recipes. Unfortunately, peanut flour isn’t yet available in retail stores, but we would be happy to send you some peanut flour to work with and would welcome any feedback you have about using it.

If you send your address, we’ll get that out to you early next week.

I replied, thanking her for responding, and gave her my mailing address. This week, a package arrived by UPS containing a 1 pound package of peanut flour. So, next week we'll be having "Peanut Oven-Fried Chicken with Citrus-Ginger Sauce" for dinner some evening. There are also other recipes on the National Peanut Board web site that look yummy, such as

Peanut-Parmesan Spiced Chicken
Vietnamese Pork Banh Mi with Spicy Peanut Aioli
Peanut Butter Pancakes

I may even try to come up with some recipe's of my own using peanut flour, stay tuned . . .

btw, the National Peanut Board has an extensive selection of peanut recipes - check them out if you're looking for new things to try.

Vegetable stock

Making a vegetable stock is a good use of excess vegetables in your fridge that may otherwise go to waste. I like to use fresh produce whenever possible. The problem is, so often we have to buy produce in a pre-measured package of some sort rather than just what we need. For example, the other day I was making a recipe that called for a leek (as in one leek). You can't buy just one leek - you have to buy 2 or 3 leeks. A week or so ago I needed a parsnip; but, you can't just buy one parsnip - they typically come in a cello package. Which I don't really understand because turnips, rutabagas, and even carrots (in upper end grocery stores) can be bought individually - but not parsnips, at least here in Texas.

Anyway, rather than letting the leftover vegetables go bad in the fridge (as typically happens), I decided to make a vegetable stock. I used a recipe for vegetable stock on the food network website - although not to the letter. I just used what I had.

My vegetable stock has

• 2 parsnips
• 4 carrots
• 1/2 bunch of celery that was starting to wilt
• 1/2 onion from the fridge plus a whole onion from the pantry
• 1/2 head garlic separated into cloves and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 package of snow peas
  
• Some string beans I bought the other day to have with dinner and forgot to cook
• 3/4 bunch of arugula
  
• a small red bell pepper from my garden
• A dozen (or so) black pepper corns
• A good sized handful of fresh herbs from the garden
  
• bay leaves
• thyme (2 types)
• savory
• marjoram
• oregan0
• rosemary

I washed everything under cold running water; but, I did not peel the carrots or parsnips - I just scrubbed them and cut them into quarters. Even the onion was chopped into quarters, skin and all, after washing.

Just dump everything into a big pot, bring it to a boil, then simmer for several hours. Turn off the heat, let it cool, strain and package into freezer containers and freeze.

I'll be using 1 cup and 2 cup containers. But, I'll have to figure out some way to distinguish them from the chicken stock containers we made a month or so ago. Hmmm, this makes me want to find a butcher to see if I can get some beef bones to make a good hearty beef stock. It's hard to find a real butcher these days since most grocery stores have gone to pre-packaged meat.

You may notice that there is no salt. The original food network recipe didn't call for salt either. Commercial stocks and broths are often loaded with salt - which is a good reason for making your own. We don't use a lot of salt in our home. I often put in 1/2 the amount of salt (or less) a recipe calls for, except for certain recipes, like baked goods, where the salt is essential to the chemical reaction.

A vegetable stock can be substituted in many recipes that call for chicken stock. I wouldn't substitute vegetable stock in something like chicken and dumplings; but, a acorn squash/pumpkin soup I made the other day called for chicken stock - and a vegetable stock would have worked just as well, perhaps even better (it wasn't as delicious as I wanted it to be - which is why the recipe isn't posted here).

Shepherd's Pie (aka Daddy Jon's Pot Roast, part II)

Since it's just Linda and I, we usually always end up with leftovers after dinner as we just haven't gotten used to the idea of cooking for two. I usually end up eating the leftovers for lunch the next day or two. But, leftover pot roast was just too good to waste on lunch. So, I made shepherds pie.

The shepherd's pie we've made in the past had the leftover meat and vegetables on the bottom, leftover mashed potatoes on top, and baked until the stuff on the bottom was bubbly and the potatoes were lightly browned.

This recipe is different in that it puts the potatoes on the bottom (soaking up all of that good flavor from the gravy) and a biscuit crust on top.

Shepherd's Pie

• Leftover pot roast, cut into small chunks
• Leftover gravy, heated in microwave until liquefied
• Extra potatoes, peeled and boiled until tender
• Leftover vegetables from pot roast
• Extra vegetables if necessary to make 2 to 3 cups (see note below)
• Instant biscuit mix (I used a single-use package of Kroger brand buttermilk biscuits, so I don't know how much actual mix)
• 3 Tbl butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Potato layer: Place the potatoes in the bottom of a casserole dish and lightly mash, leaving it a bit chunky

Meat layer: spread the meat over the potatoes and then lightly drizzle the gravy evenly over the meat.

Vegetable layer: Spread the vegetable mixture over the meat.

Biscuit layer: Mix up the biscuit mix according to instructions, adding just a bit more liquid to make it thinner than normal and spread it over the vegetables. Drizzle melted butter over the biscuits.

Place in oven and bake for 35-45 minutes until the biscuits are lightly browned.

A note on vegetables: I only had a few carrots and parsnips leftover from the previous dinner. So, I chopped up some fresh carrots and precooked them in the microwave for one minute (covered). I also cut up some fresh green beans into 1 inch pieces and precooked them in the microwave for 1 minute (covered). I then added some frozen corn niblets. I could have used a bag of frozen mixed vegetables - but personally I think they taste nasty. Fresh carrots and green beans (in season) are pretty cheap, and they taste so much better than their frozen counterparts.

Daddy Jon's Pot Roast

For me, recipe's are more like suggestions than actual rules. I usually start with a recipe, often looking up several recipes - and then I concoct my own recipe using ideas inspired by those I looked up as well as my own.

This recipe is no exception. It started out as Momma Neely's Pot Roast, but I added enough of my own ideas to it that it is now my own recipe; so, I call it Daddy Jon's Pot Roast.

Daddy Jon's Pot Roast

• 1 (3-4 pound) pot roast (I prefer bone-in as the bones lend flavor)
• Vegetable oil (I used bacon grease leftover from my breakfast)
  
• 2 yellow onions, peeled and chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, smashed (don't be afraid to add even more garlic)
• 1 cup red wine (see note below)
  
• 2 cups stock (preferably beef, but whatever you happen to have on hand, I used chicken because that's what I happened to have left over from a previous dinner)
• 2-3 fresh thyme sprigs (I suppose a teaspoon of dried would work)
  
• a handful of raisins
• 12 whole allspice berries
• 12 whole black peppercorns
  
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 carrots peeled and sliced into 1 inch pieces (1/2 inch if large in diameter)
• 2 parnips peeled and sliced into 1 inch pieces (1/2 inch if large in diameter)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the oil and sear the roast on all sides. Remove the roast and add the onions, garlic, and tomato paste; cook until slightly colored. Remove the Dutch oven from the burner, spread the onion mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan and lay the roast on top. Add the wine, stock, thyme, bay leaves, allspice, and peppercorns. Cover the Dutch oven and place in the oven.

Roast for about 1-1/2 hours and then add the carrots and parsnips, pressing down into the liquid. Continue to cook for another hour or so.

Remove the roast and vegetables from the dutch oven to a serving dish. Strain the leftover liquid in the dutch oven through a colendar and then return to the dutch oven. Over medium heat, gently boil the cooking liquid to reduce and thicken. Remove gravy to a bowl

Optional: You could also add potatoes along with the carrots and parnips. Although, I put a couple of baking potatoes in the oven at the same time I added the carrots and parsnips to the pot. I left the potatoes in the oven while I reduced the cooking liquid.

A note on the wine: Personally, although I am a Mormon and don't drink, I don't have a problem using a bit of wine in a recipe. Particularly one like this where it cooks for a long while as all alcohol will be long gone by the time it is consumed. I usually keep a bottle of cooking wine in the pantry; although, I've recently discovered that, if you watch sales, you can pick up a bottle of cheap wine for $3-$4 dollars, which is cheaper than cooking wine. To a wine connoisseur, I'm sure it probably tastes nasty; however, my personal opinion is that the typical substitutes (water, juice, stock, etc.) change the flavor profile and that even a cheap wine will produce a result closer to what the author of the recipe intended. However, if you have a problem using wine in a recipe then feel free to substitute.

Painted Desert Soup

I first had this soup at Blue Mesa Grill - a Mexican restaurant that is more Southwestern in flavor -verses Tex-Mex that defines most of the Mexican restaurants around these parts. Not that there is anything wrong with Tex-Mex - but it's nice to have something different once in a while. Anyway, Blue Mesa Grill has the recipe for their Painted Desert Soup on their web site, as well as recipes for many of the other items on their menu (Their guacamole is to die for).

It is actually two different soup recipes that are then ladled together into the same bowl so that one side is Corn Chile Chowder and the other side is Black Bean (I didn't do a particularly good job of ladling in my picture, but you can get the idea). Each of these soups are very good and could be made individually; but, they aren't that hard to make - and for the full effect, you need to make both and serve them together. As the web site states, it is as colorful as the Southwest.

I've adapted the recipe on the Blue Mesa Grill web site to both cut it down (i.e. make less) and to use more readily available ingredients.

Corn Chile Chowder

• 3 cups frozen cut corn
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 6 oz. Velveeta Cheese (a slab about 3/4" thick), cut up
• 1 Tbl canned sliced jalapenos, finely minced (no juice)
• ½ tsp salt
• corn starch - as needed
• cold water - as needed

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the frozen corn on a cookie sheet and roast until it starts to turn light brown, about 30 minutes

Take 70% of the corn and the chicken stock and puree in a blender. Pour the puree in to a double boiler and heat over a medium heat. Add the heavy cream and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Add the remaining whole corn, Velveeta Cheese, jalapenos and salt. Continue cooking until cheese has completely melted. Stir often.

Mix corn starch and cold water in a separate bowl and add to soup as needed to thicken. Cook on low heat about 8 minutes until it thickens.

Black Bean Soup

• 2 slices of bacon (preferably hickory smoked) cut into small pieces
• 2 ounces (about 1/3 cup) chopped onion
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped (or pressed, if you have a garlic press)
• 2 14 oz cans of cooked black beans
• water as needed
• ½ cup chicken stock
• ½ tsp. chipotle puree
• 2 Tbl brown sugar
• 2 Tbl cider vinegar
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp. black pepper
• (optional) dash of liquid smoke

Saute bacon and onions in a large pot until they begin to caramelize. Add the garlic and then saute for another 30 seconds to a minute

Add canned beans with liquid to the pan. If necessary, add just enough water so that the beans are just barely covered. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes.

Puree ¾ of the soup and add back with remaining bean soup.

To serve

Simultaneously ladle both soups on opposite sides of the bowl.

(optional) Drizzle with sour cream and a teaspoon of pico de gallo.

Notes:

1. The chipolte in adobo sauce is the one ingredient people are less likely to have on hand. It's not expensive (a 4 oz can is a $1 or so); but, it may not be worth getting for just a ½ tsp. of the sauce. I don't recommend just leaving it out because the Black Bean soup needs some sort of spice; but, You could try substituting it with some sort of hot sauce. The chipolte in adobo sauce is pretty spice (hence only ½ tsp.); so, if using some other sort of hot sauce, you might want to increase it to a teaspoon or so.
   
2. We tend to not use much salt in our cooking; so, you may need to add a bit more salt.
   
3. For the picture, I poured the soups into two mugs and then simultaneously poured into the bowl - an option if you don't have two ladles.
   

New car

I've worked out of my home for the last several years. For this reason, we've only had one good car and an old clunker (a full sized conversion van leftover from when the kids were all living at home). This met our needs as it was completely paid for; and, we seldom needed to be in two different places at the same time.

After being laid off - we've known all along that we'll have to get a second car once I find a job. The van was OK for occasional short distance trips - but, frankly, I just didn't trust it for any distance and/or long term use.

The Cash for Clunkers deal was enticing (yes, even for this diehard republican). I don't really have a problem supporting stimulus packages like Cash for Clunkers and the tax credit for first time home buyers. Those sort of programs actually stimulate the economy IMOHO. Giving bucket loads of money to banks and car companies -that I have a problem with!

When I read in the newspaper Friday morning that the Cash for Clunkers deal was ending on Monday - I thought "oh crap, if we're going to do this then we need to do it NOW." On one hand, buying a new car when I'm unemployed seems decadent. On the other hand, a $4,500 credit cannot be ignored - especially when I have a clunker that might fetch, at best, a few hundred as a trade-in allowance.

So yesterday (Friday), I went into overdrive and started looking at cars. We wanted something cheap and fuel efficient. We've had good experience working with the local Chevy dealer; and, I had already looked at the Chevy Cobalt and Aveo. So, Friday I went to a couple of other local car dealerships to see what they had.

I had a bad experience at the Ford dealership. Even though I had explained that I wanted something cheap, the salesman insisted on showing me cars in the $25K-$30K range. When I specifically asked to see the Ford Focus - he pulled up with a fully loaded model for $20K. When I asked if I could just drive it around the lot a bit, I was told that I couldn't - that he'd have to drive it to the entrance and then we could take it for a test drive around town. At that point I was done.

Anyway, I went to the Nissan dealer as I wanted to look at the Versa. While there I decided to test drive the Cube - and I fell in love. I am a man who is large in stature - and sitting in these subcompact cars that I was looking at feels a bit claustrophobic. The Cube, while being butt ugly, feels very roomy in comparison.

So, I came back home to think about the cars I looked at - and to collect the stuff needed to qualify for the Cash for Clunkers deal. Unfortunately, we're not the most organized when it comes to paper work. So, we spent the afternoon

• Searching through our filing cabinet to find the title.
• Going to the county tax assessors office to get proof that it's been legally registered for the last 12 months.
• Going to our insurance office for proof that we've had it insured for the last 12 months.

We talked about the cars I looked at - and at 5:30pm we decided to "do it". I cleaned out the van to keep anything I wanted and to throw away everything else and then drove it to the Nissan Dealership. I walked into the dealership, paperwork in hand. And, at around 8:00pm I drove home in a brand spanking new Nissan Cube.

Being unemployed I assumed that I wouldn't qualify for a loan - so we had already decided up front to pay cash. Although, I was surprised to find them still pushing me to finance even knowing I had no income. No wonder we have a credit problem in this country. I'm also surprised that since I was paying cash - it still took over 2 hours to complete the purchase.

It's kinda girlie - even a bit gay; and, I'm twice the age of the target demographic for this party car - but I'm curmudgeonly enough that I don't care. In my world - comfort trumps everything else.