MLK

Potato Gratin (Pommes Dauphinoise)

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Margie never makes a recipe as written.  Here is a fantastic potato dish made even more fantastic with her changes.  “Around My French Table” is one of Margie’s favorite cook books.
Note:  Russets will soak up more cream and “melt” more.  Yukon Golds will keep the slices more distinct. (and don’t necessarily have to be peeled.)

Ingredients:

  • 1¾ c heavy cream
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2-2¼ pounds Idaho (russet) potatoes
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • Light cream or whole milk, if needed
  • Small thyme or rosemary sprigs (optional)
  • ¼ lb cheese, preferably Gruyère, grated (about 1 cup)
  •  (Margie adds one small, thinly sliced onion and additional cheese between the layers.)

Directions:

  1. Center a rack in the oven,
  2. Preheat the oven to 350°.
  3. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment.
  4. Generously butter a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate (a Pyrex pan is perfect) or other 2-quart baking pan’
  5. Put it on the baking sheet.
  6. Put the heavy cream and garlic in a saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer over low heat. Keep it warm while you work on the potatoes.
  7. If you’ve got a mandoline or Benriner slicer, now’s the time to get it out; if not, you can use the thin slicing blade of a food processor or a sturdy sharp knife.
  8. One by one, peel the potatoes and slice them into rounds about ⅛ inch thick.
  9. As each potato is cut, arrange the slices in slightly overlapping concentric circles in the pie plate (or rows, if your pan isn’t round)
  10. Season with salt and pepper.
  11. Spoon over some of the warm garlic-infused cream.
  12. Lightly press down on the potatoes with the back of the spoon so that the cream works its way around all of the slices.
  13. Continue until you’ve filled the pan.
  14. If you’re shy of a little garlic-infused cream – you want the cream to just peek around the edges of the pan – pour over a little light cream or milk.
  15. If you’re using the herbs, strew them over the potatoes.
  16. Dust the top of the gratin with the grated cheese.
  17. Slide the gratin (on the baking sheet) into the oven.
  18. Bake for 45 minutes, then check the gratin; if you can poke a knife through the potatoes and easily reach the bottom of the pan, the gratin is done. If the potatoes need more time but the gratin is getting too brown, cover the top loosely with foil and bake until the potatoes are tender, another 15 minutes or so.
  19. Remove the gratin from the oven and let it rest in a very warm place (or in the turned-off oven with the door open) for 5 to 10 minutes before you serve it, just so the bubbles can settle down and the potatoes can absorb the maximum amount of cream.

Serves: 8
 Source:  Dorie Greenspan “Around My French Table”

 

That Sausage Rice Casserole You Asked For

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When Margie was in college she spent a summer in Woods Hole  Massachusetts on a program called Sea Semester. The class included a 6 weeks on land and 6 week sail to New England, Canada, and the Grand Banks on a 125 ft Staysail Schooner. They did everything on the ship – set sails, swab decks and cook.  There were frequent calls for recipes.  This is one of them.  It was the beginning of our family cook book – The Blue Book.

Ingredients:

  • 2 lb fresh bulk sausage
  • 1 c rice
  • 1 can chicken gumbo soup (Margie used Cream of Chicken.  Celery or mushroom would work too)
  • a spoonful or two of ketchup
  • 1/2 tsp chili powder
  • 2 c water
  • (Margie added a bag of frozen spinach)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Break up the sausage in a frying pan.
  3. Brown well.
  4. Drain off fat.
  5. Stir in rice.  Add soup, ketchup, chili powder, and water (and spinach).
  6. Mix well.
  7. Place in casserole.
  8. Cover tightly.
  9. Bake for about 40 minutes.

Serves:  8-10

Source:  An old newspaper recipe Margie found tucked in an old cookbook.

Baked Potato Soup

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This started as a way to use up leftover baked potatoes, but is so good, I bake potatoes to make it. You can bake the potatoes and cook the bacon the night before.

Ingredients:

  • 5 lb russet potatoes (5-6 Costco large)
  • 1 lb bacon
  • 1 liter (4 ++ cups) chicken broth (depending on how soupy you want it)
  • 1 lg onion – diced
  • 1/2 tsp garlic salt
  • 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp white pepper
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 Tab Onion Soup Mix
  • 1 1/2 lb cheddar cheese/Mexican blend
  • sour cream
  • green onions

Directions:

  1. Bake potatoes 375° 60-90 minutes.
  2. Bake bacon about 30 min depending on thickness
  3. Reserve bacon fat.
  4. Crumble bacon.
  5. Next day, or when cool, roll potatoes to soften.
  6. Cut in half.
  7. Peel just the skin off the potato.  The browned potato bits add a lot of flavor.  It’s OK if some skin remains.
  8. In a large stew pot, cook the onions in 1 Tab bacon fat until light brown.
  9. Add broth and spice.
  10. Heat to low boil.
  11. Crumble potatoes into soup.
  12. Season to taste.
  13. Just before serving, stir in 1/2 bacon and 1/2 cheese.
  14. Serve with remaining bacon, cheese, sour cream, green onions.

Serves: 6-8

Source:  Margie

Ingredients for 50:

  • 30 lb russet potatoes
  • 6 lb bacon
  • 6 liter chicken broth (or more depending on how soupy you want it)
  • 6 lg onion – diced
  • 1 Tab garlic salt
  • 1 Tab poultry seasoning
  • 1 Tab white pepper
  • 1 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 6 Tab Onion Soup Mix
  • 5 lb cheddar cheese/Mexican blend

 

 

 

 

Horseradish Sauce

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 This keeps forever!  If you want it thicker, whip the cream slightly, or substitute sour cream for 1/2 the cream and reduce vinegar by 1 Tab.  

Ingredients:

  • 1 c cream
  • 4 oz horseradish – extra hot (not the wimpy sauce)
  • 1 Tab Dijon mustard
  • 3 Tab apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • salt to taste

Directions:

Mix it all together

Serves:  makes about 1 1/2 cups

Source: MLK

 

Margie’s Salmon Dip

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It’s a dip, but it has multiple uses. You can stuff tomatoes with it, place a large dab on a bed of lettuce for a salad, or spread it on toast for a great sandwich.  If you don’t have smoked salmon, use that leftover salmon from dinner and a drop of liquid smoke.  Just a drop-that stuff is strong!

Ingredients:

  • 1 c finely diced smoked salmon
  • 1 c mayonnaise
  • 1 c sour cream
  • 1 small onion finely chopped
  • 2 Tab capers
  • 4 tsp fresh dill chopped
  • 2 tsp dried dill

Directions:

  1. Place salmon in a bowl.
  2. Add the mayonnaise and sour cream.
  3. Stir with a wooden spoon to mix well.
  4. Add the dill.
  5. Add the onion and capers.
  6. Stir to combine.
  7. Adjust to get the texture you desire by adding more mayo or sour cream. With smoked salmon and the capers, salt and pepper are really not needed here. You are looking for a smooth, subtle flavor with a texture that is easily spreadable.

Serves:  Makes about 3 cups

Source:  Margie Kleerup

Margie’s Southwest Soup (for 50)

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This is the original Margie’s Southwest Tomato Soup.  It also on the blog in a smaller version.  You can easily add cooked chicken or beef (ground or diced) or fish/shrimp at the end.  Ingredients for 30 in parentheses.

Ingredients:

  • 4 – 5 lb. box of tomatoes (2 lb)
  • 6 red/yellow peppers (3)
  • 1 lb. frozen corn
  • 2 large yellow onions, chopped (1)
  • 3 quarts vegetable broth
  • 48 oz. salsa, medium heat (24 oz)
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 5 Tab (1 oz) cumin (2 Tab)
  • 5 Tab garlic salt (2 Tab)
  • 2 Tab (0.5 oz) paprika (2 Tab)
  • 2 Tab (0.5 oz) smoked paprika (2 Tab)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • olive oil

Directions:

Prep Tomatoes
1. Split tomatoes across the middle (equatorially).
2. Loosely seed over a strainer; retain the juice.
3. Put on a baking sheet (teflon), face down. Spray cooking oil on top.
4. Roast at 400° for about 30 minutes, until dark brown or black skin (not quite charred)
5. Cool, remove skins, crush flesh and mix with juice from seeding.

Prep Peppers
1. Split peppers in half.
2. De-seed peppers.
3. Put peppers face-down on teflon baking sheet; spray cooking oil on top.
4. Roast at 400° for about 30 minutes.
5. Peel skins, dice.

Prep Corn (optional)
1. Brown frozen corn. This can be done in a frying pan, or on a baking sheet with a creme brulee torch. The idea is to get a little char on it for flavor.

Make Soup
1. Sautee onions in olive oil to golden brown.
2. Dump everything into a pot — tomatoes, peppers, salsa, vegetables, broth.
3. Bring to a simmer; season to taste.

Serves:   50

Source:   Margie Kleerup

Chicken Pot Pie Soup (for 50)

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It tastes like you had been simmering it all day!  Great for dinner in the middle of a snow storm. Quantity for 30 in parenthesis.

Ingredients:

  • 4 large yellow onions, chopped (2)
  • 5 stalks celery, chopped (2)
  • 6 quarts chicken broth (6)
  • 5-6 lbs. chicken meat, cooked  (Costco for the win!) (2 – 3)
  • 1 lb. mixed frozen vegetables
  • 1 lb. frozen peas
  • 2 pkgs refrigerated hash browns / skillet potatoes
  • 1 c flour (1/2)
  • 3 sticks butter (1 c)
  • 2-3 Tab olive oil
  • 4 Tab poultry seasoning (1 1/2 Tab)
  • 1 Tab black pepper (2 tsp)
  • 1 Tab garlic salt (2 tsp)
  • 4 oz chicken bouillon (1 oz)
  • 4 oz vegetable bouillon (1 oz)

Directions: 

  1. Saute onions in olive oil to light brown.
  2. Add butter, flour; simmer.
  3. Add chicken broth.
  4. Add poultry seasoning, pepper, garlic salt, bouillon.
  5. Bring to boil.
  6. Add vegies, potatoes, etc.
  7. Bring to boil.
  8. Season to taste.
  9. Throw in chicken; serve when chicken is hot.

Serves:  50

Source:   Margie

White Wine Tea Sauce

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Serve with Wine Tea Brined meats.

Ingredients:

  • 2 c tea (3 bags for 5 minutes)
  • 3 c stock
  • 1/2 c white wine – dry
  • 3 Tab blackberry syrup (or any fruit coffee syrup)
  • 1/2 tsp thyme
  • 1 Tab cornstarch

Directions:

  1. In a sauce pan, bring tea, stock, wine to a boil.
  2. Reduce to 1 1/2 c.
  3. Stir in syrup.
  4. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine corn starch with 2 Tab water.
  5. Whisk in thyme and cornstarch.
  6. Cook on medium heat until thickened.

Serves: 1 1/2 c

Source:  MLK

Wine-Tea Brine

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Great summer brine works with chicken, pork or seafood. Helps keep meat moist when BBQ.

Ingredients:

  • 1 c water – hot
  • 1 c white wine
  • 2 Tab Kosher salt
  • 1 Tab brown sugar
  • 3 Tab blackberry syrup – or other fruit syrup/puree
  • 2 tea bags
  • 1/2 c ice cubes

Directions:

  1. Place salt, sugar, tea, in 1 gallon zip-lock bag.
  2. Pour in hot water, seal and slosh to dissolve sugar and salt.
  3. Add remaining ingredients.
  4. Add additional ice cubes if mixture is still warm.
  5. Add protein to bag and marinate in refrigerator.  See Brine Time Guide in Miscellaneous Information.

Serves: 2-3 pounds of meat

Source:  MLK

Swan Lake

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A bit complicated, but well worth the effort.

Ingredients:

  • 4 oz vanilla vodka, chilled
  • 1 pt light cream
  • 2 oz blue curacao, chilled
  • 2 oz vanilla liqueur (Bols Vanilla), chilled.
  • 1/3 inch long banana slice

Directions:

  1. Mix half of the vodka with light cream, the banana piece and blue curacao in a blender.
  2. Mix the other half of the vodka with the vanilla liqueur in a second blender.
  3. Pour into a stemmed glass simultaneously from both blenders at the same time to get the divided effect.
  4. Decorate with chocolate powder, preferably in the shape of a swan. (Do not attempt after 2 drinks.)

Serves:

Source:  drinkalizer.com DON’T GO THERE – CORRUPTED SITE!!

It’s never a good idea nor a safe idea to drink and drive. But if you do, you’d better know your limits.  See Blood Alcohol  Percentages in Beverages  in the Miscellaneous Information category and the Drinks category.