Tag Archives: panini recipes

Turkey Panini with Cranberry Mayonnaise and Turkey Hunter’s Stew

 

I think people fall into one of two categories at Thanksgiving – those who love leftovers and those who hate them. I fall into the love category. Although Thanksgiving lends to alot of  food in the house, I love the challenge of trying to make something new out of what is left. Many times I enjoy just reheating dinner from Thursday, but it’s more fun to fiddle around with the ingredients so that it becomes a dish you would just love to eat at any time of the year. The first recipe is my take on a post thanksgiving day sandwich. I use a nice sliced brioche bread and make a cranberry mayonnaise using leftover cranberry sauce. It’s layered up with turkey, pear slices, brie and proscuitto. The brie and proscuitto are leftover from my Thanksgiving cheese platter that I serve accompanied by fruit – including of course some pears. The second dish is Hunter Stew with turkey. This is a french stew that typically uses chicken. Instead, I made a stew of mushrooms using some of the leftover turkey gravy along with chicken stock and then add the cooked turkey at the end. You’ll love this dish. If you don’t have gravy leftover just add another cup of chicken stock along with 1/2 cup of white wine and increase the amount of flour by another two tablespoons. If you know any leftover haters, these recipes could convert them!

From by the bay wishing you the happiest thanksgiving and fond food memories!
Maryann

blog turkey sandwich

Turkey Panini with Cranberry Mayonnaise
Serves 1
2 slices brioche bread
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon cranberry mayonnaise
2 slices turkey
2 thin slices pear
1 slice proscuitto ham
2 tablespoons softened brie cheese, no rind
Heat panini press or skillet. Butter two slices of bread. Buttered sides are the outside of the sandwich. On one side of bread – not buttered spread the cranberry mayonnaise, add the turkey , then pear, proscuitto. Last spread the brie across the top of the proscuitto. Top with the other slice of bread , press down and then toast until cheese is melted and bread browned. Serve immediately.

Cranberry Mayonnaise
Makes 4 sandwiches

1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons leftover cranberry sauce

Mix both ingreidents well.

blog turkey hunter stew

Turkey Hunter’s Stew
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
6 tablespoons shallots, chopped
2 tablespoons rosemary, chopped
12 ounces assorted mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups chardonnay herb gravy ( or whatever turkey gravy you have leftover)
1 bay leave
2 springs thyme
4 cups cooked turkey cubed
1/4 cup chopped parsley
Directions
Heat in a dutch oven butter and olive oil. Add garlic, shallots and rosemary and saute for about 5 minutes until softened. Add the mushrooms and saute for another 8 to 10 minutes until mushrooms are also softened and brown. To this add the flour and stir, saute for another minute then add the tomato paste , gravy , broth, bay leave and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for about 30 minutes. Add the turkey and cook long enough for the turkey to warm in the gravy. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped parsley. Serve immediately accompanied with egg noodles.

 

 

Cooking with Red Hot Chili Peppers

blog hot peppers
 

The other day I ran into a friend Eva who offered me some hot chili peppers from her garden. She and her husband Al had a large harvest of hot peppers, too many for them to use. I , of course, jumped at the chance to spend a weekend cooking and experimenting with an ingredient. When the peppers arrived, I was thrilled to have a big bowl of color in my kitchen: all that red, green, orange and yellow. The first thing I quickly tried was a red chili mayonnaise that I planned to use with grilled shrimp as a main course or appetizer. I also thought that the red chili mayonnaise would be terrific to make panini’s  -a fun twist on a ham and cheese. My next recipe I decided to adapt my grandmother’s beef goulash recipe and make a pork goulash, using cubes of pork with peppers  and onions for a fiery dish. This meal started with a crostini of toasted bread and fresh ricotta cheese, topped with fresh chopped red chilis, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with some coarse sea salt. I wish I had  a bowl of chili peppers in my kitchen every weekend and you will too when you try some of these recipes. 

 
From by the bay wishing you the hottest of food memories!
Maryann

 
Word of caution when cooking with chili peppers: I suggest using disposable latex gloves especially if you have sensitive skin, like I do. I also wear contacts and trust me you don’t want to place you fingers anywhere near your eyes after handling fiery peppers! The heat of the chili comes from the seeds and the membrane inside the pepper, so to control the amount of heat in your dish, I suggest removing all seeds and membranes.
 
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Red Chili Mayonnaise
1 cup store bought mayonnaise
3 small red chilies, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend well. 
 
blog chili mayo
 
Chili Ham and Cheese Panini
Serves 1
2 slices sourdough bread
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon red chili mayonnaise
3 slices virginia ham
2 slices gruyere cheese
2 slices dill pickle toppers
Heat panini press or skillet. Butter two slices of bread. Buttered sides are the outside of the sandwich. On one side of bread – not buttered spread the chili mayonnaise, add the ham , then cheese and pickles. Top with the other slice of bread , press down and then toast until cheese is melted and bread browned. Serve immediately.
 
blog hot chili peppers
 

Chili Pepper and Pork Goulash

Serves 4-6

 

3 pounds cubed pork stew meat

4 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

4 cups onions finely chopped

6 medium size assorted chili peppers without seeds and membranes, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon caraway seeds, toasted

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

4 cups chicken stock

1 jar 12 ounces of roasted red and yellow sweet peppers

Zest of 1 lemon

 

Directions

 

Mix flour, salt, pepper and paprika in a sealed plastic bag. Add pork cubes into bag and coated with flour mixture. In a large Dutch oven heat olive oil. Sauté floured pork cubes until browned. Remove browned meat into bowl and place aside. Add remaining olive oil to pan and sauté the onions with chili peppers until softened. Add the caraway seed, rosemary, thyme, and bay leaf. Sauté until fragrant about one minute. Add the tomatoe paste. Deglaze with the vinegar and stock , then add the meat and roasted peppers. Bring to a boil, then lower heat , cover and simmer until very tender, approximately 2  to 2 1/2 hours. Remove from heat add lemon zest and serve with noodles or rice.