Wedge Salad

This salad is beautiful and delicious. You may serve it as the main meal for lunch or dinner. Or, make it smaller as an entree' to your main course. Either way, it will be a win-win! It will definitely impress anyone and everyone...

You will need:

• 1 head of iceberg lettuce
• (*Cut, and flush with water, drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Cover with more paper towels and place in the refrigerator to chill while draining. This makes the lettuce crisp and cold. Remove just before assembling your salad.)
• 1/2 pound of bacon, cooked, & crumpled
• (*Prepare a broiler pan with cooking spray, place bacon on pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes till done, check bacon often. This is an easy way to prepare bacon without a mess or splatters. When done, remove bacon and let rest on a paper towel. You will crumble it for the salad. I use kitchen shears to cut the bacon for my crumbles.)
• A few small Red and Yellow tomatoes,          
•  sliced in half
• 3 or 4 stalks of green onions, sliced
• 1 package of grated parmesan cheese, fried, (see recipe below)
• 1 bottle or jar of Bleu Cheese Salad Dressing

Fried Parmesan Cheese:

Heat a small frying pan after using cooking spray and some olive oil to prepare the pan.

Sprinkle 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese in the pan.

Sprinkle with garlic pepper.

The cheese will cook fast, do not leave unattended.

Spray your spatula with cooking spray. Then lift the fried cheese around the edges. Next, flip over the fried cheese, cooking the other side. The second side will cook faster. Remove the fried cheese and place on a paper towel to cool. Repeat as many times as you need for the number of salads being served.

They can be added whole or crumbled on the salad. These may be made ahead of time, even the day before. Store between paper towels on a small plate in a zip top bag.

Assembly of the Gourmet Style Wedge Salad 

Remove the lettuce from the refrigerator and cut into wedges

(Size will depend on how you choose to serve your salad, entree' or main meal)

On a plate, place the fried cheese

Next, place a wedge of lettuce

Add the tomatoes, green onions and crumbled bacon

Drizzle on the Blue Cheese dressing

Salt & Pepper to taste...

 The Gourmet Style Wedge Salad

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Thanksgiving Dinner is Ready...

A Moist Traditional Turkey...&

 There's a Duck in the OVEN

This turkey is very moist.

 My cooking secret makes all the meat moist and tender.

 This turkey was cooked in our smoker. We love the flavor the smoker adds to the taste. I love having my oven is free for all of side dishes.

 Rinse and prepare turkey. Oil the skin with garlic infused olive oil. Coat/sprinkle the outside (of the turkey) with Garlic pepper, Parmesan herbs, Worcestershire pepper and White pepper.

Place inside the empty cavity a FROZEN CUBE OF BUTTER!

Yep, that's my secret!  It melts slowly and helps tenderize the meat, leaving a slight buttery taste. 

*IF YOU WANT TO COLLECT THE JUICES FOR GRAVY, PLACE THE TURKEY IN A FOIL ROASTER.

*I don't care for breast meat, BUT I love to eat this white meat!

 Next, place a quarter of an peeled onion in the cavity with the butter.

 Add 3 cloves of garlic.

 Fold and close the turkey opening. We used small wooden skewers.

Cook on medium or about 300 degrees for 3/12 to 4 hours. Temperature inside the meat should reach 160-165 degrees.  Let rest for 20-30 minutes before carving.

Tastefully good, moist turkey and a happy tummy...

WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT?

"See the duck recipe below"

Just Ducky...

 Rinse and ready the duck. Do NOT oil. Duck has a lot of natural fat.

 Baste the outside with a sauce of your choice. I used an apricot pepper sauce.

Sprinkle with garlic pepper, inside and out. s

Stuff the duck with 1/8 of an onion and a couple of garlic cloves.

 Secure the duck with skewers as shown.

 We cooked the duck in the smoker at 350 degrees for 2 1/2-3 hours. reaching 160 degrees for cooked meat temperature. Let rest for about 15-20 minutes before carving.

All Photo's belong to Pine Creek Style by NeeCee

Turkey & Duck ready to serve....with Style

Have a Happy & Healthy Thanksgiving Everyone...

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Nana's Fudge...

My grandchildren love my fudge. It is always requested for the holidays.

*There is nothing hard about making this fudge, the best ingredient is your patience. Just don't rush the "cooking" of the fudge, you want the sugars & ingredients to blend well.

Nana's Fudge

18 ounces of candy brick

3/4 cup of Sweetened CONDENSED milk

4 teaspoons of milk

1 teaspoon of pure vanilla

heavy dash of salt

1 cup of chopped nuts, optional

Place your sauce pan on a medium heat

Add sweetened condensed milk, and 18 ounces of chocolate candy brick

Add milk, vanilla and salt

Constant SLOW stirring of ingredients with a spatula

Have a foil lined pan, 9x9 waiting for chocolate

This is where the patience come in, continue stirring slowly. Do Not Leave the pan. The mixture will turn a RICH dark brown color. (*At this point add the nuts if desired, blend well, do this just before you put into the pan)

When it has a shiny look to it, pour into the prepared w/foil pan.

STORE IN THE REFRIGERATOR FOR 4 HOURS MINIMUM BEFORE CUTTING INTO SMALL SQUARES. I cut as I need, so the fudge does not dry out.

Fudge without nuts

Fudge with Nuts

Sweet Success with Style...

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Turkey Galentine with Truffles & Chives...

Want something different from the traditional Turkey Dinner?

I was looking at options. A Regular Turkey can be boring in flavor for me! I love a smoked Turkey or just the dark meat. My taste buds demand more!!! 

While watching a TV program, we saw a recipe from the Medieval Period being prepared.

"YUMMY, Let's make that!", I said to my Hubby.

Am I glad I did! It was AWESOME...

"Turkey Galentine w/Truffles & Chives"

This style of recipe has been around since the "ages of time"!

There are SO many different versions and preparations. 

Simply speaking, this recipe is leftover's blended together,

 (Or as we call them...RE-RUNS).

 This recipe uses left over meats to prepare another meat based meal. Combining and stretching your leftover meat scraps, nuts, spices & veggies. The base consists of several types of meat, mainly Beef, Pork, Poultry...mixed & blended together. Kind of a Kitchen Sink recipe!!!

Basically, I think it's a Meat Lover's Paradise!

Below is One Version I used this weekend! It was fabulous!!!

FYI: LOTS of Photo's included for the preparation phase...

Turkey Galentine w/Truffles & Chives Recipe

(Ground Meat style)

*This recipe is doubled, it may be cut in half or tripled...

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef, lean....veal or hamburger

2 pounds of Pork sausage or ham, ground

3 pounds of ground turkey, *I used light and dark meat for more flavor

1/2 to 3/4 cup of diced chives (green onion)

2 cups chopped mushrooms

3 eggs

2 packages of Turkey gravy mix, dry... I used Knorr's brand

Spices as follows:

Mix together;

1 teaspoons of dried Espresso or Coffee

1 teaspoon cumin 

2 teaspoons of Worcestershire infused Pepper

4 teaspoons of Montreal Steak Seasoning

Mix well yielding 8 teaspoons

~~~

Mix everything except the spices...blend well

Then mix the spices.

Add 4 teaspoons of the blended spices and mix well...

**Reserve the remainder of the spices, adding 3 more teaspoons of Montreal Steak Seasoning for the rub/crusting on the outside of the meat loaf.

*I made two loaves and froze one to be used on Thanksgiving Day.

Divide meat mixture into 2 sections and form 2 loaves of meat.

*(see photo's below for preparation)

Cheesecloth for baking and twine or Cooking bands for tying

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours

*Meat thermometer should read 180 degrees when done. 

 Meat mixture...

 Spices

 Add 4 teaspoons of spice to the meat mixture...

Photo of Eggs being added ...

 Chives added...

 Mushrooms added...

Mix everything well...Go find the Hubby to mix this....

Whew, that is too much work! :)

 Cheesecloth & Cooking Bands...

 Use the remainder of the spices for the rub/crusting of the outside...

 I used some olive oil on my hands before I handled the meat....It helps the meat from sticking to your hands. Makes an easier clean-up.

The cheesecloth helps hold the meat mixture in place while cooking.

 After dividing the meat into 2 loaves wrap in cheesecloth for baking...

Lots of Photo's....but it shows the process.... ;))) 

 One loaf wrapped and banded ready for the oven...

This recipe is so moist after it's cooked....Mmmmm Good!

 Check the temp after 1 1/2 hours... may need a few more minutes...

Ohhh, the smell is enticing....BUT let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing!

 Ready to remove the cheesecloth...

 OMG....Dinner is DONE! The Aroma is amazing.....

 What a beauty!!! Dinner is READY...

 It slices beautiful....I'm already dreaming of leftover sandwiches..... :)))

OHhhh MY.....this is hard taking photo's...WHEN I'd rather have my fork in hand! 

We served Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Dressing and Truffles Stuffed with Creamed Spinach with our Turkey Galentine w/Truffles & Chives. Of course we poured Turkey Gravy over EVERYTHING!!!

I was too STUFFED to eat 2nd's...but I am lusting over the reruns tomorrow! 

Turkey Dinner Served w/Delicious Style...

Enjoy :)

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