The pandemic has created some gut-wrenching decisions when it comes to how we celebrate the holiday season with family and friends. Lengthy gatherings in close quarters seated around the dinner table are questionable. After months and months of caution, we crave the opportunity to socialize. We ache for connection, time together to enjoy great food with the people we love.
How about holiday gatherings in the backyard? Kind of an adventurous tailgate-style shindig, with a limited number of guests spread out, close enough to hear the conversation, but far enough to maintain a cautious distance. If it’s cold, ask guests to bring coats, maybe throw-sized blankets.
Key to this holiday season get-togethers is great comfort food. Ina Garten, bestselling author, and Food Network star has written a new cookbook, “Modern Comfort Food” (Clarkson Potter, $35). Her foolproof recipes offer comfort for cooks and guests alike.
I fell in love with her easy-to-cut new version of turkey roulade, Tuscan Turkey Roulade. It’s a whole (two halves of one turkey with the skin connecting them) boned turkey breast that is stuffed with a mixture of fennel-scented sauteed onions and garlic, plus prosciutto, butter and fresh herbs. The meat is rolled up and tied with cotton string, with a few fresh sage leaves are tucked under the string. It roasts unattended with wine and water resting at the bottom of the pan, the finished pan juices are used as a sauce.
Remove the strings and cut into slices. Easy, especially for an outdoor party.
When I tried it out in my kitchen, I called the grocery store in advance and ordered the bird. The butcher had it ready for me as requested, so I didn’t have to do the boning. On the phone, I made it clear that I wanted the breasts to stay attached to one another.
I highly recommend using an instant-read thermometer to check the internal temperature after it has been in the oven for 90 minutes. If it registers 150 degrees in the middle of the center of the roulade, take it out and cover with aluminum foil and allow it to rest 15 minutes for the temp to come up. Otherwise, give it another 15 minutes in the oven.
No matter how the turkey is prepared, mashed potatoes seem a must. Ina’s updated Pureed Potatoes with Lemon are scrumptious. She based her recipe on a spud dish that is served at an Argentinian restaurant in Paris. The potatoes can be prepared in advance, leaving out the grated lemon zest; set aside at room temperature for a couple of hours if desired. Reheat them in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, adding warm milk, as needed, and then whisk in the lemon zest just before serving.
Round out the menu with a vegetable of choice and maybe a mixed green salad.
Dessert needs to be a knockout beauty. Ina’s Boston Cream Pie is stunning to look at and mouth-wateringly delicious. Of course, it isn’t a pie, it’s layers of vanilla cake filled with pastry cream and topped with a chocolate glaze.
Prepare the cake and pastry cream ahead of time, wrapping them well and refrigerating them separately. Prepare the chocolate glaze and assemble about one hour before serving.
Tuscan Turkey Roulade
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
INGREDIENTS
Good olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 large)
3/4 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
2 tablespoons minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves, plus 4 whole sage leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 whole butterflied turkey breast with skin on (5 to 6 pounds), see cook’s notes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter
4 ounces thinly sliced Italian prosciutto
1 cup dry white wine, such as Chablis
Cook’s notes: Whole turkey breast refers to two breasts of one turkey with skin connecting them.
PROCEDURE
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium (10- to 11-inch) sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion and fennel seeds and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, tossing occasionally, until onion is tender. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Off heat, add chopped sage and rosemary. Set aside to cool.
2. Open turkey breast on cutting board, skin side down. Sprinkle meat with 4 teaspoons salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. When onion mixture is cool, spread it evenly on meat. Grate butter on a box grater and sprinkle on top (as you would to grate carrots). Arrange prosciutto on top to totally cover the meat and filling.
3. Starting at the long end of the turkey breast, roll the meat up jelly-roll style to make a compact cylindrical roulade, ending with the seam side down. Tie the roulade tightly with kitchen twine at 2 to 2 1/2-inch intervals to ensure that it will roast evenly. Slip the whole sage leaves under the twine down the center of the roulade.
4. Place the roulade, seam side down, in a roasting pan and pat the skin dry with paper towels. Brush skin with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Pour wine and 1 cup water in roasting pan (not over the turkey). Roast 1 hour, 30 minutes to 1 hour, 45 minutes, until skin is golden brown and internal temperature is 150 degrees. Remove from oven, cover with foil and allow to rest for 15 minutes. Remove string, slice crosswise into 1/2-inch slices, and serve warm with pan juices.
Pureed Potatoes With Lemon
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 pounds large Yukon Gold potatoes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
Cook’s notes: The potatoes can be prepared in advance, leaving out the grated lemon zest; set aside at room temperature for a couple of hours if desired. Reheat them in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, adding warm milk, as needed, and then whisk in the lemon zest just before serving.
PROCEDURE
1. Peel the potatoes and cut them in 1 1/2 to 2-inch chunks. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan, add water to cover by one inch, and add 2 tablespoons salt. Cover, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are very tender when pierced with a small paring knife. Drain and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, cut the butter in 1/2-inch dice and put it back in the refrigerator.
3. After the potatoes are drained, pour the milk into a small saucepan set over low heat and heat the milk just until it simmers. Turn off the heat.
4. Place a food mill fitted with the finest blade on top of the large saucepan. Process the potatoes into the pan. With the heat on low, vigorously whisk in the cold butter several bits at a time, waiting for each addition to be incorporated before adding more butter. When all the butter is added, slowly whisk in enough of the hot milk to make the potatoes the desired consistency — creamy but still thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Whisk in the lemon zest, sprinkle with salt, taste for seasonings, and serve hot.
Boston Cream Pie
Yield: one 9-inch cake, 8 servings
INGREDIENTS
Cake:
3/4 cup whole milk
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
The soak:
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier
Chocolate glaze:
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips, such as Nestlé’s (7½ ounces)
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, such as Lindt, broken in pieces
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules, such as Nescafé
Grand Marnier Pastry Cream (recipe follows)
Cook’s notes: To scald milk, heat it just below the boiling point— there will be small bubbles around the edge of the milk. Don’t let it boil! Don’t refrigerate the assembled cake because beads of condensation will form on the chocolate. Make ahead: Prepare the cakes and pastry cream, wrap well, and refrigerate separately. Prepare the chocolate glaze and assemble an hour before serving.
PROCEDURE
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round baking pans, line with parchment paper, butter and flour pans, and tap out excess flour. Set aside.
2. For the cake, scald the milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat (see cook’s notes). Off the heat, add the vanilla and orange zest, cover the pan, and set aside. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed for 4 minutes, until thick and light yellow and the mixture falls back on itself in a ribbon. By hand, first whisk in the warm milk mixture and then slowly whisk in the flour mixture. Don’t overmix! Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn them out onto a baking rack, flipping them so the top sides are up. Cool to room temperature.
4. For the soak, combine the orange juice and sugar in a small (8-inch) sauté pan and heat until the sugar dissolves. Off the heat, add the Grand Marnier and set aside
5. For the chocolate glaze, combine the heavy cream, semisweet chocolate chips, bittersweet chocolate, corn syrup, vanilla, and coffee in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon, just until the chocolates melt. Remove from the heat and set aside for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is thick enough to fall back onto itself in a ribbon.
6. To assemble, cut both cakes in half horizontally. Place the bottom of one cake on a flat plate, cut side up. Brush it with a third of the soak. Spread a third of the Grand Marnier Pastry Cream on the cake. Place the top of the first cake on top, cut side down, and repeat with the soak and pastry cream. Place the bottom of the second cake on top, cut side up. Repeat with the soak and pastry cream. Place the top of the second cake on top, cut side down. Pour the ganache on the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Set aside for one hour, until the chocolate sets. Cut in wedges and serve.
Grand Marnier Pastry Cream
Yield: Enough for one 9-inch cake
INGREDIENTS
5 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier
1 teaspoon Cognac or brandy
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
PROCEDURE
1. Beat the egg yolks and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed for 4 minutes, until very thick. Reduce the speed to low and add the cornstarch.
2. Meanwhile, scald the milk in a medium saucepan. With the mixer on low, slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture starts to thicken. When the custard starts to clump on the bottom of the pan, stir constantly with a whisk (don’t beat it!) to keep the custard smooth.
3. Cook over low heat until the custard is very thick like pudding. If you lift some custard with the whisk, it should fall back onto itself in a ribbon. Off the heat, stir in the butter, heavy cream, Grand Marnier, Cognac, and vanilla. Whisk until smooth and transfer to a bowl. Cool for 15 minutes. Place plastic wrap directly on the custard (not the bowl) and refrigerate until very cold.
Source for all recipes: “Modern Comfort Food” by Ina Garten (Clarkson Potter, $35)
Have a cooking question? Contact Cathy Thomas at cathythomascooks@gmail.com
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How to cook a holiday feast during a pandemic - OCRegister
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