Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin with Apple and Sausage Filling



 

How quickly the time goes. I feel like we were just enjoying the last days of Summer and now here we are prepping for another Thanksgiving. We haven't had snow here yet so at least I can be Thankful for that. And good food. I've been surrounded by some amazing food the last week or so, from restaurants and friends to trying some new recipes in my own kitchen. It's so amazing to see what people with so much more talent than I have can do with some simple ingredients.

Curried Peanut Butter Turkey Soup

It's the day after Thanksgiving and hopefully you still have plenty of leftovers to carry you through the next few days!

There's no reason to keep on reheating and eating the same thing though. Take the same ingredients that you have in your kitchen and create something totally different, like this Curried Peanut Butter Turkey Soup. I use some shredded leftover turkey, sweet potatoes, carrots and mushrooms combined with curry to take these leftovers in a completely new direction. I think you'll enjoy it.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Can anyone tell me how Pumpkin Pie sits at the dessert table while sweet potato casserole sits with the rest of the food at the table as a side dish? It's like someone thought it would be funny one year to slip a dessert onto the table among all the other dishes and the whole world caught on. I'm certainly not complaining, I just laugh every time I serve it with dinner.

How to Spatchcock a Turkey

I honestly feel like I was just writing my posts for last Thanksgiving a few weeks ago. And now it's already come around again. It's my favorite time of year though so I'm happy to have it around again so soon. As a family we're busier than ever but it's a good busy and I appreciate having this time of year to focus on the things that are most important to us.

We're doing another big Thanksgiving this year, inviting all the families we know around us that are in a similar situation of not having any relatives nearby and we'll all celebrate together. It makes for a chaotic day with our house filled to the brim but it's a great way to enjoy the day. Then I leave that weekend to go to China for a week, finalizing plans for a new business we're launching soon.

Loaded Baked Potato Bites

I had the opportunity last week to sneak into the local Fox 9 station as John McLemore, the CEO of Masterbuilt and his wonderful wife Tonya were filming a segment promoting their new book "Dadgum That's Good, Too". As I walked into the main building early that morning, I could smell the turkey almost immediately. I asked the security guard where to go and he laughed as he said to just follow the smell. The smell led me to the studio kitchen where a prep crew and John were busily working around the kitchen and two of John's indoor turkey fryers were happily frying away on the counter top.

Turkey Taquitos

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving holiday! I can't wait to tell you about my Willie Bird Turkey that I won from Williams-Sonoma but you'll have to wait just a bit longer for that post.

It's been a few days since the holiday, do you have some turkey around still? Tried to get rid of it and there's still some sitting in the fridge? I've got a fun dish for you that's just different enough that you won't even know it's leftovers. 

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce and Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise

Well this is going to be my final post in my Thanksgiving prep series and you are in for a treat! I am now working with a great group of food bloggers called "Virtual Potluck". We came together after working together on the Emeril Lagasse book review and we've got some great things in store. Today we are throwing a Thanksgiving Potluck and you're all invited!

Spiced Cider Donuts

I'm going to throw these doughnuts in the middle of my Thanksgiving series, well because they're pretty amazing and I wanted to post them before I forgot about them. As most people know, I usually only make yeast based donuts and I make a lot of them. There's just not much that can compare with the light, airy goodness of a yeast donut. These Spiced Cider Donuts will be a close second though.

Jalapeno, Sage and Orange Roasted Turkey

Are you ready for the main course? I'm not done with my Thanksgiving series quite yet but I know that people are starting to research how they want to cook their bird this year so I thought I better get this out there.

Last year, I researched a lot about cooking turkey and I ended up merging three different recipes and methods from some of my favorite people; Alton Brown, Martha Stewart and Bobby Flay. I'm sure if they ever got in a room together they would have come up with this on their own, but I went ahead and did it for them anyway. The end result is a turkey that's brined and then cooked with an herb rub that not only flavors the meat but makes some of the best gravy I have ever had. I've made it three times now and each time it's juicy and flavorful and just different enough to be fun and give people something different to try.

Butternut Squash Galette

This is the third in my series leading up to Thanksgiving, providing some fun and different recipes to make your holiday even more special. We've got our soup and dessert down, so how about an appetizer?

Appetizer's are key if you're throwing a big dinner. If you're cooking all day, you may be grabbing bites here and there but you need to make sure the family has some snacks to keep them from starving before the big meal. Throw out some bowls with nuts and then you can create a few hand held bites that you can put out on plates throughout the day.

Caramel Pumpkin Pie

This is the second in my Thanksgiving prep series, providing you some fun new recipes for the upcoming holidays. Today, we're going straight from soup course all the way to dessert. Hey, I never said I was going to go in order.

Pumpkin Pi

I love pumpkin pie, although it usually is best with equal amounts of fresh whipped cream. Most traditional pumpkin pie recipes are made with a mixture of spices and evaporated milk. In this version, sugar and water are cooked together until it becomes a deep amber color and is then mixed with cream to make a smooth creamy caramel. The caramel is then mixed with spices and pumpkin puree and cooked together in the crust of your choice. It's not dramatically different from your traditional pie, but I absolutely love the hints of caramel throughout the pie.

Pumpkin Soup with Red Pepper Mousse

For the next couple weeks I'm going to start putting some recipes out here to help you prepare for Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays. I love traditional holiday foods with a bit of a twist so I'll try and find some fun things for you to include in your upcoming menu's.

Last week I picked up a few pumpkins at the farmer's market and Ive been trying to find some new ways to use it. I did make a pumpkin pie using fresh purée but it was made with a homemade caramel mixed into the pumpkin before cooking it which was pretty cool. I don't think I've ever made a pumpkin soup, so this was my excuse to research and find a good one to try out.

Pumpkin Mousse Cream Puffs

I have made over 200 cream puff shells in the last two weeks. I started by making them for an appetizer and dessert for our Thanksgiving celebration and then again this week for a Christmas party at work. By the way, I love that the place where I am currently consulting still calls it a Christmas party.

I created this recipe in an effort to branch out a little from the traditional pumpkin pie but still maintain that great flavor profile that pumpkin brings to a holiday celebration. I love making cream puffs because honestly they really aren't that hard to make but they add an elegance and sophistication to pretty much anything. You can use them for desserts as well as appetizers like I did for our housewarming party a few months ago.

Turkey Stock

I didn't take one picture of all the food I made for Thanksgiving. I made a few new recipes and had a great time with the families that we invited over to our home but was just too caught up to take any pictures. I'll remake a few of my favorites and post them in the next week or so.

For tonight though I thought I'd post my favorite new thing to do the day after Thanksgiving, and it's not shopping. It's making Turkey Stock! I love homemade stock but don't usually take the time during the rest of the year but I really should. Homemade stock whether chicken or turkey makes a huge difference in any recipe that you're making. It's so rich and flavorful and anything you make with it will be 10 times better than if you used canned or bouillon stock.

Blue Cheese and Caramelized-Onion Squares

As Thanksgiving approaches, it's time to start thinking serious food! I know it's a little early but Electrolux Appliances has asked for submissions of appetizers and desserts for Thanksgiving and so it got me going down this track. This is my favorite food holiday and it's always fun to find new things to make for this great get together with family and friends.