spring blossom 2 – Thrifted Kitchen

Sausage, Apricot and Pecan Stuffing

My go-to recipe for stuffing comes from Cooks Illustrated — it takes some time, but it’s straight-forward and delicious. My only complaint is that the original version makes too much stuffing, especially if you’re not planning to stuff the turkey. And let’s face it: Cooking the stuffing on the side just gives you more exciting options for the turkey itself (e.g., spatchcocking, deep frying, etc.).

So here, I’ve scaled the recipe back a bit to make it more manageable, and modified it for baking in a casserole dish. It’s suitable for a 13×9 baking pan or 3-quart casserole.

Adapted from Cooks Illustrated’s Bread Stuffing with Sausage, Pecans and Dried Apricots (The New Best Recipe, America’s Test Kitchen 2004).

Ingredients

1 loaf french bread (1 pound)
1 1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 lb sweet Italian sausage
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
heaping 1/4 tsp each dried sage, thyme and marjoram
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
heaping 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
2/3 cup dried apricots, sliced in thin strips (about 1/4 lb)
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Divide the bread into thirds; save 1/3 for another use, and cut the rest into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange the slices in a single layer on a sheet pan and bake for 30-40 minutes. The bread should end up dried but not browned. Once it has cooled slightly, cut the bread into 1/2-inch cubes and set aside.

Turn the oven up to 350 degrees. Spread the pecans out on the sheet pan and toast in the oven until fragrant, about 6-8 minutes. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage (casings removed, if there are any), breaking it up into bite-size pieces, until browned and no pink remains. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.

Remove excess grease from the pan, then add the butter. Saute the onions and celery until soft and translucent, about 6-8 minutes. Add the sage, thyme, marjoram and pepper and cook 1 minute more. Transfer to the bowl with the sausage and stir.

Stir the parsley, apricots, pecans and salt into the sausage mixture, then top with the bread cubes. In a separate bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the broth and eggs, then pour over the bread cubes.

Fold the bread cubes into the sausage mixture until thoroughly mixed. Spread the stuffing out into a buttered baking dish, tamping it down gently with a spoon or spatula to fill the dish evenly. (At this point you can cover and refrigerate overnight if desired. Let it sit out at room temperature for about 30 minutes before baking.)

Dot the surface of the stuffing with small bits of butter. Cover with a piece of buttered aluminum foil and bake until hot throughout, about 25-30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake about 15 minutes more, until the top is golden brown.

Pictured: Corning Ware Floral Bouquet Third Edition A-3-B Casserole, Pyrex Town and Country 444 Cinderella Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Town and Country 443 Cinderella Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Measuring Cup, Glasbake French Casserole

No-Cook Cranberry Relish

If you need a change of pace from traditional cranberry sauce, this tangy no-cook version is an easy and delicious way to bring something new to your Thanksgiving table. The texture is more like a relish or salsa than a sauce, but it pairs just as well with turkey. I’ve also seen it layered over cream cheese to serve as a spread with crackers.

Ingredients

2 lbs fresh cranberries
2 navel oranges
1 tbsp ginger, peeled and minced (or grated)
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped mint

In a food processor, pulse about half the cranberries until they are coarsely chopped, then transfer to a large bowl and set aside.

Remove the zest of one orange with a vegetable peeler, chop the zest into smallish pieces, and add to the food processor. Using a sharp knife, remove the peel and pith from both oranges. Then cut the orange sections away from their membranes and add the sections to the food processor. Add the rest of the cranberries, the ginger and sugar and pulse until finely chopped.

Combine both sets of chopped cranberries, add the mint and stir until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving.

Pictured: Corning Ware Floral Bouquet Third Edition A-1 1/2-B Casserole, Pyrex Spring Blossom 401 Round Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl

Radish and Green Onion Kimchi

This is my favorite kimchi to make, because it’s fast, easy and delicious. With cabbage-based kimchi, you have to massage the salt and spices into the cabbage leaves, but with radishes you basically toss it all together and that’s it! Plus, radish kimchi ferments in about three days, while cabbage kimchi usually takes more like six.

The recipe is based on Karen Solomon’s Cubed Radish Kimchi in Asian Pickles, which is a fascinating cookbook about pickles from Japan, Korea, China, India and Southeast Asia. In traditional radish kimchi, the radishes are cut into cubes, but I prefer mine sliced and quartered because it’s easier to pack into mason jars and I think the texture comes out better. I also love adding green onions, or occasionally incorporating some carrots. I find kimchi is very forgiving, so it’s hard to go wrong!

Note: In the photos below, I was making an extra large batch (about 6 1/2 pounds of daikon radish), so a regular batch should fit in one large bowl and two quart-size mason jars.

Ingredients

3 pounds daikon radish, peeled, cut into 1/4-inch slices and quartered
3 tbsp sea salt
3 tbsp sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece ginger root, unpeeled, minced
1/2 cup gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
3 tbsp soy sauce or fish sauce
1 tbsp gochujang (Korean fermented red chili paste)
4 stalks green onion, chopped

In a large bowl, combine the radish slices, salt and sugar and stir until evenly distributed. Let it sit for 15 minutes, stir, then let it sit for another 15 minutes.

In a separate bowl, combine the garlic, ginger, gochugaru, soy sauce and gochujang.

Drain the radishes, then add the spice mixture and the green onions and mix thoroughly. Pack it all into mason jars or your preferred fermentation vessel, pressing down firmly to eliminate air pockets.

Cover the jars loosely (for example, with a half-tightened lid, so gasses can escape) and ferment at room temperature for about three days (keep out of direct sunlight). Shake the jars once a day to distribute the juices. The kimchi should have a pleasant fermented odor — strong but not foul. Taste for doneness, then transfer to the refrigerator.

Pictured: Pyrex Speckled Lines 404 Round Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Verde 404 Round Mixing Bowl, Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl, Fire King 472 Casserole

Smoked Paprika Braised Beef Short Ribs

Smoked paprika is one of my favorite spices — it adds a layer of flavor that makes dishes seem more complex than they actually are. Since it’s a major ingredient in Spanish chorizo, it can also make vegetarian dishes taste meaty without the meat — it’s great in braised winter greens, for example. It would also be nice in homemade mac & cheese.

In this dish it brings a smoky deliciousness to another food I’m obsessing over lately: beef short ribs. You could use basic stew meat instead (3 pounds), but the bone-in ribs produce a rich, flavorful sauce that really can’t be beat. Serve over rice, polenta or mashed potatoes.

Adapted from The New York Times’ Beef Stew with Sweet and Hot Paprika.

Serves 6

Ingredients

4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs (English style, cut in 3-inch chunks)
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tbsp Spanish smoked paprika
kosher salt
pepper
1 sprig rosemary
1 bay leaf
3 large onions, roughly chopped
4 carrots, peeled and cut in 2-inch chunks
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 cups dry red wine
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried marjoram
1/4 tsp cayenne
grated zest of 1 lemon
1 14 1/2 can diced tomatoes, with their juice

Combine 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 tbsp smoked paprika. Rub the mixture all over the meat, and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. Marinate in a large, covered bowl for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat up 2 tbsp of olive oil and brown the meat in small batches (avoid overcrowding). Add more oil as needed. Transfer the meat to a 5-to 6-quart dutch oven as you go. Add the carrots, bay leaf and rosemary to the dutch oven about halfway through.

Lower heat to medium. If you have a lot of charred spices in the skillet, remove by wiping with damp paper towels. Then add the remaining olive oil and onions and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in 2 tbsp smoked paprika along with the cumin, marjoram, cayenne and lemon zest.

Add wine and simmer for a minute, stir in diced tomatoes and then transfer everything to the dutch oven.

Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, covered, until the meat is tender, about 3 hours. Remove the meat and set aside, covered with foil to keep warm. Skim most of the fat from the sauce and then simmer about 10 minutes more to reduce a little. Add the meat back in and simmer another couple minutes, then serve.

Pictured: Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl; Pyrex Spring Blossom 402 Round Mixing Bowl; Corning Ware French White F-15-B Oval Casserole; Corning Ware Blue Cornflower P-10-B Square Skillet

Best Pyrex Stacking Ideas

Vintage Pyrex is so pretty, it’s a shame to store it inside a kitchen cabinet. Instead, collectors often arrange their wares on open shelves, carts or hutches using a technique designed to show off each individual piece: stacking.

My own stacking preference is a mix of form and function: I want to be able to see and enjoy the patterns and colors, but I also want easy access so that the items in my collection are actually usable for cooking. So, precarious towers of Pyrex are not my thing. Another consideration: preventing rattles and other noises.

One fun thing about stacking is that it gives you an opportunity to mix and match complementary pieces. Recently I finally acquired enough round mixing bowls to put together my own custom set: (from top to bottom) Spring Blossom (x2), Spring Blossom 2, Verde.

Since the mixers are nested bowls, you need a little something between each one to lift it up and make the pattern visible (I used folded sheets of bubble wrap). There are lots of ways to do this for different sizes and shapes of Pyrex, so here I have gathered the best ideas I’ve seen on the internet, on social media and in collector groups:

packing peanuts
bubble wrap
Ziplock containers
ramekins
bags of rice, beans, popcorn, etc.
empty packing tape rolls
inverted lids
glass tumblers
cheap plastic bowls
Jell-O boxes
chunks of lumber
slices of pool noodles
tuna cans (or similar)
berry baskets
paper bowls
small plastic food containers (e.g., sour cream, margarine, yogurt, deli containers)
cut up egg containers
squares of non-skid rug protector (for stability)
styrofoam blocks
floral foam blocks
old washclothes
canning rings
plastic coffee cup lids

Of course, these methods can work for any kind of vintage kitchenware, not just Pyrex. Corning Ware, for example, stacks really easily on inverted lids. Over the weekend we installed some new shelves to house my collection, so stacking all kinds of dishes has been on my mind.

Fool-Proof Beef Pot Roast with Bacon and Mushrooms

This is the moistest, tenderest, most flavorful pot roast I’ve ever made. It’s a little bit time-consuming, but well worth it for the end result! There are a few things I think make this recipe work so well: 1) Bacon provides smoke, salt and richness that really enhance the dish. 2) Dried mushrooms pack an intense punch for even more flavor. 3) Using two small roasts instead of one big one, and trussing them — this is something Cook’s Illustrated recommends, because it promotes even cooking. 4) Patience — don’t try to rush the cooking time.

I call this fool-proof because I messed up a lot of things along the way and it still came out great. First off, I chose a pot that was too small, because I was determined to use my Corning Ware, so I had to scoop out a bunch of the cooking liquid and cram the meat in sideways. Also I’m terrible at trussing, so it was starting to fall apart at the end. Most pot roast recipes recommend searing the roasts before cooking, but I didn’t bother, because they’re unwieldy and I always end up splashing myself with oil and I hate that step. And I miscalculated my prep time, so by the time I got the whole thing in the oven, dinnertime would have been pushed back to 9 p.m. (way too late for my 5-year-old). My husband whipped up some barbecued chicken as a plan B, and I stewed about not being able to eat the dish I’d been slaving over. Thankfully, pot roast tastes even better reheated the next day (more on that in the recipe below), so after it finished cooking, I let it cool a bit and then put it in the refrigerator and went to bed.

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated‘s Italian-Style Pot Roast.

Serves 8

Ingredients

8 oz bacon, snipped into 1/2-inch pieces
2 medium onions, chopped
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1 1/2 cups red wine
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 14 1/2-oz cans diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 oz dried mushrooms (porcini and/or others)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp dried oregano leaves
2 bay leaves
2 3-lb boneless beef chuck roasts
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

In a large (at least 6-quart size) oven-safe pot, saute bacon over medium heat until fat has rendered and edges are starting to brown. Spoon out excess grease, reserving about 1 tbsp. Add onions, carrots and celery and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook another 1 minute.

Add wine, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, mushrooms, red pepper flakes, oregano and bay leaves. Combine broths in a separate bowl.

Truss each roast tightly with kitchen twine. It doesn’t have to be pretty — you just want each roast to hold together in a roughly uniform shape while cooking. Season the roasts with salt and pepper, then nestle in the pot and pour in enough broth so that the meat is partially submerged. Bring to a boil.

Cover and bake for 3 1/2-4 hours, turning the meat at the halfway point. The roasts should be fork tender and falling apart. Remove the meat from the cooking liquid and let rest, covered with foil, for about 20 minutes.

(At this point you can return the meat to the pot and refrigerate overnight, if desired. This actually makes the next step a lot easier — skimming off the fat. In the fridge, the fat solidifies in a layer on top, which can be chipped away with a spoon. Then you can reheat the roast on the stove top.)

Set the (hot or reheated) meat aside. After skimming the fat from the surface, bring the cooking liquid to a boil and simmer to reduce a little into a sauce, about 30 minutes. You can use it as is or blend it with an immersion blender for a thick, rich sauce.

Slice the meat across the grain and pour a liberal amount of sauce on top. You might want more sauce in a gravy boat at the table. I actually ate spoonfuls of sauce by itself, it was so good!

Pictured: Corning Ware Spice O’ Life A-5-B Saucepot; Corning Ware Blue Cornflower P-332 Roaster; Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl; Pyrex Town and Country 501 Refrigerator Dish

Sauteed Kohlrabi and Spinach

This was my first time trying kohlrabi — I ordered some from Imperfect Produce this week just for fun. Turns out my whole family really liked it (even my 5-year-old)! Kohlrabi tastes a lot like broccoli stems, only a little sweeter; in fact, you could easily sub in broccoli stems for this recipe if kohlrabi is not available or not your thing.

Whenever I’m cooking something new, I search for recipes online (usually Pinterest, Epicurious and Food Network) to get a handle on the basics. Here my starting point was Martha Stewart’s Sauteed Kohlrabi with Onions and Cream.

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/2 lbs kohlrabi, peeled and chopped into 1/2-inch cubes (note: if your kohlrabi has leaves attached, chop those up and add with the spinach)
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 5-oz bag fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt
pepper

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add kohlrabi and onion and saute until onion starts to go translucent and kohlrabi is cooked but still crunchy, about 10 minutes.

Lower to medium heat, add garlic and cook another 1 minute. Stir in spinach one handful at a time and cook until wilted, about 4 minutes. Add the cream and let simmer for a couple minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Pictured: Corning Ware Blue Cornflower P-10-B Square Skillet; Pyrex Spring Blossom 2 403 Round Mixing Bowl