An Insider’s
Holiday Cooking Guide
TURKEY GRAVY 4 Tbsp of butter ½ cup onion ½ cup celery 2 cups chopped mushrooms ¾ cup flour ½ cup white wine 4 cups turkey and/or chicken stock chopped herbs salt and pepper to taste ½-1 cup Half’n’Half or heavy cream Begin by melting the butter in a large sauté pan. Sauté onion, celery, and mushrooms until the vegetables are thoroughly softened and onion begins to caramelize. Stir flour in until smooth. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add wine and turkey or chicken stock. Whisk and stir until smooth and heated to a full boil. Lower heat and simmer until thickened. Cool slightly, and then strain through a colander or not-too-fine sieve. Add chopped herbs, as desired and adjust with salt and pepper. If desired, stir in Half’n’Half or heavy cream.
Cranberry Relish 2 2 1 2
large navel oranges red apples, cored, cut into chunks lb fresh cranberries cups sugar
Peel oranges, reserving ½ of the zest. Chop oranges coarsely. Wash cranberries, drain and place in food processor. Add apples, sugar and reserved zest. Process until chopped. Add oranges and pulse until blended. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Apple Walnut Cake with sorghum apple butter I have made this cake for years, after first seeing the recipe in the Courier-Journal. I adapted it first by cutting way back on the oil, adding applesauce and finishing with a maple glaze. When I started at the St. Matthews Farmers’ Market, I wanted to add the Sorghum Apple Butter to this cake to see the result. Great cake, made even richer with Sorghum. 2 cups sugar 3 cups flour 1½ tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon 3 eggs ¾ cup vegetable oil 1 tsp vanilla ½ cup Apple Sorghum Butter, apple sauce or cranberry sauce 3 cups chopped, peeled apples 1 cup chopped walnuts Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a tube pan (angel food or Bundt pan) with cooking spray. Sprinkle interior with flour. In the bowl of a mixer, combine the dry ingredients. Mix together the wet ingredients. Fold dry and wet ingredients together. Fold in apples and nuts. Batter will be very thick. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. The cake may look done long before it is. Test the cake after 50 minutes with an Instant Read thermometer. It should register between 180 and 200 degrees internal temperature to assure baking is complete. Cool in pan for about 20 minutes. Run a thin bladed knife around the edges of the pan and remove first the outside. When cool enough to handle, invert the cake and reposition on a serving platter. Drizzle with Maple Icing Glaze.