Walter Staib
Chef City Tavern Restaurant • Philadelphia, PA
Chestnut Stuffing Makes 8 to 10 cups; Serves 8
Ingredients: 1 pound fresh unshelled chestnuts (18 medium chestnuts) 1 loaf firm white bread (about 1 pound), crust trimmed and cut into 1/2inch cubes
2 onions, chopped 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 celery ribs, chopped 3 garlic cloves, chopped 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves 1 tablespoon salt
Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Directions: 1. With the point of a small paring knife, make a crisscross cut through the shell in the flat side of each chestnut shell. Place the chestnuts on a baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes, until the shells break. Allow them to cool slightly (if the chestnuts cool too much, they won’t peel easily). Peel and discard the shells. Using a paper towel, rub off the thin layer of the inner brown skins. 2. Return the peeled chestnuts to the saucepan and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, until tender. 3. Drain and rinse with cold water. When cool enough to handle, cut each chestnut into quarters and reserve. 4. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread the bread cubes in a single layer in a shallow baking pan and bake
for 15 to 25 minutes, until crisp, dry, and golden. Transfer the bread cubes to a large bowl. 5. In a large skillet, sauté the onions in 1/2 tablespoon of the oil over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden 6. Add the celery, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper, and sauté for 5 minutes, until the celery is soft. Add the wine and cook about 5 minutes, until the liquid is evaporated. Add the vegetable mixture to the bread cubes in the bowl. 7. In the same skillet, sauté the mushrooms in the remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil over high heat, until browned and the liquid is evaporated. Add to the bread cubes. Add the quartered chestnuts, parsley, and currants. Mix well. Add enough of the stock to moisten the mixture, but be careful not to make it soggy. 8. Transfer the mixture to a lightly greased 3-quart baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. You can refrigerate the stuffing for up to 24 hours before baking, but if you do, you’ll need to increase the baking time by 15 minutes. 9. Bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes more, until crisp. Serve hot.
Wiggy Olson
Chef and Founder of The Salvation Army’s Soups On Project • Philadelphia, PA
Wiggy’s Roasted Tomato Soup Yields One Gallon
SOUP’S ON! PROJECT is a training program that provides job skills training and placement in the culinary arts industry for economically disadvantaged people. The Salvation Army Soup’s On! Project recruits individuals who are participants in various Salvation Army programs, including corps community centers, and home-
Ingredients: 5 lbs. plum tomatoes, cut in half and seeded ½ cup minced garlic 2 large cans diced tomatoes with juice 2 quarts heavy cream Salt and pepper, to taste
less residential and rehabilitation
Sugar or Sweet N’ Low, to taste 1 can tomato juice *For Tomato Florentine Soup: Add 1 box of frozen spinach.
Directions: 1. Place cut tomatoes, flesh side down on a sprayed baking sheet. Sprinkle garlic on top of tomatoes. Bake in 350 degrees F oven until soft. Let cool. 2. In a food processor pulse tomatoes to a chunky puree. 3. In a stockpot add tomatoes, heavy cream, diced tomatoes, tomato juice and bring to a boil. Cook for 20 minutes. 4. Add sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
facilities, along with CareerLink and P.W.D.C. recruits and Welfare to Work individuals, specifically, those who are unemployed or underemployed.
Mitch Prensky
Chef & Event Artisan Supper Restaurant & Global Dish Catering Philadelphia, PA
Mitch’s Foolproof Two Part Turkey 1- whole fresh or refrigerated 9 pound turkey (serves 8-10) preferably a heritage breed bird. You can source these online at heritagefoods.com
Maple Turkey brine: 2 ½ quarts water 3 cups bourbon 1 ½ cups kosher salt 1 cup maple syrup 1 yellow onion, medium diced ½ orange
6 cloves garlic, crushed 3 tbsps. ground black pepper 1 tbsp. celery seeds crushed 6 sage leaves 3 bay leaves, crumbled
Mix all ingredients together in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Let cool to room temp and submerge turkey in brine. Brine overnight. Next Day: ½ pound sweet butter chopped herbs (sage, thyme, parsley, etc.) salt and pepper
Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 2. Soften butter and mix with chopped herbs and some salt and pepper. 3. Smear the turkey with butter all over the skin, underneath the skin and season well with salt and pepper inside and out. 4. Place the turkey on a rack in a roasting pan in the
lower portion of the oven, legs toward the back. Roast until the turkey starts to turn golden, about 15 to 20 minutes. 5. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees F and roast the turkey for approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, basting with pan juices every 20 minutes or so. The white meat should read 150 degrees F when a quick read thermometer is placed in the breast. 6. Remove the turkey from the oven and remove the large breast fillet from each side of the bird. (In order to do this, carve down the center of the breastbone and follow the rib bones with your knife blade . The breast should come away quite easily.) Let the breast fillets rest for 10 minutes before slicing into thin pieces. Keep breast meat warm on a platter covered with foil on top of oven with no burners on. 7. Meanwhile, return the rest of the bird to the 325 degrees F oven. Cook until the dark meat reaches 175 degrees F internal temperature on a quick read meat thermometer, about 30 minutes more. Remove from the oven, let rest 10 minutes before carving and serve.
Wiggy Olson
Chef and Founder of The Salvation Army’s Soups On Project • Philadelphia, PA
Wiggy’s Macaroni & Cheese Serves 20 people
SOUP’S ON! PROJECT
Ingredients: 2 lb box of elbow macaroni, cooked
Cheese Sauce 12 cups milk 1 cup blonde roux 1 tbsp. oil 1 tsp. kosher salt ½ tsp. white pepper 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
The purpose of Soup’s On! is to pro-
Blonde Roux 2 sticks of butter 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
vide job skills training and job placement in the culinary arts industry for economically disadvantaged people.
½ cup Dijon mustard 10 cups white cheddar cheese, grated (about 40 oz) 2 cups asiago or fontina cheese, grated 2 ½ cups parmesan cheese, reserve 2 cups for topping 2 cups fresh bread crumbs
Directions: 1. Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside. 2. Blonde Roux: Melt two sticks of butter in a small saucepan. Add 1 ½ cups of flour. Blend well. Cook while stirring constantly, about 4-6 minutes, until flour and butter are well blended and start to dry slightly. Reserve for cheese sauce. 3. Cheese Sauce: In a large saucepan, bring milk to simmer over medium heat. Whisk in about 1 cup of the roux. Continue to whisk over heat until smooth and sauce begins to thicken, about 10 minutes. Add Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk to incorporate all ingredients.
Begin to add cheddar cheese, gradually, in small amounts. Whisk constantly to help dissolve. Add remaining cheddar, asiago, and 1 ½ cups parmesan cheese. Whisk until smooth. 4. Mix cheese sauce with cooked macaroni. Place in a large buttered pan. Top with breadcrumbs and remaining parmesan cheese. 5. Bake for 10 minutes or until hot in a 400 degrees F oven. To brown, place under broiler until top is evenly browned.