Turkey Chili & Wine Engagement

Having squeezed the life out of the Gourmet November/2008 issue for our Thanksgiving menu, we found yet another recipe to duly dispatch of our near-to-ragged carcass: our unsuspecting turkey (shown above) was about to be turned into turkey chili! What a cozy Saturday afternoon too, just around ten of us, lazing about with wine glasses in hand with forkfuls of satisfying chili in the other. Perfectly paired reds included a Temperanillo, Sangiovese and Malbec--the white was a single unoaked Chardonnay-Viognier blend from Languedoc. Aromas of The Spice House's mulling spices with apple and peach cider further filled the room (and some of  it went down with a shot of Bourbon here and there, but more on that later) as we made another go of the festive feasting holiday.

Turkey Chili

Makes 6 to 8 servings (We doubled this by using more beans* and another can of whole tomatoes and good thing too—the 10 of us couldn’t stop eating!)

Ingredients

1 large white onion, coarsely chopped

2 bell peppers (any color), cut into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder

2 teaspoon packed brown sugar

1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice

1 (19-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup water

2 cups cooked turkey, cut into 1-inch pieces

*We added in a can of cannellini beans. The addition of 1 TB cumin, 1 TB garlic powder and 1 tsp or so Penzey’s chipotle powder turned out to be essential!

Preparation

Cook onion and peppers in oil in a heavy medium pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Add spices and brown sugar and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes with juice, breaking them up with back of a spoon, then add beans, water, and 1 teaspoon salt and simmer, covered, 15 minutes.

Stir in turkey and let stand, covered, until heated through, 5 minutes. 

We let the chili sit in the refrigerator overnight, brought our pot to room temperature the next day and let it simmer back to full heat for about an hour. Serve with shredded Mexican cheeses, sour cream, limes, tortilla chips and Fritos!

Shouldn't You Just...?

Place a few fork-pierced, ripe fall apples into a pot of water and simmer them gently with such things as dried orange peel zest, cinnamon, and cloves to create a warming, fragrant aroma about the house? The Spice House with shops in Chicago and Milwaukee (and online) is an extraordinary place to find fine spices. Read more about a particularly good garlicky-pepper rub from The Spice House here.

Thanks to socialmoms.com for the--pic!

Grillin' and Chillin'

Isn't it just awful when a holiday falls in the middle of a week? Baby had just returned from job-related travel on top of it so he gratefully took the Wednesday break just the same--but our celebration was very low-key and in town this year. We thought it best just to entertain a few people over the course of the sprawling afternoon--which included a handful of fun surprise guests too! We took them up to the sundeck and toasted our Independence with a bottle of slightly frizzante rose that brightly lit up the gorgeous, lazy day. Later that night, those remaining with us returned to watch the fireworks exploding across the Hudson river.

Hamburgers and hot dogs were the order of the day of course, with potato salad, Fritos, and lots of vodka tonics poured about. We had grape, cherry and orange popsicles for dessert. Baby was in charge of the meat, using our Cuisinart Griddler Gourmet in the kitchen like we actually had an outdoor grill and a back yard.

Juicy Pat LaFreida burgers were sprinkled with the fantastic Back of the Yards garlic pepper-butcher's rub from The Spice House. The beefy Hebrew National franks frolicked with butter. This little gadget with two functioning panels makes it so easy to cook two things simultaneously. It's also a panini press.

As I am wont to do, whatever the occasion, I set to my table with vigor. Inspired by an issue of Gourmet magazine from 1994, I created a spread of red, white, and blue with shells and plastic lobsters, and a vintage diving helmet ice bucket from an old Gilbey's gin promotion, I think. Here's one similar in its full glory that I found on eBay. Isn't it gorgeous?

There was a tube of sunscreen too, naturally, for our Fourth of July Sailing Picnic!

Prepping the table, as you can see, with...



red, white...

 and blue!

I suppose this hollowed log is for stashing jewelry or something, but I stuck forks in it.

I left the copy of Gourmet that launched my flight of fancy next to the diving helmet ice bucket as well.

Look at the curious lobsters trying to get to the buns and rolls--the burgers and hot dogs weren't even out yet! The delicious Grafton cheddar cheese and pickles were for the burgers and amidst our other relish and ketchup condiments, Baby made his own mustard.

This potato salad is great. Thank you Fresh Direct.



And who doesn't love popsicles?

Happy Fourth of July everybody and thanks for reading Evenings with Peter!

Soundtrack: Music to Watch Girls By, Disc 2, various artists; Dimitri from Paris, Sacre Bleu; Deee-Lite, World Clique; Boogie Nights soundtrack; B-52's, Party Mix

Mean Mr. Mustard

Time for mustard! And this is a spicy one for sure. Baby is nothing if not persistent--he'd wanted to make his own mustard for years, and finally did over the weekend, having ordered a variety of fine quality mustard seeds from The Spice House. With the assistance of our Vitamix, he ground the spices to a powder and used our Cuisinart to mix everything together. Instead of just using only 1 1/2 cups of the brown mustard seeds listed in the recipe however, he incorporated 1/2 cup yellow, 1/2 cup brown, 1/2 cup black, 1 tsp. Asian with the spices, as seen here:


After the mustard sat in refrigeration overnight, we added in a swirl of white wine (Viognier in this case, about 1/4 cup) and a drizzled tablespoon of honey for perfection!

Spicy Guinness Mustard
Adapted from Saveur Magazine
Ingredients
1 12-oz. bottle Guinness Extra Stout
1 1⁄2 cups brown mustard seeds (10 oz.)
1 cup red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1⁄4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1⁄4 tsp. ground cloves
1⁄4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1⁄4 tsp. ground allspice

Method
1. Combine ingredients in a nonreactive mixing bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1–2 days so that the mustard seeds soften and the flavors meld.
2. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a food processor and process, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, until the seeds are coarsely ground and the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a jar and cover.
3. Refrigerate overnight and use immediately or refrigerate for up to 6 months. (The flavor of the mustard will mellow as the condiment ages.)

Makes 3 1/2 cups.


First published in Saveur magazine, #117.