Month: December 2003

Last night’s menu of Christmas leftovers:

– Classic shrimp cocktail
– Christmas Turkey Minestrone Soup
– Mushroom-truffle tagliatelle

Specifically:

1: Classic Shrimp Cocktail

We had some leftover cocktail sauce from the shrimp ring on the hors d’oeuvres table from Christmas Eve, so I decided to make a classic shrimp cocktail, as follows:

Line two large chilled martini glasses with lettuce; spoon some shrimp cocktail sauce into each; Add some steamed, peeled, and chilled shrimp; top with some paper-thin rings of raw red onion.

2: Christmas Turkey Minestrone Soup

This would not have been possible without the fabulous turkey stock I had made previously (see bottom of post for recipe).

• Sweat a sliced carrot and a sliced celery stalk in a few drops of olive oil for a couple of minutes.
• Add half an onion, chopped.
• Add one clove of smashed and diced garlic. Sweat for another minute or two.
• Pour in one litre of turkey stock and bring to a low boil.
• Add one chopped tomato.
• Add a few pinches of dried oregano, a couple of spoonfuls of dried parsley, and a hint of dried thyme.
• Add half a can of small white navy beans.
• Add some chopped sweet red pepper (optional).
• Add a handful of cooked chopped turkey meat.
• Simmer for about ten minutes.
• Add a cup of cooked al dente soup pasta (such as elbow macaroni or ditali).
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Simmer one more minute.

Pour into soup bowls and garnish with a few shavings of parmesan reggiano (optional). (This recipe serves four, so we had leftover leftovers for lunch today.)

3: Mushroom-truffle tagliatelle

This simple pasta dish can be prepared in no time at all. Its success depends on quality ingredients and a light touch with the heat.

• Boil a large pot of salted water and add some tagliatelle.
• Lightly sauté some quartered button mushrooms and a finely sliced shallot in a small amount of olive oil.
• Deglaze as necessary with a bit of water from the pasta pot and remove from heat.
• Scratch in a bit of salt and pepper.
• Roll in the cooked and drained pasta.
• Toss with one cup of coarsely shredded parmesan reggiano.
• Drizzle liberally with truffle oil.
• Grace with a few pinches of finely grated orange zest.

Needless to say, this is not your grandma’s Christmas leftovers. In case you’re wondering, I pulled the recipes out of my imagination, except for the shrimp cocktail.

Turkey Stock a la Blork

In a large stock pot, add:
– one de-meated turkey carcass (including any leftover leg bones),
– three onions, quartered,
– two roughly-chopped carrots,
– two roughly-chopped celery stalks,
– a spoonful of cracked black peppercorns,
– one bay leaf,
– four litres of cold water.

Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 90 minutes. Allow to cool overnight in the fridge. Skim off fat. The stock will likely have taken on a gelatinous texture; if so, rewarm slightly on the stove to liquefy. Strain well using a strainer and cheesecloth.