No Thanksgiving leftovers

As I spent the Thanksgiving holiday with my in-laws, sadly, I have no leftovers. I do, however, have a turkey in the freezer, so I'll be cooking it some time this week. I promise, I'll share some of my ideas on all things turkey!

I hope everyone out there dined well and gave many thanks!

One Container of Ricotta Cheese, set to expire tomorrow...

OK, this is pretty much a made-up thing, but draws from a couple of Italian classics: Easter Pie, which is made with ricotta cheese and sweet pastry, and also Cannoli--a fabulous, but fairly labor-intensive dessert. So I'm going to call this "Cannoli Pie."

I had a 15 ounce container of ricotta cheese with tomorrow's expiration date. I already had plans for dinner and didn't have time for anything as time-consuming as lasagna, or the two desserts above. So I did a little poking around and came up with this:

1 container of ricotta

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

grated zest of one orange

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

about 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

for the crust: finely crushed graham crackers (about 6 whole)

scant 1/4 cup sugar

about a tablespoon of melted butter

For the crust, combine the crumbs, sugar and melted butter. Press into the bottom of a small pie plate (I used an 8 inch plate). Bake for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

While the crust is baking, whisk together the cheese, eggs, vanilla, sugar, orange zest, and cinnamon. Gently stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour the cheese mixture over the slightly cooled crust and return to the 350 oven for 50-60 minutes or until it has puffed up, is lightly golden, and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.

I might see if this freezes well--and will let you know! I've sampled a sliver of it, and it's delicious, so unless I want to completely sabotage my diet, the freezer is probably the best place for it. But such is the curse of never wanting to throw anything away!

Leftover breads

Never throw leftover bread away! One obvious use for it is to make bread crumbs. Bread crumbs keep almost forever in a freezer bag in your freezer. I keep them unseasoned because I never know what they'll be used for--might be in the bottom of a fruit pie or they might find their way into a meat loaf, so I like to keep all my options open.

If crumbs seem to have gone a bit (more) stale in the freezer, spread them out on a baking sheet and toast them in a 325 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.

Stale bread makes the best bread pudding! Any kind of bread will do (except something really savory like an onion bread). The richer the bread, the richer the pudding. We're having bread pudding for dessert this evening made with three very stale croissants....milk, eggs, dried mixed fruit (that's been soaking in white wine for several hours), some cinnamon, a little butter. A dollop of ice cream or whipped cream on warm bread pudding...comfort food at its finest.

One of my very favorite things to do with stale bread is make Italian Bread Salad--or Panzanella. If the bread is rock-hard stale, soak it in water for about 5-10 minutes and then squeeze as much water out as possible. This sounds really weird, but it works. It will refresh the bread and make it crumble really well, without making it soggy. Trust me. If your bread isn't yet rock hard stale, just cube it and let the dressing soak in. Add onions, the best tomatoes you can find, red wine vinegar, good olive oil, some fresh basil, and you've got a great side dish or lunch. Feel free to shave some good quality Parmesan or Romano cheese over this and some freshly ground black pepper....

Don't forget stuffings--they aren't just for the holiday bird. Stuffing is a great way to use stale bread and a welcome change from potatoes, pasta, and rice. Besides, if you find your family rebels if you stray from the tried-and-true for the holidays, making stuffing at other times during the year gives you a chance to experiment with different flavors and ingredients.

Finally, if you're lucky enough to have a lake nearby with ducks, you can always take your leftover stale bread and a good book (or small children if you have them!) and spend a lazy afternoon with nature!

No leftovers....just some really great food!

I spent a lovely weekend NOT working, with a good friend of mine who lives in Hawaii but came down to San Antonio for a few days "sandwiched" in between two conferences in Virginia. Being a fellow "foodie," we made it our weekend mission to cook and eat some wonderful things!

Thanks to "Cook's Illustrated" magazine, we found a fool-proof way to cook steaks. (Hint: You actually bake them in a slow oven before searing them!) Had roasted fingerling potatoes in three colors (yes, purple) with rosemary, green beans, salad, and a beautiful cheese plate to finish. Oh, and terrific wines with all.

On Sunday, we braised rabbit in red wine, Spanish-style, with onions, bacon, thyme, bay leaf, and finished with pulverized chocolate, almonds, and pine nuts as a thickener. Add glazed carrots (with a nod to Bugs Bunny....) and buttered noodles with a sprinkle of poppy seeds. We paired the rabbit with a light Tempranillo.

Yum.

I have leftover rabbit, so I'll be posting soon when I figure out what I want to do with it!