Pumpkin Pie a la Peterson

What are the holidays without some pie? Our family has three different pies that we love: pumpkin, apple, and lemon meringue. This first post has the recipe for my mom's (and Grandma Peterson's) fabulous pumpkin pie, which has won all sorts of blue ribbons and whatnot. I must say, it truly is the best pumpkin pie I have ever tasted, probably because it tastes more like a light, pumpkin-y custard in a light, flaky crust than the dense, squash-y pies that most pumpkin pies are.

Pumpkin Pie a la Peterson

Crust

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose or unbleached flour

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoon shortening

4 to 6 tablespoons cold water

Procedure

1. In medium bowl, mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl.

2. Gather pastry into a ball and divide into two parts, and shape into two flattened rounds on a lightly floured surface. Wrap flattened round of pastry in plastic wrap and refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.

3. Roll pastry on lightly floured surface, using floured rolling pin, into circle 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate or 3 inches larger than a 10- or 11- inch tart pan. Fold pastry into fourths and place in pie plate; or roll pastry loosely around rolling pin and transfer to pie plate. Unfold or unroll pastry and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side and being careful not to stretch pastry, which will cause it to shrink when baked.

4. Trim overhanging edge of pastry 1 inch from rim of plate. Fold and roll pastry under, even with plate; flute. Crust is now ready for the filling.

*Crust recipe and directions courtesy of Betty Crocker Cookbook, 10th Edition.

Filling

Ingredients

1 large can of pumpkin or 3 cups cooked fresh pumpkin

1 C Sugar

1 C Brown Sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

dash of ginger

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon allspice

5 large eggs

1 can evaporated milk

2 C + milk

Procedure
1. Prepare single crust for three pies.  Do not pre-bake the crust.

2. Mix all ingredients together in a extra large mixing bowl.  Cook at 400 degrees for 10 minutes then turn down temperature to 350 degrees and cook for another 50 minutes.

3. Pie will be done when butter knife is inserted in the middle of the pie and comes out clean.

4. Let cool in draft-free place, top with whipped cream, and serve.

Dad's Fabulous Thanksgiving Stuffing

Dad's Fabulous Stuffing

Pretty much anybody who has had my dad's stuffing agrees that there's nothing quite like it. No one makes stuffing like my dad. And the real kicker? It's totally different every year. According to Dad, he's had plenty of successes, but he's also had one or two flops, like the year he decided to do dressing like the real pilgrims would have eaten, with oysters and cornbread. But I cannot remember a year when the stuffing wasn't amazing.

I have asked my dad in the past to give me the recipe for his stuffing, and he just told me that there is no recipe. That's so ridiculously true that I don't know how I can do it justice here, but I'm going to try.

Ingredients

Bread, cut into cubes and dried
     Note: Don't do sourdough (stuffing turns out strange). Cornbread makes crumbly stuffing. French bread is good, as is challah egg bread. Sandwich and wheat bread works good too; but all wheat is heavy, and all white is mushy. A mix is best.
Onions
Celery/fennel (bulb)
Melted butter
About a pound of Italian sausage
     Note: Dad usually does some sweet Italian sausage and a couple hot Italian sausage, removed from casing. All hot is usually too hot for most people. He uses about 5 of the large links. Bear sausage is amazing, Dad says.
Herbs
     Note: Try one of these combinations: Poultry seasoning and bottled (dried) sage; garden herbs like fennel seads (toasted and crushed) and rosemary (chopped finely); fresh sage and rosemary; Herbs du Provence; oregano.
Other ingredients
     Note: Such as dried cranberries (Dad does this a lot), chestnuts, waterchestnuts, walnuts and raisins (a favorite of Grandma Peterson), pecans, dried cherries, other dried fruit, pinenuts. One year, Dad did Challah egg bread, sweet Italian sausage, roasted chestnuts, pecans, parsley, sage, chicken stock, butter, onion, salt, pepper, celery. This year, we did a specialty French bread with a bit of sandwich bread, fennel seeds (toasted and crushed), rosemary, sweet and hot Italian sausage, dried cranberries, chicken stock, butter, onion, salt, pepper, and fennel (bulb).
A couple of eggs
Chicken or turkey stock--more than you would think
Salt and pepper, to taste 

Procedure

1. Cube and dry the bread overnight.
2. Saute the onions and celery/fennel (bulb), then cook the sausage.
3. To your dried bread, add your miscellaneous ingredients, chicken or turkey stock, herbs, and salt/pepper. Taste it to get the right flavor.
4. Then add the eggs. Make sure that the stuffing is a bit moist when you put it in the bird so it doesn't dry out.
5. Add to the bird. Make sure it is hot enough when you pull it out of the turkey. If not, you will have to put it in a pan and bake it until it is done. Otherwise, it'll still have bacteria from the raw bird in it. 

Fennel Gratin

Dad has been experimenting with fennel, and I have to say that it's really an unsung hero of the vegetable world. It's like having a non-eye-watering onion and celery rolled up into one vegetable. Here is my favorite recipe that my dad has come up with so far.

Fennel Gratin

Ingredients

Fennel
Olive oil
Garlic
Onions
Water or chicken stock
Cream
Bread crumbs
Gruyere and/or parmesan cheese
Pancetta (optional)
Pine nuts (optional)
Parsley or basil or whatever

Procedure 

1. Slice the fennel into quarter inch slices, then saute in olive oil with garlic and onion. Pour in water or chicken stock, then put the lid on and let it steam.
2. For the bread crumbs, take a piece of dried bread, parsley, and the cheese and process them in a food processor until the mixture is crumbly--but not too small.
3. Put in baking dish mixed with a little cream and the pancetta or pine nuts if desired, and cover with bread crumbs. Sprinkle with gruyere and/or parmesan cheese.
4. Bake at 375 degrees until crispy brown and delicious.

Poached Pears in Ginger Syrup

Poached Pears in Ginger Syrup

Dad made this recipe up for when he and my mom had a couple of Chinese friends over for dinner. My dad wanted to make something that they liked, and so he decided to go with ginger. He had me try the syrup, and holy cow! It's like eating dark chocolate, where you have to wait for the full experience, which comes in layers. First, it tastes like any other sugar syrup, but then you get that hint of ginger. Finally, you get that signature ginger burn at the last. Coupled with the poached pears, it's divine.

Ingredients

Pears
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
5 Spice Powder (Buy at Chinese market--Typically a mix of star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, and ground fennel seeds. It's all about the feng shui in Chinese spices!)
Ginger, sliced really thin

Procedure

1. Combine a cup of sugar, a cup of water, the ginger, and some 5 spice powder in a pan and heat up until the sugar dissolves. Poach the fruit (pears) for 20-30 min (however long it takes--Dad wasn't all that specific).
2. Remove the fruit and set aside.
3. Boil down the syrup until it starts to get thicker, then strain the syrup through a strainer lined with cheese cloth to get all the bits out. You can put it back into the pan and reduce it further if desired.
4. Drizzle the syrup over the pears and sever warm. Voila!

Brussel Sprouts with Pancetta and Pine Nuts

This recipe is for brussel sprouts with pancetta and pine nuts, a dish that my family and I have grown quite fond of after a very long search for a brussel sprout recipe that we could handle. My dad has always loved brussel sprouts for Thanksgiving dinner, but the traditional sprouts in mustard turned everyone else's stomach. This recipe brings out the fresh, lively flavor of the sprouts without the sulfuric smells usually associated with them, and dresses it up for the holidays. I thought that I had already written this recipe down someplace, but just in case, here it is!

If you can find a stalk with sprouts still attached, get that. Brussel sprouts are best the fresher they are, and the stalk lets you practically have them straight from the plant.

Brussel Sprouts with Pancetta and Pine Nuts

Ingredients

Brussel sprouts, one stalk from Trader Joes

Pancetta

Pine nuts

Garlic

Onions

Olive oil

Procedure

1. To prepare the brussel sprouts, remove from stalk. Cut off the bottom of the sprout, then cut sprout in half. Cut out the triangle of white bitter stuff from each half. Then peel the leaves off and rinse with water.

2. Saute the chopped pancetta, garlic, onions, and pine nuts in a bit of olive oil.

3. Add the brussel sprout leaves and coat with the sauteed mixture. Cook until leaves are bright green and tender.

4. Serve hot or refrigerate for more of a salad (I prefer hot!).

Mom's Pumpkin Cookies

My sister and I spent months trying to find this recipe for my mom's pumpkin cookies. Sarah finally got it from my mom, so I'm logging it away on my blog so that we don't lose it again!

Mom's Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
dash of ginger
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or dried cranberries (optional)

Procedure

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix sugar, pumpkin, and butter together.
3. Then stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon,cloves,nutmeg, allspice, ginger, salt.
4. Stir in walnuts or cranberries, if desired.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Top with cream cheese frosting and serve warm.

Persimmon Pudding

My dad has been making this traditional English pudding for as long as I can remember, and I have fond memories of the spicy aroma wafting through the house around the start of the holidays. This last year, my dad's little persimmon tree started to bear fruit, and we made this pudding as a steamed pudding for the first time. Excellent! Both ways are great, but the baked pudding is more like brownies while the steamed pudding is lighter and more moist.

 

Persimmon Pudding

 

Ingredients

1 cup ripe pulp

1 cup sugar

1 cup flour

1/2 cup milk

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons melted butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

1/2 cup chopped nuts

pinch of salt

 

Procedure

Dissolve soda in pulp. Add sugar. Sift flour with baking powder. Add to pulp alternately with milk. Add butter, vanilla, nuts, and salt. Put into greased baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or it can be steamed for 1 1/2 hours.

 

Vanilla Sauce for Pudding

 

Ingredients

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons corn starch

2 cups hot water

2 tablespoons butter

pinch of salt

About 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

nutmeg

 

Procedure

Stir corn starch into sugar thoroughly. Pour hot water into mixture slowly stirring constantly to keep from lumping. Add all other ingredients and bring to boil.