2013 Thanksgiving Bordeaux

Here is the planned menu! Pictures will follow later.

Bordeaux Thanksgiving

Appetizers

•  Scallop, bacon, onion, fig and fontina cheese Wandatons

Salad

•  Lobster on endive with lemon caper dressing

Stuffing

• Oyster, sausage and fennel with French bread

Main

•  Turkey with Bordelaise gravy

Sides

• Creamed potatoes with green onions
• Cranberry orange relish
• Brussel sprouts with tomatoes

Desserts

• Peaches with Bordeaux or Port
• Butternut pie

The Autobiography of Miss Rowenta Toaster

Born in 1980, Miss Rowenta Toaster lived a charmed life in California, Georgia, Virginia and Washington.   She made 3,432 pieces of toast over her 33 year lifespan. During this time, she saw Germany re-united, making her West Germany statement of origin obsolete.   Her crumb tray was cleaned about 10 times, and her cord was a bit melted from incompetent stowage once in Virginia.  She had an expert facility with English muffins, sourdough, wheat, and cinnamon bread.  Bagels always were a challenge, but she attempted these without complaint.  Overall, she existed with aplomb among the human presence.  Last week, she was found unresponsive to dill bread.  Well done, little toaster.

The Happy Hollandaise Recipe

This is a XXX rated sauce!

I have tried numerous hollandaise recipes, but none are as easy or a fool-proof as this simple one from the Sunset Cook Book of Favorite Recipes.  This makes a great blanket for your eggs Benedict or filet mignon. (I could go on and on with other allusions, but this is a family oriented blog!)

It keeps in your fridge for about a week.  If you want to use it as a leftover, heat it in the microwave for 20 seconds at a time or it will curdle (even curdled, it is divine). 

I have no pictures to share with you. (I guess this qualifies as food porn!)

Good luck.  And if all else fails, open more champagne.

Blender Hollandaise

3 egg yolks at room temperature

1 ½  T lemon juice

¾ C butter

1 T hot water

½ t salt

Dash of cayenne

1 t prepared mustard

Combine egg yolks and lemon juice in blender.  Whiz.  Melt butter (microwave is ok, just make sure to have it hot when it hits the blender).  Add 1 T hot water to egg yolks and lemon juice; turn blender to high/blend and immediately pour in the hot butter in a steady but slow stream.  (This takes 5 seconds according to the recipe, but I pour mine much slower. . . about 20 seconds.)  Add salt, cayenne, mustard and whiz again about 30 seconds.

Makes 2 C of sauce.