How Punk Can a State Get?

Excuse my lame Bad Brains parody title.

I've been meaning to do this for awhile though: figure out which states I've sent out copies of Cookie Chaos! to over the past few years. Turns out folks from 22 states (OK, I counted D.C. as one) have picked up Cookie Chaos! And that's not all, it's found a home in Canada, the UK and Australia, too.

Cookie Chaos! is even heatin' up Punk Rock Kitchens in Alaska!

Here's the full rundown:
Alaska
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Illinois
Kansas
Louisiana
Massachusetts
Minnesota
Michigan
Nebraska
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Texas
Virginia
Washington
Washington, D.C.
Wisconsin

Non-US:
Australia
Canada (including Quebec)
England

Thanksgiving VegetariSin

Well, it was a low-key Thanksgivin' this year here at The Punk Rock Kitchen. But even though we didn't have lots of guests, we did it up right. I did a turkey for the first time, and the meat eaters tell me it turned out pretty good.

We started out with a tempura-like appetizer -- green beans bundled and tied with chives, dipped in milk then flour and deep fried. They were wonderful with a dip I made with tarragon, chives, olive oil and mayo.

For the main event, I served turkey, stuffing (some baked in the bird, some separate for me), mushroom and turkey gravies, a gorgeous pot pie and a salad of corn, asparagus, yellow tomatoes, more tarragon, and an aged crumbly cream cheese.

For dessert we had a yummy trifle with homemade gingerbread layered with a combo of homemade butterscotch pudding and pumpkin, real whipped cream and chopped toffee bars. For some reason I can't find pics of that. (The appetizer and trifle were inspired by one of Paula Deen's Thanksgiving-themed shows.)

I went the whole nine yards with the turkey; I brined it overnight, rubbed it with herb butter (oregano, rosemary and parsley) and poked herb butter medallions under the skin before roasting it over a mirepoix. For the turkey gravy, I added the drippings (fat and mirepoix strained out) to a gravy base prepared with the turkey neck and heart, a roux and stock.

On the rare occasions I do purchase and prepare meat (usually for special occasions or when we have friends over), I always feel like a lapsed vegetarian, even though I don't eat it. I guess the thing is I'm contributing to something (the meat industry, killing animals) I've made a conscious effort to revolt against personally. Why do I do it? Well, I like to make people happy. Also, I enjoy learning how to prepare elaborate meat dishes once in awhile because I usually don't have the opportunity to hone those skills.

Enough of the politically-correct bullshit and back to the meal.

I do a vegetarian version of the stuffing I grew up with. That one is made with sausage, but I sauté veggie sausage with lots of onions in olive oil. This time I sautéd fennel with it instead of the standard celery (carrying on the licorice-y theme also represented in my use of tarragon). I toss in cubed fresh bread (this time rye and a crusty rosemary white bread) and add veggie stock till it's moist. I used rosemary, sage and oregano. Some went in the bird and some was baked separately.

I also made a mushroom gravy I like to make. I use the broth from reconstituting dried shitakes as the base and it has a very strong flavor (unlike most veggie gravies). I do the standard roux thickening method for that.

For me, the pièce de résistance had to be the pot pie. I'd been craving pot pie for months and thought it would be a great vegetarian addition to the table. I sautéd leeks, red potatoes, sweet potato, carrots and brussel sprouts till just-past al dente. Then, I did a standard bechamel with (yes, again) tarragon, which gave it such a lovely fresh flavor. I added frozen peas just before completing the filling mixture. I lined a casserole with one pie dough layer and baked for about ten minutes or so to prevent a too-mushy bottom crust. Then I tossed in the filling and covered it with the second dough layer.

I also got all fancy and decorated the top of the pie with leaves and acorns I cut from leftover dough with cookie cutters. I brushed the pot pie with an egg wash to get that beautiful golden sheen.

Hmmm...what else....Oh, I also did a refreshing corn salad (described above), served room-temp. I tossed in the crumbled cheese before serving so it wouldn't dissolve into the dressing (olive oil, fresh orange juice and rind, tarragon). The cheese guy at Dean and Deluca recommended it to me. I can't remember what it was called, but it was an aged cow's milk cream cheese that translated as something like, "fire on the tongue." The rind was a blackish-green and quite strong. (I removed that before adding it to the salad, but ate as much as I could stand!)

Now it's Sunday, the dishes are done and put away, and it's on to planning for the big Christmas feast!