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Turkey Cooking & Prep Made Easy!

TheSaltyChef — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 15:00:35 +0000

Everyone knows that this time of year can be stressful. Cooking the turkey is always a major feat. Many people get very confused when it comes to preparing a turkey. In this article I have included some tips and some info on how to make your holiday dinner a snap. I use an electric roaster for my turkey, which makes it simple, easy to clean and does not heat the whole house up and makes space in your even for side dishes.

First!

How long to cook? Preheat the oven to 325o, then place the bird in the oven to roast for 15 – 20 minutes per pound.

How big a turkey? You’ll need 1 1/2 pounds of turkey per person if you’re buying the whole bird, fresh or frozen.

It’s always best to go bigger. (After all, there are at least 50 ways to serve your turkey leftovers, including a winter store of turkey soup.)

How to Make Turkey Stuffing:

* Rule of thumb – allow about 3/4 cup of stuffing per pound of turkey. Double that amount and bake extra stuffing on the side in a casserole dish.
* Avoid the temptation to over stuff around the neck and cavity. Stuffing expands while cooking.
* Food safety experts advise to stuff the bird immediately before roasting time. Turkey juices may spoil the stuffing, even if refrigerated.

Which wine with turkey?

If you and your guests prefer dry white wines, dry and oakey Chardonnay is the favorite choice with turkey depending on the particular tastes of your family and guests. Sauvignon Blanc or a White Burgundy are also good all-around choices that pair well with everything from mashed turnips to turkey stuffing. Red or white or even blush can go with poultry, so choose something you like.

Cheesecake 101 Part II

TheSaltyChef — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:32:28 +0000

Cheesecakes are among the most frequently overcooked foods because they are the most deceptive when trying to figure out when they are done baking. When it’s done, it never LOOKS done. To test if a cheesecake is done baking, gently shake the pan. The top of the cake should move as one solid piece, but its center should still be wobbly (not soupy) in about a 3-inch circle in the center.Â You may be removing the cheesecake from the oven a little earlier than the recipe suggests, but baking times are not always exact due to variations in ovens.

HOW TO PREVENT CRACKING CHEESECAKES: The truth is that cheesecakes tend to crack even if you do everything right. Small cracks in my homemade cheesecakes never bothered me, but the large one that occasionally developed through the middle of it meant it was over baked.

Cheesecakes with cornstarch or flour do not crack as easily from over baking. The starch molecules will actually get in between the egg proteins preventing them from over-coagulating. No over-coagulating, no cracks.Â Some bakers add extra insurance to a cheesecake recipe without starch, by simply adding a tablespoon to a 1/4 cup of cornstarch to the batter with the sugar.

With today’s trend to produce larger and higher cheesecakes and to bake them without the benefit of a water bath, they tend to over bake at the edge before the center of the cake has reached the temperature necessary to set (coagulate) the eggs. Here, your cheesecake will tend to form deep cracks upon cooling.

Don’t bake your cheesecake at too high a temperature. The egg proteins will over coagulate from too much heat which eventually shrink when cooled, causing cracking usually in its center or tiny cracks all over its top.Â If you heat it up to fast or cool it down too fast you’re also going to get cracks.

Stay tuned for part III

Cheesecake 101- Part I

TheSaltyChef — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:19:47 +0000

The biggest concern to most bakers is to bake a cheesecake that doesn’t crack, shrink, leak water or “weep”, become flat and too dense or dry. A cheesecake is actually a baked custard and has to be handled as such. Custards range from being the entire dessert, such as a Cheesecake, CrÃ¨me BrÃ»lÃ©e or Flan, Pumpkin or Coconut custard pies, to being a part of a dessert such as Pastry Cream used when making Ã©clairs and cream puffs. All custards are a thick, rich, creamy and pudding-like dessert made from gently cooking or baking. Make sure you are using clean equipment washed under the faucets and dried very well.

Both egg yolks and whites contain proteins, which change from liquid to solid, called coagulation, when cooked or baked. This means that the liquid egg becomes firmer. As heating continues the egg eventually becomes semi-gelled or fully gelled when cooled or refrigerated, giving you the cheesecake’s texture.

Part II coming soon!