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Asparagus Caesar Salad

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2016.04.26@17.29.48._K3_7052Tender green spears of asparagus are popping up out of the ground all around Oregon!  Asparagus can be grilled, steamed or just eaten raw fresh from the garden.  With fresh lettuce I bought with the asparagus from the market I wanted to make a quick and simple salad combining the two.  Caesar salad came to mind and instead of serving with croutons I made the asparagus the crouton of the salad.  In less than 20 minutes you will have a side salad with dinner or a meal all by itself.  When buying asparagus look for firm stems, the tips are tight with moist and plump stems.

Asparagus Caesar Salad2016.04.26@17.39.02._K3_70592016.04.26@17.41.56._K3_70612016.04.26@17.46.10._K3_7077
12 asparagus spears, washed & ends trimmed off
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons panko crumbs
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 head Romaine lettuce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Homemade Caesar dressing, recipe below

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a 11×7-inch baking dish place the asparagus spears and drizzle with the olive oil.  Roll the asparagus in the olive oil to cover.  Sprinkle with the salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese.  In small bowl mix the panko bread crumbs with the butter and sprinkle over the asparagus.  Bake uncovered for 10 minutes.

Cut end off the romaine lettuce and separate the leaves (wash as needed) and lay on 4 plates.  If you prefer smaller pieces cut lettuce before placing on plates.  Lay cooked asparagus on top and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese.  Drizzle with the homemade Caesar dressing and serve.  Serves 4.

Homemade Caesar Dressing2016.04.26@17.42.33._K3_7065
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons water
salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste

In the bowl of a food processor or blender, add all ingredients except the olive oil, parmesan cheese, water, and salt and pepper. Process to combine.
While blending, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Add the parmesan cheese, and blend until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and thin with water to desired consistency.
Keep dressing refrigerated in a sealed container until ready to use. Use within several days of making.

2016.04.26@18.18.17._K3_7089

Roasted Turkey with Homemade Cracker Stuffing

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Turkey in blue roasting panThe roasted golden bird, the Turkey is the center piece of any Thanksgiving table.  But in my family the favorite dish is my family’s cracker stuffing passed down from my mom from my grandmother and great grandmother.  For four generations and probably longer it has been a holiday tradition making cracker stuffing in my family.  My great grandmother comes for the town of Vejvanov, West Bohemia, Czech Republic a small city south west of Prague.  I wanted to learn more about the history of cracker stuffing and read several Bohemian cookbooks and searched the internet.  I found that it is called (Nádivkou) or Bohemian Cracker Stuffing. Crackers seemed to be an easy substitute for stale bread or bread crumbs.  All the recipes I found online seem to be just a little different than mine, with an extra ingredient or seasoning but we like our basic one made with the recipe below.  It was even featured on the Food Network’s kitchen website when I entered the recipe in a Stuffing Cook-off contest.

Cracker StuffingCrackers in a Ninja food processorCracker, onions and celery in vintage bowlBowl of cracker stuffing with eggsCracker stuffing in vintage bowl
4 sleeves saltine crackers
2 stalks celery
1 cup butter
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
12-14 pound Turkey
4 stalks celery
6 carrots, peeled
2 can chicken broth
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
To make my cracker stuffing I used my Ninja food processor attachment this year to crush my crackers and chop the celery, it made my crackers more consistent in size.  In the bowl of the Ninja food processor place one sleeve of crackers and pulse three times.   That’s all it takes to make the perfect size cracker for this recipe.  Empty crackers from the Ninja into a large bowl and repeat with the remaining crackers.  In the same food processor bowl add the celery and pulse 8 times then add the celery to the crackers in the bowl.  If you do not have a Ninja (add it to your wish list) you can crush the crackers by hand.  With the crackers still in their sleeves, crush them with your hands (easier to crush this way, and it keeps your hands cleaner) then empty the sleeves into a large bowl. Chop celery into small pieces and add to the crackers.  In a frying pan, saute the butter, onion and black pepper until the onions are tender, about 5 minutes. No need to add salt since you are using saltine crackers.  Add cooked onions  to the crackers and mix well. Add eggs and mix well. Add milk a little at a time (you might not use all of the milk), until the cracker mix is moistened. Cracker mix should form a ball which you can hold in your hand. When stuffing a turkey with cracker stuffing it does not expand, so you want to pack it in tight. With traditional bread stuffing you would pack it in the turkey loosely.  When the turkey is ready, you pull out the cracker stuffing in one big chunk and slice it. Also great on a turkey sandwich the next day!
To prepare the turkey remove from packaging.  Remove the neck (Do not worry it has been already cut off and is inside the turkey cavity).  On the back end of the turkey there will be a bag of giblets including the heart, gizzard and liver.  It may not sound good but do NOT throw away the neck and the giblets it will make a great turkey stock so just place all together in a bag and refrigerate.  I will share in a later post the best turkey stock recipe using these parts and the carcass of the turkey after you have carved off all the meat.  Rinse turkey under cold water and pat dry with paper towel.  In your roasting pan add 4 stalks of celery and 6 carrots that have been cut up and toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. They will also be used later in making the turkey stock.  Carrots and celery in roasting panPlace turkey on top of carrots and celery.  Stuff the cavity of the turkey with the cracker stuffing and remember to pack it in tight.  Do not forgot there is room in the back of the turkey where the giblets were so pack some stuffing in there as well.  There is no need to tie the legs together just let the stuffing flow out the cavity.  Rub some olive oil on the turkey and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  This will help give your turkey a nice golden brown color and add flavor to the skin.   Add two cans of chicken stock to the pan and cover with a nice tall lid.*  Place in a preheated 325 degree oven and since we stuffed the turkey it will take 4 to 4 1/2 hours to cook.  The turkey is done when the thigh meat reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.Cracker stuffing in vintage bowl
* I have found over the years that if you have a tall lid on your turkey when it is cooking the air can circulate and your turkey will come out a golden brown without having to remove the lid the last 30 minutes to brown it.  You may choose to bast the turkey once an hour with the juices from the bottom of the pan.  I seem to get so busy I never remember and it bastes itself just fine with the tall roasting pan I use.
Do not forget after Thanksgiving dinner is over, save anything left in the pan, the turkey bones, pieces, carrots, celery, juice and bits left in the roasting pan.  Place in a container and get ready to make some turkey broth to use in some other great dishes like turkey chili, turkey wild rice soup, turkey pot pie or in place of chicken broth in any of your favorite recipes.
Roasted turkey in blue roasting pan

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Recipe Master: Carrie Trax Editor: John Trax
Photographer: John Trax

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