Average Jane

Average Jane Plans a Thanksgiving Feast

It's time to appease the algorithm deities by posting a fresh link to my Thanksgiving recipe booklet! It's a convenient, downloadable document that will walk you through the daunting parts of creating the traditional white people Thanksgiving meal, plus it has a couple of recipes for appetizers that everyone might like.

I'll be following it next week, with a couple of little wrinkles. Over the past several years, I'd gotten rather lazy and I'd been catering much of the meal and filling in with homemade rolls, pies, etc. Last year, I made an unfortunate choice of restaurant and our meal was so terrible that I went to the store and made the whole thing over again the next day from scratch.

That broke the spell of catering for me, so this year I'm making the whole shebang myself, including a ridiculously huge turkey that I bought well in advance because I was concerned about rumors of a turkey shortage. Today was the day to take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge to start thawing, which I did this morning.

Also on the menu: stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, my great-aunt's dinner rolls, and a couple of pumpkin pies. My aunt is bringing roasted sweet potatoes from her garden and I'm considering making 50/50 pumpkin/sweet potato pies this year to jazz things up a bit. I'll report back.

For an appetizer, I'll make the pomegranate salsa recipe from the booklet. Even if you're pretty confident about getting dinner on the table according to a strict schedule, it never hurts to have a little snack available just in case.

This weekend, I'll get my grocery shopping out of the way, then clean my house in fits and starts until it feels presentable. I'm only having three guests, five diners in total, so I really only need to worry about the living room, kitchen and bathrooms. We can close the other doors. Yes, I want my house to be clean but I also have a library book due on the 22nd. Priorities, you know.

The dog is guaranteed to be a pain in the ass the whole time because she is 100% pure chihuahua (did I ever mention that I got her DNA tested? Nothing but chihuahuas all the way down.) and she has zero trust in our judgment when it comes to letting evil strangers into the house. She will bark the whole time except when people are sitting quietly, and it will be annoying to all. But after nearly three years of houseguest-free existence, she's less socialized than ever, so that's just how it goes.

If I don't post again before the holiday, I hope you enjoy yourselves. If my recipes helped you out, let me know!

Average Jane Makes Apple Coffee Cake

I love having some kind of sweet baked good with my coffee. Since I work from home now, I’ve developed a repertoire of muffins, scones and cakes that I can whip up in the morning and enjoy all week. One of them is a recipe I found online and immediately started adjusting to my own preferences. I cover this cake with foil and the apples help make it more moist over time.

Apple Pecan Coffee Cake

• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking spice or cake spice blend (I use Penzey’s)
• 1 large apple, peeled and chopped
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup sour cream

Topping

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. melted butter
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Glaze

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp. milk
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Sift the dry ingredients together in a large bowl, add apple pieces, and toss to mix. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla extract, vegetable oil and sour cream. Add to the dry ingredients and mix just until blended. Spread into a greased 8-inch square pan. In a small bowl, mix the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the top of the cake batter. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick poked into the center comes out clean. Place on a cooling rack after removing from oven. Mix glaze ingredients and drizzle over the top of the cake once it’s cool. 

Average Jane Makes Coleslaw

I've been a Kansas Citian my entire life - and the fact that I technically live in a Kansas City suburb now doesn't change that.

One of the staples of my formative years was the creamy coleslaw from Jack Stack and similar local barbecue restaurants. This is not at all a healthy veggie side dish, but it's delicious, so I've been working on trying to make a reasonable facsimile at home.

I found this recipe on Pinterest that appears to be the real deal. However, it turns out to be too sweet for my taste and the dressing preparation seems a little off, so I've been tinkering with it a bit. I think I've finally landed on a version that seems right to me.

Creamy Coleslaw, Kansas City BBQ Style

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup of sugar
2 tsp. celery seed
1 tbsp. minced onion
1/4 cup carrot, peeled and grated
1 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing
2 quarts (1.5 lbs.) shredded or finely chopped green cabbage

For the dressing, combine sugar, apple cider vinegar and onion in a blender or food processor and run for 20 seconds or until sugar is no longer gritty. Add Miracle Whip and process for another 20 seconds. Add celery seed and blend for a couple of seconds until mixed in. Put the cabbage and carrot in a large bowl and mix in dressing until vegetables are thoroughly coated. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

This makes quite a bit (although I would dispute the "serves 10-12" notation on the original recipe). For the two of us, I've been halving the recipe with good success. 

Average Jane Makes Bean Dip

With the Kansas City team in the playoffs, naturally I need to make some football-watching snacks, regardless of whether I'm watching the game myself. Thus, I made a crockpot full of Rancho Gordo cranberry beans yesterday so we can have bean dip. Here's the recipe, which actually came from my sister.

Delicious Bean Dip

2 cans pinto beans or similar (If starting with dried beans, use 1 cup and cook in advance.)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup green or red bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 cloves fresh garlic, pressed or minced
2 tblsp. Worcestershire sauce
4-5 dashes Tabasco sauce
2 tblsp. ketchup
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional, but recommended)
1/3 cup cooking sherry or wine (optional)

Heat oil in skillet on medium heat and add onion, pepper and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are soft. Drain beans and add to pan along with the Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, cayenne and ketchup. Cook for about 15 minutes, then add sherry or wine and continue cooking until re-thickened (about 30 minutes). Stirring should produce the consistency of refried beans. If you want them smoother, allow the beans to cool somewhat and use a blender or food processor. Serve with tortilla chips. 

Average Jane Makes American Food

Every month, some friends of mine host a game night and there's always a theme for the potluck foods we bring. Today the theme was "American As Apple Pie," so I knew immediately that I would be making and bringing that American classic that no one from another country would touch with a ten-metre pole: Tater Tot Casserole.

I did not grow up with tater tot casserole, although I was raised on plenty of dishes that called for canned soups. My first exposure to it was at a job where where my co-workers and I took turns bringing in meals. One evening a co-worker introduced me to the glorious concoction of consumer packaged goods that is tater tot casserole. She gave me her recipe and the rest is history.

Without further ado, here's how to make one for yourself.

Tater Tot Casserole

2 lbs. ground beef
1/2 onion, diced
1 can cream of celery soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
12 oz. frozen corn
32 oz. frozen tater tots
16 oz. American cheese slices
Garlic powder and black pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400°F. Brown ground beef in a large skillet, add diced onion and cook until onion is translucent. Meanwhile, put frozen corn in a small saucepan with enough water to cover and heat until water is boiling. Drain and add to cooked ground beef. Mix in both cans of soup and any desired spices.

Spread ground beef mixture into a large casserole dish (13" x 9" or similar). Top with cheese slices, then arrange tater tots on top to cover.

Bake for 30 minutes or until tater tots are browned on top.

Average Jane Takes A Quiz

I found this random food preferences quiz on Facebook and I figured it would be good for a Monday post on a day when I really need to get back to work after dinner. Also, there's no information here that's going to be useful for nefarious purposes, so I might as well answer.

Miracle Whip - For something like a noodle salad, sure. 

Pickles - Yes! Don't let them touch my sandwich, but I'm up for any type of pickles, including pickled beets.

Cilantro - Yes, please.

Black Jelly Beans - I mean, they're not my favorite, but I'll eat some.

Pineapple Pizza - Meh. Pizza doesn't need fruit on it.

Sardines - Nope.

Oysters - Nope.

Sushi - Nope. I tried some kind of vegetarian sushi once, but seaweed still tastes fishy and gross, so I hated it.

Candy Corn - Yes! Mix it with some salted peanuts and it's better still.

Vienna Sausages - No.

Brussels Sprouts - Absolutely yes! I gave myself a stomach ache eating crispy fried Brussels sprouts a couple of weeks ago.

Liver - Stop asking me about gross meat things.

Circus Peanuts - Yes! They taste like fake banana, which is one of my favorite fruit candy flavors.

Bologna - Again, no.

Black Olives - I'll take them on pizza.

Green Olives - Yes, I like them by themselves or in dirty martinis.

Blue Cheese - Maytag blue cheese melted over potato chips fresh from the fryer. Yum!

Fruitcake - Not a fan. I'd rather have rum cake.

SPAM - {Shakes head no.}

Cabbage - I love cabbage in just about any form.

Gizzards - I think I've made my feelings about nasty meaty things pretty clear.

Potato Salad - I make a very nice potato salad and that's my favorite.

Eggnog - Yuck.

Black coffee - Almost exclusively, and I'm a snob about it.

Anchovies - {Makes disgusted face.}

Grits - Yes! 

Sauerkraut - Delicious and good for your gut microbiome.

Average Jane Helps You Plan Thanksgiving Dinner

There's something about the prospect of making Thanksgiving dinner that freaks out even experienced cooks. A lot of it is the giant turkey that most families only have once a year. What's the correct oven temperature? How long does it cook? Heck, I make baked potatoes all the time and I still have to look up the temperature and time on those, so I get why no one ever remembers how to bake a turkey.

Then there are the other decisions like what side dishes you should make and how you can get your pumpkin pie to have actual flavor.

To assist you with many of these burning questions (no pun intended...maybe), might I recommend Average Jane's Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes.

It's a free PDF of all of my classic family recipes for Thanksgiving from appetizers to dessert, plus a few wildcards to make things more interesting.

If I needed to make a big family Thanksgiving dinner, these are exactly the recipes I'd use.

These days, I generally have no more than a half-dozen people over for Thanksgiving dinner, so I do an abbreviated version that involves ordering the turkey, potatoes, gravy, dressing, rolls and green bean casserole from the catering department of my local grocery store. That way, I can concentrate on making my house presentable and I only have to whip up a couple of side dishes and pies before it's time to heat up the pre-made parts of the dinner.

I like the compromise because it cuts out some of the messier and more labor-intensive portions of the meal, while still allowing for ample leftovers. Then I have more time for touches like homemade whipped cream for the pie.

What's your plan for Thanksgiving this year? Do any of my recipes sound like something you'd be interested in trying?

Average Jane Tries An Unusual Beer

Today I tried a Beet Weiss from Crane Brewing Company. I'll start by saying that I love beets (or beetroot, as my U.K. friends call it). I was actually planning on just having Cuento Coffee at the brewery, but one of my friends bought a flight and got me the beet beer because she knew I was a fan.

It was great!

The beer was light and tart and tasted exactly like pickled beets. The only thing that would have made it taste more like the pickled beets I make would have been the addition of some cloves. Hint, hint, Crane Brewing.

That said, it's obviously only for people who love the taste of beets. If you're a beet hater, just move along.

I only had the small taster glass today, but I would definitely drink it again. It was so novel and interesting that I found myself thinking about it later. Let me know if you want to go with me and try it!

Average Jane Cooks Beans

Last year I became aware that a friend of mine had joined the Rancho Gordo Bean Club. It's a quarterly shipment of heirloom beans and certain other grains. I didn't think too much about it at first because although I know how to cook dried beans, I'd gradually switched to canned ones over the past couple of decades for the sake of convenience.

Then my friend began making wonderful bean dishes for our various get-togethers and eventually I decided to order a bag of Royal Corona beans to be shipped with one of her orders. 

Royal Coronas are enormous, but with a delightful, creamy texture. The first time I had them, they were served with a basic vinaigrette. They were good that way, but I immediately thought of the Blue Apron recipe for Brown Butter and Thyme Gnocchi with maitake mushrooms and fresh corn. I figured that subbing the beans for gnocchi would be really good. I was 100% correct.

I wasn't quite sold on the bean club yet, but a bag of pinto beans gently tipped me over the edge. My friend gave me one of her extra bags of them and I made almost a week's worth meals including chili, refried beans and even a bowl of the just-cooked beans that I ate as soup as soon as they were finished cooking. In fact, there's still one more serving in my freezer.

The bean club is actually limited to a certain number of people, so I had to wait for notification that there was a spot available. I joined as soon as I got the chance and my first bean club shipment arrived this past Friday afternoon.

That worked out perfectly because I needed to bring a side dish for a taco dinner Saturday night. I cooked a pound of midnight black beans with veggie broth, onion, garlic and spices in the crock pot all day yesterday while I was on the Caffeine Crawl. They were a big hit. I have about half of them left and I'll be eating them for lunches next week with rice and vegetables.

The crock pot works pretty well for me when I don't want to babysit beans cooking on the stovetop for hours, but I'll be keeping an eye out for a bean pot I can use to bake them in the oven. I don't feel compelled to jump on the pressure cooker bandwagon, but of course that would be an option for making them much faster.

So here's where I ask if you have any bean recipes you love. I'm already planning on trying the Smitten Kitchen Pizza Beans recipe. Any other great ones I should try?

Note: Not a sponsored post. I just really like this company and their products!

Photo Credit: Marco Verch, CC BY-NC 2.0

Average Jane's Macaroni & Cheese Recipe

Yesterday was the second time I’ve made mac and cheese in December using a recipe that I’ve Frankensteined together from a real recipe and suggestions from others, so I figured it was about time I wrote it down. I will tell you that it’s been a huge hit with large groups both times I’ve made it, so it seems pretty solid.

Average Jane’s Macaroni & Cheese

1 lb. elbow macaroni noodles, cooked and drained
8 oz. sharp cheddar, grated
8 oz. smoked gouda, grated
4 oz. havarti, grated
1/4 cup parmesan, freshly grated
8 oz. block of Velveeta
8 oz. heavy cream
2 cups water
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup corn starch 
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. paprika
Bread crumbs for topping

To make the sauce, mix together the corn starch, salt and pepper in a large saucepan and add heavy cream, water, butter and sour cream. Stir over medium heat until butter melts and mixture begins to thicken. Pull off chunks of the Velveeta and add to the sauce, stirring until they melt. When the mixture begins to bubble slightly, start adding the grated cheese. Stir until the cheese is thoroughly incorporated and the sauce is smooth. Mix sauce with noodles and put in a greased or buttered 9x13" or larger casserole dish. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until bubbly throughout. 

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So that’s the extravaganza of dairy I’ve cobbled together. It’s ridiculous and you don’t want to think too hard about the nutritional content, but everyone I’ve served it to has liked it. I particularly enjoy the flavor that the smoked gouda adds. If you give it a try, let me know! I’ll plan to come back and add a photo the next time I make it. I forgot to get one yesterday during all of the holiday chaos.