Mashed Potatoes With Lavender and Honey

Mashed Potatoes With Lavender and Honey

The beauty of mashed potatoes is you can add almost any flavor to them to create a different spin on the classic recipe.  Lavender is one of my favorite scents and I believe I got this idea from an aromatherapy book about 10 years ago.  I haven’t made these in a long time.  I was reminded how good they are by a blogger on Twitter who mentioned having something similar in France.

Lavender can be strong, so you should experiment with the quantity so they aren’t more potent than you’d like.  Other variations could include Olive Oil, Herbs de Provence and baked or roasted apples or pears.  Just play around and have fun with trying something new while making this classic side dish.

Ingredients:

– 10 lbs of mealy potatoes (Yukon Gold or Russets)
– Culinary lavender (Provence variety works well)
– 1 stick butter (or more if needed)
– 1/2 cup – heavy cream, heated lightly over low heat (or more if needed)
– Honey (couple of teaspoons)

Cut potatoes into quarters and be sure to leave the skin on. Boil potatoes in salted water (sea salt is best) for approximately 20 minutes or until soft.  Don’t boil too long or they will get watery.  Drain in a colander and then return them to the pan and lightly shake the potatoes over low heat until they are dry.  Crush the lavender in your fingers – it’s better than using a spice mill.  

In a mixing bowl combine boiled potatoes, butter and lavender. Whip using a hand mixer or KitchenAid (no blenders!) After potatoes are well blended, begin adding heated heavy cream one tablespoon at time to get desired consistency.  Add small amount of honey to taste. Blend using a hand mixer or KitchenAid.  I like them firm but whipped.  Add more cream during whipping to get desired consistency.  It’s best if you serve them pipping hot as soon as they are done.  The longer they sit, the less they lose that initial freshly made flavor.

Read Full Post »

Carter’s Thanksgiving Turkey Brine

Carter’s Turkey Brine

Submitted by: Carter Snead

It’s been said by some that Carter’s Thanksgiving turkey is the best they’ve ever had.  I asked him to share his technique to brine the turkey. I’m so glad I did!  On Thanksgiving, I followed his recipe and it was the best turkey I’ve ever made.  When we were carving it, juice was literally squirting at us (even from the breast.)

Brining is the process of soaking the bird in a salt/broth or water mixture in order to add flavor and moisture.  Be sure to start with a fresh, organically raised free-range turkey….There are hundreds of variations of brine recipes to accomplish different levels of flavor (savory, sweet, smoky etc).  This is Carter’s own recipe, in his own words:

Laura, to brine the turkey make the brine using 1 gallon of water with 1 cup of sugar, 1 cup kosher salt and 3 tablespoons of cracked black pepper. If you want an herby flavor you can add a bunch of fresh thyme and fresh sage to this mixture – I like it plain and don’t use the herbs. I use a large plastic bag, but you can also use a deep casserole if you have one. soak the turkey in the brine for 24 hours. if it is not immersed you can make another gallon or turn it frequently. should keep it in the fridge, but I usually put it in a cold room that is close to outside temp overnight since this time of year here it is 20-30 degrees outside.

The other trick to making a good turkey is to use a maple syrup/butter basting mixture. basically, you melt 1/4 pound of butter in 1/2 cup maple syrup over a low to med. heat. once the turkey has been in the oven for 10 min or so, long enough to warm it up, pour the maple syrup/butter over it and then baste it every 20 min.

Note from Laura:

Last year my husband and I purchased a “Big Green Egg” slow cooker.  For any kind of smoking, grilling or roasting – this large egg shaped outdoor grill is second to none.  The egg is made of a high tech ceramic designed after the ceramic ovens people have been using in the Orient for thousands of years.  The ceramic walls keeps all the moisture in during the grilling or smoking process.  Gone are the days of dry turkey on Thanksgiving!  The design also allows for terrific temperature control over long periods of time – just what you need for exceptional smoking.  Aside from that great smoke flavor, meats are incredibly juicy and tender.   This year I will be cooking a 20 pound turkey on my Big Green Egg.  For more information about them, see the link in the Kitchen Gear section or click here… http://www.biggreenegg.com/index.html

Happy Thanksgiving!

Read Full Post »