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"Da ol' mon wants to thank Pam's Culinary Connection for the following recipes. Thanks, Pam.

Fire Hazard! Please Use Caution With These Recipes.

ALWAYS FRY TURKEYS OUTSIDE AND KEEP CHILDREN AWAY!

Pam's Hints to You:
Make a "long handle holder" to aid in raising and lowering your bird.

Be VERY CAREFUL and SLOWLY lower the turkey into the oil. Immersion causes quite a reaction.

Use a LARGE, DEEP heavy-duty pot that the turkey fits in with plenty of room for your oil.

Before filling the pot with oil, fill it with water and lower the packaged turkey into the pot. This lets you find the level for the oil and avoid overflow. A 40 quart pot filled to 24 quarts is usually about right.

Cooking time is usually 4 minutes per pound with the oil temperature being 350°F. Remember to use ONLY peanut oil.

The more "Cajun Style" you make them the better they taste!

Keep the bird under 15 pounds or the outside will get overdone before the center of the breast and thighs are done.

Note: The oil cost for 1 bird is outrageous. We have used the same oil to do about 5 to 10 birds, which makes it lots less expensive."

Recipe #1
Cajun Style Deep Fried Turkey
4 ounces liquid garlic
4 ounces liquid onion
4 ounces liquid celery
1 tablespoon red pepper
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons Tabasco, or the hot sauce you prefer
1 ounce liquid crab boil, OR--1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning
1 poultry or meat injector
1 DEFROSTED 10 to 12 pound turkey
5 gallons peanut oil

SAUTÉ liquid garlic, liquid onion, liquid celery, red pepper, salt, Tabasco and liquid crab boil or Old Bay Seasoning until salt and pepper are dissolved. FILL the injector and inject the turkey at the breast, wings, drumsticks, thighs and back. ALLOW to marinate for 24 hours in the refrigerator or in an ice chest.

USING a 10 gallon pot for frying, BRING the peanut oil to 350°F and FRY the turkey for 38 to 42 minutes. The turkey should FLOAT to the surface after 35 minutes, and then you should COOK an ADDITIONAL 5 to 7 minutes.

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Recipe #2
Cajun Style Deep Fried Turkey
1 medium size turkey, 12 to 14 pounds
1 propane cooker
1 strainer basket
1 Zatarain's Crab Boil or Trappey's Cajun Shake
1 injector
1 large pot of peanut oil
1 each deep-fry thermometer

REMOVE turkey innards. PLACE turkey on a cookie sheet for drainage. INJECT as many areas of the turkey as possible with 16 ounces of liquid marinade (Zatarain's Crab Boil or Trappey's Cajun Shake). LIBERALLY sprinkle the outside of the turkey with Cajun Shake.

HAVE your peanut oil heated to 350°F. PLAN AHEAD! because it takes time to heat. HANG the deep-fry thermometer over the side of the pot with a bent coat hanger for easy reading of the oil temperature. PLACE the turkey into the strainer basket, and SLOWLY LOWER the basket into the oil with something long enough to keep you a safe distance away (anything from a broom handle to a piece of pipe). BE CAREFUL doing this: IMMERSION CAUSES quite a reaction.

The oil temperature will drop, so INCREASE the flame a bit to bring it slowly back up to 350°F. COOK the turkey 3 1/2 minutes per pound at 350°F. (A 12 pounder will take only 42 minutes to cook.) To remove the turkey, CAREFULLY find the basket handle with a coat hanger, then slip the lifting rod back under the handle to remove the basket. LET the excess oil drip into the pot. It helps if TWO PEOPLE do this, so one person can slide the cookie sheet back under the turkey.

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Recipe #3
Deep Fried Turkey
1 11 to 14 pound whole turkey
2/3 cup Wishbone Italian dressing
1/3 cup Sherry, the real stuff--NOT cooking Sherry
2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 teaspoons lemon pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoon cayenne red pepper
5 gallons peanut oil

MIX all the ingredients well and PLACE in an injection syringe. If it doesn't pass through the needle holes you may have to strain the marinate. INJECT the marinate into all parts of the bird. PLACE the bird in a large plastic bag and allow to disperse throughout the bird for at least 2 hours. TURN the bag and massage the bird from time to time. OPTIONALLY you can make a rub of the dry ingredients and rub over the surface of the bird after the first hour of marinating. PREHEAT the cooking oil in a kettle large enough to hold the entire bird to 350-375°F. TIE the legs of the bird together with wire. It helps hold the bird together and provides a way to lift it in and out of the oil. CAREFULLY place the bird into the oil and fry 3 to 4 minutes per pound. You should pay close/strict attention to cooking time; each cooker has it's own peculiarities. The resulting bird is tender and tasty and very juicy.

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Read Cajun Clark's latest Fortnight Recipe.

"This is good. This is really good. The unusual combination of mustard, onion, cheese and bacon are wonderful compliments to an excellent fish. Why not serve the fish with mashed potatoes?" -- EclecticCooking.com

(Michael's note: I didn't know what plaice was. Here is a definition I found: "Plaice is a popular fish with a good flavour and a fine texture. The white underside fillet can be bought separately and as the skin is very tender, it tends to melt into the flesh during the cooking and can therefore be eaten. Plaice is suitable for grilling, frying, goujons, rolling and stuffing, steaming and poaching.")

Ingredients:

8 plaice fillets
2 Tbsp honey mustard
Salt
Lemon pepper
1 minced onion
5 oz (150 g) mild grated cheese
8 rashers of lean bacon

Accompaniment: Cubed fried potatoes and peas

Directions:

Place the fish fillet on a rasher of bacon. Spread a thin coat of mustard on the fish fillet, season with salt and lemon pepper, 1 teaspoon minced onion and top with grated cheese. Roll up the fish fillet, patting the filling in on the sides. Secure with a tooth pick.

Lightly brush an oven-proof casserole dish and arrange the rolled up fish fillet in it. Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes at 400° F (225° C). Place under the broiler the last 3-4 minutes to brown the bacon.

(Makes 4)

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Read the latest Recipe of the Week.

A new version of MacGourmet for OS X is now available. This free update fixes a bunch of problems in version 1.0.1, including a couple of more or less infrequent crashers, one where the application might quit when clicking on certain recipes if they had certain data entered and another that was happening when items were dragged and dropped between certain lists. A full list of changes can be found here.

The new version of MacGourmet is available here.

I first made this casserole for my wife a few years ago. The recipe has changed slightly since that first preparation but this remains one of our favorite dishes. Since we always have baby carrots on hand as a snack I use those instead of full sized carrots. I use vegetable boullion with a cup of hot water to make the broth. Any shredded cheese you have on hand will work for the topping, we particularly enjoy a Mexican 4 cheese mix.

Ingredients:

1 cup carrots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 cup fresh small mushrooms, quartered
1 14.5oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 15oz can whole kernel corn, cooked and drained
1 cup vegetable broth
½ cup pearl barley
⅓ cup snipped parsley, (optional)
¼ cup bulgur
¼ cup onion, chopped
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese, (2 ounces)

Directions:

1. Mix carrots, mushrooms, beans, corn, barley, parsley, bulgar, onion and garlic salt in a large mixing bowl.

2. Empty into a 2 quart casserole. Pour vegetable broth evenly over contents. Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven about 1 hour or till barley and bulgar are tender, stirring once halfway through baking time.

3. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover; let stand 5 minutes or till cheese melts.

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This is an easy to make and extremely tasty dessert that is perfect for holiday parties.

Ingredients:

1 small package of oreo cookies, crushed
¼ cup margarine, melted
¼ cup creme de menthe
1 7-ounce jar marshmellow cream
½ pint heavy cream, whipped

Directions:

Mix crushed cookies and margarine. Spread 1/2 mixture in a baking dish.

Whip heavy cream until peaks form. Blend in marshmellow and finally creme de menthe.

Spread marshmellow mixture over cookie mixture.

Top with remaining cookie mixture. Freeze overnight.

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"YES, the Holiday Season is just around the corner. NO, it's not too early to be planning which cookies and candies you're going to make. Da ol' mon knows how time flies, especially when you get older than the paving on the dead end road.

So, this Fortnight it's the sweet treats you bake and make. Next Fortnight will be the time for recipes other than turkey. Ya gots da ol' mon's word on it."

Snowball Cookies
1 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 cup chopped pecans
Powdered confectioner's sugar

Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Add water and vanilla. Mix well. Gradually blend in flour, then blend in nuts.
Cover tightly and chill for 4 hours. Roll chilled dough into 1/2 inch balls and place 1/2 inch apart on cookie sheet.

Bake at 325°F for 20 minutes. Cool slightly and roll each cookie in powdered sugar.

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Spritz Cookies
1 1/2 cups butter
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 cups flour

Cream butter and sugar together in medium bowl. Add egg, milk, vanilla and almond extract. Mix well. Add flour and baking powder gradually. Mix well.

Use cookie press to press dough shapes onto cookie sheet. Decorate pressed cookies with sugar sprinkles, dragees, or what-have-you. Bake at 400°F for 8 minutes. Baking time is approximate--it will vary depending on your oven. Do not brown these cookies. There will be only a slight color change when done.

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Cherry Winks
3/4 cups softened butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup finely chopped dates
1/3 cup chopped maraschino cherries
Approximately 15 - 20 maraschino cherries, quartered
1 1/3 cups crushed corn flakes

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt--set aside. Cream butter and sugar, beat until fluffy. Add eggs, beat well. Stir in milk and vanilla extract. Gradually add flour mixture. Blend well. Stir in chopped cherries, dates and walnuts. Shape into 3/4 inch balls, roll in crushed corn flakes, and place 1 inch apart on cookie sheet. Press a cherry quarter into the top of each to make the "wink". 

Bake at 350°F about 10 minutes or until lightly browned.

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Christmas Divinity
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup white corn syrup
1 egg white stiffly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup broken nut meats (optional)
Pinch of salt
Food coloring (optional)

Beat the egg white in a large bowl and set aside. In a saucepan, boil the sugar, water and syrup while stirring gently. The mixture is done at 235 degrees or if it forms a soft ball when a tablespoon full is dropped into cold water. Pour the mixture over the beaten egg white, beating continually. Add vanilla, nuts and a pinch of salt. Add a few drops of red or green food coloring if desired. Beat this mixture until it is almost hard, then drop by the teaspoonful onto waxed paper.

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Read Cajun Clark's latest Fortnight Recipe.

"These meringues are filled with nuts and chocolate. The soft centers in these meringues make this a delicious treat with a cup of espresso coffee or with ice cream or fruit salad and whipped cream." -- EclecticCooking.com

Ingredients:

4 egg whites
1-½ Cups (3 dl) sugar
1 tsp white wine vinegar
5 oz (150 g) hazelnuts (or other nuts)
5 oz (150 g) dark chocolate
3 candied ginger pieces

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 250° F (120° C) With a mixer, beat the egg whites, sugar and white wine vinegar for about 5 minutes until the eggs are very stiff. Melt 2 oz (60 g) of the chocolate and let it cool. Chop the rest of the chocolate into small pieces. Chop the nuts and mince the ginger. Add to the egg whites and fold in. Fold in the melted chocolate, so that you have stripes in the egg whites.

Line a baking tray with wax or baking paper. Take a tablespoon and scoop up a portion of the meringue and place on the baking tray. Bake the meringue for about 40 minutes. Remove, cool and serve. Can be stored in an airtight container or cake tin.

(Makes 12)

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Read the latest Recipe of the Week.

For the busy cook, this recipe takes only minutes to prepare and serve. The red tomatoes add a wonderful color and flavor to a winter meal.

Ingredients:

1 lb ham julienne
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
5 medium tomatoes
2 large cloves of garlic
1 lemon
2 Tbsp olive oil
Freshly chopped coriander, marjoram, oregano, or parsley. (you can also use dried herbs)
Small bunch spring onions

Directions:

In a wok, heat the oil, add the ham pieces and sauté them for 2-3 minutes or until cooked through. Remove the meat, set aside and keep warm.

Cut the tomatoes in half, remove the seeds, and chop coarsely. Mince the garlic. Grate the lemon rind. Trim and cut the spring onions into thin slices. Heat the oil in the wok and quickly stir fry the tomatoes, garlic and lemon peel. Season with salt and pepper and the fresh or dried herbs of your choice. Add the ham and spring onions, stir through, heat and serve.

(Serves 4)

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Read the latest Recipe of the Week.

This is the first in a series of MacGourmet.com exclusive recipes for Asian "Takeout" dishes. This is a series that will hopefully showcase recipes for the best of what is possible in dishes typically found in Asian takeout. There are many levels of Asian takeout quality and until you find some of the great places, you might not have any idea how GOOD this food can really be.

The first main dish in this series is Kung Pao Chicken. There is a local Chinese/Thai takeout place that makes one of the best Kung Pao Chicken dishes I've ever had. I've had this dish at SO many other restaurants, and they usually don't even come close to comparing to that served by East Asia (Powderhouse Square in Somerville, MA). Their dish is spicy and full of flavor, and this recipe attempts to approximate the dish they serve, to good effect I think. This recipe was built from a combination of 4 or 5 recipes for Kung Pao that I was able to find, none of which were exactly what I wanted.

Kung Pao Chicken

Ingredients:

2 Boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
4 Whole Thai peppers, minced
¼ cup Peanuts, roasted
1 teaspoon Fresh ginger, minced
½ Green pepper, cubed
½ Red pepper, cubed
¼ cup Water chestnuts, sliced
¼ cup Mushrooms, sliced
2 Scallions, chopped
Peanut oil

Seasoning:
4 tablespoons Soy sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or Sherry
2 tablespoons Sugar
2 teaspoons Corn starch
1 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoons Sesame oil
1 teaspoon White vinegar

Marinade:
1 ½ tablespoons
Corn starch
1 tablespoon Water
1 tablespoon Soy sauce

Directions:

Mix the chicken, water, cornstarch and soy sauce and marinate for 1/2 hour.

Mix the seasoning sauce and set aside.

Heat a little oil in a wok or large frying pan and stir-fry the chicken until it is cooked. Remove and set aside on paper towels.

Heat a little oil in a wok or large frying pan, stir fry the red and green peppers until they turn slightly black.

Add the fresh ginger and stir fry for about 10 seconds, stirring constantly.

Add the seasoning sauce, stirring until thick.

Add the cooked chicken, stir until thoroughly heated.

Add scallions, chinese or thai peppers and cook for 1 minute.

Turn off the heat, add peanuts, mix well and serve.

Vegetarian Variation:

You can make this dish for vegetarians by simply substituting sauteed or steamed vegetables, or even tofu, for the chicken in this recipe.

(Serves 4)

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Most places are a sure bet to have fried rice, pork fried rice and even chicken fried rice but I've found that it's sometimes hard to get vegetable fried rice. I've also felt that this is a better accompaniment to a chicken dish than pork fried rice is, when it's an option. This is a simple and tasty dish that isn't what some people think of as fried rice. This dish isn't so heavy in soy sauce that it's a dark brown. Instead it's light on the soy, but still has a big flavor. It also has 2 eggs scrambled into the mix, as any good fried rice should. This dish is inspired by my favorite Asian restaurant in San Francisco, Hunan Homes, on Jackson Street. It was created from 2 or 3 various other fried rice recipes I had.

Vegetable Fried Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen mixed peas and carrots
3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups cold cooked white rice
2 tablespoons chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 green onion, sliced

Directions:

Microwave carrots and peas until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Add garlic and stir for about 30 seconds. Add cooked peas and carrots. Remove from heat and transfer mixture to a bowl.

Heat remaining oil in pan over high heat, break rice apart with wet hands and add to pan. Stir fry for 3 to 4 minutes.

Make a well in center of rice and pour in beaten eggs. Stir the eggs until they are scrambled then stir-fry the eggs into the rice until thoroughly blended.

Add soy sauce and chicken broth and stir fry for 3 more minutes. Gently add vegetable mixture, and scallions. Serve hot.

Vegetarian Variation:

You can make this dish for vegetarians by substituting vegetable broth for the chicken broth.

(Serves 4)

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When I reviewed the Senseo single serve coffeemaker, I mentioned the Black & Decker Infuze. Now I love coffee. I'm not addicted to it, I can live without it, but it's one of my favorite things, much like chocolate is. At some point, I realized that the automatic drip I was using just wasn't cutting it. "There had to be a better way to make coffee," I thought. Turns out there was.

There are a variety of ways to make coffee. There's the percolator, the automatic drip, the french press, and vacuum coffee makers.

I don't know who uses percolators, which essentially boil the coffee for a long period of time. Yuk.

Automatic drips aren't bad. Bunn makes a great model for instance, and I have used various models for many years, but they tend to not heat the coffee enough, and the water spends too much time in contact with the grounds, which can lead to higher levels of bitterness. That leaves the French press and vacuum makers.

I really like coffee made in a French press. My only problem with the French press is that I often don't make a full pot. Every French press maker I've used works much better when you make a full pot. There's also the matter of having to somehow heat the water, using a kettle, etc. This just proved too inconvenient for me. At some point, I got turned onto the vacuum makers and that's when I found coffee nirvana.

In case you've never seen a vacuum maker, they brew coffee by using pressure from the heating water in a bottom carafe to draw water up from the carafe into the coffee grounds in an upper chamber where the water is mixed with the coffee grounds. The water and grounds are brewed for a set amount of time, after which the pressure equalizes and the coffee rushes back into the carafe to complete the cycle. This all happens very quickly and when all is said and done, the coffee has been brewed to an optimal temperature and brewed for an optimal amount of time. To me, no coffee tastes fresher than the coffee that comes from a vacuum maker. Subtle flavors come out, and there is no bitterness. I've tried coffee from pretty much every style of maker, and to me the vacuum maker is the best.

There are many brands of vacuum makers, but the Black and Decker Infuze is the "automatic drip of vacuum makers." The Infuze heats the water for you, and is completely automatic. You can even program it to brew a pot in the morning if you want, using the built in timer. Cleanup is relatively easy, but to really clean it can be a pain. The column that draws the water up into the upper chamber gets coffee oil build up that can be difficult to remove properly (TIP: twist a paper towel and pull it though the column to clean it). There are also 5 pieces that need to be disassembled for cleaning, and then reassembled. Not a big deal, but this process gets old fast. Overall though, the Black and Decker Infuze is a great product, and it's held up perfectly in the year or so that it's been in use as my primary, every day coffee maker. I highly recommend it.

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If the Black & Decker VB100 Vacuum Brew 10-Cup Coffeemaker sounds like the coffeemaker for you, order it from Amazon.com and help support MacGourmet.com.

[The Black and Decker has since been discontinued. Please see my write up on a suitable substitute, the Bodum Santos]