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Welcome to Spike's & Jamie's "Spike’s Good Eatin’ Recipe Collection Archives"!!  Here we store all the back issues of the original "Spike’s Good Eatin’ Recipe Collection" and of the "Spike’s Jewish Good Eatin’ Recipe Collection". These newsletters were written by Spike (Jann McCormick) and published by Jamie from 2000 until Spike's death in 2008.  Spike loved to cook and share her cooking with those she loved.  Sharing her recipes was the next best thing.

[Spike’s Good Eatin’ Recipe Collection]   [Spike’s Jewish Good Eatin’ Recipes] 

November 20, 2006
from: Spike's and Jamie's Recipe Collection
http://www.spike-jamie.com

Many of these recipes have not yet been added to the recipe web site, so you are getting a "sneak peek" of future additions. We hope you enjoy these recipes. Spike's comments are in []Brackets[].

Shalom, from

Spike the Grate & Jamie the Webmistress

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So Thanksgiving is coming this week. Some of us will have guests; some will be guests; some prefer to have a quiet dinner at home. In any case, a do-it-yourself deli tray would be nice. Here’s a table that will suggest how much of each type of item you’ll need for this. I have assumed that the number of guests will include the host and hostess.

How Much Food?
Here’s a guide that should help make sure your deli tray has enough to go around:
 

 
Here are some suggestions for making this delightful prelude:

Select items that will give a variety of colors, textures (soft and crunchy) and flavors (sour, salty, savory, sweet, spicy or subtle). Make a nice presentation that requires no last-minute fussing.

Allow cheese balls, dips and spreads that contain cream cheese to stand at room temperature 15 minutes before serving for easier spreading and more flavor.

Place dips in colorful edible bowls such as red or green cabbage shells or cored sweet red, yellow or green peppers. Fruit dips can be spooned into melon, orange or grapefruit shells. Scallop the cut edges for fun.

Tenderize firm vegetable dippers such as broccoli, green beans and cauliflower by blanching them in boiling water for a minute or two to cook partially. They should still remain crisp. After blanching, immediately plunge the vegetables in ice water to stop the cooking.

Drain well before serving.

Add splashes of color by garnishing platters with sprigs of freshly picked herbs, lemon wedges, grape clusters, fresh berries or small hot peppers. For a lighter feel, decorate with citrus peel curls, fresh chives or edible flowers.

Try radishes, sweet red pepper strips, sugar snap peas and cherry tomatoes in addition to your usual vegetable dippers.

Prepare the trays ahead of serving time but make sure to store them in the refrigerator and wrap them tightly with foil or plastic wrap.

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[] I wasn’t gonna do it, but have decided to do it anyway. Here’s my recipe for turkey and dressing.: []

SPIKE’S FAMOUS TURKEY, DRESSING, AND GRAVY

The day before cooking the turkey, prepare dressing as follows:

Boil giblets and neck (not the liver) with one cut-up carrot, one sliced onion, and some cut-up celery tops. Simmer for two hours. Strain and set aside. Toss out the used veggies, the giblets, and the neck.

Brown 1 1/2 lb ground round. When that has cooked awhile, add:
2 cups finely-chopped onion,
2 cups finely-chopped celery. Cook a bit and allow to cool.

When giblets and veggies have been strained, add to the meat mixture:

2 cups giblet liquid (save the rest for gravy)
2 well-beaten eggs (do not add cold eggs to hot stuff – add a little hot stuff to the eggs first, then add it back into the pot)
2 Tbsp salt (yes, tablespoons!)
1/4 tsp pepper
2 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning

Put 1 pkg unseasoned bread cubes into a 6-qt pot or bowl. Gradually add meat mixture, stirring after each addition. Refrigerate until time to start cooking the turkey.

DO NOT PUT THE DRESSING INTO THE TURKEY UNTIL JUST BEFORE YOU COOK THE TURKEY.

Place turkey on 2 sheets of 18" heavy duty foil forming a +, and brush with melted butter or shortening. Pad drumsticks and wing tips with small folded pieces of foil so they won't puncture the outer wrap. Put dressing into the turkey’s cavities. Put the remaining dressing into a baking dish sprayed with baking spray. Bring lengthwise foil up over turkey, overlapping three to four inches at breast. Press down smoothly over legs and neck. Bring second foil up over the width of the turkey, with another fold-over at the breast. Make sure that the bottom layer of foil is folded up so as to form a cachement for the turkey's liquids.


In addition to the times listed below, add 30 minutes for heavy stuffed turkeys over 10 lbs. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, turn back the foil so as to brown the turkey. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. (Yes, that is correct.)

 

I have been doing turkeys like this for almost ever, and have never had a failure – either raw, burned, or dry. If you are preparing a frozen turkey, be sure that it is thoroughly thawed before cooking. This applies regardless of what cooking method you use.

About 30 minutes before you plan to take the turkey out of the oven, put a lid on your baking dish with the dressing in it and stick it in the oven. At the end of the cooking, just mix the dressing from the baking dish into a large serving bowl with the dressing removed from the turkey.

When the turkey is done, pour the liquid off into a large saucepan. Add the retained stock (from simmering the giblets and veggies), toss in some ice cubes to get rid of some of the fat, fish out the fat-laden cubes, and bring your stock to the boil. Put about a cup of cold water and 1/2 cup flour into a jar and shake it. Pouring through a strainer, add to the boiling liquids in the sauce pan, and start stirring. Cook and stir until thickened. You may need to add more flour/water to thicken a large amount of gravy. You may want to add a little Kitchen Bouquet.

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[] Almost everybody serves that sweet potato “candy”. Not I. Sweet potatoes are great without all that sugar and marshmallow stuff. I peel them, slice them, simmer them, and add butter (margarine if you keep kosher). If you want to be fancy, cut up an orange, an apple, drain some crushed pineapple, and add that to them. Heat it all before serving.

This may be a good time to remind you that those bright orange things are not yams. Yams cannot be grown north of the equator, and they don’t look or taste anything at all like sweet potatoes. There are many varieties of sweet potatoes, and the favorite one for holiday meals is Red Garnet. Cooked and mashed, they also make an excellent pie – just use the same stuff you add to cooked and mashed pumpkin and you’ll have a lovely pie. []

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When we have mashed potatoes, we like to put about 1/2 cup half and half, plus 1/2 stick butter into the microwave and heat so that the butter melts. Then add that to the cooked potatoes before sticking your mixer or potato masher in there. They are rich and lovely. If you keep kosher, just add 1/2 stick margarine and a little turkey stock or broth.

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[] Oh-heck…I’ll go all the way. Here’s my grandmother’s fruit salad. It is far more fun than that hideous green bean casserole that just sits there and rots. []

TWENTY-FOUR HOUR FRUIT SALAD
Makes 8 side-dish servings

3 slightly beaten egg yolks
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
1 20-ounce can pineapple chunks packed in juice
2 oranges, peeled, sectioned and drained
1 cup seedless grapes, halved
1 cup or so EACH of any fresh fruits (diced) and berries
available.
1/2 cup whipping cream

Drain pineapple, reserving 1/4 cup juice.

For custard, in a small saucepan, combine reserved pineapple juice, egg yolks, sugar and butter or margarine.

Cook and stir over low heat about 6 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly and coats a metal spoon. Cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine pineapple, marshmallows, oranges, grapes and all fresh fruits and berries.

Whip cream till soft peaks form. Fold into custard. Pour custard mixture over fruit and mix gently. Transfer to a serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate 4 to 24 hours. Stir gently before serving.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. While giving thanks for our blessings, please pray for peace.

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Shalom, from Spike the Grate and Jamie the Webmistress.

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