#TurkeyHack! Okay, you roasted the beautiful bird, enjoyed all the trimmings, and stuffed yourself silly. Now what do you do with the leftover turkey? Don’t just leave it on the counter while you start playing games or watching a game on TV.

Get ready to do a #TurkeyHack Turkey Stock!
First things first: remove all the meat from the turkey. Slice up the breast and use for sandwiches – you know that you’ll want one later! Save the dark meat for soup and other yummy dishes, which we will get to in a minute. And make sure to remove any string, from the bird or leg ties – you don’t need those anymore!

Next, whack and/or break up the turkey carcass; yes, use your hands! Put it all in a big pot, and cover with water (if you have them, add in big chunks of onion, celery tops and carrots). Now put the whole thing on the stove and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 2 hours (make sure to set a timer!) while you enjoy some post-dinner fun.

Now, strain out the solids reserving the delicious turkey stock. Put stock back in the pot and reduce by half on a low simmer. (You need about 5 cups for the gravy recipe – and if your short stretch it out with a little chicken broth).

When it’s reduced and tasty delicious, cool and then refrigerate for soup. Or make a big pot of gravy using my #TurkeyHack Gravy Simple Recipe for leftovers or open-faced hot turkey sandwiches. Yum! -Kathy

#TurkeyHack Simple Gravy
Makes about 5 cups

6 Tbsps. butter
2 Tbsp minced onion AND/OR 1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup flour
5 cups homemade turkey stock (see above for method using your leftover turkey carcass)
1 tsp. salt
pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large, heavy saucepan. Add the onions (and mushrooms if using) and sauté over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir vigorously until combined and smooth. Cook for about 1 minute. Add the stock all at once and whisk vigorously so as to eliminate any lumps. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the gravy is nicely thickened. Season with salt and white pepper.

Recipe by Kathy Casey Food Studios®. – www.KathyCasey.com

‘Tis the season once again where the Food Studios elves will be busy chopping nuts and soaking loads of fruit in bourbon … to make our annual holiday-inspired “Over 21” Real Fruit Cake made with Maker’s Mark!

These REAL fruit cakes are full of Maker’s Mark-soaked dried fruits, including apricots, cranberries, tart cherries and golden raisins as well as loads of nuts from toasted hazelnuts to rich pecans – all bound with my signature spiced batter. Baked then brushed hot out of the oven with a Maker’s Mark bourbon- brown sugar glaze.

Who’s ready for a slice of “Over 21” Real Fruit Cakes made with Maker’s Mark?

“This is not your grandma’s fruitcake and has over the years now gained a cult following. Chock full of Maker’s Mark bourbon-soaked real fruits and toasted nuts it’s sure to convert any fruitcake naysayers. It’s hard not to eat the whole thing!” commented Kathy Casey.

• Starting November 23rd Real Fruit Cakes can be picked up at Kathy Casey Food Studios,
Monday thru Friday, 9:00am – 5:00pm.

• Order from our website starting November 23rd while supplies last.

• Our festive loaves are priced at $11.95 this holiday season – supplies are limited, as they sell out fast!

Watch our YouTube video to see deliciousness in the making!

Kathy Casey Food Studios is located at 5130 Ballard Ave. NW and is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm. (We suggest calling ahead to be sure that cakes are available). During Food Studios hours, there is available parking in the back lot. For more information, contact: call (206) 784-7840, email dishing@kathycasey.com or check out our website www.kathycasey.com.

Often the trick to a d’lish dish is the sauce, but sometimes making one can be a bit daunting.

Seattle author Susan Volland’s new book Mastering Sauces: The Home Cook’s Guide to New Techniques for Fresh Flavors will help take the mystery out of making a great sauce. So you can easily splash, slather, drizzle or douse!

From basic recipes for stock (the building block of sauces) to creative and unique takes on classic recipes, this book has sauces covered from A to Z.

From quick and easy Stir-Together Peanut Butter-Hoisin Dipping Sauce to her recipe for a Vegan Corn “Hollandaise” – there are a lot of ideas to finish off your favorite dish.

Here are some of my favorite tips from her book:

Susan is an amazing chef and has wanted to write this book for years. It is one of the most comprehensive sauce books of all times and destined to become an eternal classic. Her recipes are always well written and precision tested.

So crack open a copy of Mastering Sauces and get saucy!

P.S. – And It’s never too early to think about holiday gifts for your favorite foodie. –Kathy

Stir-Together Peanut Butter-Hoisin Dipping Sauce
Susan says: “This sauce is nutty, sweet, and slightly exotic, and, it can be whipped up in less time than the quick-cooking dishes I like to dunk in it: grilled chicken skewers, Vietnamese spring rolls, or pot stickers. Double or triple the recipe, and you can use it to simmer chicken or as a sauce for chewy stir-fried noodles. It keeps well.”

Yield: 1/2 cup

1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup water, coconut water, or Really Good Chicken Stock
2 Tbsp. all-natural peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
1 Tbsp. fish sauce (or substitute 2 tsp. light soy sauce or tamari)
2 tsp. sambal oelek or Sriracha, or to taste
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice, Tamarind Water, or rice vinegar

Whisk together all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve the sauce at room temperature or lightly warmed.

If storing, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Recipe from Susan Volland’s Mastering Sauces: The Home Cook’s Guide to New Techniques for Fresh Flavors, W. W. Norton & Co.

Vegan Corn “Hollandaise”
Susan says: “The friends and I have introduced this sauce to—even die-hard carnivores and butter lovers—claim to prefer this vegan version to classic hollandaise. The creamy yellow sauce mimics the texture of hollandaise without relying on eggs and butter. It is not as cloying, it’s heat stable, it’s tasty enough to be slurped up by the spoonful, and there is little or no guilt afterward. You will need a few specialty ingredients: miso, nutritional yeast flakes, and arrowroot. These are available at some supermarkets and at natural foods markets. Arrowroot is added for stability and gentle thickening; kudzu root (available at health foods markets) can also be used.”

Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

1 1/2 cups water, Corn Stock, or Corncob Mock Stock
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen yellow corn kernels
1/3 cup whole raw cashews
1 Tbsp. white (shiro) miso
1 tsp. nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 tsp arrowroot
1 – 2 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper or dash of Tabasco

Combine the water, corn kernels, and cashews in a saucepan, cover, and simmer until the cashews are tender and the corn is very soft, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly.

Transfer the cashew mixture to a blender, add the miso, yeast, and arrowroot, and puree until very smooth. Strain back into the saucepan, pressing the solids against the sides of the strainer to extract as much smooth pupl and liquid as possible. Heat the sauce over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it is just simmering and has thickened. Season with the lemon juice, salt, and cayenne. Serve warm.

Unlike hollandaise, this sauce can be refrigerated and reheated. Cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Recipe from Susan Volland’s Mastering Sauces: The Home Cook’s Guide to New Techniques for Fresh Flavors, W. W. Norton & Co.

Earlier this summer the Fairmont Global mixology team visited Liquid Kitchen for a drink development workshop to create a new global cocktail menu – launching later this November. Check out Cheers Magazine for full coverage of the R&D session the Classics, Perfected menu, meet the Fairmont Tastemakers, and recipes for the Right Word and Pomegranate Paloma.

Libatious article in Lux Worldwide on the Fairmont Hotels’ new global cocktail menu – Classics, Perfected developed at the Liquid Kitchen with the Fairmont Global mixology team. Check out the full article here and learn about the Fairmont Tastemakers’ creative process.

Great write-up on the Fairmont Hotels & Resorts’ new cocktail program launching later in November. Here’s a sneak peak of the cocktails – developed at the Liquid Kitchen with the Fairmont Tastemakers team – (at last month’s media event at The Savoy). Check out London-Olios for the full post.