Stuffed: The Benefits of Stale Bread

Michael Mordecai is baker behind The Fairfield Bread Company and the wonderful "Flaxette."

In giving thanks, respect is inherent. Our earth provides for us. We accept these provisions not with greed, but with appreciation. In celebrating food and the bounty of the earth, it is only right to respect the food by utilizing it to the fullest. Using leftovers to create new dishes minimizes waste of food and preparation time.

Leftover stale bread has infinite uses. Hardened crusts and heels are transformed into delicious sweet or savory dishes. But now is the time to make stuffing. Use day-old (or 2 or 3 day-old) bread. Use what you have, crusts and all. If you must buy bread to make stuffing, buy a variety of day-old bread (or rolls) from a trusted bakery. The more varied the types of bread, the better the flavor, although one type will work: white, whole wheat, rye, pumpernickel, or sourdough.

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Ask Chef Nicole: Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Thanksgiving is my all time favorite holiday, there’s no pressure to give gifts, and the whole day is about being together with people you love (or at least like very much) and think about all of the things I am grateful for.  And of course, there’s the meal…

When it comes to Thanksgiving, I must admit I am a bit of a purist.  I want to know that this annual meal will taste exactly as it did last year and the year before that.  The recipes I use are the ones my mother used and the ones her mother used.  While I have made some small changes over the years (mostly to make life easier) the flavors are exactly the same as I remember them when I was young.  My other favorite thing about Thanksgiving is the day after Thanksgiving sandwich, which is basically a little bit of everything (warmed just a little) stuffed between 2 soft pieces of white bread.   

When you make these recipes, be sure to make a little extra so you have enough for those yummy “day after sandwiches." Here are three of my favorites: Oven Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Prosciutto, Chestnuts and Apple; Mapled Sweet Potatoes; Classic Cranberry Sauce. 

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What's On Your Thanksgiving Table?

Ok CT Bites readers...Talk to us.

We wanna know what you're cooking, buying, or hoping someone else will prepare for your Thanksgiving meal. This is a holiday steeped in food traditions. Let us in on your family secrets by sharing your answers to any of the following questions. Add your two cents by clicking the "Comments" link below. 

• What's on your Thanksgiving menu?
• Do you have a favorite recipe you swear by?
• Where do you shop for ingredients, prepared food, or desserts?
• What are your annual Thanksgiving food traditions?

Cooking at Home: Radish Greens

Elizabeth Keyser is a local writer living in Fairfield. Her work has been published in The New York Times, GQ, American Photo, The New York Post, Connecticut Magazine, as well as CT newspapers. She writes restaurant reviews and a food column for the Fairfield County Weekly.

Radishes and chard were the last things growing in the garden. A creature had gnawed on one of the radishes, so it was time to pull them up. But I wasn’t just harvesting the root. I was eying their bright healthy-looking greens.

Yes, you can eat radish greens. They contain more vitamin C, calcium, potassium and folate than the root, and while peppery, they’re mellower than the root. They say you can eat them raw, but I’m turned off by the fury-prickly texture. I make soup with them.

Radish leaf soup is an old French recipe. You can find it in Larousse Gastronomique, but it’s easy enough to wing it. This is a quick soup. You’ll be eating in this mildly piquant green elixir in 30 minutes.

Radish Greens Soup

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Lunch @ Abbondanza = An Abundance of Flavor

One of my concerns about moving from NYC was leaving behind my favorite food shops and restaurants, the regular haunts I had adored and frequented over the years. I thought it  impossible to find suitable replacements in the suburbs.  When I stumbled upon Chef Jamie Cooper and the beautiful food he was serving at Abbondanza by day, and Bonda by night, I realized I was wrong! 

This little gem in Westport just off of Exit 17 of I95 has become my NYC replacement eatery and thus my salvation.

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A Festival of Flavor @ Little Thai Kitchen

It was a Saturday night and I was tired of the standard nouveau American fare. I was in the mood for the spicy sweet flavors of Thai cooking, but where to go in Fairfield County? A friend whose taste buds I trust told me her go-to spot was Little Thai Kitchen or LTK, with Greenwich, Darien, and NYC locations. We opted for Darien, (right across from the train station) and our party of four headed out in the pouring rain to seek out dinner. 

Walking into LTK is sort of like walking into a West Elm catalogue. It is modern and sleek with splashes of bright color giving it a nice clean design. The two dining spaces to either side of the front door are small, as a good chunk of their business is take-out, but we found that with the lights dimmed it was surprisingly cozy and well appointed. We took a seat next to the large corner window and discreetly checked out the food on the other guests' tables. It looked good. It smelled good. We quietly prayed to whatever God worked for each of us that we had found some decent Thai food in this town.

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It's Breakfast Time: Eggs in Phyllo, Pita or Tortilla Cups

You wake up on Saturday morning. You're feeling guilty about feeding your kids frozen waffles every day this week. It's time to break out of the mould and try out a new recipe...something with a little pizazz. How about eggs? Boring you may say, but these are not just any eggs. This is an egg breakfast that comes wrapped in its own carb (in the form of phyllo, tortilla, or pita cups). With the addition of veggies, cheese, or meat you've got a whole meal in one tasty little package.

They look complicated but they only take about 20 minutes, and your family will love the results. 

 Eggs in phyllo, pita bread, or tortilla cups 

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Visions of Gingerbread @ The Stamford Museum

Every year, I buy one of those boxed gingerbread house kits and my kids and I go at it. We glop it together with that glue-like petroleum by-product substance that they call icing, we decorate with the stale jelly beans and mini gum balls they provide, and we call it a day. It’s fun and the kids enjoy it. Do yours? If so, head to the Stamford Museum and Nature Center (SM and NC) this month and next to see how the pros do it. “Visions of Gingerbread: The Sweetest Architects” is the name of the exhibition that the museum is presenting as both a showcase for local bakers and as a fundraiser for the SM and NC.

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Whole Foods Market Opens in Milford

You would have thought they were giving away TV's at the pre-opening party at Whole Foods Market in Milford. A line snaked through the parking lot as people clamored to get a glimpse of this new glittering grocery mecca. The new location officially opened its doors today with their customary breaking of the bread ceremony, and I kid you not when I say that Milford residents have one more reason to smile when they wake up in the morning. 

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Wine Chat: Le Beaujolais n'est Pas Arrive

I am convinced that one of the best kept and most unfortunate secrets in the wine world is how good wines from Beaujolais actually are.  Yes, that’s right–Beaujolais.  The word itself creates a certain conundrum. It has been misappropriated and used as a gigantic ruse to convince the American wine drinking public that Beaujolais is actually that thin, fruit juicy froth that Georges Duboeuf has celebrated for years.  Quel disastre! 

Let me break it down: red wines of all stripes are crushed during harvest (the vendange), racked and barreled to age. Some wines – like great Spanish Riojas don’t get released for 7-8 years after they are harvested.  The wait is worth it and the wines benefit from age.  Not Beaujolais Nouveau.  Beaujolais Nouveau is crushed and rushed into the bottle mere weeks after being picked.  And it tastes like it.  What the heck was Dubouef thinking? Obviously he wasn’t.

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