Pillsbury Grands Turkey or Chicken Pot Pie

Okay, first....

EASY. EXCELLENT. FARMER DAVE WAS SO HAPPY....

We cooked a turkey on Sunday. Partially because I need the freezer room, and partially because it was chilly and wet outside.... These Northeast winds drive the temps down with their passage over a still-cold Lake Ontario... and lakes that are over 50 miles across take a LONG TIME TO WARM UP....

The positives: Great food. Informal. Potatoes and gravy. Leftovers!!!

So we've been eating slap-together turkey sandwiches, and I've been having mine on Hawaiian rolls... Which I love. And that's been marvelous.

But yesterday was cold and wet and I took out the pot of gravy and had myself a quick party. The clue to biscuit or pot pie is to thin your gravy before topping it because the crust/biscuit will absorb some of the liquid.... and you want enough gravy to be crazy-delicious.

I'd boned out the turkey on Sunday night. I knew I wanted writing time during the week, and this way I've got a plate of sliced turkey breast.... and a pot of gravy swimming with luscious bits and pieces of turkey that don't slice so nicely!

Gravy solidifies somewhat in the refrigerator, so I scooped out about 2 cups of turkey and gravy and put it in a microwave safe bowl....

I added 2 cups of water to it.

Heated for 4 minutes.... Stirred.... Heated another minute.

Now it's hot. Bubbly.... Then I stirred in 1/2 bag of mixed vegetables.

Reheat in microwave about one minute....

Pour into large, oven friendly pot. I used my crock pot, because if the pot is deep, the biscuits stay softer.... but still firm and not soggy.

Lay Pillsbury Grands over top. I was able to fit 7 on this pot... If I'd known how amazing they'd be, I'd have crowded #8!!!

Bake at 350° for about 30-35 minutes.

AMAZING.....

We were so happy and I got another 1,000 words written....

#bonus

#party!

#happyauthor

During farm season (especially planting and harvest time) I surreptitiously sneak time to work, so if I can get by on making one meal that lasts for days and keeps people happy??? BONUS FOR RUTHY!!!!

And total bonus for the family!

But while this was a total, mind-numbing success....

THIS WAS AN EPIC KITCHEN FAIL.... It was so bad, I cannot in good conscience give it its own week...

This is Magic Custard Cake.

We wanted an easy recipe to share with farm customers, a recipe featuring farm-fresh eggs:

Doesn't look bad, does it?

And we got it out of the pan and turned it onto a plate...

So pretty!!!! The internet pictures showed a thin crust, a thick layer of delicious custard and a top "cake".... so this is kind of like "Tunnel of Fudge" cake, in which the cake divides itself into sections.

Well....

The bottom thin crust was like an inch-and-a-half thick of rubbery, pasty awfulness.....

The "custard" was thin and formed about a 1/4 inch of the middle.... and the top was not good.

Did we mess up???

I don't know!

But we decided that we'd admit the FAIL!!!! and get on with our egg-loving lives.

It looked and smelled wonderful.... but as all women know, appearances can be deceiving. :)

The fail may have been a mystery... but then HERE IS A REAL MYSTERY!!!! MY FIRST MYSTERY!!!! "A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS" FROM GUIDEPOSTS!!! It's available for preorder now, and I'm simply delighted to be working on this project with the amazing team at Guideposts, Inc. Happy dancing!

"A Light in the Darkness" is book one of a 24 book mystery series "Mysteries of Martha's Vineyard"... and I get to work with a marvelous team of authors and editors.... an absolutely wonderful opportunity to work and laugh with some great folks!

And then there's this going on:  Individually quick-freezing some grown-on-the-farm strawberries! Our first ones!

I see a strawberry rhubarb pie in our future!!!!

Wishing you the best of weeks from the Blodgett Family Farm... and from the Writer's Spot... which is anywhere I can set down the laptop!

Multi-published, bestselling author Ruth Logan Herne is doing what she loves... writing sweet books and caring for really cute kids on her farm in Western New York.... Friend her on facebook (she loves facebook!) or stop by her website ruthloganherne.com  or you can follow her on Twitter @ruthloganherne... And today she's over in Seekerville talking about writing cozy mysteries! Go figure! www.seekerville.blogspot.com  Stop by and say hi... Ruthy loves company!

Creamy Pork Pot Pie

The Belle, here (aka Missy Tippens). I made something the other day that turned out really tasty! And I made it in a pinch.

You see, I had laid out a pork tenderloin, planning to make my regular, go-to Harriet's Pork tenderloin recipe using apricot jam and brown gravy (click here for recipe I've shared before).

But my tenderloin didn't thaw out enough. So I figured I could make something that used cubed meat--and the slightly frozen tenderloin would make it easier to slice. It just so happened, I had seen Rachel Ray making a chicken pot pie over the weekend and had been craving it. (In fact, I pulled the pork out of the freezer because I didn't have chicken!)

So I cubed the pork and went looking for a pork pot pie recipe. Nothing really suited me, so I decided to create my own. At the last second, I decided to add locally grown sweet potatoes my son had brought me from Augusta. I thought that would be yummy with the pork.

Ingredients:
One package pork tenderloin (regular or flavored. Mine happened to be lemon pepper marinated)
1 medium carrot, cubed
1 small bag frozen peas (I had a small steam-in-bag size)
1 medium Sweet potato, cubed
3-4 Tbs. flour
3-4 Tb. butter
Milk (enough to make a good gravy)
Chopped onion would be good, but I didn't have one.
One box rolled, pre-made pie crust--which is 2 crusts (or make your own if you're industrious)
[ignore the corn in the photos. When I decided to add potatoes, I left out the corn)

Cube the meat. Then lightly brown in a skillet with a little oil.

Here are the chopped veggies.

Add the potato and carrot. Cook until slightly softened. Add the peas.

When peas are thawed, add the butter and let melt. Stir. Then sprinkle with the flour. I used 2 Tbs of each, thinking that would be enough. But the dish needed more gravy. So I'm suggesting 3-4 Tbs. Stir and let cook for a minute or so. (This supposedly cooks out the raw flour flavor, although I can't say I've ever been able to tell a difference unless I'm letting the flour brown for a darker gravy).

Then pour in the milk. I always do this by eye, so it's hard to say how much. But I Googled it, and here's the typical ratio for gravy: 2 Tbs. flour, 2 Tbs. butter, 1 cup milk. So if you increase the flour and butter to 4 Tbs, use 2 cups of milk.

Then let it simmer to thicken, stirring often. While it simmers, roll out the crust into a greased pie plate. Actually, I forgot to grease it, so you'll see my slices tore up!

Fill with the mix. Top with the second crust and pinch to seal the edges. Cut vents in the top. Bake… well, until it's brown. I can't remember how long I baked this! But everything inside is cooked and hot, so just bake until crust is golden. Also, I lowered the rack in the oven so the top wouldn't get done too quickly, and also so the bottom crust would cook.

Enjoy!

www.missytippens.com