SirsiDynix Social: Progressive Dinner

Food, Drink, and Fun!

Three of SirsiDynix's top experts are hosting a progressive dinner, including a appetizer, cocktail, and main course.


Starter: Corn Bread

Join host Lisa Witteman for the starter course!

Corn Bread Recipe:

My mom made cornbread without a recipe.  I adore cornbread the way she made it.  As a child I believed all cornbread outside my mother's kitchen was dry and unappealing.   Mom was never willing to write down a recipe. But I watched and learned.   I worked out a recipe that I am sharing.  The ingredients aren't surprising.   If there is a secret, it is the way heat is used.  The oven, cast iron pan used for cooking, and the oil must all be preheated.   But even more unusual is the addition of boiling water to the batter.  The boiling water seems to bloom the cornmeal.   It becomes more fragrant, and it par cooks it a bit.  I am so concerned about the temperature of the water, I pour some of my excess boiling water into the measuring cup and discard it before using it to measure the water I use in the batter.  This technique results in cornbread with an interior that is anything but dry, and enveloped in a crunchy crust.  

A cast iron frying pan is the perfect pan for making this.  Award yourself extra points for each generation of your family that passed down your pan.  Any heavy pan that can be heated to 450 will work.  If your pan is a 12 inch, double the recipe.  

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs, mixed with a fork
  • 1 cup plain corn meal
  • 1/2 cup plain flour
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 3/4 cup boiling water

Add oil to a 9 or 10" cast iron frying pan. Put the skillet in a cold oven.  Preheat the oven to 450 with the pan inside.  It is important that the oven, skillet and oil are all preheated.

Put a pint or so of water on to boil.  That’s more than you need, but you don’t want it to boil away if you get distracted.  

Wait for the oven to preheat and for your water to come to a rolling boil before beginning to mix wet and dry ingredients.  

Combine, corn meal, flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.  Using a fork or a whisk stir in the eggs, the mixture will be lumpy.  Add a bit of milk, enough that when mixed, all the dry ingredients are barely moist.  Pour in about 3/4 cup boiling water, and stir it in quickly.  The batter should be about as thick as pancake batter.

Take the hot skillet out of the oven. Carefully pour half of the hot oil from the pan into the batter and stir it in.  Expect the hot oil to sputter a bit when it hits the batter.  Leave the remaining hot oil in the frying pan.  It will prevent the cornbread from sticking to the pan, and it will produce a crunchy crust on the cornbread.  

Pour the batter into the hot frying pan.  Be careful and expect more sputtering.  Return the pan to the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes. It is done when the middle is set.

Turn out the cornbread onto a platter and serve it crusty side up, sliced into wedges.  I slather with salted butter and eat it while it is hot.


Cocktail: Whiskey CloudSour

Join Rick Branham for cocktails.

Whiskey CloudSour Recipe:

Just as CloudSource will improve your discovery experience and slate your thirst for quality content, the Whiskey CloudSour will slate your thirst for whiskey … and clouds. The cloud is the silky-smooth foam topper created through a vigorous shake off the ingredients with egg white, which was part of the original Whiskey Sour, but is often omitted in modern preparations.

I like using a good Rye Whiskey, which adds a little bit of sharp byte to the cocktail. Rittenhouse Rye or Bulleit Rye are two affordable brands that are my go-to Ryes, but there are many good Rye options to choose from. You can certainly use Bourbon instead, which lends a smoother, caramel flavor. I love Evan Williams Single Barrel, which is a crazy good, sippable Bourbon for an amazing price point.

Instead of simple syrup, I’m using a peach flavored whiskey. I like the Bird Dog Peach Whiskey, but there are now many options from Jim Beam, Evan Williams, and other brands that are jumping on the flavored whiskey band wagon. The peach whiskey has a floral peach flavor and cuts some of the sharpness of the rye.

We’re serving this is in a coupe glass, which is what you want for “up” drinks--shaken or stirred with ice (as opposed to “on the rocks”).

Finally, the “cloud” part of the recipe comes from foaming the egg white. If you’re like me and don’t love the idea of drinking raw eggs, you can use aquafaba, which is the liquid from canned chickpeas. The name comes from the latin for water and bean, respectively, and you’ll be amazed at how it adds a creamy, velvety texture, while retaining your vegan credentials. And of course, you can’t have a CloudSour without a cloud.

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces rye whiskey or Bourbon
  • 3/4 ounce lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1/2 ounce peach flavored whiskey (or simple syrup)
  • 1/2 ounce egg white OR 1 tbsp aquafaba (canned chickpeas liquid)

Garnish: Angostura bitters

Steps

  • Add whiskey, lemon juice, peach whiskey/simple syrup and egg white, if using, to a shaker and dry-shake for 30 seconds without ice.
  • Add ice and shake again until well-chilled.
  • Strain into a coupe glass.
  • Garnish with 3 or 4 drops of Angostura bitters.

Simple Syrup Recipe

Ingredients

  • ½ c granulated sugar (I like to use Stevia or Splenda instead. If you use granulated Stevia, 3 Tbsp granulated Stevia = ½ c granulated sugar)
  • ½ c water

Instructions

  • Add sugar and hot water to a small pot. Cook over medium heat 4 to 6 minutes or until sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally.
  • Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes.
  • Transfer syrup to jar or container and refrigerate until completely cool, or up to 5 days. Makes about 2/3 cup syrup.

Main course: Turkey Salsa Verde Chili with White Beans

Join host Berit Nelson for the main course!

Turkey Chili Recipe:

Given our limited time, we’ll focus mainly on assembly during the cooking session, so please plan to have most of the ingredients prepared as directed. This recipe looks complicated, but it really isn’t, especially if you use canned beans and jarred salsa Verde.

You will see alternate portions of ingredients recommended. If you go on the low end, you’ll have enough for 2 people with a possibility of leftovers. The higher portion should serve 4 with leftovers likely.

Ingredients For the beans:

  • 1-2 15 oz. cans of white beans (like navy or cannellini), drained
  • OR – make it from scratch:
  • 16 oz. dry white beans; prep below reflects use of an Instant Pot but use your preferred prep
  • Around a 1 quart + 2 cups of liquid (I use vegetable broth + 2 cups water, so the leftovers work for vegetarians as well)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 tbsp. salt
  • 1 tbsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp. epazote (use oregano if you don’t have epazote)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 sprigs of thyme (optional)
  • 1 dried New Mexico or other, similar chili (optional)

Bean Prep:

Use sauté function on Instant Pot to cook onions until transparent. Cancel sauté, and mix in salt, cumin, epazote/oregano.

Add beans, broth, bay leaves and water. Stir.

Add chili and thyme if using.

Cover and use bean function (I use 37 minutes). Natural pressure release (or at least wait 20-30 minutes after timer is complete to do a manual release)

Set beans aside

Ingredients for the salsa Verde:

  • Purchase 2 – 4 cups of your preferred salsa Verde

OR- make it from scratch:

  • Olive or other oil for cooking
  • .5-1 onion
  • 1-2 medium jalapeño peppers, de-seeded and chopped (optional; I like some kick here. You can adjust to taste as well)
  • 2-4 cloves minced garlic
  • 1-2 tbsp. ground cumin
  • Salt to taste
  • 1-2 lbs. fresh tomatillos or 1-2 28 oz. cans of tomatillos, quartered or crushed

Salsa Verde prep:

Sauté onions in oil until translucent.

Add chopped jalapeños, sauté until tender

Add minced garlic, cook for about 1 minute

Add tomatillos, salt and cumin; if using fresh, sauté until tender. If using canned, bring to a simmer.

Allow mixture to simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring as necessary. You may need to add a little water if you are using fresh tomatillos. Then turn off heat, and puree in blender or with blending stick.

Set aside for chili.

For the meat/meat alternative

  • Olive or your preferred cooking oil
  • 1-2 lbs. ground turkey (or your preferred vegetarian alternative
  • .5-1 large onion
  • 2-4 cloves minced garlic
  • 1-2 tbsp. Cumin
  • ¼-1/2 cup chili powder (you can reduce Cumin if you are using a mixed powder) [Use your judgement here: if you have spicy chili powder or you don’t love the taste, start with less and adjust to taste.
  • 1-2 tbsp. Oregano
  • Salt to taste

Meat/alternative prep and chili finalization

You will prepare the meat in the pot that will be used for the chili. I like a Dutch oven.

If you are a purist, you will cook the onions and garlic separately from the ground turkey and then combine it. If you are lazy like me, you will follow the instructions below:

Heat pot to medium and add enough oil to cook the onions.

Sauté onions until translucent, 5-8 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for about a minute.

Add ground turkey/meat alternative to pot, crumbling into small bits. Sauté until finished.

Add cumin, chili powder and oregano.

Add 2-4 cups of salsa Verde and bring to simmer

Add 1-2 cans of beans or 2-4 cups of beans (to taste) if you prepped from scratch.

Allow to simmer for 30 minutes or longer, and adjust salt and other spices to taste.

 

I usually serve with optional sides: grated Monterey jack, finely sliced red cabbage, pickled jalapeños, pickled shallots, and plain Greek yogurt. And of course, Lisa’s cornbread!