Tuesday, November 23, 2010

My Super Special Turkey Recipe!

Thanksgiving time again, and everyone is very vero excited! This is our traditional turkey recipe, I wanted to share it with you!

For a giant turkey you will need lots and lots of herbs (thyme and rosemary)! Butter, garlic salt, pepper, some fresh garlic.

First pad dry the turkey with paper towels! Very important!

Get like 8 little boxes of the thyme and 6 of the rosemary, take out the steams of the middle and chopped very very finely, put in a bowl with fresh ground pepper and garlic salt. Then also chopped 6 - 8 garlic cloves and add in the bowl.

Leave 5 - 6 butter sticks out so they are nice and soft to be used, cut 1/2 an inch squares, one by one dip them in the spices until they are entirely covered and then with a knife go to the rear end of the turkey and cut the skin open, in a way that with your hands you can lift the skin and place the butter squares with spices ALL over the place! Top and bottom...

In a separate bowl melt half a butter stick and mix with some of the spice mix from the previous bowl and you use this to brush the outside of the WHOLE turkey.

Fill the turkey cavity with white onions, chopped celery, carrots, full thyme and rosemary, shallots, it gives aroma, flavor and prevents for the turkey to dry!

Preheat the oven at 350 degree and cover it while cooking for 3.5 hours!
NOTE: every hour you want to go back to the oven uncover the turkey and brush some more melted butter and spices over the skin...

Then uncover the turkey and cook for another 45 - 60 minutes... Make sure to keep an eye on it so the skin won't burn, you just want it nice and brown...

Monday, November 1, 2010

Cooking with Andy...


This past week my husband and I were in Arizona for an oil and gas conference, the committee surprised the wives of the attendants with a private cooking lesson with Chef Andy Broder! We were so excited about it, we certainly did not know what o expect, but the class was so much fun, we actually got to cook our food, we learned a lot a easy to apply tips for our daily cooking, and we got detailed recipe instructions to take home!

Andy graduated from law school, majored in literature and minored in psychology, after practicing for several years in the court room, he decided it was time to follow his true passion, cooking.

He enrolled in the Scottsdale Culinary Institute and graduated with a 4.0 GPA, then interned in Los Angeles Times as their food section editor and finally he decided to share with us his marvelous recipes! He specializes in giving group lessons at his studio located at:

7000 E Shea Blvd # 1740
Scottsdale, AZ 85254-5289
For more information you can contact them at (480) 951-2400


To find out more about Andy and how his private lessons click here, you'll enjoy their site!

Here are some pics from our amazing lunch: Guacamole with goat cheese, home made tortillas, Southwestern Chicken with lime, fish paddies and mixed green salad, and some Mexican chocolate cheesecake cups.

This is the amazing set up, we had all that we needed set up in stainless
steel prepping tables and enlarged step by step instructions to help
us follow each recipe


Chef Andy giving us some helpful tips to make our lives in the 
kitchen not only better but shorter too!


Our corporate group had sent us some vino to enjoy
with our fabulous meal!


I think all of us had an amazing afternoon cooking, talking, 
and learning a little more about Southwestern cuisine in a
very unique way.


Thank you so much Andy and all the wonderful staff for your time,
I will highly recommend anyone who stops by Scottsdale to try and 
visit the cooking studio, and set up a private lesson, it is soooooo worth it!


Thank you to all the wonderful ladies who gratefully allowed me to
take all this pictures of them while they cook and use them for my blog.
If anyone would like a printable copy of any of the pictures just send me 
an email to Veronica Schiller, I will gladly email you back!