For some reason turnips are intimidating to me. They sit there, purple and white, daring me to make something out of them that children won’t instinctively run screaming from. And yet they cook almost exactly like potatoes. So with a hand full of russets and a pound of turnips I set to work.

Turtato soup has a great earthy, sweet, starchy flavor that’s just right for a cold evening. This recipe breaks down into the roasted and the liquid.

The Roasted:
Three medium russet potatoes. 1.5 lbs yukon gold or red roasting potatoes would be creamier but I like the starchy flavor of the russets for this.
One pound of turnips, they typically come in 1 lb bags.
1/2 lb of carrots
1/2 large white onion minced
1 tsp of Rosemary
2-3 Tbsp of olive oil, regular, not extra virgin
1-2 tsp of salt
6-8 cloves of garlic, if you can, get roasted cloves or set a head of garlic in a small ramekin with a generous amount of olive oil to roast the cloves next to the vegetables. I happen to roast up a lot of cloves once or twice a year and keep them in the freezer.

Chop all of the vegetables into a one inch dice toss in kosher salt, rosemary, and coat lightly with the olive oil. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until everything squishes with a pair of tongs and is browned around the edges. Set aside.

The Liquid:
You’ll need about six cups of liquid for pureeing the vegetables. I used four cups of chicken broth and two cups of beef broth. You could go all vegetable broth as well but I wanted some beef flavor to punch up the turnips and bring out the roasted flavors.

Assembly:
Take 1/3 of the roasted veggies, make sure you’ve added the garlic, and place in your food processor. Add 2 cups of broth and puree until there are just a few small chunks of carrot still visible. I like a little texture. Pour into a big soup pot. Repeat for the other 2/3. Once all the soup is in the soup pot, add about 3/4 cup of cream and 1/2 pound of cubed ham, the smaller the cube the better. Grind in about a teaspoon of black pepper. Put on the oven over medium heat until heated through.

Toast up some french bread and top with cheddar and a dollop of sour cream. You’ll have a soul soothing soup full of veggies that even your kids will eat.

Recipe by TJ Gilmore

We had our annual Chili dinner for the Cub Scouts, and of course my camera gave me fits. What you see, inelegantly displayed to the left is Vino Chili. A tasty chili that will work with beef but is best made with game meats or lamb. In this case, 2 pounds of ground venison.

For those of you with an aversion to game, chili is a great way to eat the meat your hunter neighbor hands you. It can easily perk up these great lean meats, and the flavors of chili work with the ‘game’ flavor to provide a smoother taste. If you don’t have access to game meats, go with lean beef or lamb.

This recipe comes in two parts- Dry and Wet.

The Dry:

Cook 2 pounds of venison (cubed or ground, mine was a chunky grind) in 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil until browned. Do it in a big pan or in small batches, you want the meat browned, not just boiled in its own juice. Add 4 garlic cloves (minced) for a smokier flavor use roasted garlic. Add two medium onions to the meat and saute them until translucent. This is your base, throw it in your crock pot or a large pot.

The Wet – added to the dry:

Two cans of diced tomatoes. You could also coarsly chop four large tomatoes. For a thicker chili, drain the cans but don’t smash the chopped tomatoes (I used all the juice). Next is 3 Tbsp. chili powder, don’t be fooled! It needs to be pure chili powder, not a mix of spices. There are tons of boxes at the store that say ‘chili powder’ and they’re full of garlic, salt, and other spices which, while tasty, will throw your recipe completely off. Add 1/2 Tbsp. ground black pepper, 1 Tsp. kosher salt, 1 Tbsp. basil, and 1/2 Tbsp. ground cumin.

Now for the secret ingredients: 2 Tbsp. molasses and 2 cups red wine, which leaves two nice glasses of wine to share with dinner. The sugar helps bring down the acid of the tomatoes while the red wine works with the cumin to break down the game flavor of the meat and gives a rich hint of almost floral sweetness with the basil. At this point, if you like a thinner chili, add a cup of water, otherwise, let it simmer for 2 hours. As for the wine? I used a $3 bottle of Shiraz from Wally World. I wouldn’t go much lighter than a shiraz as it would make things too sweet. Deeper wines like cabernet and merlot would bring a deeper note that would emphasize the meat a bit more.

Now I know chili has many different rules. For me, beans are persona non grata, however, 2 cups of pintos would stretch your dollar and add a bit more heft. You could also go for a diced bell pepper, or even add a pint of minced portabellos for a beefy substitute or even go all out and make a vegetarian chili with em.

Hopefully this recipe will get you to explore some different ingredients that have become mainstays in my cupboard, especially molasses and red wine!

Recipe by TJ Gilmore

I have been blessed with children that are not too picky in what they choose to eat. Occasionally, they refuse to eat a vegetable or try a new sauce, and that’s when I pop open the ramen noodles and hot dogs. One food item that my children love to eat is bacon. Since I love bacon much also and like to save the fat in mason jars for cooking stir-fries, eggs, and other meals, I always keep bacon on hand in my fridge (or ice chest as we Texans like to call it) on my kitchen counter.

Sometimes though, I just want a meal that is not too heavy, somewhat healthy, and that even the kids will eat without complaining. Most of all, I just want something easy–life just get busy! That’s when I make my Apple Bacon Ranch Salad. Enjoy!


Apple Bacon Ranch Salad

12 slices of bacon, cooked medium (well enough to chop easily with a knife)
2 apples, your favorite variety, cubed
4 medium sized carrots, chopped, sliced, julienned, or grated
1 head of romaine lettuce, chopped
2 T ranch dressing

Chop bacon into small pieces.

Cube apples. Follow these instructions for cubing an apple quickly.

Chop carrots. I love my Pampered Chef food chopper (no, Pampered Chef did not pay me to say that).

Throw all ingredients into a large bowl and add romaine lettuce.

Pour ranch dressing on top.

Using salad tossers (or clean hands) mix all ingredients thoroughly.

Serve as a side salad or as a meal. Serves eight as a side salad.