FOOD INSPIRATIONS

Great video on Food and how it looks including trompe l'oeil food
Such as Sorbet in the shape of Watermelon slices, Seitan meals in Vietnam that look like fish, fake Steak Tartar from tomatoes and beet juice...26min.

More Trompe L'oeil Food below after the turkey carving 101

How to carve a turkey

INGREDIENTS
For the turkey layers:

* Unsalted butter, for coating the pans
* 2 pounds ground turkey breast
* 1 cup quick-cooking oats
* 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated on the small holes of a box grater
* 1/3 cup ketchup
* 1/3 cup finely chopped yellow onion
* 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
* 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
* 2 tablespoons soy sauce
* 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
* 1 teaspoon minced fresh sage leaves
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
*

For the sweet potato layer:

* 1 pound sweet potatoes
* 1/4 cup whole milk
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/4 stick)
* 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
* Pinch ground mace or nutmeg
* Freshly ground black pepper
*

To assemble:

* About 5 cups or 1 recipe Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, warm
* 1/2 cup cranberry sauce, such as our Cranberry and Citrus Sauce, chilled, excess liquid drained
* 2 1/2 cups Sausage Stuffing, warm
* 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
* Gravy, for serving (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS
For the turkey layers:

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Coat 2 (8-inch) cake pans with butter; set aside.
2. Place all remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix, using clean hands, until combined (don’t squeeze or overwork). Divide the mixture evenly between the pans, spreading it to the edges and smoothing out the top. Bake until cooked through and the cakes begin to pull away from the edges of the pans, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven (but leave the oven on), and let cool for about 10 minutes. Using a paper towel, blot away any excess fat from the cake layers’ surface; set aside. (While the turkey cakes are cooking, make the sweet potatoes.)


For the sweet potato layer:

1. Place a steamer basket in a large saucepan with a tightfitting lid. Add enough water to reach just below the basket; bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and gently simmer.
2. Meanwhile, peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 1-inch cubes. Once the water is simmering, place the cubes in the steamer basket, cover, and steam until the potatoes just give when pierced with a fork, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the steamer basket with the potatoes to a plate; set aside.
3. Discard the water in the saucepan. Place the milk and butter in the saucepan and heat over low heat until the butter has melted. Turn off the heat, add the reserved sweet potatoes and the brown sugar, salt, and mace or nutmeg, and mash with a potato masher until smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired; keep warm.


To assemble:

1. Arrange a rack in the lower third of the oven.
2. Run a knife around the edge of the turkey cakes. Unmold one of the turkey layers and place it bottom-side up on an overturned 8-inch cake pan or in an ovenproof serving dish.

 With a long knife or offset spatula, evenly spread 1 1/4 cups of the mashed potatoes over the top of the cake, leaving a 1/2 -inch border (keep the remaining potatoes warm).

  Using the back of a clean spoon, spread the cranberry sauce evenly over the mashed potatoes.

 Using your hands, gently pack the stuffing in an even layer over the cranberry sauce, using one hand to keep any stuffing from falling off the side.

  Press gently on the stuffing to make sure it adheres to the mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.Evenly spread another 1 1/4 cups of the mashed potatoes over the stuffing (keep the remaining potatoes warm).

 Unmold the second turkey layer and place it bottom-side up on top of the mashed potatoes.

1. Transfer the cake pan or serving dish with the partially assembled cake to a baking sheet and bake until heated through, about 30 to 40 minutes (an instant-read thermometer should register 165°F).
2. Remove from the oven and set aside. Heat the oven to broil.
3. With a long knife or offset spatula, evenly coat the outside (but not top) of the entire cake with the remaining mashed potatoes (you may have a little left over).

 With a clean long knife or offset spatula, evenly spread all of the sweet potatoes on top of the cake.

 Arrange the marshmallows across the top and gently press them into the sweet potatoes.

 Return the baking sheet with the assembled cake to the oven and broil until the marshmallows are golden, about 1 to 2 minutes (watch closely so the marshmallows don’t burn).

 Using two flat spatulas, carefully transfer the cake to a serving dish. Serve immediately with gravy, if desired.

Some SIDE DISHES for turkey from HuffPo.

Seitan dishes:

 For cheese sauce:

• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/4 pound Italian Fontina, coarsely grated (about 1 cup)
• 3 ounces Gruyère, coarsely grated (about 1 cup), divided
• Scant 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

For mushroom-seitan filling:

• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 10 ounces cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 8 ounces seitan (patted dry and thinly sliced)
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
• 3 tablespoons water
• 2 (16-to 18-ounce) logs ready-made plain polenta

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Cheesy-Polenta-Lasagne-with-Mushrooms-and-Seitan-351433#ixzz1CfioxJtK

For stew:

• 10 ounces pearl onions (about 2 1/4 cups)
• 9 tablespoon olive oil, divided
• 1 1/2 pounds seitan, sliced 1/4 inch thick and patted dry
• 3 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise, sliced 1/2 inch thick, and washed
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed and quartered
• 3/4 pound carrots (about 4 medium), cut into 3/4-inch-thick pieces
• 3/4 pound parsnips (about 4 medium), cut into 3/4-inch-thick pieces
• 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
• 1 (750-ml) bottle full-bodied red wine such as Burgundy or Côtes du Rhône
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 cups hot rich vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

For topping:

• 2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes
• 3/4 pound celery root, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Vegetarian-Shepherds-Pie-355994#ixzz1Cfj1KSEq

Sizzling Seitan Burgers (from Oprah!)

• 2 cups seitan 
• 2 Tbsp. finely minced onion
• 2 Tbsp. finely minced celery
• 1/3 oat flakes
• 1 Tbsp. ketchup
• 1 Tbsp. vegan mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. minced capers
• 1 Tbsp. fresh parsley , minced
• 1 red onion , cut into half moons
• Several sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 
  [Versus an easier recipe HERE  as well as comparative NOTES with other VegiBurgers HERE ]

Directions (for the Oprah recipe above)

Grind the seitan in a food processor or by pulsing in a blender until it resembles minced meat. Next, grind the oat flakes till they resemble coarse flour.

Mix the seitan with the oats, veggies, ketchup, vegan mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, capers and parsley.

Form into burgers. Toss the red onion with the olive oil and spread on a baking sheet with sprigs of fresh rosemary. Put the burgers on top of the onion and bake for about 15 minutes.

Serve in a wholegrain bun, topped with the red onions, lettuce, sprouts and your favorite spreads—mustard, mayo, pickle, etc.


Variations:

• Firm tofu can be used in place of the seitan. Simply crumble the tofu with a masher or clean hands.

• Other veggies and herbs can be added, such as grated or minced carrot, red onion, zucchini. Chives, basil, green onions or cilantro can be used in place of the parsley.

• Instead of baking, you can pan-fry the burgers until crispy—about 2 minutes per side. Alternatively, you can make into meat balls and serve in a spicy tomato sauce over pasta or rice.

And finally...
RICE BALLS
(perhaps similar to what "Monika" made recently at his apt near Moritzplatz.)
"This is one version of the wonderfully crispy and spciy fried rice balls and croquettes that I used to love making all the time, but I've been out of the habit for a long time now because I despise wasting several cups of good quality olive oil for deep-frying and I absolutely refuse to use cheaper vegetable oils. But they were always such a tasty treat that I kept returning to the idea when thinking of something to accompany the Italian-style Cannellini Bean Soup with Fontina Gremolata I had planned for my menu. To overcome my scruples, I came up with a healthier alternative to deep frying and baked the rice balls instead. I was delighted when they turned out just as delicious as I had remembered them, crunchy and brown on the outside and creamy and chewy in the middle.
These rice balls would also be a good appetizer or snack, served along with some salsa."

These rice balls take little time to prepare, but can take some while to cook, especially if they don't all fit in one baking dish. You can cut down on the time by cooking the rice in the morning and letting it cool during the day. Leftovers can be wrapped in foil and reheated in a 350° oven for 15-20 minutes.

Baked Italian brown rice balls

Rice balls:

1 1/3 cups brown rice
2 2/3 cups water
2 teaspoons olive oil
3 eggs
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, chopped into 1/8-inch cubes
3 tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped, lightly packed
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely minced
2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Coating:

2 eggs
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
fresh ground black pepper

olive oil for baking

Soak the brown rice overnight in the water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, mix together the other ingredients for the rice balls. Stir in the cooled rice until all the ingredients are combined.

Preheat an oven to 400° and grease the bottom of a glass baking dish with a generous layer of olive oil. Whisk together the eggs and olive oil for the coating together in a small bowl. In another small bowl, stir together the bread crumbs with plenty of ground black pepper.

Wet your hands, and shape the rice mixture into 2-inch balls. Dip each rice ball into the egg and oil mixture, then roll around to coat in the bread crumbs. Transfer to the baking dish and bake for 15-20 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown. Turn over and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Drain on paper towel, and serve hot.

Makes about 18 2-inch rice balls.