White Bean Dip with Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Caramelized Shallots

Happy Thanksgiving! Today I'm sharing a traditional recipe for roasted brussels sprouts and an idea for the leftovers--fold chopped roasted brussels sprouts into a white bean dip with caramelized shallots, fresh herbs, bright lemon juice, and smokey bacon. Remixing leftovers gives your guests a new experience as delicious as the first. For a vegetarian take on this white bean dip, substitute pomegranate seeds for the bacon. I hope you have a wonderful holiday with friends and family! -Mallory

Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Serves 6-8
2 pounds brussels sprouts, cleaned and halved
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Toss brussels sprouts with olive oil and salt then spread them out on a half-sheet baking pan. Roast for 35-40 minutes, stirring halfway through. The edges will be crisp and the insides tender and soft. Serve with lemon juice and freshly grated parmesan cheese. 

White Bean Dip with Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Caramelized Shallots
Serves 6
1 tablespoon bacon fat or olive oil
1 shallot, skin removed and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons red wine or sherry
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 lemon, juiced
3 cups cooked white beans
1/4 cup olive oil (or white bean cooking liquid)
2 tablespoons chopped herbs (use what's around: chives, rosemary, sage, mint, etc.)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chopped roasted brussels sprouts
1/4 cup cooked and crumbled bacon, for garnish
bread and vegetables, for serving

Heat 1 tablespoon leftover bacon fat or olive oil in a small skillet over low heat. Add the sliced sliced and slowly caramelize, about 20 minutes. Turn up the heat to medium-low and deglaze the pan with the red wine or sherry. Once the wine fully evaporates, remove from heat and let cool. Once cool, roughly chop. 

In a food processor combine garlic and lemon juice. Pulse until the garlic is chopped, add in the white beans, and continuing pulsing, streaming in the olive oil, until a smooth, but think, dip forms. Remove from the food process and transfer to a mixing bowl. Fold in chopped shallots, herbs, salt, pepper, and chopped roasted brussels sprouts. Transfer to a serving dish, top with crumbled bacon, and sere with bread and vegetables. Serve dip at room temperature or cold, refrigerating until ready to use. 

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

In The Art of Eating M. F. K. Fisher talks about the potato as a "gastronomic complement." Potatoes are the familiar and affordable sidekick, but their undeniable comfort and delicious versatility keep us coming back.  Thinking of the potato as a complement will "rob it of its dangerous monotony, and clothe it with the changing mysterious garment of adaptability," she writes.

Mashed potatoes decorate my family's table every Thanksgiving and frequently throughout the year. While I love the endless variations that even mashed potatoes offer, often I find my way back this familiar favorite, a combination of roasted garlic, butter, heavy cream, and fresh chives. 

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Serves 6-8
2 heads garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives, plus 1 tablespoon for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Clean any dirt off the garlic heads and remove extra layers of skin, careful not to break apart the heads. Cut the top end off each garlic head, about 1/4 inch worth, just enough to expose the tips of the cloves. It's okay if the outer cloves do not get cut. Place the garlic heads on a piece of foil and drizzle the olive oil over their exposed tops. Wrap the foil around the the heads, place on a baking sheet, and roasted until the garlic is soft, about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely. Pop the roasted garlic cloves out of the skins and mash them into a paste with a fork, then set aside. 

Meanwhile, add the potatoes to a large stock pot of salted water and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the potatoes are tender and easily pierced through with a fork, about 15 minutes. Drain and return to a large mixing bowl.  

In a small saucepan combine the butter, cream, 1 tablespoon of the chopped chives, salt, and mashed garlic over medium high heat. Cook until the butter is melter. Pour onto the potatoes and combine with a potato masher until the potatoes are smooth. Top with the remaining chopped chives before serving. 

Pecan Pie Bourbon Milk Punch

I won't ask you to hold off on eating that last slice of pecan pie, but if for some wild reason you end up with an overload of leftovers, shake up a batch or two of Pecan Pie Bourbon Milk Punch cocktails.

Milk punch is a cocktail made with a spirit (traditionally bourbon or brandy), milk, sugar, and vanilla. This recipe calls for bourbon (I used Bulleit Bourbon), whole milk steeped in a slice of pecan pie, maple syrup, and orange blossom water. Steeping a piece of leftover pecan pie in cold milk brings in a new dimension of fall flavors, with vibrant echoes of maple syrup, caramelized pecans, and warm autumn spices in every sip. Coupled with the soft thrill of orange blossom water and the fragrance of fresh nutmeg, this cocktail is so enthralling you might just decide to bake an entire pie for the cause.

First, the pie. I fell in love with Merrill Strubb's Spiced Maple Pecan Pie even before I had the chance to taste it. A quick glance at the ingredients list and instructions and I was hooked. Maple syrup completely replaces corn syrup and is infused with whole star anise. I adapted her beautiful recipe to use bourbon instead of dark rum and include additional autumn spices, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla. 

Pecan Pie
Makes one 9-inch pie
adapted from Merrill Strubb's Spiced Maple Pecan Pie with Star Anise 
1 pie crust, store-bought or homemade (homemade recipe below)
1 1/4 cups maple syrup
1/2 cup raw sugar
2 whole star anise
3 whole cloves
1 whole nutmeg
1 cinnamon stick, about 5-inches, broken into 3 pieces
1 vanilla pod, ends removed, sliced open and cut into 3 pieces
2 1/2 cups pecan halves
3 large eggs
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons bourbon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Bring maple syrup, sugar, star anise, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla to a boil over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Once it begins to boil immediately reduce heat to a low simmer. Resist the temptation to stir the mixture as that can cause the sugars to crystalize, rather let the mixture reduce and thicken for 20 minutes, or until it has reduced to about 1 1/4 cups. Remove from heat, but let sit for at least an hour to let the star anise, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla continue to infuse.

Meanwhile, prepare the pie crust using the homemade crust recipe below or your favorite crust recipe. If using a store bought crust, unroll the crust onto a pie plate, centering evenly, then decoratively crimp the edges and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights (substitute with dried beans if no pie weights are available, but dispose of the beans thereafter). Bake the crust on a baking sheet until the edges begin to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool, and remove the pie weights. 

Toast the pecans at 325 degrees Fahrenheit, spread out evenly on a baking sheet, for 10-12 minutes. Let cool.

Remove the whole spices from the maple syrup and discard them (or stir them in a hot toddy, it is the holidays after all). 

Mix together the thickened maple syrup, eggs, melted butter, bourbon, and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Fold in the pecans, pour into the pie crust, place on a baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes, or until the pie is sturdy and the crust is a deep golden brown. 

Pie Crust
Makes 1 crust
4 ounces unsalted butter (1 stick)
1 1/2 cups flour (6 ounces weighed)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 ounces ice water

Cut the butter into small pieces then set it in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. Combine flour and salt in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter or your hands. Crumble the butter into the flour until any remaining pieces are the size of small peas. The flour will look more like cornmeal or polenta at this point. Add 2 ounces of ice water. Combine with a spatula until a dough forms. Add more ice water as needed, one tablespoon at a time. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and set chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle, until it is about 1/4 inch thick and large enough to drape over a 9-inch pie plate with about half an inch hanging over the sides. Decoratively crimp the edges and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights (substitute with dried beans if no pie weights are available, but dispose of the beans thereafter). Bake the crust on a baking sheet until the edges begin to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool, and remove the pie weights. 

Pecan Pie Bourbon Milk Punch
Serves 2
3 ounces bourbon
2 ounces pecan pie milk*
1 ounce maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon orange blossom water
orange peel and nutmeg, for garnish

Combine bourbon, pecan pie milk, maple syrup, and orange blossom water in a cocktail shaker. Add a scoop of ice and shake vigorously for at least 30 seconds. Stain into coupe glasses. Rub the rim of the glasses with the orange peel, garnish, and top with grated nutmeg.

*Pecan Pie Milk
Makes 1 cup
1 cup cold whole milk
1 slice of pecan pie

Place the pecan pie in a bowl or cup and pour the milk over it. Break up the pie with a spoon, cover, and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or in the refrigerator for up to 3 hours. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve to strain out the solids. Use the pecan pie milk immediately or refrigerate for 1-2 days.