When it comes to family get-togethers, pot lucks or special occasions, my go-to dish is spinach dip. As a cheese lover, I can never pass up the opportunity to indulge in ooey gooey cheese dishes and it's quite easy to make ahead of time. When I had the opportunity to sample Asiago Fresh Cheese Pdo, I immediately hopped on the bandwagon and thought it would be the perfect afternoon snack for all those recovering from food comas from our Thanksgiving dinner the night before.

With a turducken feast on Sunday night, Monday was all about taking it easy and lounging around. The spinach dip was prepped while the turducken was roasting and all that was left to do was to grate the Asiago Fresh Cheese Pdo over top and incorporate into the spinach mixture.


This authentic Asiago cheese is a healthy, wholesome product with a delicious and unmistakable flavour which also carries the designation Pdo known as Protected Designation of Origin. Unsure as to what that means? It indicates that the product’s qualities come principally from the geographical environment in which it is made, including natural and human factors, and that its production, processing and preparation take place exclusively in the area of origin. This means that only cheese which is produced, matured, packaged and distributed in compliance with the Asiago Pdo Cheese Production Regulations is "Asiago Cheese". All the rest is just "cheese".

CROWD PLEASER SPINACH DIP

INGREDIENTS

8oz cream cheese

1/2 cup mayonnaise 

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 clove of garlic minced

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp chilli powder

1/2 cup strained steamed spinach
1 cup of freshly grated Asiago Cheese Pdo

Pinch of salt

Black pepper
Loaf of pumpernickel bread

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375ºF

In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with electric mixer and whip in mayonnaise slowly. Combine onions along with garlic and mix with a spatula. Add nutmeg and chilli powder, salt and pepper to taste. Then strain spinach after steaming and add to above mixture followed by adding 1/2 cup of Asiago Cheese PDO.

Pour spinach mixture into a baking dish of your desire and top with the remainder of the cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese in crispy.

Let cool for a few minutes and slice pumpernickel bread into cubes.

Look at all that marvelous bubbling cheese!

Don't forget the pumpernickel bread as that is the most important part of this recipe! 

Enjoy!

The process of making the turducken dish was a whopping grand total of thirty plus hours - this of course included thawing and roasting time. Let's just say all those hours are worth the wait as well as the temptation of aroma that fills the air. 

The Process

After a full day of thawing in a bath of cold water within a sink, the turducken was cooked initially at a low temperature in a conventional oven at 220°F in a roasting pan with a built-in rack covered with foil. We decided to layer the bottom of the pan with roughly chopped carrots, onions, garlic, smoked sea salt along with water and red wine, as it would gradually collect the drippings that would eventually turn into a gravy sauce. Though you must remember to remove this layer from the pan every few hours as it may burn. The last two hours, the aluminum foil came off and the heat was raised to 350°F for a crispier taste until the internal temperature exceeded 165°F - you best have a meat thermometer on hand as it will be your best friend cooking a turducken. Once the turducken is carefully removed from the oven it was covered immediately with foil and allowed to rest for 30 minutes before serving. 

Time To Devour

I am so very thankful for this opportunity, being with my family and enjoying such a wonderful meal that provided lots of leftovers for hot sandwiches, soups and quesadillas. 

Must-Know 1:

Must-Know 2:

Turduckens are available in both Canada and the US!

For more information: www.theoriginalturducken.com

INGREDIENTS 

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 maple sugar
1/4 brown sugar

1 cup vegetable oil, plus more as needed

4 large eggs

1 can pumpkin purée

INSTRUCTIONS

Time to prep: 15 minutes
Time to cook: 60-70 minutes
Cooling time: 25 minutes

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a bundt pan with vegetable oil along with flour and tap out any excess flour (important!).

Using a stand mixer, combine sugars and measured oil until blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl and the paddle with a rubber spatula. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk away any lumps then set aside. Add to egg mixture alternately with pumpkin puree, beating well after each addition.

Turn the mixer to low speed, slowly add the reserved flour mixture, and beat until almost completely incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold in any unincorporated flour at the edges with the rubber spatula, making sure to scrape to the bottom of the bowl.

Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and bake for 60-70 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Turn the cake out onto the wire rack and cool completely.

Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

This long weekend was spent in la belle province of Quebec at my parent's cottage in Harrington. The road trip from Kingston led us down the 401 through the quaint town of Vankleek Hill resembling Stars Hallow of Gilmore Girls but also the spot where Beau's Brewery held Oktoberfest the weekend prior. After 3.5 hours of fall scenery, we reached our destination and had a night filled with watching hockey on TV - cheering the Habs as well as the Oilers while roasting marshmallows afterwards by a bonfire.

Sunday was filled with walks, lots of cooking and a feast of a dinner - oh and of course the premiere of The Walking Dead!

 Stay tuned for a post on my Thanksgiving dinner - turducken and sides!

All images were taken with a Nikon D3100.

Enjoy!

Prince Edward County's annual food and wine festival, TASTE Community Grown celebrates the culinary community from farm to table - the region's finest chefs, winemakers, beer, spirits and cider masters, farmers and artisanal food producers. On September 27th, 2014, foodies from across the province gathered at the historic Crystal Palace in Picton to sample the unique local flavours of the area.

The day was filled with culinary education with speakers and seminars, a wonderful epicure experience of the County, live showing of County Chopped Live and oh so much more.

A few highlights from the festival:











{The Regent Cafe}

















{Angelo Bean Artisan Sausage Maker}



For more information visit: www.tastecommunitygrown.com

For more pictures, click here.

All images were taken with a Nikon D3100.