​Sometimes I prepare so many new and exciting recipes, that we never have them twice.
 
As it’s been so cold the past few days, I would like to suggest a Broccoli and Arugula Soup. This recipe was found in the January 2022 issue of “Charleston Magazine.” The soup was thick and creamy despite there being no cream in the soup. Both my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
 
Some of the best recipes from 2022 came from The New York Times/NYT Cooking. One such recipe is Kay Chun’s Korean Cheeseburgers with Sesame-Cucumber Pickles. These are not your parents’ cheeseburgers. The burgers are flavored with soy sauce, scallions, garlic, pepper and sugar. They’re served with a mayonnaise dressing flavored with the same ingredients as the burgers plus toasted sesame oil. These burgers were incredible. I also made Ali Slagle’s Chicken Parm Burgers that were fabulous. Between the aromatic basil, the intensity of the tomato paste, these burgers were packed with flavor. 

​The last two weeks were busy with Thanksgiving prep. For the Thanksgiving dinner, I rummaged through my files for a turkey recipe that had a little pizzazz, Roast Turkey with Maple Herb Butter and Gravy fit the bill. Although the recipe included instructions for gravy, I was mostly interested in the herb butter.
 
Now that I had my recipe in hand, what type of turkey should I purchase? We were 6 adults for dinner and I opted for a bone-in turkey breast that was hatched and raised in Pennsylvania in Amish country. I purchased at Palmer’s Quality Meats in Neptune. 

For the recipe you’ll need apple cider, real maple syrup, fresh or dried thyme, fresh or dried marjoram, fresh lemon zest and softened butter. Two cups of apple cider and 1/3 cup of pure maple syrup are boiled over medium-high heat until reduced to ½ cup, which the recipe says should take approximately 20 minutes. Using cider by Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck, NJ, took me almost an hour to achieve the desired result (My husband, who was in the apple cider business for over 30 years, says that it can take a long time to reduce cider.) Once the liquid is reduced, part of the thyme, marjoram and lemon zest are added; then softened butter is whisked in. This step of the recipe can be done up to two days ahead, which I’m glad I did. 

​I had good intentions of posting what I prepared last week sooner, but time just flew by. The week started off with a sheet pan meal by Colu Henry of The New York Times. Her recipe, Sheet-Pan Chicken with Apple, Fennel and Onion sounded so good. The combination of apples with the fennel was appealing. For the recipe you’ll need fennel seeds, bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, olive oil, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, an onion, a medium fennel bulb, a tart apple and fresh rosemary.
 
I substituted bone-in chicken breasts, our preference, and used my oven’s convection setting for cooking. The chicken was done in approximately 30-35 minutes. I used an instant read thermometer at the 30-minute mark to make sure it didn’t overcook.