Mary, thank you so much for posting the recipes! They all look so good, I wouldn't know which one to try first!! I already have them copied and put in my new recipe folder. Beth

My side by side fridge and freezer is fairly big. Used to have a 30"x30" chest freezer years ago, but you needed to stand on your get to get to the bottom of it, and it would frost up about every 3 months. The newer freezer is slightly larger than the older one. The heat coils usually on the back are embedded inside the box, so the sides and to fell very warm to the touch. I also added a freezer alarm that shows temp and signals of its above 25 degrees. The alarms have saved me a lot of grief. Hope you have a good viable sourdough culture! I had posted a few times about how to keep them going for many years. I make a batch from my starter and mix only flour and water into it, nothing else. I like the starter to be quite thick as opposed to a batter. After 2-3 days if its not bubbling well, I take some of a dried batch I have stored in a plastic bag in the fridge, then I just add a bit of my dried culture and it usually starts right up within a few hours. After a 1-2 days, I spoon out a small amount and spread it on a sheet of plastic wrap to dry out. After a day of drying, it gets crumbled and placed in the fridge for quite some length of time, as it keeps very well that way. The rest of the bubbling mixture gets a cup taken out and put back in the fridge for the next time. The rest, gets mixed with more flour (sometimes whole wheat) and water. Another 2 days pass and its usually ready for the bread making. I do add regular yeast too, but thats only for the quicker rise I like to see. I know someone who adds sour cream to their bread. Very crusty and sour! Might make a batch of bread this weekend, and use a little buttermilk in the dough just to give it a bit smoother/finer texture. My herbed butter was made last summer and I used fresh rosemary, sage, thyme, and lots of garlic. It all went into a small food processor to be finely chopped, then I added chunks of butter and some olive oil. I don't mix too much longer as butter will soften and melt a bit. I have these Japanese sushi molds that I line with plastic wrap and place a spoon of the mixture in each compartment. Its covered with wrap and a small plastic cover is pressed on, molding it into a small rectangular shaped cube. I place in the freezer and let them harden and then pull out the wrap from the plastic mold and cut them into individual chunks then back into the the freezer. When I do the turkey its usually just a big breast and rib meat (healthier with less fat). The herbed butter gets stuffed under the skin on top of the breast. I also posted my way of doing stuffing with sausage meat and chestnuts, as well as mixed breads. I will probabaly add a few dried cranberries to it as well as they give a nice burst of tart/tang when you eat some.

Thanks guys! It was wonderful IIDSSM- even my resident food critic liked it. He has a bit of a cold and midterms and likes spicy. When I went to the fridge, I found a hot pepper - my DH does the grocery shopping so sometimes I don't know what I'll find there. (If I know I'll need something and put it on the list he gets it, but otherwise he gets what looks good in produce and what we've been using up.) The problem with the hot peppers is sometimes I can't be sure what variety it is so the heat level is a bit of a surprise. There were also some leeks - really nice ones with the white and light green going way up. So I cleaned and sliced up a leek and the hot pepper and sauted them in olive oil. Added the roasted vegetables (which already had some garlic), a few cubes each of yam, zucchini, and green peas (the latter also had garlic because I made them when we were starting to introduce spices into GD's diet), the diced tomatoes with their liquid, and some water. Since I put in the hot pepper, I decided to go toward Indian/North African and added garbanzo beans along with crushed cardamom, coriander and cumin seeds. Served with Honey Oat Wheat bread I made and goat cheese. The food critic had PB&J on his bread because he particularly likes that with that bread.

Here's another: very similar but it contains sour cream Ingredients: 1tablespoon butter 1/2 medium onion, chopped 3 sweet red bell peppers, roasted or grilled, peeled and seeded 2 cups chicken broth 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon finely ground white pepper 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar 1/2 cup sour cream Finely chopped fresh sage or basil (optional garnish) Directions: In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook just until softened, about 3 minutes. Add peppers and broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer briefly, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Process soup in a food mill, blender or food processor. Season with salt and pepper; stir in vinegar and sour cream, blending with a whisk until smooth. Cover and refrigerate until cold. Taste and adjust the seasonings accordingly. To serve, ladle into individual dishes and garnish, if desired, with sage or basil.