Thanksgiving

Favorites

    Time tested and true, these are favorites for good reason.

Cooking that first turkey for your new in-laws?  Want a dish that is sure to impress?  Or maybe your kids have let you know (in not so subtle ways) that last year’s bird was a little on the dry side.  Whatever the reason, our recipes will make your season easy and memorable.  

Tid Bits for those with Bird on the Brain -When selecting a turkey, look for words on the package such as “natural” or “free of preserves” or “free of preserves”.  These guys haven’t been pumped full of artificial garbage that trashes all the work you will put into the bird later. -Remember to remove the neck and giblets, usually a small packet inside the cavity of the bird.  Seems silly, but my mother forgets to do this every year, and bakes them inside. -The USDA does not allow for the use of hormones in turkeys produced for consumption in the U.S. -Grade “A” is the highest grade the USDA gives and is typically the only grade you can get in supermarkets. -Make sure you cook your turkey all the way trough to at least 160 degrees F or higher. Check in the deepest part of the breast with a meat thermometer.  This insures that Salmonella and other organisms will not be present in the food. -One lb of turkey per person will have you covered on the guest list. -Fresh turkey is a bird that has never been below 26 degrees F, and should not be hard to the touch. -Organic turkeys tend to have the best flavor, but can be expensive and hard to find, especially at the holidays. -Don’t try to slow cook a turkey the way you would a beef brisket, all you will get is soggy, sickly turkey skin. -Make sure the thigh, not the drumstick, reaches it’s required temperature of 170 degrees F, it is common for the drumstick to get there before the thigh does and it is really embarrassing to serve a bloody thigh on accident. -Brushing the turkey skin with butter the last 15 minutes of cooking will give it that crispy, Norman Rockwell look that makes everyone’s mouth water when you bring it to the table.  

15 Minute Masterpiece

Green Bean Casserole  

Cooking time: 10 minutes prep time, and about 25 minutes baking time.  My favorite of the casserole recipes. Servings: 3-4

Ingredients

2 10 3/4 oz cans Campbell’s condensed Cream of mushroom soup

1 cup of milk

1/4 teaspoon of pepper

8 cups canned green beans

2 2/3 cups French’s French fried onions  

Directions  Mix all ingredients, save 1 1/2 cup of onions in a large bowl and transfer to a casserole pan.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes.  Pour remaining onions over the top of the casserole and back for 5 more minutes.    

 Fancy enough for Company 

French Bread Sausage Stuffing  

1 1/2 loaf(s) ( 16 ounces each) French bread, torn into 3/4-inch pieces (about 12 cups)

2 package(s) (10 to 12 ounces each) pork sausage meat, fresh or frozen (thawed)

6 medium celery stalks, sliced

3 medium onions, chopped

3 cups chicken broth

2 cups loosely packed fresh parsley leaves, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, coarsely chopped

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

1/2 teaspoon soy sauce

1/8 teaspoon sesame oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Divide bread between two 15 1/2″ by 10 1/2″ jelly-roll pans or large cookie sheets. Place pans on 2 oven racks and toast bread 20 to 25 minutes or until golden, stirring bread and rotating pans between upper and lower racks halfway through toasting. Cool bread in pans on wire racks. (If not making stuffing right away, store bread in large self-sealing plastic bags at room temperature up to 1 week.) Meanwhile, in nonstick 12-inch skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat 8 to 10 minutes or until browned, breaking up sausage with side of spoon. Remove skillet from heat. With slotted spoon, transfer sausage to very large bowl. To fat remaining in skillet, add celery and onion. Cook vegetables 20 minutes over medium heat or until lightly browned and tender, stirring frequently. To bowl with sausage, add vegetable mixture, bread, broth, parsley, thyme, poultry seasoning, and pepper; toss to mix well. Use to stuff 12- to 16-pound turkey. Or, spoon stuffing into greased 13″ by 9″ glass baking dish. Bake stuffing, uncovered, in preheated 325º F oven 40 to 45 minutes or until heated through and lightly browned on top. Baking in a casserole pan is a better idea than in the bird.  It is safer, both items ultimately cook faster, and the stuffing will be fluffy and crispy, not soggy and wet like happens sometimes in a moist bird.

 Five Star Dish

Sour Cream Pumpkin Pie

9 inch unbaked pastry shell

1 1/2 cups flour                                                                                                                                                         

3/4 cup shorting                                                                                                                                                                             

2 tablespoons cold water                                                                                                                                           

1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all dry ingredients well, the cut in shortening and cold water.  The trick with pie crust is to not over work it, or it will get rubbery.  The shortening makes for a lovely flakey crust.

Pumpkin Pie

16 oz can of pumpkin

14 oz can of condensed milk

2 large eggs

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

Sour Cream Topping

1 1/2 cup sour cream

2 Tb sugar

1 Tb Vanilla Extract

Mix sour cream topping ingredients and then refrigerate.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  In a large bowl mix thoroughly all pie filling ingredients.   Pour into uncooked shell and bake for 15 minutes.  Reduce temperature to 350 degrees F. bake another 15 minutes.  Add sour cream topping, covering with tinfoil to prevent discoloration of topping.  Bake a further 10-15 minutes, or until a knife comes out of the pie clean 1 inch from the crust.  Garnish with pecans or as desired when pie has cooled.  No low carb recipes here!