Thanksgiving: I've said it before and will say it again, my favorite Holiday! I still cook enough for eight, even if its just for us two now-a-days. When you are a cook and canner - your Holiday starts before anyone elses and ends long after too! From the day after Halloween, gearing up to clear out the fridge and freezers to "make room" for the Holidays is how I kick things off. If there is a free turkey to be found, I get it and throw it in the freezer to process into wonderful canned items like soups, stews, stocks and quick meals and save my fresh bird for the big day...Cranberries hit the store in early November and I get started on those next. This year I am trying my friend Paula's "canned" homemade gelled cranberry sauce (first photo below) No matter what you chose to make for your family, make it easy on yourself, jot ideas down on what you want to serve, how many you need to feed and work from there. Budget minded folks can produce a beautiful spread with fresh, healthy and homemade side dishes too! If its just turkey, salad and some homemade bread - that's just as great! Thanksgiving is ALL ABOUT the memories and creating a warm welcoming atmosphere for you, your family and friends, The meal is just the 'icing on the cake" I hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving! If you have a question about any of my recipes below - or others on my website - feel free to message me and we can work on getting you prepared for T-DAY! Another reminder, think of the little items you use every day that you might forget about during the hustle and bustle of the Holidays...the simple things like tin-foil, dish soap, and leftover food containers come to mind over here... for you canners out there - remember you will be saving your turkey carcasses to create turkey stock - you don't have to process right away - just wrap well, bag and toss in the freezer until you have time and give my Turkey Bone Broth a try! Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy! Diane Gelled Cranberry Sauce (homemade) *can be canned Green Bean Bake Sour Cream & Horseradish Mashed Potatoes Sweet Potato Bake Herbed Stuffing Southern Corn Pudding No Knead Dutch Oven Bread Turkey - Smoked & Grilled Turkey - Roasted in the Oven Turkey Bone Broth Desserts: I usually serve my homemade spiced apple galette, a cherry pie, a pumpkin pie and this year, my Pumpkin Spiced Bundt Cake will be added to the line-up! I will be sharing that recipe soon!!
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I concede - my husband hit a "Home Run"...He loves to grill and has been experimenting with his new grill (a Big Green Egg) we decided this year we would go for it and try our Thanksgiving turkey out there under the Colorado skies! Throw caution to the wind and no matter what the results were - we'd deal with it. Boy - we totally fell into this one - it was truly an amazing tasting bird. Mike used a light hickory (2 large chunks, bark taken off & soaked in water for 2 hours) We brined the bird for 12 hours (overnight) and ended up with just the perfect blend of - well, everything from spices to smoke to herbs!! I don't think I can go back to a turkey done in the oven...I think he's ruined me and he will be cooking the bird for future Festivities! If you have time, give this recipe a try! ~Enjoy! and Happy Thanksgiving!
Brined/Smoked Turkey Ingredients Brine: 16 cups (1 gallon) water 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar Rind of 1 navel orange 3 sprigs rosemary 1 cup kosher salt 2 yellow onions, quartered 1/2 heads garlic, halved horizontally 1 (15-pound) turkey Stuffing for the Cavity of Bird: 2 lemons, quartered 10 sprigs thyme 1 onion, quartered 1/4 cup olive oil Freshly ground black pepper Salt Instructions Set the EGG for indirect cooking at 350ºF Brine: Pour the water into a large bowl. Add the brown sugar, orange rind, rosemary, salt, the quartered onions and 1/2 halved garlic head. Mix until the sugar and salt dissolve. Remove the giblets from inside the turkey and reserve for another use. Rinse the turkey well. Place the turkey in a 2-1/2 gallon resealable plastic bag or any container that is large enough to hold the turkey and the liquid. Pour the brine over the turkey, making sure it’s completely covered. Refrigerate for 12 hours, turning occasionally. Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse well to remove the brining liquid, and pat dry with paper towels. Discard the brining liquid and solids. Prepare the Bird: Stuff the turkey cavity with the lemon quarters, onion, thyme, salt & pepper. Brush the turkey with olive oil and season with pepper and salt or we use "Black Dog Belly Rub". If smoking, place the hickory chips over the hot coals and, using barbecue mitts. Add the ConvEGGtor legs up Place the Drip Pan filled with a bit of apple juice onto ConvEGGtor. Place the Cooking Grill Grate on top (brushed with olive oil) Place Turkey (wings tucked) onto Cooking Grill Grate and close the lid of the EGG. Cook for at least 2 hours, not opening grill. If the turkey starts to brown too quickly, carefully tent the turkey with aluminum foil. Check the Turkey after 2 hours, add more coals or smoke chips if preferred, tent with foil if browning too fast. Continue cooking until the instant read thermometer registers 165F in the breast and 180F in the thickest part of the thigh. A 15 pound Turkey takes approximately 3.5 hours to fully cook a turkey from a defrosted state. Remove the turkey from the EGG and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes before carving and serving. Serves 8 Herbed "Simple" dressing~STUFFING"Simple is Best" Dressing ingredients 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter plus more for baking dish 1 pound good-quality day-old white bread, torn into 1" pieces (about 10 cups) 2 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions 1 1/2 cups 1/4" slices celery 1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 1/2 cups turkey stock/broth (chicken stock/broth if you don't have turkey stock/broth) 2 large eggs preparation Preheat oven to 250°F. Butter a 13x9x2" baking dish and set aside. Scatter bread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until dried out, about 1 hour. Let cool; transfer to a very large bowl. Meanwhile, melt 3/4 cup butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onions and celery. Stir often until just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add to bowl with bread; stir in herbs, salt, and pepper. Drizzle in 1 1/4 cups broth and toss gently. Let cool. Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk 1 1/4 cups broth and eggs in a small bowl. Add to bread mixture; fold gently until thoroughly combined. Transfer to prepared dish, cover with foil, and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of dressing registers 160°F, about 40 minutes. DO AHEAD: Dressing can be made 1 day ahead. Uncover; let cool. Cover; chill. Bake dressing, uncovered, until set and top is browned and crisp, 40-45 minutes longer (if chilled, add 10-15 minutes). Recipe by: Epicurious Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home GREEN BEAN BAKEGreen Bean Bake Ingredients: 1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon soy sauce 1 dash black pepper 4 cups cooked cut green beans 1 1/3 cups French's French Fried Onions Directions: 1 Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, beans and 2/3 cup onions in a 1 1/2-quart casserole. 2 Bake at 350°F. for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir the bean mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining onions. 3 Bake for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden brown. Recipe by: Campbells/French's Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home SOUR CREAM & HORSEradish mashed potatoesMashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Horseradish Ingredients 3 pounds boiling potatoes, peeled Kosher salt 1 1/2 cups milk 6 tablespoons butter, melted 1/2 cup sour cream 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper *more on top if preferred 2-3 Tbs creamed horseradish Directions Cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes and place them in a large pot. Cover the potatoes with cold water and add enough salt so the water tastes quite salty. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 10 to 12 minutes, until the potatoes fall apart easily when pierced with a fork. Meanwhile, warm the milk and butter in a small saucepan, making sure it doesn't boil. Set aside until the potatoes are done. Microwave/melt butter and set aside. When the potatoes are tender, drain them in a colander. Mash with potato masher or run thru food mill. As soon as the potatoes are mashed, slowly whisk in enough of the hot milk/butter mixture to make the potatoes very creamy. Add 2 teaspoons of salt and the sour cream and pepper and whisk to combine. Add creamed horseradish to taste. Sprinkle top with black pepper if preferred. Taste for seasoning and serve hot. Recipe partially Adapted from: Ina Garten Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home diane's sweet potato bakeDiane's Sweet Potato Bake FILLING: 2 large Sweet Potatoes, baked 1 cup brown sugar 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 cup milk 1/2 cup melted butter 1/2 tsp cinnamon dash of nutmeg TOPPING: 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/3 cup flour 1/3 cup melted butter 1 cup chopped pecans 1/4 cup Pure Maple Syrup *optional Bake sweet potatoes in oven at 400F for approx 45 mins on a foil lined baking sheet. Let cool slightly & remove jackets/skins from baked sweet potatoes. Combine all the Filling ingredients. Blend thoroughly *i used my stick blender and pour into a buttered 9 inch pie dish or 1.5Qt baking dish. Mix all Topping ingredients together and sprinkle over top. Bake at 350° for 30 to 40 minutes, until hot and browned. Drizzle with a bit of pure maple syrup before serving *optional Serves up to 8. Recipe & Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home |