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Has Achieved Nirvana
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Gee, I guess I'll have to try it next year. Big Grin Big Grin Big Grin It's one of two stuffing recipes in an old "How to cook the perfect turkey" article from gourmet magazine I've had in my recipe file for ages. (I always make the other stuffing - the one with sausage and oysters). I figured the spinach one would be good, as this issue of the magazine also had the recipe for the excellent gravy that I shared with you guys last year.

Smiler Jodi
 
Posts: 20525 | Registered: 20 April 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Pinta & the Santa Maria
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The cranberry relish was a big hit in our house as well... it's all gone! And not only was it tasty, it was easy to make and made the house smell absolutely wonderful. AND we have leftover bourbon!

A complete win-win!

Plus I made the beans that Cindy posted--the ones with roasted garlic, cumin and lemon. They were absolutely fantastic. Normally the veggies at Thanksgiving are sort of an afterthought, but people were taking 2nds and even 3rds of these... and they were also super-easy. I'm going to make them for "regular" dinners.

I'm positive you could use the frozen Trader Joe's ones--I'd be tempted to make the garlic-butter stuff, toss the (thawed) beans in, do a little stir-fry and call it a day. Just heat them up. It would be fab.

P.S. I'm thinking we should all plan to bring our favorite recipes to Elena's concert. We can do a swap in person.
 
Posts: 35428 | Location: West: North and South! | Registered: 20 April 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Minor Deity
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I'm becoming a staunch believer in the simple and the tried and true for Thanksgiving. I think keeping to that theme was a big reason I didn't completely stress out this year. Two examples are the roasted brussel sprouts and roasted sweet potatos. For each, after cleaning them I coated them in olive oil and put them in the oven until they were soft, and in the case of the brussels, a little charred at the fringes. When the taters were done, I sliced them into large chunks and melted butter over them. Both were huge hits and so ridiculously simple.

I always do a sausage stuffing mix, with celery, onions and pork sausage. This year I threw in some portabella mushrooms and pine nuts for a little variety.

And I do my gravy like my mother did - from the drippings and the cooking broth from the giblets.

SILs both brought some lovely side dishes. One was pureed cauliflower with sour cream. And, then the JF family tradition - corn pudding.

Cindy's cranberries were a big hit, and I did a lighter variety cooked with orange juice instead of water with a bit of honey - very tart and almost guilt-free.
 
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Minor Deity
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I gotta find a way to dial things down next year. We had 19 people. Nineteen. It was insanely loud and chaotic and stressful. Not my idea of a good time. Mr. Sphinx kept inviting people and inviting people and inviting people.

I'm putting him on a choke chain next year.
 
Posts: 19833 | Location: A cluttered house in Metro D.C. | Registered: 20 April 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Pinta & the Santa Maria
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kathyk--

Try roasting your pine nuts. They're really delicious. I buy a ton each year, roast them and stick them in the freezer.

Stick them in a single layer on a cookie sheet, bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on them and take them out when they get golden brown.

They get a great roasted flavor that is wonderful in a lot of things... even tossed into a green salad.
 
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quote:
Originally posted by Nina:
AND we have leftover bourbon!

A complete win-win!



ROTFLMAO
 
Posts: 20525 | Registered: 20 April 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Minor Deity
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Here's a recipe for Drunken Turkey. It comes out beautifully, and the sauce it generates is to die for.

****************

"Zarela Martinez's Drunken Turkey"

1 12-pound turkey
2 pounds dried mixed fruit
1 cup white raisins
4 granny smith apples (cored, cut into 1-inch wedges)
5 ounce can of chipotle chiles with juice
Juice of one orange
3 cups dark tequila
3 cups Grand Marnier
2 sticks sweet (salted) butter

Preheat oven to 325. Rinse turkey, pat dry inside and outside. Salt cavity and set aside.

Combine dried fruit, raisins and apple in medium bowl. Put orange juice and chiles with juice into blender and blend for 1 minute. Add one cup each of tequila and Grand Marnier, blend. Pour this misture over the fruit and let rest for 15 minutes. Drain fruit, reserving liquid. Cut 1 stick of butter into slices and combine with fruit.

Stuff cavity of turkey with most of fruit. Place turkey in roasting pan; arrange remaining fruit on top of turkey. Then pour reserved orange/chile/liquor mixture over it. Fill basting syringe with remaining liquor and inject into turkey all over. Melt remaining stick of butter and pour over turkey. Roast 2.5 hours or until cooked.

Notes:

1. I used 2 cups tequila and 2 cups Grand Marnier. Had I used more the liquid would have overflowed.

2. I would cut back on the apples. That was a lot of fruit.

3. The smaller dried fruit (raisins, cranberries) turned to an unrecognizable mush. Better results were with the apricots and dried plums, which came out delicious.

4. I could not find chipotle chiles in their juice. The closest thing I found was chipotle chiles in adobo (tomato) sauce. This worked fine, and it gave the turkey an interesting red tinge that looked nice when it was brown.

5. I used a separator to separate the oil from the broth. The broth was this thick, spicy sauce that you could serve instead of traditional gravy.

6. I wouldn't arrange the fruit on top of the turkey. That's kinda weird. Placing it in the pan was fine. For serving, we sliced the turkey and then arranged the fruit all around on the platter.

That's it!
 
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Pinta & the Santa Maria
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quote:
Originally posted by Cindysphinx:
Jodi's stuffing with hot italian sausage, sourdough bread, spinach, parmesan cheese was a stone-cold winner. That's it. I will make it every year for life.


Recipe??? Pleez??
 
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Pinta & the Santa Maria
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Those of you who brine your turkeys.... what in heaven's name do you use to contain the little bugger?

I generally end up with a 16-lb. bird, more or less. I figure the bird, plus two gallons+ of the liquid and I'd need a crane to get it into my non-existent big-enough refrigerator.

But I'm curious to try it. Are you guys cheating because you can just leave it outside, in a garbage can or something since you leave in cold-weather climes?

(I remember the first time I went to Thanksgiving at my SIL's in Massachusetts--the beer and soda were chilling on the back deck! What a cool (pardon the pun) idea! Free cold!
 
Posts: 35428 | Location: West: North and South! | Registered: 20 April 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Minor Deity
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Here is a strong vote and reminder for Cindy's bourbon cranberry! I have made it for the last two years and it is a winner.

The Drunken Turkey sounds great. We are not cooking this year but may try it next when we are cooking, although forgoing the traditional stuffing may be tough.

jf
 
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Minor Deity
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This might be it, Nina. I found it saved as a Word doc on my computer. Jodi?

***************************

Bread Stuffing with Chard and Sausage

5 T butter
1 pound hot or mild Italian Sausage crumbled, casings removed
1 1/4 C chopped celery
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/4 pund mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 pounds Swiss Chard or spinach (ends trimmed) rinsed well and finely chopped
1/2 C raisins
1 1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
1 1/4 t. each dry rosemary leaves, and dry oregono leaves
1/2 pund sweed French or Sourdough bread cut into 1/4 ince cubes (8 cups)
1 C dry white wine

In a 5 - 6 quart pan, melt butter on medium heat. Add sausage; cook and stir often until browned, about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove sausage to a large bowl.
To the pan, add celery and onion. Cook until vegetable are limp, about 5 minutes; stir often. Remove with a slotted spoon and add to sausage. Add mushrooms to pan; stir often until liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and add to sausage. Add chard to pan; stir until it is wilted and juices are evaporated. Stir chard into sausage mixture with raisins, parmesan, rosmary, and oregano.

Soak bread in wine, then work with your hands until is is mashed. Combine bread and sausage mixture, mixing well . Fill turkey with stuffing, place excess stuffing about 1 inch deep in a buttered baking pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven, uncovered, until top is lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Makes 8 cups, 8 - 10 servings.
 
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Pinta & the Santa Maria
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quote:
1/2 pund sweed French or Sourdough bread cut into 1/4 ince cubes (8 cups)


Far be it for me to make fun of someone's typing skills, but in this case I'm not actually sure where you were headed with this.

Sweet? Seeded? Swedish? suave
 
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knitterati
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I think it's seaweed. You know, nori. Yes
 
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Pinta & the Santa Maria
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That would be perfect for a tofurkey! Big Grin
 
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quote:
Originally posted by Eileen:
Can't claim this recipe as my own....came fro Martha Stewart. Did it last year and it was the best Turkey we have ever had.

Eileen
********************************************

Brined and Roasted Turkey
Serves 10 to 12
2 gallons cold water
2 cups bourbon
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons coarse salt
1 cup sugar
1 twelve- to fifteen-pound turkey, giblets removed and rinsed
1 tablespoon freshly ground white pepper
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
Cornbread, Apple, and Sausage Stuffing (recipe below)
4 cups Homemade Chicken Stock, or low-sodium canned
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
2 carrots, roughly chopped
2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley stems (about 1 bunch)
Chris’s Thanksgiving Gravy, for serving (recipe below), optional
1. In a pot large enough to accommodate the turkey, combine 2 gallons water, the bourbon, 2 cups salt, and the sugar. Stir to dissolve salt and sugar. Add turkey, and refrigerate for 18 to 36 hours.
2. Remove turkey from the brine, and dry well with paper towels. Let stand, covered, at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 325°. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons salt and the white and black pepper. Rub the inside and outside of the turkey with the salt-and-pepper mixture. Fill the large cavity and neck cavity with as much stuffing as they hold comfortably. Do not pack tightly, or the stuffing will not cook through. (If all the stuffing does not fit, simply transfer the extra to a buttered baking dish, and bake covered, for 30 minutes and uncovered for 15 minutes more in a 375° oven.) Tie the legs together loosely with kitchen twine. Fold the neck flap under, and secure with toothpicks. Place the turkey, breast side up, on a roasting rack in a heavy metal roasting pan. Fold the wing tips under the turkey.
4. Soak a clean kitchen towel in the chicken stock. Lift the towel out of the stock, and squeeze it slightly, leaving it very damp. Spread it evenly over the turkey. Place the turkey in the oven so breast is facing the front of the oven. Roast for 3 hours, basting every 30 minutes.
5. Carefully remove the towel. Turn roasting pan so the breast is facing the back of the oven. Baste turkey with pan juices. The skin gets fragile as it browns, so baste carefully. Add onions, carrots, celery, and parsley stems to the roasting pan around the turkey. Roast 1 hour more, basting after 30 minutes.
6. Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. Do not poke into a bone. The temperature should reach 165° and the turkey should be golden brown. The breast does not need to be checked for temperature. If the legs are not fully cooked, baste the turkey, return to the oven, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.
7. When fully cooked, remove the turkey from the oven, and let it rest, covered, for at least 20 minutes. Transfer to a carving board. Make the gravy, and serve with turkey.
Cornbread, Apple, and Sausage Stuffing
Makes enough stuffing for a 12- to 15-pound turkey
Cornbread (recipe below), cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
4 medium red onions, finely chopped
8 celery stalks, finely chopped
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
1/2 cup chopped fresh sage
1. Preheat the oven to 300°. Place cornbread cubes on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake until dry, about 20 minutes; set aside.
2. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, cook sausage until it’s no longer pink. Transfer to a small bowl; set aside.
3. Melt butter in the same sauté pan. Add onion and celery, and cook over medium heat until translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Add apples and cranberries, stir to combine, and cook 5 minutes. Add half-and-half, and cook, stirring for 3 minutes. Add sage, and remove from heat. Transfer to a large bowl. Add cornbread and sausage; stir to combine. Let cool completely before stuffing the turkey, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Cornbread
Makes one 8-inch pan
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, for baking pan
1 1/2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon molasses
1 large egg
1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Butter an 8-by-8-inch baking pan. In a medium bowl, sift together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine milk, molasses, and egg. Add to the dry ingredients, and mix well. Pour batter into prepared baking pan, and bake until golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack. When cool, gently run a knife around pan; unmold.
Chris’s Thanksgiving Gravy
Serves 10 to 12
5 cups Homemade Chicken Stock, or low-sodium canned
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1. When turkey is fully cooked and has been removed from the roasting pan, place the pan over medium heat. Add chicken stock. Bring liquid to a boil, scraping the crisp bits from the bottom and sides with a wooden spoon. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring, for 10 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve into a glass measuring cup. Let stand until fat rises to the surface, about 10 minutes, then skim it off and reserve. Transfer defatted stock mixture to a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2. In a second saucepan over medium heat, add melted butter and enough reserved fat to make 1/3 cup. Add flour, and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove half of this mixture from the saucepan, and set aside. Whisk in the simmering stock mixture. If a thicker gravy is desired, add more of the reserved flour mixture, a little bit at a time, until thickened. Continue to cook over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper.


I'm using Eileen's brining recipe again this year. It came out great last year!
 
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