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2009 Thanksgiving recipes

 

Turkey

I love to get a smallish-sized hen. I get her from a local farm so that I can support a local family business. 15 lbs is good. I like to brine her overnight in a simple salt and sugar brine. All those fancy herbs and spices do nothing for the meat, but give it an off flavor. Be simple. Turkey is turkey. To make your brine, use a cup of white sugar with a cup of pickling salt (it is pure and will not cloud). Add them to a couple cups of cold water and bring to a slow boil to melt and incorporate. Cool the liquid and then add it to your brine bucket (that big stock pot that will hold your cold turkey) with enough water to cover. The idea around brining is that you want to help your turkey maintain its juicy texture. Of course, if you purchase an already-brined bird, then skip this step. Don't make this any harder than it has to be. It's easy.

When it comes time to roast your bird, make sure it is dry. I like to rub it with softened butter rather than EVOO, as butter will brown the outside skin nicely. I don't salt or pepper it, since it has been brined.

My tangerine juice marinade consists of a simmered pan of fresh tangerine juice (Naked Juice, Odwala, etc.) and a bit of leftover butter. Reduce it so it is more of a syrup, and brush on the skin periodically to make the skin have this tangy, bright, and fresh taste.

Cook the bird according to the directions. And remember that a brined bird will take considerably less time than a non-brined bird; just like a stuffed bird will take longer than a non-stuffed bird. I remove the bird when the dark meat temp is around 175 deg. F. I know there will be some carry over cooking when I tent the bird in foil and let it sit for 30 minutes. But there are numerous techniques suggested about how to turn, cook, roast, heat, flip, and jiggle your bird. WHATEVER! Just roast the bird.

Dressing

I no longer stuff my bird, so I guess the recipe is for a dressing. If you have your great grandmother's favorite handed down recipe, then use it. If not, then you can try this one, which can be made with or without the sausage. I like pork meat, so any chance I have to use sausage is great. My sausage is locally made from by favorite pig farmer a couple towns over. Anyway, scrambel the sausage with a chopped onion and some chopped celery. You can decide how much you want to use. I also add a couple sticks of unsalted butter to the pan. Always use the unsalted stuff. It costs the same and is a higher grade of butter. Plus, you can always adjust the salt along the way.

To this mixture, I add a couple rough chopped apples, a hint of dried sage from my garden, and some ground black pepper. Now, please be careful with the so-called Thanksgiving herbs. Heavy sage can get out of hand and deliver an over-the-top and not-so-delicious taste.

I then chop some sourdough bread or leftover baguettes and pulse them in the food processor. I mix it with the apple/sausage/butter/onion mix and place it in a gratin or baking dish, covered and ready to put in the oven.

You could also add nuts (chestnuts are sexy these days), cranberries (raw), golden raisins, morels, etc. As I mature in my culinary ways, I get more simple with my recipes. I'm a HUGE Mark Bittman fan--the Minimalist! Keep it easy and don't overpower the natural taste of the food.

 

Mrs. Glick's Potatoes

How easy is this? You can do it blindfolded. Boil some local potatoes. Remember, please, that potatoes absorb and carry many toxics from their conventionally-grown and sprayed fields. So, if you can get your hands on organic potatoes (not that much more expensive), you will do your liver a favor by not over-taxing it with toxicity.

Boil the potatoes. I like the yellow fins or OreGold-style potatoes, as they are a mix between the waxy (red skinned) and the dry bakers (russets). They hold up nicely and do not get gummy, if you use a ricer or food mill. Boil in salted water that tastes like the sea!

Drain. (Yes, Michelle, drain them!) Mash. Add copious amounts of unsalted butter, chopped scallions or chives, cream cheese, and Vermont sharp cheddar. You can also add buttermilk if you wish. I like to. I like the tangy flavor of this special buttermilk-yogurt-herb dressing I make, but that's another story.

Place in a serving dish that can be heated (in case you need to put this into the oven to warm). Notice, also, that this recipe does not include garlic! Garlic mashed potatoes are so overdone. Emeril's star is fading!

 

Cranberry sauce

One bag of organic cranberries are dropped into a pan with 3/4 cup of organic sugar and one cup of orange juice. I add a cinnamon stick (not the ground stuff, as that will make it taste yucky) and then bring it to a slow boil. Add a pinch of salt. Stir. Just have some patience and you will end up with an excellent serving of cranberries. If you like the orange flavor more pronounced, then you can add a couple slivers of the orange peel.

 

Creamed spinach with onions

This is my favorite dish of the whole meal, as I love greens. I use my own frozen spinach from this summer's garden. You can get some without pesticides from Trader Joe's. Use two packages of it. Steam it with a bit of olive oil and some chopped onions. Nothing more. Then, make up a quick roux of butter and flour and make sure you don't overcook it. Add a couple of pinches of ground nutmeg, a pinch of salt, and a bit of half and half (or reduce your cream with chicken stock) and make a loose sauce with it. Combine it with your spinach and onions and bake a bit to firm up and meld the flavors.

 

You can handle your own gravy, your own sweet potato recipe, and your own pie recipes. Beyond all: let nature's flavors shine by not masking them with tons of herbs and spices.