Thanksgiving Part 1 Turkey

Thanksgiving Turkey

Thanksgiving is definitely my favorite time of year, the air gets cooler and crisper and the leaves begin to change color. All things that signal that Summer is coming to an end and harvest time is here. It is this time that I look forward to all year long.

We have a tradition that I have observed ever since I was a little girl, we go around the table and ask each person sitting with us what they have been most thankful for over the past year. The catch is that no one can have the same answer. There have been a number of years that we have taken the opportunity to remember past holidays and think about the family members that are still with us but also those who have passed on to heaven. I love seeing how each person remembers the past and I look forward to next year when we hopefully will get the chance to do it all over again.

Below you will find one of my favorite ways to prepare a turkey for the big day. I hope you enjoy it. 

Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

12-15 lb Turkey

1 ½ sticks of butter (softened)

1 T Fresh Rosemary chopped fine

1 T Fresh Thyme chopped fine

1 T Fresh Sage leaves chopped fine

1 medium onion peeled and cut into wedges

1 lemon washed and cut into wedges

3 large cloves of garlic peeled and crushed

2 sprigs each of rosemary,sage and thyme

2 t salt

2 t pepper

6 C of chicken stock

1 cheese cloth cut to cover entire top of turkey

Kitchen twine to tie legs of bird together

Instructions:

• Mix the chopped herbs with the butter and allow it to sit for about 15 minutes so the butter absorbs the flavor of the herbs.

• While you are waiting, loosen the skin on the breast of the turkey so that you can put half of the herb butter under the skin so that the turkey will stay nice and moist.

• Rinse and drain the inside of the turkey and then liberally salt and pepper the cavity of the bird.

• Stuff the inside of the turkey with the onions, garlic, lemons, herbs and 2 T of the herb butter.

• Completely melt the rest of the herb butter and soak the cheese cloth in the butter.

• Salt and pepper the top of the turkey and then place the butter soaked cheesecloth over the top making sure that the whole bird is covered with the cheese cloth, including the legs.

• Take your kitchen twine and tie the legs together tightly.

• Place the turkey on the rack of your roasting pan and pour the 6 Cups of chicken stock into the pan below the rack.

• Bake 45 minutes at 400 and then lower the oven to 350 and bake for an additional 2-2 ½ hours until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the turkey reads 160. Make sure not to let the thermometer touch a bone so that you get an accurate reading.

• Baste your turkey every 20 minutes to ensure a nicely browned skin.

Notes:

• The rule of thumb on cooking turkey is usually 15 minutes per pound. However oven temperatures can vary so be sure you have a meat thermometer and begin checking your turkey about ⅔ of the way into cooking your turkey.

Ossa Buco Instructional Video

Many times, when we open our cookbooks or find a recipe on Pinterest, we want to get right to making that special dish. But then we come across a term that we don’t understand, let alone how to apply it to what we want to cook! I will be sharing a few cooking terms that will help make cooking fun and easy.

Braising - covering meat with a braising liquid and cooking it low and slow until the meat falls apart. This method of cooking makes the meat tender and flavorful!

Below you will find the recipe and instructions to cook a dish known as Osso Buco, a rustic Italian dish that can be served with pasta, rice, polenta or spaghetti squash if you are forgoing carbs and starches.

Ingredients:

6 pork shanks or a 3 lb pork roast

Kosher salt and pepper for seasoning

3 T of olive oil

1 lg yellow onion chopped

1 lg carrot chopped

2 celery ribs chopped

3 cloves of garlic

1 t anchovy paste ( you can find at most grocery stores)

1 T finely grated lemon zest

½ t crushed red pepper flakes

1 C of dry white wine

2 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes

2 C of chicken stock

5 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

2 bay leaves 

Instructions:

1. In a baking dish, season the pork with salt and pepper and cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 325 or you can use a crock-pot. Brown pork in a pan over med/high heat using the olive oil. This takes about 8 minutes per side. Transfer to oven safe dutch oven or to the crock-pot whichever one you will be using.

3. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from browning the pork. Add the onions, carrot, celery plus a generous pinch of salt and pepper.Cook over moderately high heat until the vegetables are softened and starting to brown. About 10 minutes. Stir the garlic, anchovies, lemon zest and crushed red peppers and cook until fragrant. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes, chicken stock, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Pour mixture over the pork in a pan or crock-pot. Cover tightly with lid or foil and braise for about 3 hours in oven or 4 hours in a crock-pot, until meat is very tender.

4. Transfer the pork to a platter and tent with foil. Discard the herbs and spoon off the fat from the sauce. Working in batches puree the sauce in a blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon some of the sauce over the pork and reserve the rest for serving at the table.

Roast Beef Instructional Video

I have been making this recipe for years but I first learned how to make it from my wonderful mother in law Margie Yarbrough. Through the years I have tweaked it to make it my own but the basic recipe was hers.

This is one of those dishes that you can place in the cock pot to slow cook all day which is awesome especially if you are a working mom. I especially like crock-pot meals in the winter because I can just throw it in the crock-pot and forget about it until I am ready to put the rest of my meal together. I like to make a large roast so I can make other meals with the left overs. I will be talking about transforming left overs into completely different meals than what it started out to be at a later date.

Old Fashioned Pot Roast

1 3-5 lb Chuck roast

4 T all purpose flour

3 T Canola oil or any oil that has a high heat tolerance

1 large yellow onion sliced thin

1 C water

2 lbs yukon gold potatoes (scrubbed)

1 bunch of carrots (scrubbed and peeled)

2 T thyme (you can use fresh which I did in the video but dried works just as well)

4 T olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Coat the outside of the roast with the flour, heat a large skillet over medium high heat Pour Canola oil in pan and coat the pan. Brown the roast on all side to form a nice crust. This seals the juice in to the meat. Next place your roast in the crock pot and add the onions, dried or fresh Thyme and water. use the desired setting on your crock pot (4, 6 or 8 hours)

An hour before you want to sit down to eat cut your potatoes (do not peel) and carrots into bite size pieces and coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Put the vegetables onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet and place into a 400 oven to bake for 40-45 minutes turning half way through.

When everything has finished place the roast onto a platter and arrange your vegetables around the meat and garnish with sprigs of fresh Thyme if desired.

Bon a petite you may eat!

Egg Boiling Instructional Video

I have long enjoyed hard boiled eggs and I use them in tons of different dishes. One of the most frustrating problems that people have is how to remove the shell from the egg once you have boiled the egg.

Well this instructional video will help you to make perfect hard boiled eggs every time.

Instructions:

1 dozen eggs

4 quarts of water

Bring the 4 quarts of water to a full rolling boil then carefully place the eggs into the water being careful not to crack the eggs, bring the water back up to a full boil and then set timer for 13 minutes. While you wait for the eggs to boil prepare a large mixing bowl with 6 cups of water and 4 cups of ice to make a water bath. Once the eggs are ready gently place the eggs in the water bath and set timer for 7 minutes. Remove the eggs when time is up and tap the bottom of the egg on the counter top then roll the egg gently back and forth on counter and watch the egg shell easily slip right off.

*The reason for the water bath is to stop the cooking process.

Proper use of a kitchen knife

The kitchen knife is one of the most used kitchen utensils that you will be using in your kitchen. If you are not use to handling a sharp knife this might seem a little daunting to you at first, but once you get the hang of it, using a sharp knife will become second nature.

In the video I am cutting up a tomato and just like anything you plan to use the knife for, safety should be your top priority. First slice the vegetable you intend to chop in half placing the cut side down on the counter. Place your thumb on the back side of the vegetable( this stabilizes the vegetable while you cut) and the rest of your fingers on the top of the vegetable tucking your fingers back towards your hand. This keeps your fingers away from the knife and helps to keep you from accidentally cutting yourself.

Happy Chopping!