What's on the Menu?

Moose

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10/09/09
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Thanksgiving is one of my favorite Holidays, especially the feast! :) It is a tradition in my home that I do all the cooking. I even clean up as I go along so the only remaining hassle is putting away the leftovers. I've already started making preparations this morning. :eek:

Menu:

Roasted Turkey stuffed with Corn Bread, Granny Smith apples, Raisins, Pecans, celery, onions, butter and turkey stock (making today).

Scalloped Zuccini and Yellow Squash Casserole

Turnips Au Gratin (my son's favorite)

Sweet Potato & Pecan Casserole

Whipped White Potatoes (using Half & Half + Butter) - Turkey Gravy (from Stock & Drippings) on the side.

Cranberry Sauce

Celery filled with Cream Cheese.

Deserts:

Traditional Pumpkin Pie

Sweet Potato Pie

Chocolate / Peanut Butter Brownies (my son hates pie)

Pumpkin and Pecan Streusel Pie

washed down with Egg Nog

Lets hear about your feasting plans. :cool:
 
Here are some recipes if you care to make your own. :)

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE MAKES 6-8 SERVINGS

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes (about 2 pounds sweet potatoes)
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup milk
½ stick or ¼ cup butter, melted
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. vanilla extract


TOPPING

½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup chopped walnuts, pecans, or other nuts
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup butter


1. Preheat the oven to 350 degree. Grease a shallow 2-quart casserole.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the potatoes, granulated sugar, eggs, milk, butter, salt, and vanilla and scrape the mixture into the prepared casserole.

3. Make the topping: In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, nuts, and flour. Sprinkle over the top of the casserole . Dot with the butter. Place the casserole on a baking sheet.

4. Bake, uncovered, in the 350 degree oven until heated through and lightly browned, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
 
And another ... :)

Scalloped Zucchini & Yellow Squash

6 cups thinly sliced zucchini & yellow squash
1 cup boiling water (may substitute stock)
¼ cup White Sauce
2 eggs, beaten
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon finely chopped onion
¼ cup dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Cook squash in boiling water until tender, about 5 minutes; drain.

Make White Sauce. Stir a little into eggs; gradually stir eggs into remaining sauce. Stir in salt, Worcestershire sauce, onion and squash. Put in greased 1-quart Casserole.

Mix crumbs with butter; sprinkle over squash mixture. Bake in preheated 325 F oven about 35 minutes. Yield 6 servings.

White Sauce (be’chamel sauce)

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups half & half
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
Melt butter in top of double boiler over boiling water; stir in flour with wooden spoon until smooth. Add Half & Half gradually; stir constantly. Cook until sauce is thick; stir in salt and pepper. Remove top of double boiler from water.

Pour “extra” remaining sauce into small bowl. Cover top of sauce with circle of wet waxed paper; refrigerate for future use.

For thicker sauce increase flour to 4 tablespoons. Yield 2 cups.
 
And my Son's favorite ... :)

Turnips au Gratin

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup half & half
3 cups diced cooked turnips
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in flour and salt until smooth. Add Half & half slowly, stirring rapidly to prevent lumping. Bring to boil; stirring constantly. Gently mix white sauce and turnips; pour into baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake in preheated 375 F oven about 20 minutes, until cheese melts. Yield 6 servings.


A safe and Happy Thanksgiving to all viewing this forum and to your families, loved ones and significant others! :D
 

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Turkey Tips
Ricky Ginsburg

Just so there's no doubt as to my qualifications - I've been cooking turkeys for over 40 years, probably cook around twenty a year. Here are three tips for making your turkey a successful investment:

1. Start the bird cooking breast side down. Cook it that way for the first half of your total cooking time (i.e. if you need 4 hours to cook the turkey, cook it 2 hours breast down.) Take the turkey out of the oven, flip it quickly, and put it back in to finish cooking. All the juices will have soaked into the white meat, along with all that flavor! You'll never dry out the breast meat if you do this.

2. Carving the finished bird. Remove the dark meat - all of it - drummers, wings, thighs, butts - and set them on a platter. Take a small knife and separate the breast meat from the breastbone (that white triangular chunk that runs the length of the breast.) Slide the knife in between the ribcage and sever the connections to the meat. Last, slit the meat from the tail and neck so that the breast meat is free. Lift the entire breast - as a single unit - and place it flat on your cutting board. Slice across the breast, making pieces 1/2” to 5/8” thick. Again, the white meat will stay moist and everyone gets a narrow sliver of skin (where all the flavor hangs out!)

3. The greatest stuffing in the known universe - cut between 6 and 12 potatoes into chunks and boil them. Don’t peel the potatoes; that’s where all the nutrients are! While the potatoes are cooking, sauté three large onions in chopped pieces. Cut the crust off a loaf of white bread and cut the bread in half, twice. Mash the potatoes, onions, bread, and four cloves of chopped garlic in a bowl. Add two sticks of melted butter or margarine that’s had a teaspoon of cayenne pepper mixed in to the bowl and mix thoroughly. Stuff the turkey, all cavities and let it cook.

Happy Thanksgiving!
 
Thanks for the recipes Moose! We're keeping it real simple, it's just the 2 of us this year. Just a turkey breast and a few sides. Neither of us want a big mess.

All I really want is to see a PACKER's win!!! :D

I'll cheer on the Fins too, I loathe the Cowgirls.
 
As long as the Packers lose at least once this season. As a Dolfan, we need to keep the Dolphins as the only undefeated team in NFL history. Da Bears cooperated back in the day with just one loss when they should have gone undefeated. :rolleyes:

Turkey is done roasting in one more hour. :p
 
I'd love to see the Packers lose all the rest of their games, except this one. I need Detroit to slip into third place.

Your turkey is done cooking in one hour? You having Thanksgiving lunch??? Just kidding, I remember talking about it with you at Searle's. My 22-pounder goes in the cooker at 1:15pm, on the table at 4:00pm. Seven minutes a pound at 750 degrees.
 
I'd love to see the Packers lose all the rest of their games, except this one. I need Detroit to slip into third place.

Care to make a small wager for Christmas Day Ricky? I almost took my Mom's tickets for that game but didn't think I could stand the elements! :p
 
Care to make a small wager for Christmas Day Ricky? I almost took my Mom's tickets for that game but didn't think I could stand the elements! :p

Not a betting man. I figure it's enough of a gamble just to get out of bed in the morning. And with Chad whatever-his-name-is as quarterback, I figure the Bears will do well to stay out of 4th place in the NFC North this year.
 
As long as the Packers lose at least once this season. As a Dolfan, we need to keep the Dolphins as the only undefeated team in NFL history. Da Bears cooperated back in the day with just one loss when they should have gone undefeated.

Turkey is done roasting in one more hour. :p

Yah, the Pack finally cooperated and dropped a game! :) Has Da Bears and Pack game resurected Bren's offer of a wager with Ricky? :confused:

The Moose's Christmas Turkey hit the oven 45 minutes ago.

Best Holiday wishes to all! :cool:
 
I can't see us dropping 2 in row especially at home. Injuries are mounting but I still don't think Da Bears quarterback is good enough to pull one out. Pack 31, Da Bears 23!
 
I am a Virginia boy, a Smithville ham with red-eye gravy is on the menu.
 

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And my Son's favorite ... :)

Turnips au Gratin

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup half & half
3 cups diced cooked turnips
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in flour and salt until smooth. Add Half & half slowly, stirring rapidly to prevent lumping. Bring to boil; stirring constantly. Gently mix white sauce and turnips; pour into baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake in preheated 375 F oven about 20 minutes, until cheese melts. Yield 6 servings.


A safe and Happy Thanksgiving to all viewing this forum and to your families, loved ones and significant others! :D

Its that time of year again. Started the stock, bird will be in the oven by 6:00 am. :p
 
This will be the first time in more than 40 years that I am not cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Suzi has wrenched the task from me, kicking and screaming. She did, however, concede to my making dessert. Herewith, the recipe:

Ricky's English Trifle Recipe

This recipe was given to me about 40 years ago by a British nanny named
Margaret who lived with us for several years. She claimed the recipe was
at least 200 years old! In any case, this is an adult dessert, perfect
for parties. I have made Trifle for a party of 50 people!
Keep in mind that to do this right you should make the custard from
scratch using the recipe below. Store bought custard will work, but
there's something about homemade custard that just can't be matched.
This method takes 2 full days to prepare.

Homemade Custard:
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
4 cups whole milk
8 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cream sherry (as a bare minimum!)

Balance:
2 8" bakers spongecake layers or 2 packages of lady fingers
1 cup cream sherry (once again, the bare minimum)
8 tablespoons raspberry preserves
6 tablespoons toasted slivered almonds
1 cup heavy cream - whipped
1/2 cup cherries


First day
Custard preparation: In a heavy saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch.
Gradually add milk, stir until smooth. Cook over medium heat,
stirring constantly until mixture is thickened and comes to a boil.
Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. In a bowl, beat egg yolks.
Gradually add a little hot mixture, beating well.
Stir egg mixture into saucepan, cook over medium heat, stirring
constantly until mixture begins to boil.
Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and 2 tablespoons sherry.
Strain custard immediately into a bowl.
Refrigerate until well-chilled overnight.


Second day
Balance: Split spongecake layers in half crosswise - sprinkle each
layer with sherry. Spread all but top layers with preserves and almonds.
Stack layers, jam side up, spreading each layer with custard.
Top with plain layer then remaining custard.
Decorate with whipped cream and cherries. Refrigerate until serving time.
 
This year I've decided to put my 26 pounder out on the Webber Grill. Gonna smoke it with some oak I stashed away. It will take many hours but should be worth the adventure. Plus I get to torture everyone in the neighborhood with the aroma. ;)
 
My mom flew down this year. We're keeping it easy. Small bird & good wine. Looking forward to the football games too
Cheese Head hats at the Thanksgiving Dinner table, only in a Packers house. Bren - so glad you got to share the holiday with your Mom. Even with our nippy weather, it probably feels balmy to her.

The Moose tortured the neighbors and passerby s for 7 hours today.

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Good looking bird Ron! We had a great day even though the stinkin lions won. My Mom is actually chilly here. Winds have been brisk & relentless.
 
Good looking bird Ron! We had a great day even though the stinkin lions won. My Mom is actually chilly here. Winds have been brisk & relentless.

Thanks Bren. It was a 26 pounder that is much lighter now. The last time I smoked a big turkey was 25 years ago. Wife loves stuffing so I've been stuffing and roasting my birds in the oven since then. She can't help herself, she goes crazy for my stuffing and can't leave it alone. She has been watching her weight and asked that I don't stuff the bird this time around. Smoking the bird seemed like the thing to do. Since my son is 19, he never had my smoked bird before. He put a serious dent into it was was amazed how juicy it was.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with friends and loved ones. Already hit a Black Friday sale. Drinking my coffee and getting ready to go get another load of mulch. Great weather for mulching. This will be my 7th load.
 
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