Thanksgiving

Yesterday was Thanksgiving. Ralph and I both had to work but we had a beautiful dinner and friends over. Alexander got sick mid-afternoon and slept through the meal.

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Herbed Maple and Honey Roast Turkey with Pan Gravy
Sweet Potatoes Baked in the Jacket
Whole Cranberry Orange Sauce with Grand Marnier
Roasted Carrots, Parsnips, and Brussel Sprouts
Wild Rice with Sausage and Vegetables
Fruits of the Earth Bread
Pull Apart Cranberry-Pecan Buns
Golden Pumpkin Pie
Cranberry-Apricot Surprise Pie
Fresh Whipped Cream

Oh, and there was a Mixed Greens Salad with Pears, Toasted Walnuts and Gorganzola then tossed with an Orange Vinegrette.

NOTES

1. Love, love, love the brine http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_25005,00.html The only problem is that is is VERY expensive to make a double batch for a large turkey. I have one turkey left to cut up and freeze. I think I will use the left over brine to soak the other turkey in parts and then freeze prior to cooking. If it doesn't work well then it will still be good for soup.
2. The 2 pie and both breads came from my new favorite cookbook http://www.amazon.com/Arthur-Flour-Whole-Grain-Baking/dp/0881507199 I was a little heavy handed when adding the almond extract in the Cran-Apricot Pie, otherwise all 4 recipes were excellent. The stars were the pie crusts in my opinion, both were fabulous.
3. I made the Wild Rice recipe up while in the kitchen. I didn't account for the water in the veggies when I cooked the rice so it was a bit "soupy". I had an extra box of rice and added it and cooked it for about anther 30 minutes. As it turned out there was a very pleasing combination of textures. One of those flops that you rescue and they turn out really well!!
4. I used a Merlot in the gravy and it was good but the Madeira would have been better.
5. This year was about not doing a lot of the same ole, same ole. It was nice and I didn't miss any of my Mom's old heavy casseroles...well, yeah, I did miss the Frosted Cranberry Squares... :)
6. When I made Turkey Stock a few days ago, I forgot to add the extra necks and it really does affect the quality of the stock.
7. Pastured birds cook really fast! I thought last year was a fluke, but it happened again this year. 26 pounds and it was done perfect in 2 hours and 15 minutes. If I had not used a continuous read thermometer it would have been dreadfully overcooked. Thankfully, it was perfect!