Thanksgiving Eve

The Presidential pardon was issued today for "Flyer" and "Fryer", the two White House Thanksgiving turkeys.  It was not clear whether other birds will make their way to the President's table for Thanksgiving or not, but Flyer and Fryer have permanently been pardoned to a life of ease!

Most Thanksgiving preparations are well underway by now.  The groceries have been purchased.  Pie crusts are awaiting the goods.  The turkey is waiting to be stuffed.  Preparations have been discussed nationwide.  How does one defrost a turkey safely?  You certainly don't leave it out on the counter.  Experts say to defrost in the refrigerator (which takes a loooong time for a good sized bird) or submerged in cold water.  I used to do mine in the laundry tub, but I don't have a laundry tub anymore.  I'll have to improvise!

To stuff or not to stuff, fry or bake, are the questions of the day.  The variations probably depend on your family traditions and the cooks of generations past.  Suggestions for preparing the turkey have surprised me.  A Chicago agent says she likes a "drunk" bird for baking!  She submerges the turkey overnight in wine and then bakes the next day!  I've never heard of such a thing.  Another says she stuffs her turkey cavity with a peeled grapefruit or orange instead of stuffing.  The cooking fruit provides moisture and flavor to the turkey.  My friend tells me she has done this for years.  I never attended her Thanksgiving so had no idea.  Soaking the bird in a brine bath overnight is suggested by an agent from the Seattle area.  Butter, baste with butter and spices decries another. 

The final suggestion is to deep fry the turkey.  An average 12-14 pound bird cooks in about one hour if deep fried.  This has been tried in our household and they are unbelievably good.  The flesh is moist and not oily as the oil is retained in the skin which becomes quite crispy.  The down side of deep frying the turkey is the loss of juices for homemade gravy or turkey noodle soup later and the inability to stuff the bird.

This year I'm doing Cornish hens because my gathering is small.  I may try stuffing one with an orange to see if it really does flavor the bird.  Stuffing is made; homemade cranberry sauce is chilling; pie shells are ready for filling; fresh vegetables are stemmed ready for steaming.  The potatoes will be mashed; the yams will be baked.

This year's new recipe will be brussels sprouts with apple.  The recipe says to steam the brussel sprout halves until crisp tender.  Fry diced bacon (just a couple strips) until crisp, drain.  Remove the bacon and add apple in 1 inch pieces, the brussel sprouts and thyme to the skillet.  Cook uncovered until heated through.  Add the diced bacon and serve.  Sounds interesting.  I'll keep you posted as to its success!  Considering I'm the only one who will eat brussels sprouts, that means I'll let you know if I thought they were good!

Comments

[teresa boardman]

I just buy a fresh bird and throw it in the raoster thingy with a whole orange in the cavity. I get a kick out of all the how-to stuff on the news on thanksgiving, the turkey is the easy part, the rest of it is a lot of work, says a woman who has been cooking and cleaning since last night. :)

[Bonnie Erickson]

I tried an orange in one of the two Cornish hens. It was more moist but didn't taste any different to me. Yes, the rest of the stuff is what takes all the work. Not to mention timing everything so it finishes at the same time! This year was interesting trying to do the full meal without countertops. It's amazing what kind of space one can create when it's necessary!