Thanksgiving 2012

To some, it's too early to start thinking about this.

So far all I have planned are the pies and biscuits.
Molasses Pie
White Bean Pie
something chocolate
Pear
Pumpkin
there's another unusual one I'm forgetting.

I borrowed Southern Pies and saw a recipe for Sweet Tea Pie; I think I may modify it to be Chai Pie instead, assuming the original works well (testing this Tuesday).

The biscuits, due to overwhelming cheers from posters, will come from Bang Bang.

I had an idea to make a bunch of pies and cut them in half so I can give some to the in-laws and some to my parents. I just bought half a cherry pie from Fresh Farms and it came in a half-pie clamshell. Does anyone know if you can buy these in Chicago?

Never too early. I've already booked my tickets to Puerto Vallarta.

I was at dollar tree today and they have those foil containers with clear covers for cheap. so you could buy those and put half a pie in them. There are a variety of sizes and shapes. I think eighty percent of the stuff at the dollar stores are junk but the foil pans there are cheap enough and the ones I got were made in the U.S. so that is a plus too.

I was at a store like that yesterday too, buying tins for the picnic. Love 'em love 'em love 'em. I didn't see half pans, but I did see all-foil angel food pans, and that amused me for some reason.

What is everyone planning to make? I am going out to dinner at a restaurant and probably will not have turkey. I will have to make thanksgiving dinner at another time. I'll probably just make a turkey breast and maybe try making gravy out of turkey wings maybe ahead of time although I have never done that. I am thinking that is a good way to go especially if you are doing a breast only.

Right now all I know is corn pudding, turkey (natch), Macadamia Cream Pie, pumpkin pie, and biscuits from Bang Bang. There will be at least two veggies attached to that but I don't know what they will be. And another dessert that would better suit my mother...probably Cranberry Dark Chocolate Pie.

I'm interested in restaurant suggestions.
Andersonville to South Loop locations work best.
We did the Firehouse last year. While it was fine, we would like to try someplace different this time 'round.

I just looked at my proposed menu and there are quite a few things on there that I must have added weeks ago. I'll have to update you after Halloween when I make my final decisions. But what I posted above will probably stay the same.

Beware of dried cranberries. I did a taste test and I think dried cherries are so much better. What about french silk pie?

I love dried cranberries. I think she thinks French Silk is too rich.

Pie Lady wrote:Right now all I know is corn pudding, turkey (natch), Macadamia Cream Pie, pumpkin pie, and biscuits from Bang Bang. There will be at least two veggies attached to that but I don't know what they will be. And another dessert that would better suit my mother...probably Cranberry Dark Chocolate Pie.

Your link to the pie didn't take me directly to the recipe, but I found it in a search and pinned it to my "Holiday Food" board on Pinterest.

I don't even know where I'll be for Thanksgiving yet, so can't even think about a menu.

Ms. Ingie wrote:Your link to the pie didn't take me directly to the recipe, but I found it in a search and pinned it to my "Holiday Food" board on Pinterest.

That's strange. This is the link I have in the above text, but it only works when you click on it here.
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/Pri ... 6436013972

Pie Lady wrote:

Ms. Ingie wrote:Your link to the pie didn't take me directly to the recipe, but I found it in a search and pinned it to my "Holiday Food" board on Pinterest.

That's strange. This is the link I have in the above text, but it only works when you click on it here.

It's not the same link above, the broken one above has /url after it

Now I have to make that macadamia cream pie! I'm not all that fond of pumpkin pie, so I may make pumpkin spice cookies or possibly a packed full streusel apple pie. I'll probably do a veggie side as well. If I leave it to the rest of my family, it tends to be some sort of cream of mushroom concoction.

I plan on smoking a turkey for the first time on my WSM 18.5. How large of a turkey with the backbone removed can I fit?

knitgirl wrote:...so I may make pumpkin spice cookies...

I always hesitate making pumpkin cookies. I have yet to try one or make one that is not rubbery. Any tips?

Not sure on my T-day menu yet but watching this thread for ideas! I am toying with the idea of dry-brining the bird this year (any thoughts on dry brining vs. the traditional water-based brine?), and I will probably have the butcher remove the backbone so I can split it and roast it flat again... goes SO much faster. I have a new thermometer that will make roasting the bird even easier.

Chouxfly makes these terrific rolls called sacaduros, I have a good sausage/apple/barley dressing recipe I love, and of course gravy... but I'm going to try to find a way to do them all gluten-free. Chouxfly will also be in charge of the pies, and I think I want to make an egg nog ice cream.

Re: pumpkin. I do a pumpkin-chocolate chip-cranberry-oat-pecan cookie that my son loves, but it does have a rubbery quality I don't particularly like. Otherwise, I use pumpkin and squashes in soups and muffins. Dorie Greenspan's baking book had a pretty pumpkin biscuit recipe I tried once that was good. I like to cheat when baking pumpkin and throw in a couple of sweet potatoes... pumpkin by itself tends to be watery. I also like using the gorgeous Japanese Kobocha squashes (dark green with a brilliant, dense, almost creamy flesh) and butternuts instead of pumpkin.

Not sure about the rest of the menu yet, but dessert will be pumpkin custard profiteroles and cinnamon ice cream with a little caramel pecan drizzling on top. It was the star of the show last year.

Here is a recipe from my friend Vicky that has made Thanksgiving easier for me over the years. I just hate to have to deal with mashed potatoes at the last minute. You cannot taste the non-traditional ingredients in it. It tastes like nothing but delicious mashed potatoes.

Do-Ahead Mashed Potatoes:

9 large Idaho baking potatoes
2 medium turnips
1 stick butter
12 oz. cream cheese
3/4 cup sour cream
1/4-1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Boil potatoes and turnips until soft. Mash with remaining ingredients. Refrigerate up to two days and reheat before serving.

Josephine wrote:Here is a recipe from my friend Vicky that has made Thanksgiving easier for me over the years. I just hate to have to deal with mashed potatoes at the last minute. You cannot taste the non-traditional ingredients in it. It tastes like nothing but delicious mashed potatoes.

Do-Ahead Mashed Potatoes:

...

Josephine-

Thanks for posting this. I've just started my menu planning for Thanksgiving and am trying to find some things to do early. I am struggling with also finding ways to do some healthier options. Perhaps I should pick a different holiday for that.

I need a foolproof turkey brine.
I'm thinking salt, sugar, water, maybe a few peppercorns?
Can anyone help me out with a good one?

I really like to go with a savory brine for turkey. It also gives me a chance to use the last of my heartier herbs from the garden (they start to struggle a bit around this time of year). This is my basic brine that I tweak a bit every year.

The salt should be a 1 to 20 ratio (by weight) with the water - so 190 grams of salt per gallon of water (which is 3/4 of a cup if you're using kosher salt). I usually go with two gallons of water/salt mix. To that I add:

2 tbls roughly crushed peppercorns
Loads of fresh Sage (equivalent of one clamshell)
Loads of fresh Thyme (equivalent of one clamshell)
4 bay leaves
Zest of 2 lemons (peeled off with a vegetable peeler)
4 shallots or 2 small onions
1 head of garlic cut in half

I usually don't add sugar, but half a cup to a cup of brown sugar or Maple syrup certainly wouldn't hurt it. This year I'm going to be using some white peppercorns from Pinch Spice Market (I've been using them in a lot of things lately, I really like them). I've had really good luck with Chiltapin peppers as well. I may add some Tarragon as well this year.

I brine the turkey for 10 to 12 hours on Wednesday, dry it really well with paper towels, and let it sit loosely covered in foil overnight. I've found this makes it a lot easier to get crispy skin. If you have a small (or large) propane torch don't be afraid to use it judiciously if you think the skin needs additional crisping.

One piece of advice to anyone who is cooking Thanksgiving dinner in someone else's kitchen - bring an oven thermometer with you. I've had a couple of real nightmares when I've forgotten to do that.

Hi,

Danish Maid who brings us the lamb butter at Easter, now offers a turkey butter. They promise to have a Christmas design butter in 2013. They now have a website devoted to their molded butters: http://www.TableTraditionsButter.com (while DAnish Maid is on the south side, this new company is in Connecticut)

Now that they are marketing it better, maybe I can stop wondering if I should keep the molds from year to year. I always have this little voice suggesting I keep one just in case they give up on it. I always toss it eventually with a little bit of regret.

Regards,

I would definately buy the Turkey butter if I were cooking. I recently made a crustless pumpkin pie and it was so good. You can find recipes for it on the internet by googling or sometimes its called Impossible pumpkin pie. Most recipes call for bisquick but I did not have any and I used self rising flour. Its a great recipe if you want a pumpkin pie but are rushed or are not good at making the crust or are like me trying to cut down on calories. I can have my pie and eat it too. So easy to make. I made a small one with a half can of pumpkin I had left over. I'll post the recipe I concocted when I have time for it.

P.S. I like a dark and spicy pumpkin pie so I added two tabl. of molasses, used brown sugar, and besides cinnamon, i put in ginger, a pinch of nutmeg, cloves, all spice and next time I will add a pinch of chinese spice powder. I just got a pristine vintage pyrex eight inch pie plate that I love with label and all. Find on ebay. Label says fair trade item and the cost was 35 cents. Made in USA of course. Wonder what year that was from....the past century no doubt.

Pie Lady wrote:

knitgirl wrote:...so I may make pumpkin spice cookies...

I always hesitate making pumpkin cookies. I have yet to try one or make one that is not rubbery. Any tips?

Here's my recipe. I used James Beard's snickerdoodle recipe from American Cookery as the base. I make these pretty spicy, you could cut back if you wanted the pumpkin flavor more foward.

2 sticks softened butter
1/2 c. dark brown sugar
1 c. granulated sugar
1.5 T cinnamon
1tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp cloves
1T vanilla extract

Beat the spices and sugar with the butter. Add:

2 eggs
1/2 c. pureed pumpkin beat into the butter

3 c. unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

sift together, stir into the butter and egg mixture. Before fully combined add:

1 c. golden raisins
1 c. toasted chopped walnuts
1/4 c. chopped candied ginger (if I have it)

Bake at 350, cool, glaze with confectioner's sugar/maple glaze. I usually drizzle on with a fork, I don't like cookies that are wildly sweet.

And with the leftover half a can of pumpkin you can make crustless pumpkin pie:

1/2 c. brown or white sugar
1/4 c. Bisquick or self rising flour
2 tbsp. butter softened or melted
2 tbsp of molasses or maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
3/4 cup half and half or evaporated milk (regular milk might work)
1 egg
a half a can of pumpkin (such as Libbys (16 oz) or Bakers Corner (15 oz)

Beat sugar, egg and butter, add pumpkin and liquid ingredients and beat again, add dry ingredients and mix again until smooth. (use mixer or a wire balloon whip), pour into greased 8 or 9 inch pie plate or pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Pie will be thinner than a regular pumpkin pie. For a thicker pie double recipe. Let cool before cutting, it will barely hold a wedge shape if warm, but will firm up as it cools or when chilled. Alternatively you could just scoop it out and top with whipped cream as well. I prefer wedge shaped pie slices.

Cover and keep in refrigerator if part is uneaten. I am posting it because I have sufficiently changed this recipe from what I found on the internet. I bet you could even make this kosher by substituting some other kind of "milk" and using finely crushed matzoh meal instead of flour.

Working on the stocks (veggie and turkey), roasted Kobocha squashes (for a veggie pumpkin lasagna as well as pie), cranberry granita (for Cosmos), and ricotta cheese (also for the lasagna). I'll pick up the bird and start the dry brine tomorrow.

I'm curious about what you other cooks are putting together for your dinners... care to share your menus?

I love seeing everyone's ideas here!
Here's my menu (scaled down this year due to my full-term pregnancy).

Roast Turkey ala James Beard
Cognac Gravy
Brandied Cranberries
Oyster Stuffing (also James Beard; in the crop)
Scallion Tarragon Stuffing (also James Beard; in the cavity and extra on the side, so some "wet", some "dry")
Buttermilk Mashed Yukon Golds
Green Beans with lemon zest
Brussel Sprouts Amandine
Sweet Potato Mini Muffins (insanely good; a recipe from a tavern at Colonial Williamsburg I visited as a child and have made ever since)
Relish Tray (homemade pickled carrots, radishes, celery, cornichons)
Grapes
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie (my grandmother's; a fluffy pumpkin mousse in a graham cracker crust)
Pecan Tart (NYT; subtle and glop-free) with homemade Bourbon Ice Cream