With Thanksgiving just around the corner and over 50 emails and messages for recipes I am posting this chapter of my cookbook. Please enjoy the recipes I have here, everything from the bird to sides and desserts. Any questions just drop me a note.
Chapter 13
Does any one single meal during the year say Family more than Thanksgiving Dinner. It was my Dad’s favorite holiday and he showed it. My folks had a rule, no one spends a holiday alone and our house was usually loaded up on Thanksgiving. One of our best was when no one could reach my Grandparents in Kentucky on the phone and they arrived just before dinner as a surprise. My folks would really put themselves out for the holiday. They would try to make sure everyone had their favorites at dinner. We would have 3 or 5 types of vegetables several types of sides and 3 or 4 different desserts. One of the great things about Thanksgiving was that it was an opportunity for all of us to work in the kitchen together. We cleaned veggies, broke up bread for the stuffing,(my sister Cheryl made it an art form) helped my Mom make the desserts. My Dad’s favorite line was many hands make light work. I know a lot of people get intimidated making such a big meal, but I am going to solve that for you in this chapter. I am going to give you a menu and tell you how to prep for it so you are not so bogged down on the Holiday. There is still going to be a lot of work to do. So get your Family ready. Let them know it is at your house this time and let many hands make light work.
Thanksgiving Menu
ROASTED TURKEY
RICH LUCIOUS GRAVY
OLD FASHIONED DRESSING
CORN BREAD DRESSING
BROWN RICE DRESSING
BAKED CARAMELIZED SWEET POTATOES
SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE
HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE
AUNT NANCY’S BROCCOLI CASSEROLE
BUTTEREED CARROTS AND CORN
SWEET SAUTEED BRUSSEL SPROUTS
MARLBOROUGH PIE
APPLE CINNAMON SPICE CAKE WITH MAPLE ICING
Ambitious, yes, but don’t worry you don’t have to make everything here. These are choices for you and if there is something here you don’t want, don’t make it or substitute it for something you really want. It is important for you to know to cook what you like or don’t do it. I try to instill this into people I teach. You will never be good at cooking if you don’t like what you are making. That is what separates a Chef from a home cook. A Chef must learn to work past preferences while cooking. When you are cooking for family and friends you are cooking from your heart. If your heart is not in it you are not giving of yourself. That is the essence of cooking. Giving of yourself to others in the form of your food. It is why a Chef may be able to make anything and make it taste good, but when a Chef opens his own restaurant we cook our food what symbolizes us. This is what I have been trying to give you throughout this book. My food, what it is that represents me and my Family.
Just a note before we start, several of the recipes I have for Thanksgiving I developed for my Brother-in Law Mike. He is on a zero carb diet and he has done incredible with it, therefore I made several of the sides so he would be able to still enjoy the holiday. These recipes also work well for people on a gluten free diet or are diabetic.
ROASTED TURKEY
First thing we need to do is what kind of turkey do we want. I come from a family of white meat eaters. I purchase a couple of large turkey breasts, cook them 2 to 3 days before Thanksgiving, and slice them right away. I lay the slices out in the pan and reheat them on Thanksgiving day itself. I will usually roast a few turkey legs on that day so you get the smell in the house and have the legs for those that want them. I also do this with a whole turkey. It saves a lot of work and mess on the holiday.
If you want to cook your turkey on Thanksgiving go ahead. I would recommend not stuffing it. Stuffing it lengthens the cooking time and can dry out the breast meat. It also is a bacterial hazard if the stuffing does not get up to 170 degrees inside the center of the bird.
I am going to give instructions on roasting turkey whether a breast or whole turkey and the instructions on reheating if you so desire.
Ingredients
1 large whole Turkey 16-18 lbs or 1 to 2 10-12lb breasts
2 to 3 sticks of melted butter
Salt and pepper
2 large sliced onions
4 ribs of large diced celery
6 large carrots diced large
1 cup of chardonnay
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss veggies in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wash turkey or turkey breasts in cold water inside and out. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the inside of the turkey, if using breasts salt and pepper the back cavity. Brush roasting pan with butter. Toss veggies in pan and spread out evenly. Brush bottom of whole turkey with butter and season with salt and pepper. Place whole turkey or breast in pan and coat with butter and season liberally with salt and pepper. Pour the rest of the butter into the pan. Cover the breast on a whole bird with foil reflective side down. Place in oven and reduce heat to 325 degrees. Bake the whole bird or the breast for 15 to 17 minutes per pound. Let roast for 1 hour and pull the bird or breast out to baste with pan juices. Place back in oven and baste every 20 minutes. After another 40 minutes take the foil off the bird so the breast can brown. Pour the wine over the breast of the turkey. Cook for the remaining time continuing to baste every 20 to 25 minutes. Pull from oven when breast meat is 155 in the turkey breast and the thigh meat is 165 degrees. Let stand in the pan to set for 10 minutes and then move to a cutting board. If you are cooking on Thanksgiving Day cover with foil and let bird rest for ½ hour before carving. If you are cooking ahead of time leave uncovered and let cool for about and hour.
Carve meat and move to platter and serve if you are cooking for that day. If you are pre-cooking. Carve meat and arrange in a large disposable pan. Cover and chill in fridge. To reheat on Thanksgiving Day, remove and uncover turkey for about and hour. Pour 2 to 3 cups of boiling turkey stock over the turkey. Cover tightly and place in a 350 oven for 40 minutes for piping hot turkey. Plate and serve.
RICH LUCIOUS GRAVY
Ingredients
Approx 1 ½ gallons of turkey stock
12 ounces of turkey fat rendered
12 ounces of flour
Pan drippings and fond
Depending on how you made your turkey will depend on how we make our gravy. If you are cooking the turkey early save the carcasses of the turkey or breasts and cut them up with a cleaver and put into a stock pot. Add 1 ½ gallon of chicken stock to it. Pour the fat off your roasting pan and save. Deglaze the pan with 1 quart of the chicken stock and pour all the brown bits and vegetables into stock pot. Add bay leaf, peppercorns, and several cloves of garlic that have just been peeled(stock spices) and cook for 2 hours strain and chill.
Use 2 cup of the stock for reheating the turkey on Thanksgiving Day.
If making your bird on Thanksgiving Day make your stock a week before hand. Purchase a couple of turkey wings and roast with vegetables like the whole turkey. When they are done add to a pot of hot chicken stock and deglaze the pan as you did before. Add stock spices and cook for 2 hours strain and chill. On Thanksgiving Day pour off fat from pan and deglaze and strain into the stockpot for the gravy. Package and freeze when cool defrost the day before.
To finish gravy take 12 ounces of the rendered turkey fat from the pan( add melted butter if you don’t have enough) and mix with the flour to make a roux and cook for 5 minutes to remove pasty taste. Add about 80% of the roux to the boiling stock and whisk in let cook and thicken and adjust taste with salt and pepper. Add more roux if needed. Remember gravy will continue to thicken the longer it cooks.
If you have a friend or family member that cannot have gluten starch take 2 cups of hot stock and mix 1 ½ tbl of arrowroot with cold water and whisk in. Bring to a boil to thicken. This is how I make it for my Brother-In-Law.
MASHED POTATOES
Ingredients
5 lbs Idaho russet potatoes or Yukon gold, peeled and diced into 1 inch cubes
1 medium onion pureed
1 1/2 sticks of butter melted
1 1/2 cups hot heavy cream approx.
Kosher salt
Place diced potatoes in large pot cover with cold water and add 4 tbl salt. Bring to boil and boil 4 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and rinse with water till cool. This first step removes the soluble starch from the potatoes which makes them taste pasty and can give them a gluey texture. Rinse out pot add potatoes back in and cover with water add 4 tbl salt and bring to boil. Simmer at a low boil until potatoes are tender and fall apart but are not mushy. Drain potatoes in colander and do not rinse. put potatoes back in pot and cook over low heat 1 or 2 minutes to steam off excess water. If you have a ricer or food mill pass the potatoes through them into a large bowl if not mash by hand in pot until all potatoes are mashed. Add in butter and onion and 2 tbl salt and stir gently until incorporated add hot cream as needed to make creamy. Place potatoes in bowl cover with plastic wrap and set over a pot of simmering water to keep warm. If you added too much milk keep potatoes in pot over low heat to cook off milk being careful not to scorch. Before serving check potatoes for seasoning and add salt if needed and more butter if desired.
OLD FASHIONED DRESSING
This is the recipe my family has been using for years I hope you enjoy it.
Ingredients
12 to 14 cups of dry white bread cubes about ¾ of an inch square, try to tear bread up by hand it possible, need to do 2 to 3 days ahead of making dressing so it can dry
2 ½ cups of finely diced onions
2 ½ cups of finely diced celery
½ cup of finely minced carrot
1 lb of melted butter
¼ cup of dry parsley flakes
2 tbl of Vegeta (optional)
3 cups hot chicken stock/ approx.
Salt and pepper to taste
Poultry seasoning to taste
This dressing like all others can be a time saver. Cut your veggies and cook up to 3 weeks ahead of time and freeze. Warm up on Thanksgiving Day and mix with bread and seasoning and stock. I also like to bake mine in disposable pans. When you are done pack up the leftovers and through away the pans. I follow these procedures for all my dressings. It saves time and cleanup. Make sure to reheat veggie mix completely if you made it ahead of time.
Melt butter in large pan. Heat stock and preheat oven to 350. Cook veggies in butter until soft and add Vegeta and parsley. Pour mixture over bread cubes and toss with a couple of tbls of poultry seasoning and some salt and pepper. Add stock about a cup at a time until dressing is nice and moist. Adjust seasonings to taste. Grease a disposable baking pan with oil and fill with the dressing. Coat a piece of parchment paper with butter and press down over dressing. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes until hot. Uncover and bake for 10 more minutes to brown and serve.
CORNBREAD DRESSING
With this recipe you can again cook your veggies ahead of time and freeze and you can make the cornbread up to a month in advance. I have a variation on my cornbread recipe just for making dressing in Chapter 2. Make sure to completely reheat veggie mix if you made it ahead of time.
Ingredients
2 batches of cornbread mix(chapter 2) crumbled and dried
1 lb of Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage(regular flavor)
1 ½ cups diced onions
1 ½ cups diced celery
1 tbl dry parsley
1tbl dry chives
1 stick of butter
2 tbl of Vegeta
1 egg beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
1 to 2 cups of chicken stock
Crumble and brown sausage. When cooked add butter, veggies, herbs and Vegeta. Cook until vegetables are soft. Cool and freeze to use later or proceed. Crumble cornbread into a large bowl and add warm vegetable mix. Blend and add egg and 1 cup of stock. Mix well and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. If too dry add more stock. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a disposable pan. Put dressing in pan and cover with a buttered sheet of parchment paper. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove parchment paper and cook another 10 minutes to brown.
BROWN RICE DRESSING
I developed this dressing for my Brother-in-Law so he could have a dressing with his turkey dinner. It also works for anyone on a gluten free diet.
Ingredients
3 cups cooked brown rice
1 lb of bulk Italian sausage (chapter 6)
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
1 large roasted red pepper seeded and diced
2 cups of diced and dried gluten free whole grain bread
1 stick of butter
1 cup of stock
Salt and pepper to taste
Crumble and brown sausage. When cooked add butter and vegetables. When soft you can freeze for later or proceed to make dressing. Make sure to completely reheat mix if you made it ahead of time. Toss rice and bread cubes with mix and add stock. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and pour into a greased disposable pan. Cover with a buttered parchment sheet and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. No need to brown.
BAKED CARAMELIZED SWEET POTATOES
Ingredients
3 large sweet potatoes
Butter
Brown sugar
White sugar
Cook sweet potatoes in a large pot of water unpeeled. When you can stick a knife in without resistance remove from pot and place on a pan to cool. When cooled remove peel and slice to desired thickness. Line a cookie sheet with foil and oil lightly. Lay out slices of potato and dot with butter. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days before baking. To bake preheat oven to 400 degrees and sprinkle with white sugar and brown sugar. Bake approx 20 minutes until sugar caramelizes and potatoes are hot
SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE
This is another option for people on restrictive diets. You can make the base up to 2 days in advance and then fold in the egg whites just before baking.
Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes
1 stick of soft butter
3 tbl of Splenda +extra for the top
Salt and pepper to taste
3 egg whites
Peel and cut sweet potatoes into large dice. Place in pot and cover with water and add 1 tbl of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until soft but not mushy. Drain potatoes in a colander and dump back into pot and cook under low heat for a minute to cook off excess water. Mash potatoes by hand and stir in butter, Splenda, and salt and pepper to taste. You can chill it and hold for 2 days or make right away. If pre-making mash, reheat in a pot with some heavy cream until hot. Beat egg whites until semi stiff and fold gently into the mix. Pour into a buttered casserole dish and sprinkle with some Splenda and bake at 350 for 20 minutes until light and puffy.
HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE
I like to make this 3 to 5 days in advance so the flavors really get a chance to blend together.
Ingredients
5 cups whole cranberries
Juice and zest of 2 large oranges
1 tbl of lemon juice
2 cups of sugar
1 cup of cranberry juice
1 ounce of Grand Marnier(optional)
1 ½ tbl of unflavored gelatin.
Put cranberries and juice in a heavy bottomed pot over low heat and cover. Cook until cranberries start to pop and break down. Smash cranberries with a potato masher and add the other ingredients except gelatin. Stir and cook until thick and syrupy. Sprinkle gelatin over ½ cup of water and let become solid. Heat gelatin in micro for 45 seconds to melt. Stir into the cranberry syrup and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Cool in ice bath and refrigerate. Let set at least overnight.
AUNT NANCY’S BROCCOLI CASSEROLE
When I was a kid I was not a fan of broccoli as most kids aren’t. However my Aunt Nancy made a broccoli casserole every holiday no matter who was hosting that I always looked forward to. For years it was the only way I would even eat broccoli though now I love it anyway it’s made. I asked her if I could use it and she gave me the recipe. I hope you like it as much as I do. Thanks Aunt Nancy
Ingredients
Crust
1 stick butter melted
1sleeve Ritz crackers crumbed
pinch of pepper
Casserole filling.
2 10 ounce packages of cut up frozen broccoli
2 tbl sugar
2tbl salt
1 stick butter
1/2 lb Velveeta cheese diced up
salt and pepper to taste
Mix melted butter pinch of pepper and cracker crumbs and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 and lightly butter a casserole dish. Cook broccoli in water with salt and sugar and cook till tender. Drain and return broccoli back to pan. Add cheese and butter and melt and stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into casserole and cover with crumbs and bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until casserole is hot and gooey.
It so easy to make it’s scary but it is delicious. If you want you can add some Swiss or cheddar to the mix or even some parmesan. You can saute some onion or shallots or mushrooms in the butter before you add the Velveeta and broccoli. Twist it up however you want make it your own. Get the kids to help and let them add something they want to it. If they cook it they are more likely to try it. You can even stir in cooked cut up chicken and pour it over rice or noodles and make a whole meal out of it. But I promise you making it this way your kids will eat broccoli.
BUTTERED CARROTS AND CORN
As I wrote earlier in the book certain vegetables are sometimes better frozen than fresh. Corn and Carrots are 2 of them and make a quick delicious and easy traditional side dish for the holiday. I like mine salty and a little sweet. I hope you enjoy.
Ingredients
1 lb of frozen corn
1 lb of frozen sliced carrots
1 stick of butter
1 tbl fresh chopped parsley
Salt
Sugar
Melt butter in a sauce pot that will hold all the vegetables. Pour frozen corn over the butter and add 1 tbl of kosher salt. Cover and simmer under medium heat. Bring a pot of water to boil for the carrots. Add 2 tsp each of salt and sugar to the water. When boiling add carrots and cook until they are just a little underdone. Drain carrots and add to corn. Stir together and cook until carrots are done. Stir in chopped parsley and serve.
SWEET SAUTEED BRUSSEL SPROUTS
Ingredients
1 ½ lbs of brussel sprouts
1 large pot of boiling water with salt and sugar added
Large bowl of ice water
Butter
Sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Blanch the brussel sprouts in salted sugared water and immediately plunge into an ice bath to stop the cooking. When cooled slice in half. Heat butter in a pan with 2 to 3 tbl of sugar and lay sprouts in cut side down. Saute until cut side starts to brown. Spoon butter from pan over the top of sprouts while cooking. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Remove and serve when sprouts have picked up a nice caramel crust to the cut side. These will be so addictive your kids will ask for them.
PUMPKIN PIE
Nothing quite finishes a Thanksgiving Day meal like Pumpkin Pie. You can serve it with whipped cream or ice cream or just ice cold by itself. The crisp flakey crust and rich spiced custard is soul satisfying. This is my recipe a twist on the one off the can of Libby Pumpkin. I have a recipe for homemade pie crust, but if you want to save the work go ahead and purchase a pre-made frozen one. Chef Pierre is probably the best one out there.
Pie Crust
Pie crust is very easy to make nowadays with the help of a food processor. It mixes and brings it together perfectly. Just be careful not to over mix.
Ingredients
1 ½ cup of all purpose flour
1/3 cup of powder sugar
1/8 tsp of salt
½ stick of butter cut into little cubes and frozen
3 ounces of ice water or vodka that has been in freezer for an hour
I know what is with the vodka. The less liquid in a pie dough the flakier the crust. Vodka evaporates so fast when baking and leaves no residual taste. Give it a try you will be surprised with the texture.
Place dry ingredients in food processor and pulse 3 to 4 times to aerate the flour. Add butter cubes and pulse until you get a crumbly mixture that looks like tiny peas. Add vodka or water an ounce at a time and pulse until a ball starts to form. You may not need all of the liquid. Be careful not to over mix. Turn ball and any crumbs out onto a counter and place in a large Ziploc bag. Press the pieces together to form a ball. Place in fridge and rest 1 hour. Take dough out and place on floured surface. Cut in half and place 1 half back in the fridge. Roll other piece out into a 12 to 14 inch circle. Gently fold in half and then half again. Lift dough up and place gently in a 9 inch deep dish pie pan. Unfold so pan is covered and gently lift and tuck edges so they are flush with the pan. Crimp around the edge of the pan if making a single crust pie. If not fill pie with desired mixture and follow same procedure for rolling our top crust. Place over the filling and unfold. Crimp edges and bake. Makes 1 -2 crust pie or 2 single crust pies.
For the Pumpkin Custard
1 open face pie shell 9 inch
1 15 oz can of Libby Pumpkin
1 12 oz can of evaporated milk
¾ cup of sugar
2 eggs
½ tsp salt
1 tbl of cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground clove
½ tsp ground nutmeg
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Whisk together and pour into prepared pie shell. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, lower heat to 350 and bake for 40 minutes until a knife comes out clean from the center. Cool and serve with homemade whipped cream(chapter 8) or crème anglaise(chapter 8)
MARLBOROUGH PIE
What is it you ask, it is an apple custard pie. It is creamy and delicious and a neat surprise when people find out there is apple in the pie.
Ingredients
3 cups of finely chopped apples(peeled and cored)
1 tbl lemon juice
2 eggs
1 cup of heavy cream
1 tbl vanilla
¾ cup of sugar
3 tbl melted butter
½ tsp cinnamon
1 open face 9 inch pie shell
Cinnamon sugar(chapter 5)
Mix apples with lemon juice so they do not brown. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix the rest of the ingredients together to form custard. Drain apples and add to custard. Pour into shell and bake for 15 minutes at 425 and then reduce to 350 and bake approx 30 minutes until a knife comes out clean. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar while warm and chill pie. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream or crème anglaise(chapter 8)
APPLE CINNAMON SPICE CAKE WITH MAPLE ICING
This is one of my favorite cakes at the holidays.
Maple Icing
1 lb of powder sugar
2 tsp vanilla
Maple syrup
Add vanilla to powder sugar and drizzle in maple syrup a little at a time until icing becomes smooth and flows so it can be poured over the cake.
Apple Cinnamon Spice Cake
Ingredients
2 sticks of butter
2 cups of sugar
1 tbl vanilla
4 eggs beaten with the vanilla
3 cups of flour
1 tbl baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ½ cups of applesauce
1 tbl cinnamon
½ tsp clove
½ tsp nutmeg
Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 10 inch tube pan with baking spray. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs gradually and mix well. Sift all dry ingredients together and add in 1/2 of the flour followed by half of the applesauce. Add in the rest of the flour, mix and the rest of the applesauce and blend well. Pour into pan and bake for approx 35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes and then turn out and invert to upright position. Cool on cooling rack over cookie sheet. When totally cooled pour icing over the cake and let it run down the sides. Serve with whipped cream , ice cream or crème anglaise.
If you have someone on a special diet I have a sugar free cheesecake in chapter8 with lots of variations like a pumpkin cheesecake.
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