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I did not do much cooking after Thanksgiving dinner.  We went to Merchant’s the day before and City House the night after.  As my sister-in-law is more into the cooking of Naples than Tuscany we went to Coco’s Italian Market their last night here.  During the day we entertained ourselves with museum tours.  On Friday we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame and were entertained by Brenda Lee at the lighting of their Christmas tree.  Saturday, we toured the Tennessee State Museum.  Both are very interesting and entertaining.  One morning I made these fritters from the WW Weekly.   They were easy and I thought a good alternative to pancakes.  Serves 4.

Ingredients: 

1/2 C all-purpose flour

6 t granulated sugar

1/8 t table salt

1/2 C fat-free egg substitute

1/4 XC fat-free buttermilk

1 t vanilla extract

2 large apples, grated

1 T reduced -calorie margarine (I used butter Pam)

1 T powdered sugar

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.  
2. Stir in the grated apples.
3. Mix the wet ingredients and mix well into the dry ingredients.  
4. Spray a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  
5. Drop apple mixture into pan, making 8-10 fritters.   cook until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side.  (I used a ice-cream scoop to make sure they were all even.)
6. Sift powdered sugar over top of fritters just before serving.  

I did it.  All pre-planning food issues are finished.  I feel so relaxed instead of frantic.  I could not figure out how to copy the checklist to put it in here, but my 2 week checklist worked.  Following is the meal that I put together.  

Thanksgiving Menu 2014

 

Cocktails

 

Cranberry Martinis

 

Cheese Cubes with Olive and Rosemary Spears

 

Pear Apple Chutney on Jalapeño Cheese Crisps

 

Smoked Salmon on Cucumber Rounds with dollop of goat Cheese

 

Starter

 

Cauliflower, Pear, and Fennel Soup

 

Entree

 

Turkey Roulades with Fontina and Sage

 

Apple, Leek and Sage Stuffing

 

Apricot and Ginger-Glazed Sweet Potatoes

 

Kale with Crispy Pancetta

 

Fruit and Spice Cranberry Chutney

 

Dessert

 

Pumpkin Roulade

 

Blueberry Pie

 

I will put together the appetizers and set the table after breakfast in the morning. We are having Pumpkin croissants from William Sonoma and Pumpkin yogurt from Trader Joe.  i can also fix hard of soft boiled eggs if anyone wants them.   

It appears that I never blogged Alton Brown’s frozen blueberry pie recipe.  The problem with me doing it now is you have to start in July when the blueberries are at their peek.  I made two of the pies back then and called them Thanksgiving and Christmas.  

Ingredients: 

20 oz. blueberries, approximately 4 C

4 oz sugar, approximately 1/2 C

1/8 t kosher slat

1 1/4 oz tapioca flour, approximately 5 T

1 T fresh orange juice

1 t orange zest

2 9”) store-bought pie dough

1 egg yolk whisked with 1 t water

Directions:

1. Wash the berries and pat dry.  Mash up half of the blueberries in a small bowl.  
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt and tapioca flour.  Add the mashed berries, orange juice and orange zest and stir to combine.  let the mixture sit for 15 minutes.  Fold in the whole berries.
3. Line a 9” pie plate with aluminum foil.  Place the blueberry mixture into the foil and place in the freezer until solid, approximately 6-8 hours.  
4. Once the filling is frozen, remove from the aluminum foil and wrap in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.  

Directions for Baking:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Unroll first piece of dough and place into a 9” pie pan, making sure the dough reaches to the lip of the pie pan.  
3. Unroll the second piece of dough and cut into 1 1/8” wide strips starting in the middle and working your way to the edge.
4. Lightly brush the edge of the crust with egg yolk.  Lay 4 strips of dough across the top of the filling horizontally, leaving and even amount of space in between each strip.  
5. Fold back 2 alternating strips and lay down another strip in the middle of the pie, perpendicular to the other strips.  
6. Return the strips that are laid back to their original position.  next, fold back the other 2 strips and lay down a strip to the left of the center perpendicular strip.  
7. Return the strips tat are laid back to their original position and repeat on the other side of th the pie.  
8. Once you complete the lattice, crimp the edges of the pie.
9. Brush all the strips of dough and the edges with the egg yolk.
10. Place on the bottom rack of the oven and bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  
11. the pie should be bubbling lightly around the edges.  
12. If the lattice is not browned enough in the center, place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes.  (Mine took only 1 minute and looked beautiful.  
13. Place the pie on a rack and allow to cool to room temperature before serving, approximately 1 1/2 -2 hours.  

It is down to the wire.  I successfully finished the Turkey roulade and the Au Jus.  Jim tasted the au Jus and pronounced it wonderful.  Refrigerating and then warming according to Ina Garten in her new cookbook.  Tomorrow I bake the blueberry pie and finish the Cranberry martini.  My brother arrives in the evening and I am going to have the drink ready for him.  Big drive!  

Tonight I started the sweet potatoes.  I was going to divide in half, but Jim was concerned that there would not be enough, so I am doing 3/4 of the recipe.  The whole recipe serves 8, and there are 4 of us, including Jim.  Whatever, if the army has an emergency and has to come to Nashville on Thanksgiving, I will be able to feed them.  This recipe is from Weight Watchers.   

Ingredients:

4 medium uncooked sweet potatoes

1 spray cooking spray

1/3 C spreadable fruit, apricot flavor

1 t ginger root, fresh, minced

1/4 C OJ

1/4 t salt

1/8 t black pepper, freshly ground

3 T sliced almonds, toasted

Directions:

1. Pierce sweet potatoes in a few places with tip of a knife.  Place on a paper towel-lined plate and microwave on High, following your microwaves directions.  
2. In a small bowl, stir together apricot spreadable fruit and ginger until blended.  
3. Peel the sweet potatoes and slice potatoes into 1/2’ thick rounds.  
4. Arrange the sweet potatoes in a single layer on prepared pan: drizzle with OJ and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
5. When ready to serve, heat the broiler.  Brush the sweet potatoes with the apricot glaze.Broil until glaze browns in a few spots, about 5 minutes.  
6. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with almonds.  

 My two week schedule has worked wonderfully.  I feel so relaxed tonight and I am one day away from Turkey day.  Normally I am going nuts and the day after Thanksgiving, don’t even talk to me.  I hope everything tastes good as this is the way to go.   

Well, today it is raining, that means our contractor will not show tomorrow.  He doesn’t work in the rain, after it rains, and apparently before it rains.  I tried to wash our guest room rugs this morning and broke the washer.  They started to spin and blew the door open breaking the latch.  I have not liked this washer from day one.  I washed these rugs before with my Sears washer in Gainesville.  This whirlpool is a piece of crap.  It has a delicate cycle.  You better have more than one item to wash or it won’t spin dry.  I can’t wash pillows in it as it won’t spin them.  And I apparently also can’t wash throw rugs in it either.    

Today is the start of the turkey.  It also is a make ahead. As all turkey breasts here were sold frozen, I had to debone the breast myself.  Fine Cooking had excellent instructions and It was easy.  I put the bones in the freezer to make broth after Thanksgiving.  I am brining on Sunday through Monday.  Monday afternoon I will complete the roulades.   Tuesday afternoon I will cook the roulades and made the gravy.  Ina Garten’s new Make It Ahead Cookbook says that she makes the turkey and gravy ahead of time.  She plates the carved turkey with a little gravy, covers and refrigerates until the day of serving.  She puts the tray in a warming oven and holds there until time to serve.  That solves a million problems on the day of as you don’t have to carve when you are dressed up and make gravy with everyone hanging over your shoulder.  

Ingredients: 

For the Brine and Turkey

@ T granulated sugar

1 1/2 T kosher salt

1 T black peppercorns

2 bay leaves

2 medium cloves of garlic, halved

2 (1 1/2 #) boneless, skinless turkey breast halves (Start with a 6 1/2- 7# bone-in turkey breast)  

For the Roulades

1/2 C fine fresh breadcrumbs (I am using panic)

4 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 T finely chopped fresh sage leaves

1 t fennel pollen or ground fennel

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 oz. fontina, grated

1 # bacon

2 T EVOO

For the Jus

2 oz. (4) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2 medium shallots, thinly sliced

6 fresh sage leaves

Freshly ground black pepper

2 C lower-salt chicken broth

1 t fresh lemon juice;more to taste

Directions:

Brine the Turkey

1. Combine the sugar, salt, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic, and 4 C water in a 3 qt. saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar.  
2. Transfer to a large nonreactive container or bowl and let cool to room temperature.  (I set my brining bag in a large pot and put the brine in there)
3. Put the turkey in the brine adding up to 4 C water, if necessary, to just cover the turkey.  
4. Close the bag and refrigerate for at least 12 and up to 24 hours.  

Assemble the Roulades

1. In a medium bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, garlic, sage and fennel pollen.
2. Remove the turkey from the brine, brush off any spices, and pat dry.  
3. Put each breast skin side down between two large pieces of plastic wrap.  Using a meat mallet pound each into a 9” X 10” rectangle that’s an even 1/2” thick.  
4. Remove the top piece of plastic.  Evenly sprinkle each with 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper.  
5. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the two cutlets, then sprinkle with the fontina.
6. Fold the longer sides of each cutlet by 1/2”.  Then, starting at the short end, tightly roll up each cutlet into a compact roulade.  
7. Arrange half of the bacon slices (about 10) on a clean large sheet of plastic wrap, overlapping each slice lengthwise so it covers about 1/3 of the slice below it; you want the width of the bacon slices to be the same length as the roulade.  
8. Set one of the roulades in the center of the bacon slices, perpendicular to the slices and seam side up. using the plastic, wrap the bacon up and around one side of the roulade.  Repeat with the other side.  The bacon should meet or overlap at the ends; if it doesn’t, stretch the bacon slices until they meet.  Secure the ends of the bacon with 2-3 toothpicks.  (I used a toothpick in each bacon slice)  
9. Repeat with the remaining bacon and roulade.    
10. You can cover and refrigerate the roulades at this point for up to 12 hours.  (I am going to do this and cook on Tuesday.)

Roast the Roulades

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 425 degrees.   
2. Heat the oil in a medium flameproof roasting pan over medium-high heat until shimmering hot.  
3. Put the roulades in the pan seam side up, turn the heat down to medium, and cook, undisturbed, until the edges of the bacon strips are beginning to brown, about 4 minutes; the bacon will not be crisp at this point.  
4. using tongs, turn the roulades and cook for 1 minute more per side to lightly color the bacon, finishing with the roulades seam side down.  
5. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of each roulade registers 165 degrees, about 35 minutes.  
6. Transfer the roulades to a cutting board and let rest for at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour before slicing. 

Make the JUS

1. Pour the drippings from the roasting pan into a fat separator and let the fat rise to the top.  
2. Return 1 T of the fat to the roasting pan; discard the remaining fat and reserve the defatted drippings.   
3. Set the roasting pan over medium heat and add 1 T of the butter, the shallots, and sage.  Cook, stirring often, until the shallots are soft, about 3 minutes.  Lightly season with pepper, then add the broth, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  
4. Add the reserved drippings, 1 T at a time, until the jus has a full, rich flavor.  
5. Bring to a simmer.  Turn the hat down to low and add the remaining 3 T butter, one piece at a time, whisking until the butter is incorporated into the sauce.  
6. Remove from the heat and whisk in the lemon juice.  Season to taste with more lemon juice, pepper, or salt.  

Serve

Remove the toothpicks from the roulades, slice and serve with the jus.  

I found that I did not like this turkey at all and I believe it was due to the bacon.  Jim bought hickory smoked bacon and I like apple smoked bacon.  I thought the bacon would make the white meat jucier, but it just made it salty and smokey flavored.