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Thanksgiving I usually search for new recipes.  I think this year I have finally hit on the perfect forever meal.  My first priority was it had to be easy.  Second, I did not want a lot of butter and cream.   These recipes answered it and I think the best meal ever.  

Appetizer 

Cooked shrimp and dip that we bought

Main

Turkey by Ina Garten

Stuffing, bread and recipe from Williams Sonoma

Sweet potatoes, Trisha Yearwood

Asparagus Bundles, Trisha Yearwood

Dessert

Sweet Potato Pie

Blueberry Pie

 

Dessert was purchased late Wednesday night.  I had asked my cousin Sandy to make my Aunt Maureen’s banana cream pie.  Unfortunately they we at a wedding the weekend before and she called Wednesday and both she and Steve were really ill.  The appetizer was Bud’s idea and we also bought peanuts so Jim wouldn’t eat all the shrimp.  This is the first time making Ina’s turkey and it will remain the turkey recipe from now on.  Thank you Tina!

Ingredients:

1/4# unsalted butter

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1 t chopped thyme leaves

1 fresh turkey, 10-12#

Kosher salt

black pepper

1 large bunch of fresh thyme

1 whole lemon halved

1 Spanish onion 

1 head garlic, halved crosswise

Directions:

1. This is not in the recipe, but Tuesday we started brining the Turkey.  I bought the brining mixture at a new spice shop that opened this year in the old restaurant supply building.   
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Melt the butter in a small saucepan.  Add the zest and juice the lemon and 1 teaspoon of thyme leaves to the butter mixture.  Set aside
4. Take the giblets out of the turkey and wash the turkey inside and out.  Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers and pat the outside dry.  
5. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan.  Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the turkey cavity.
6. Stuff the cavity with a bunch of thyme,  (I brought a bunch of it from my garden.) halved lemon, quartered onion and the garlic.  
7. Brush the outside of the turkey with the butter mixture and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  
8. Tie the legs together with string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the turkey.
9. Roast the turkey about 2 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and the thigh.  Remove the turkey to a cutting board and cover with aluminum foil, let rest for 20 minutes.
10. Slice the turkey and serve.  

Bud carved the entire turkey.  We both like dark meat and Jim like white.  So a dent was made even thought there were only 3 of us.  I did not mention but we were in AZ where my brother lives.   

The day after we went down to Tuscon AZ and visited with a high school friend from Hobart and another friend I worked with in CA. We had lunch in a Mexican restaurant.  I had several meals of Mexican food and it is now official, I do not like Mexican food.  

Thanksgiving demands sweet potatoes in my book and everyone agreed these are the best ever.  As I said these come from Trisha Yearwood’s TV show.  Wednesday was my prep day and I did everything for the sweet potatoes but bake them.  I did that when the turkey was 1 hr from being done.  Depending what else you serving it can serve 8 or 4.

Ingredients:

4 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed

1/2 C pepitas or pumpkin seeds

3 T brown sugar

1/2 t ground cinnamon

1/2 t kosher salt

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1/2 C sour cream

1/4 C fresh mint leaves, torn

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Place the sweet potatoes on one of the prepared baking sheets.  Bake until the sweet potatoes are soft to a light squeeze, 45 minutes to an hour.  (I just put them in the oven with the turkey at its temperature.)
3. Meanwhile, toast the pepitas in a dry skillet, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 2-3 minutes.  Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. Add the brown sugar and spices to a medium skillet over medium-high heat and cook until the skillet is hot.  Add 1 T water to the skillet and stir until the sugar is melted.  Stir in the pepitas until they are completely coated, then spread the mixture on the other lined baking sheet.  Let cool completely.  (You are essentially making peanut brittle so be sure it is parchment paper.)
5. Let the sweet potatoes slightly.  Slice them in half, then lightly mash the flesh in the skin with a fork.  Transfer the sweet potatoes to a serving tray.  Dollop each with about a T of sour cream.  Then sprinkle each with the pepitas and mint.  
6. Serve immediately.  

I’m thinking of making these again for Christmas.  They were to die for.

Finally the asparagus.  I know the hated green bean casserole is the standard, but not if I am cooking.

Ingredients:

2 # fresh asparagus, ends trimmed

12 slices of bacon

1/2 C light brown sugar

1 stick of butter

1 T soy sauce

1/2 t garlic salt

1/4 t ground pepper.

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Divide the asparagus into 12 bundles.  carefully wrap 1 piece of bacon around each bundle, starting about 1/2” from the bottom of the tips.  Secure the bacon-wrapped spears with a toothpick.  Lay the bundles in a low sided casserole dish.  
3. In a medium saucepan, combine the brown sugar, butter, soy sauce, garlic salt, and pepper.  Bring the mixture to a boil.  Pour the hot sugar mixture over  the asparagus bundles.  
4. Transfer the dish to the oven and roast until the spears have begun to wilt and the bacon looks fully cooked, about 25 minute.  (I did this while the Turkey was resting and being carved.  Everything but baking the day before.)

I didn’t do the stuffing recipe as I have done this one for several years.  It was good as usual.  When Sandy called to say she was sick I was too far along to cut it in half.  Bud has a lot of stuffing to eat, but I told him it could be frozen.  

The last thing we did on Thursday was to start the turkey carcass broth.  I slow simmered it until Monday.  We drained it and used most of it for soup.  I thought I took a photo of it.  Anyway the soup recipe comes from my Williams Sonoma 365 days of soup.

Ingredients:

2 T EVOO

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

3 carrots, peeled and finely diced

4 celery ribs, finely diced

1 1/2 T minced thyme

8 C broth (I added abut 3 more cups after the turkey and noodles were cooked.)

1/2# shredded cooked turkey meat

2 C packed spinach leaves

salt and ground pepper

Directions:

1. In a large, heavy pot, warm the oil over medium high heat.  Add the onion, garlic, carrots, celery and thyme and sauté until the carrots begin to soften, about 8 minutes.  
2. Add the broth and bring to a boil.  Add the egg noodles and cook until ardent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the turkey and spinach and stir to combine.  
4. Simmer the soup for 5 minutes to blend the flavors.  
5. season to taste with salt and pepper.  

Today I got very mad.  The only restaurant I could find in our area that had soup was Dolts, Pho Anna (Vietnamese) and Japanese restaurants.  I wanted soup for dinner and I wanted to go out.  Well I ended up making my own.  This recipe comes from a Williams Sonoma cookbook called Soup of the Day.  It was November 18th and this sounded good.  Jim ran to the store and bought Orecchiette and Broccoli, I had the sausage.  My Italian sausage was chicken sausage which saves about 150 calories off the soup as opposed to regular Italian sausage.  It was good but use 12 cups of broth instead of 8.  It as not soupy enough with only 8 cups.  We also had leftovers for the next day.  I added another 8 cups of stock and that threw off the flavorings.  If I had just done it from the start.  

Ingredients:

12 C chicken broth (3 boxes.  I use bone broth as it has no salt.)

1 t red pepper flakes

I# Italian Sausage

1 1/2# broccoli trimmed and cut in florets

Salt and pepper

12 oz. Orecchiette pasta

Directions:

1. In a large, heavy pot, bring the broth and red pepper to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Using a fork, prick the skins of the sausages.  In a frying pan, cook the sausages over medium heat until lightly browned on all sides and cooked through, 15-20 minutes.  Transfer to a paper towel to drain and cool.  Cut the sausages into rounds and add to the broth.  
3. Add the broccoli and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.
4. In a large pot, bring 5 qts. water to a boil over high heat.  Add 1 T salt and the orecchiette and cook until al dente, about 12 minutes.  Drain well.  
5. Add the orecchiette to the broth and season with salt and pepper.  Stir and mix well and serve.

This is becoming my favorite meal.  It is so versatile and I can make it to fit my mood and energy.  Tonight I added canned chicken from Costco.  It was really good.  You could use leftover chicken or (note for after Turkey day) leftover turkey.  I am going to make it with salmon next time.

Ingredients:

1/2 box of penne pasta

1/2 box fresh arugula

Pesto, mine is homemade but a good store bought is OK.

Meat or fish of your choice

Directions:

1. Salt your water and cook the pasta according to box directions.
2. Meanwhile put the arugula in the serving bowl of your choice.
3. Next add the meat or seafood of your choice to the arugula.
4. When the pasta is finished, drain and pour over the top of the arugula mixture.
5. Add the pesto as you like and mix it up and serve.  

Nothing could be easier.  I made this recipe up.