2012 Turkey

Once again, B will have to work tomorrow, which is a bummer.

However, that's not going to stop me from starting a turkey tonight. Insane deals, I bought a 19lb frozen bird from Ralph's for about $12, which I will roast off tonight.

Following my 2010 turkey recipe, I anticipate roasting time of about 3 hours.

Here are some changes from last year:

1. Rosemary and 1/2 onion in cavity, no lemon
2. No butter on outside of skin, only under skin; dry outside well and salt liberally
3. Less butter under skin (only about 4 tbsp)
4. Roast @ 500F for 30 min
5. At about 25min of roasting, added 1c chicken stock and 1c white wine (Pinot Gris)
6. Roast @ 350F for about 3 hours

Results to come...

Turkey Pot Pie #2

12/4/11: Building off the #1 version from 2009...

Filling

• 2 tbsp turkey fat (or butter)* (see info at start)
• 3/4 c. frozen boiler onions, defrosted, or 1 small onion, minced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 3 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed (about same size as carrots, celery and boiler onions)
• 1 1/2 c. cubed cooked turkey
• 2 tbsp turkey fat (or butter)
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 c. milk & 2c. turkey/chicken stock (or use half-and-half)
• Pinch of nutmeg
• 3/4c. frozen green peas, defrosted

Preheat oven to 425F.

Add butter to skillet. Cook onion, carrot, celery + spices together for about 2 minutes over high heat. Add potatoes, and cook for 10 minutes. (You are basically "par-cooking" here; remember, the thing is going to bake in the oven!)

In separate pot, make roux from turkey fat + flour, cook for 1 min. Add milk, cook till thickened. Stir turkey and cream sauce into vegetables, and heat for 2 minutes. Mixture should be like a cream of mushroom/clam chowder thickness. If too thick, add more milk/cream; if too thin, let it cook down a few minutes. NOW ADD GREEN PEAS.

Let cool to room temp.

Roll out crust, put in pie pan OR into little ramekins.

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, reduce heat, then cook at 350 for 20 more minutes (about 35 minutes total).

Let cool for 10 min, then serve.

Pastry Crust (makes single shell/top crust only)

• 3 ounces (6 tablespoons) crisco/shortening/lard, chilled
• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) butter, chilled
• 6 ounces (approximately 1 cup) all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 cup ice water, in spritz bottle
• Approximately 32 ounces of dried beans, for blind baking

Place butter and lard in freezer for 30 minutes. When ready to use, remove and cut both into small pieces.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt by pulsing 3 to 4 times.
Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until texture looks mealy.
Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Remove lid of food processor and spritz surface of mixture thoroughly with water.
Replace lid and pulse 5 times. Add more water and pulse again until mixture holds together when squeezed.
Place mixture in large zip-top bag, squeeze together until it forms a ball, and then press into a rounded disk and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

(Results? I seem to recall that this was tasty, now that I'm posting this on 11/21/2012...)

2011 holiday stuffing/dressing

Take two on our own version of B's family stuffing

Makes one 9x13" dish, enough for 12-15 servings, plus one small 6x9 dish.

Prep time: about 1.5 hours

2 bags of Pepperidge Farms Herb Seasoned Stuffing (Note: From the PF web site, looks like 1 bag is 14oz, so 28oz total! We only had Mrs. Cubbinsons, which comes in two 6oz bags per box, so 4 bags/2 boxesm 24oz)

3 medium apples, any kind of RED apple (I used Gala and Fuji this year), peeled cored and rough chopped

2 medium yellow onion, chopped

6 large stalks celery, with leaves, chopped

1 lb of large white mushrooms, rough chopped, about 12-15 count, stems removed (I used 50/50 mix of white and cremini)

1 lb Jimmy Dean Pork Sausage

3 eggs

2 sticks of salted butter

2 tbsp dried basil

2 tbsp dried parsley

2 tbsp fresh rosemary

1 tbsp fresh thyme

2 tbsp fresh parsley

1 tbsp fresh sage

1 tbsp black pepper

2 cans chicken broth (24-28 oz total) (I used part of 1 box of chicken broth, measured out exactly 28oz)

1 tbsp Bell's Seasoning + 1/2 tsp for sprinkling on top

1/4-1/2c extra stock or water

NO SALT! (stock, stuffing mix and butter has salt already, Jackie doesn't add salt)

Instructions

1. Pulse stuffing mix until small dice, like breadcrumb. Set aside in large bowl.
2. In batches, grind celery, apple, onion, and mushroom in the food processor until uniform. (This year, I ground celery and onion, mushroom + some stock, apples + some stock). Remove to separate bowl.
3. Add both cans of broth and eggs to food processor. Add all fresh and dried spices except Bell's. Pulse some more. Add to breadcrumb bowl.
4. In a large skillet, melt 1 stick of butter and brown the sausage in it. At end of cooking, add remaining 1 stick of butter.
5. Pour entire butter/sausage mixture over stuffing.
6. Knead, squeezing thru your fingers to make sure there are no lumps and mixture is uniform and even, 3-5 minutes. (2011: I didn't need to add ANY water, after using the chicken stock)
7. Add Bell's seasoning, "until it smells right". I think 1 tbsp is good.
8. (Let it rest at least 30 minutes. Fry up a small piece in a skillet, taste, and adjust seasoning. This year it tasted very good! Good salt balance, nice flavors)
9. Should look as wet as a meatloaf. Add the extra stock or water if necessary to keep it soft.
10. Pour into 9x13 pyrex baking pan. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 tsp of Bell Seasoning over the top.
11. Cover with plastic wrap and foil, and refrigerate overnight.
12. The next day, preheat oven to 425F.
13. Bake at 425F for 1-1.25hr, and broil for 3 minutes. (Most everything is cooked except the egg, so shouldn't take too long).

RESULTS:

• We'll see tomorrow, updates then...

2010 turkey

20lb, 16-17min/lb, so 5.33 to 5.66 hours estimated cook time

one 20lb turkey

2 carrots, peeled and rough chopped

2 onions, peeled and rough chopped

2 celery stalks, rough chopped

1/2 stick softened butter (or leftover butter from last year)

10 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp rosemary, minced

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1 extra rosemary branch

1 lemon, split in 1/2

Kosher salt

1. Mix softened butter, garlic, parsley, 2 tbs rosemary, and a pinch of kosher salt
2. Preheat oven to 500F
3. Get roasting pan with rack; spray rack with canola cooking spray (or wipe with canola or vegetable oil)
4. Remove giblets (or giblet pack) from turkey...it's there! If it's not in the body, check the neck cavity!
5. Rinse turkey well, place on roasting rack breast side UP, pat inside dry with paper towels.
6. Add vegetables and giblets to roasting pan
7. Work skin loose with fingers
8. Put 1/2 butter/garlic mixture under skin
9. Stuff turkey with lemon, rosemary branch
10. Truss legs and tuck under
11. Pat skin VERY DRY
12. Rub remaining butter/garlic mixture over skin.
13. Season skin very liberally with salt
14. Roast at 500F for 30 minutes
15. Reduce heat to 350F
16. Cook for remaining time, until thigh temp hits 161F (it's about 16-17min/lb).
17. Remove and let rest at least 30 minutes before carving.

NOTE: in at 445pm; initial timer time 4 hrs.

Cook time: about 3 hours to get to 165F in thigh. Removed and let rest for 30 minutes.

RESULTS:

Golden brown skin

Very well-seasoned; breast meat was infused, likely from high salt on skin

Breast was still moist

Thigh meat was nice, tiny bit of blood around thigh sockets, but otherwise fine.

turkey chili

I've been wanting to make chili again, so here goes. One new technique I learned from watching Food Network was not to brown the meat, but to add it when the liquid is added. This seems to yield a smoother, more homogenous, "meat-paste"-like chili. I miss some of the caramelized flavors you get from browining the meat, but I am happy to trade this off in lieu of smooth texture.

The end result? A smooth textured, well-balanced, mild chili.

Turkey Chili
Makes a good-sized pot (8 cups?)

2 carrots, peeled and rough chopped
2 stalks celery, rough chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and rough chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and rough chopped
2 medium onions, rough chopped
2 cloves garlic, rough chopped (or more to taste)
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 can tomato paste
2 14oz cans diced tomatoes
1.5 lbs ground turkey
3 tbsp chili powder
3 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp chipotle en adobo puree (just puree contents of a can!)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp worcheshire sauce
2 tsp salt
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp mesquite smoke seasoning powder
2 cups pork stock*, or chicken stock, or water (* leftover from carnitas)

1. In food processor, pulse all vegetables until finely ground (like a sofrito)
   
2. In large pot, heat olive oil over high heat until almost smoking
   
3. Add tomato paste, and stir for 15 seconds.
   
4. Add sofrito, and cook over high heat for 5 minutes, stirring only once at 2.5 minutes
   
5. Turn heat to low
6. Process tomatoes in food processor, and add to pot.
   
7. Add turkey at once, and stir/beat to make into a "meat paste".
8. Add remaining spices & seasonings, and stock at once.
9. Turn up heat to high, heat until boiling, and cook over medium heat (bubbling thoroughly) for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
   
10. Adjust seasonings.
    
11. Remove from heat, and serve.
    
12. Once cool, refrigerate. It will taste better the next day!
    

Turkey Pot Pie

Thanksgiving leftover cooking attempt #1:

A great exercise in re-use. Thanksgiving evening, after the clean up, I roasted the turkey bones with some celery, onion, and carrots at 450 for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then into a bug stock pot, cover with cold water, add bay leaves, bring to a boil and simmer for 2.5 hours. Remove bones, strain back into stockpot and simmer overnight, reducing by 50% or so. Turkey stock!

Also separated fat (a HUGE amount of fat from turkey + rosemary butter rub) from gravy, stored fat in freezer.

So here, instead of chicken stock I use turkey stock, and instead of butter I use leftover fat!


Filling

• 2 tbsp turkey fat (or butter)* (see info at start)
• 3/4 c. frozen boiler onions, defrosted, or 1 small onion, minced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 3 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 c. turkey stock* (OR 2 cups chicken stock, see notes)
  
• 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed (about same size as carrots, celery and boiler onions)
  
• 1 1/2 c. cubed cooked turkey
• 2 tbsp turkey fat (or butter)
  
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 c. milk (or 1/2 c. half-and-half)
• 3/4c. frozen green peas, defrosted

Preheat oven to 425F.

Add butter to skillet. Cook onion, carrot, celery + spices together for about 2 minutes over high heat. Add potatoes, and cook for 10 minutes. (You are basically "par-cooking" here; remember, the thing is going to bake in the oven!)

In separate pot, make roux from turkey fat + flour, cook for 1 min. Add milk, cook till thickened. Stir turkey and cream sauce into vegetables, and heat for 2 minutes. Mixture should be like a cream of mushroom/clam chowder thickness. If too thick, add more milk/cream; if too thin, let it cook down a few minutes. NOW ADD GREEN PEAS.

Let cool to room temp.

Roll out crust, put in pie pan OR into little ramekins.

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, reduce heat, then cook at 350 for 20 more minutes (about 35 minutes total).

Let cool for 10 min, then serve.



Pastry Crust (makes single shell/top crust only)

• 3 ounces (6 tablespoons) crisco/shortening/lard, chilled
• 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) butter, chilled
• 6 ounces (approximately 1 cup) all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 cup ice water, in spritz bottle
• Approximately 32 ounces of dried beans, for blind baking

Place butter and lard in freezer for 30 minutes. When ready to use, remove and cut both into small pieces.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt by pulsing 3 to 4 times.

Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until texture looks mealy.

Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Remove lid of food processor and spritz surface of mixture thoroughly with water.

Replace lid and pulse 5 times. Add more water and pulse again until mixture holds together when squeezed.

Place mixture in large zip-top bag, squeeze together until it forms a ball, and then press into a rounded disk and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Results:

• Totally delicious!
• Needed more liquid: try 2 cups milk, half-and-half, or cream. You can always cook it down. It should be a little runny, as the veg is going to absorb liquid as it bakes.
  
• Definitely save green peas for the end, and don't cook all veg too long before going in the pie. Remember, it's gonna bake in the oven.
  

gettin turkey ready

preparations are being made for thanksgiving. then the question of "what do I do with leftovers" inevitably arises. Here are a few ideas:

1. Turkey pot pie
2. Turkey soup/stock
3. Tortilla soup with corn and turkey
4. Crepes with turkey
5. Mashed potato cakes with creamy mushroom sauce
6. German dumplings (made with leftover mashers), turkey and gravy.
7. Homemade wide pasta noodles with brussels sprouts.
8. Turkey enchiladas
   
9. "Pulled turkey" tacos in red chile sauce
10. Turkey tamales in red chile sauce
    
11. Plum tart (not related, but I've got plums in the fridge)
    

There was one more but I forgot.

We bought a 23 lb. bird last night at Costco, Foster Farms, .89c per lb. We will have our biggest Thanksgiving group here so far (6 people). I hope the bird defrosts in time!

turkey day 2008

Was fun!

On the menu:

• 22lb roast turkey (with rosemary & butter under the skin, stuffed with lemon/garlic/onion/rosemary), turned out PERFECT, roasting to reach temp of 161F in thigh, and it didn't have the usual smelly/strong "turkey" flavor, which was fantastic. Mom & I managed this one; 500F for 30 min, 350 for remaining time, loosely tented top with foil.
  
• Homemade cranberry sauce (mom)
• Mom's stuffing
• Baby Spinach salad with persimmons & candied pecans and rice vinegar/sesame oil/orange marmelade vinaigrette (mom, from a Martha Stewart recipe, I believe)
  
• Mashed potatoes with onions (mom)
  
• Roasted acorn squash with rosemary & olive oil (mom); I'm not a big squash fan, but this was pretty damn good!
  
• Apple pie (Monica; her first one, and a pretty damn good one!)
• Chocolate pumpkin pie (Judy)
• Homemade sourdough bread (me, using LBB recipe)
• cornbread (me, using Albers Corn Meal box recipe & cast iron "corncob" baking pan, plus some added chili powder per Cast Iron Cookbook)
• brussels sprouts with pancetta (me, Bobby Flay recipe)

Brussels I did in 2 batches in cast iron pan, then put all on a roasting pan & roasted in oven. About 5 min to crisp pancetta, about 5 minutes saute in pan, about 10-15 minutes in 400F oven, with a little lemon juice on top at the end. Yum!

Not a whole lot of leftovers...some turkey, some mashers, a few brussels (even though I made a ton, they were almost all gone). I'm thinking "t-day remix":

--turkey enchiladas
--mashed potato cakes with mushroom sauce (need some criminis/portobellos/whites)

And I need to make some more cranberry sauce! I ate 1/2 a giant Costco bag this week; I like the traditional sugar syrup + cranberry style. One of my favorite cranberry remixes was Iron Chef style, with a splash of OJ, some bourbon (Gentleman Jack), and a few good glugs of real maple syrup. Added a smoky, sweet, spicy complexity that was outstanding.