Foodie Friday: Get Your Turkey On!

 Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I have a binder that is specifically for this day and houses, recipes, tips, seating charts, furniture layouts and even my annual turkey day pre-meal running mileage log. I start fantasizing about my menu 6 months in advance and literally (every year) start dreaming at night about cooking my turkey a month or so before the big day. 

 

Anyway, in honor of my favorite day, here is the turkey recipe that I've used for the last 3 years! It has been adapted from Bon Appetit magazine (Nov. 2009 edition).

 

Sage Butter Roasted Turkey

 

16-18 lb turkey - rinsed and patted dry with all the goodies removed from the inside (I've used smaller and larger birds and adjust the ingredients as necessary)

 

3 TBS course kosher salt

 

1 TBS dried sage (I used dried from my dad's garden)

 

1/2 stick butter (don't skimp on the butter...after all, this day only comes once a year)

 

1/4 C fresh, chopped sage (I pick it from my dad's garden the day of)

 

3/4 C fresh apple cider or apple juice

 

*****Do this the night before*****
Mix salt and dry sage together and sprinkle evenly all of the turkey (make sure the bird is already in the roasting pan). Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and chill overnight.

*****The day of*****
Preheat the oven to 375 and while it's getting to the proper temperature, take your beautiful birdie out of the fridge and tuck those delicate little wing tips under and tie the legs loosely together. Then either mix the chopped fresh sage with the cold butter and rub UNDER the skin or melt the butter and mix with fresh sage then brush all over the turkey. (I've tried both ways. I happen to like the cold butter under the skin method best but both work.)

Once you've slathered a year's worth of butter calories onto your fowl (seriously, remember this is a special occasion...it's all about moderation ya'll) nip it into the oven, basting after an hour.

Now, turn the heat down to 350 and roast for another 45 minutes. At this point pour 3/4 c. apple cider and turn the pan around in the oven. Continue to roast until the meat registers 165 turning and basting periodically for even cooking. It pays to have a thermapen for this part!

Once it reaches the appropriate temperature, loosely tent (there is some debate about the effectiveness of this method...I'm not here to quarrel about it) and allow to rest 30-45 minutes. Now carve and devour with your favorite gravy and fixin's!

(Here is an action shot of me prepping the bird. It's a nice pre-coffee, pre-run and pre-fancied up picture. All I can say is that game day means bird before beauty!)
 

 

 Perfectly crisped skin, MOIST meat...as Hank Hill would say while pretending not to cry, "It's so daggum beautiful".
 



 

This is a sneak peak at my Tday binder...I read it like a book throughout the year. I don't know if that's normal.

 

 

...And now having written the longest Foodie Friday post ever, let me leave you with a funny story.

 

I used to work with some Austrians when I lived in Jersey. At Thanksgiving the American team sent around an email that said "Happy Thanksgiving...Gobble Gobble!" One of the Native Austrians popped out of his office and asked..."Vat ess gooble gooble?" Someone replied, "that's the sound a turkey makes." The Austrian shook his head and said, "that's not the sound a turkey makes in Austria!!"

Foodie Friday (A Day Late): Red Chili with Adobo & Chipotle

I created this recipe when my husband was in grad school. One night I was feeling particularly lazy and only had a few things on hand that led to this combination.

 

Rachel's Red Chili

 

 1 29 oz can black beans (I use organic with no salt added)

1 29 oz kidney beans (I use organic with no salt added)

1 - 1 1/2 lbs turkey burger

2-3 minced garlic cloves

1 small red or white onion diced small

olive oil

1/2 - 1 bottle beer (I like to use Guiness or a Porter style)

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (I use organic)

1 TBS tomato paste (I use organic)

2-3 diced chiles (or whatever heat you can handle) in adobo sauce + extra adobo sauce

 

Brown the meat in olive oil. Add onions, garlic and chile to meat and cook until softened. Then add the tomato paste and cook slightly until it starts to darken in color. Add beans (in their liquid OR rinse them and add beef, veg or chicken stock instead) and tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a simmer then add the beer. Cook for another 15-20 minutes to let the flavors meld and serve with biscuits, corn bread or crackers.

 

**Note: Sometimes I add Mexican oregano to change up the flavor a little.

 

Foodie Friday: Vegan Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies

Warning: These cookies are highly addicting.

 

My mom originally introduced me to the recipe and my husband has since taken up becoming the vegan cookie master. He pretty much has the recipe memorized and can whip up a batch in no time which is a great yet very dangerous thing!

 

Anyway, the recipe is from readymade.com and was part of the Holiday Survival Guide.

 

Here is the recipe adapted from the original website.

  

 Vegan Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 3 c organic white spelt flour
• 1 10-oz package dairy free chocolate chips (the original recipe calls for 2-10oz bags which ends up being an overwhelming amount of chocolate)
• 1 tsp aluminum-free baking soda
• 1 tsp organic sea salt
• 1 c light-colored agave nectar
• 1/4 c organic safflower oil (we've tried different types of oil and they've all turned out)
• 1 tsp organic peppermint oil (*Note: not all peppermint oils are the same potency...less is generally more)
• 1/2 tsp alcohol-free vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment or a silpat mat.

Mix flour, chocolate, baking soda and salt in one bowl. Then mix agave, oil, peppermint and vanilla in another bowl.

Add the flour mix to the agave mix and stir until well combined.

Drop by rounded teaspoons onto the prepared baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned and the edges are set.

***You're supposed to let them cool to room temperature at this point but I like the gooey, molten chocolate chips right out of the oven. It's a bad habit but whatever!***

Cool on a wire rack and store at room temp for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months (they won't last that long!).

Foodie Friday: Pizza Night!

 

Friday is pizza night and we take it seriously. I'm not going to claim this is the healthiest meal but when you make it at home you at least have the opportunity to control the quality AND quantity of your ingredients. I've been using a particular crust recipe for several years now that puts out a consistent and deliciously crispy crust (Jamie Oliver's pizza dough) but I found a recipe in my pile that I decided to try just to change things up.  

 

I'm a huge Bobby Flay fan and have made quite a few of his recipes ranging from salsa verde to grilled lobster tacos to a very robust sangria and I've never been disappointed with the effort. I found his pizza dough recipe a couple of years ago and it got lost in the abyss of stashed recipes. I dug it out on a whim and made pizza (on a Wednesday!) just in time to carbo-load for a long run.

 

The recipe is a really simple, everyday kind of crust. You aren't going to get brick oven (despite cranking the oven up and using a pizza stone), East Coast kind of pizza but it does the trick in a pinch. Here's where I found the original recipe and here it is again adapted slightly with my notes:

 

Pizza Dough by Bobby Flay

 

Ingredients:

3 1/2 - 4 cups flour (I used all purpose because I had it which made the crust soft and chewy - use bread flour if you want a nice crispy crust)

1 tsp sugar (I used organic cane sugar)

1 envelope instant yeast (2 1/4 tsp or 7g = 1 packet)

2 tsp kosher salt (I used a large grain sea salt)

1 1/2 cups water @ 110 degrees F

2 TBS olive oil, plus 2 tsp (I skipped the 2 tsp and used cooking spray instead)

 

Combine all the dry ingredients in a stand mixer first. Then, while it's running add the water and 2 TBS olive oil and mix until the ingredients form a ball adding flour a little at a time if the dough is too sticky. Remove to a lightly floured surface and knead into a smooth, firm ball. Let rest covered for an hour or so until doubled in size. Then, remove to a lightly floured surface and divide into two pieces. Let rest covered for 10 minutes before rolling out.

I always use a pizza stone and bake it in at least a 450 degree oven (part of the cooking time includes baking just the crust pre-toppings). This particular pizza was topped with a sugar-free sauce, pepperoni, black olives, artichoke hearts, mozzarella, parmesan, romano and asiago cheese.