Thanksgiving Dinner

out of curiousity, why is this article dated on 11/24/2005, when it's still only 11/5/2005?

I post-dated the article so it way stay ontop while I post new articles in the next couple weeks. I'm planning on releasing a chef's knife review and a recipe for dirty rice before Thanksgiving (if all goes well).

im getting bored with the traditional thanksgiving dinner

How about something not so traditional? There is nothing worse than green bean casserole. In the south, we serve rice and sweet potato casserole (NOT with marshmallows -- yech!), and of course cornbread. Of course, as one professor friend observed at Thanksgiving, its the only time when all Americans are likely doing the same thing -- eating the same meal at about the same time, etc. We have varying traditions for other national holidays, but Thanksgiving is our only truly consensual tradition.

I think this should say bringing the Green Bean Casserole, not brining the Green Bean Casserole.

Sweet Potatoes are a must, as are "Greens", preferably collards and kale mixed and cooked forever in smoked ham hocks! (don't forget the vinegar).

Michael, I've read this article in a magazine about this strange dish called Turducken.

It's a deboned turkey stuffed with a deboned
duck stuffed with a deboned chicken stuffed
with corn bread and pork stuffings.

It was invented in Maurice, Louisiana. No recipe
was mentioned but it sounds nice.

I MYSELF WOULDN'T WANT TO HAVE TURKEY SOUP AS AN APPETIZER. IN FACT, WITH AS MUCH FOOD THAT WILL BE SERVED FOR THE MAIN MEAL, THE SOUP WOULD FILL ME UP. THUS, LIMITING ME ON TASTING EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THE SIDE DISHES (WHICH DOESN'T INCLUDE GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE) AND OF COURSE THE TURKEY.
B)

I would recommend a pumpkin curry soup. And then an apple pie for dessert. If you want to try something different.

A lot of grocery stores carry this in the frozen foods section. It costs around $65. Its a very old concept -- this was common in the middle ages. Personally, I would not take on trying to make one, but maybe one day I would buy one, just to try it.

My main question is whether anyone has experimented with Morton's Blackened Turkey (you'd know it if you had--it's a long, complicated recipe involving "painting" the elaborately stuffed turkey with an egg paste several times during baking to achieve a crust that blackens; I can provide the recipe on request). I like the recipe, but cannot seem to achieve the predicted break-off-able crust that I am supposed to get, which breaks off to reveal crisp and delicious skin. Any hints on temperature control or other physics-type stuff that could help me with this?

As for turducken, it takes longer than a regular turkey, but is very good (depending on who makes it) and quite expensive (around $200 in California for a large one, which comes frozen). The ones I have cooked have a rice stuffing somehow tucked in and around the bird(s), and the fun part is carving as you would slice bread, getting concentric layers of different meats.

What causes the crack in the middle of a pumpkin pie? How do you prevent it?

Thanks for the tips.
Kaydub

The most common cause of cracks in pumpkin pies is overcooking. If you bake the pie until the center has completely set, chances are during cooling, it will develop a crack. The trick is to bake it until the center just jiggles (like Jell-O) when you twist the pie gently. It should fully set while it cools off.

If it does develop a crack, cover it with fresh whipped cream (whipped with sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract; or use almond extract for a nice twist).

My mother-in-law makes a Chinese sticky rice (no mai fon) to accompany her turkey at Thanksgiving. It has bacon, Chinese sausage, onion, green onion, celery, shiitake mushrooms and oyster sauce. I made it for our church Thanksgiving potluck today, and went home with an empty dish! Good thing I doubled the recipe so we have some in the fridge at home. :)

I made Eric's Chocolate Pecan Pie as one of my desserts last year, and liked it so much that I may repeat it for this year!

I've picked up Turducken from Sam's (or was it BJ's?) for a pretty reasonable price (<$30, I think) and have even seen them seasonally at Food Lion. GOOD EATIN'. I've heard rumors that in some locales (and at particularly large feasts!) this is extended into the Osterducken--by shoving the Turducken into an Ostrich! Any confirmation of this rumor?

One nice thing about Turducken is that there's a different layer of stuffing between each bird--yummy!

I am celebrating Thanksgiving on Saturday (26th of November)

I plan to debone and then stuff a turkey for the main course.

I have experimented on two chickens with two different methods.

The first method was difficult and involved deboning the bird by basically turning it inside out as you cut away the carcass. (I literally butchered Bird #1 and practically minced most of the breast meat!)

The second method was easier but requires that the bird be stitched back together in order to regain its shape. (I was successfull with Bird #2).

Does anyone have any experience in doing this?

My main two questions now are regarding the best way to sew the poultry together and how long the turkey should be cooked.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can offer any suggestions.

Here is my thanksgiving tukey, ala the cookingforengineers recipie. Also used the giblet gravy recipie. The meal was fantastic.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rise/67030336/

Couple things:

1) Water bath. Put a pan of water in the oven, put the pie in the pan. The steam will keep the top pliable

2) When cooking time has almost ended, turn off the heat and crack the door a little. Cooling to fast can crack it also.

I've found that two people and one turkey makes for too many meals with turkey in it for marital harmony. :P

So I offer the "No Leftovers Menu" for Thanksgiving

Appetizer:

V-8 juice, chilled. It's in a can, but it is good. Can be seltzer-ed up a bit into an ornate Virgin Mary and decorated with a lime slice.

Service:

Cornish game hen, decorated with beef bacon, with a slice in the cavity.

Stuffing prepared on the side for reasons of food safety: wild rice and brown basmati cooked in vegetable broth with onions, mandarin oranges, raisins, and a touch of rosemary.

Steamed "toy boy bok choy" and assorted Asian greens, including mustard, from the garden.

Applesauce and whole berry cranberry sauce as chutneys.

Salad:

(yes, salad traditionally comes *after* the meal)

Sharp mesclun with lemon juice, dill, yogurt, and a touch of olive oil dressing.

Dessert:

Maple sugar pumpkin pie.

Michael,

Any suggestions as to what to bring to a Vegan Thanksgiving dinner? Everyone is asked to contribute something to the meal.

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Wild Rice, Cranberries & Hazelnuts
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Acorn-Squash-Stuffed-with-Wild-Rice-Hazelnuts-and-Dried-Cranberries-15576
You can easily sub vegetable oil for the butter in the recipe. I usually make an orange buerre blanc to drizzle over it. To achieve almost the same flavor minus the butter, you could reduce orange juice with a little shallot and splash of vinegar.

I love thanksgiving :)