Thanksgiving Dinner

No offense taken, osso. It's not my favorite way to cook green beans, it's just traditional in my family. At Thanksgiving and Christmas, it is comforting to taste the same foods we enjoyed as children. Brings back memories of moms, grandmothers and family celebrations long gone.

That's the only time I cook green beans that old fashioned, Southern way. Actually, my favorite is grilling them with rosemary and olive oil.

I was wonderin' myself Eva....

I grow green beans, in fact, we just harvested the very last of them - really late this year. Nothing better than al dente Blue Lake pole beans, they should squeak when you eat them.

ack! My family is nuts. Will a 5 lb turkey breast, with brest bones, but no legs/wings be enough for 5 people? Most of us think so, but we have one who doesn't. What do you all think?

I guess if you make a lot of stuffing and sweet potatoes...

Seriously, though, aren't they on sale for like $5.00 for a 16+# bird this week? Why not just buy one of those and roast it? Is your breast range-fed or something? Even those are about $15/whole bird over here, I can only imagine they are cheaper on the mainland???

Normally we just get some deli sliced and make sandwiches and go to the beach, but this year the weather is overcast and cold and my friend wants to roast the bird, so we're going with a more traditional celebration. My personal opinion: do what works for your family. If 5# of breast is all you think you'll eat, you won't have a whole stinking pan of leftovers to deal with... and all that congealed stuff that makes one wonder why we even roast one once a year.

It's not the cost that's the factor. None of us like legs and wings, we just want the breat. The size range is limited for just breasts at the store where I can buy free-range, naturally raised turkey.

Free range turkeys have breasts like steel belted tire tread.

Oooh, Princess, don't like Thanksgiving much, do ya? Stinking pans? Congealed fat? Those strange bumps inside the turkey? What is in stuffing anyway?? <shudder> LOL

Littlek -- I thought you were a vegetarian? Just make a bunch of other stuff and no worries That seems like a lot of turkey anyway -- 1# per person? If you're worried... buy a package of legs - but only two! Stick them on the side and nobody will notice at all.

I think you're right, cjhsa -- when I get a free-range turkey, I go for a very small one. This year's is not free-range.

If you're cooking a whole bird, the rule of thumb is 1.5 lbs/person.

Really? Dang... I ought to start reading cookbooks and not just looking at the pretty pages.

Well, a pair of legs would add to the festive look and top off the family with that extra 2.5 pounds needed. So much of that is bone, anyway.

People demand leftovers....

I know some who come over with their own tupperware.

But littleK said her family doesn't like wings and legs. I say, buy two breasts, heh, and have leftovers.

here's my Menu so far:


appetizers

Brie, rye crackers
assorted olives and pickles
Pedro Domecq 'La Ina' fino (dry cocktail) sherry


Dinner

Sakonnet Vineyards Vidal Blanc 2003
Roast fresh 'Butterball' turkey
turkey gravy (non-giblet)
traditional bread stuffing
mashed potatoes
acorn squash
turnip
peas with pearl onions
crispy portugese rolls, butter

desert

apple pie & pumpkin pie
w. vanilla ice cream or whipped cream
Peet's 'Aged Sumatra' coffee

Thanks for sharing it, Jjorge. Portugese Rolls sound interesting and all of it delicious. Have never made turnip... I'd be interested in how you'll cook and serve it. I love peas & pearl onions. Are you going to bake the Brie?

I forgot, Jo. No wings or legs... but the legs would make it look like a real bird and since one of those five is a vegetarian...??? My son says, btw, legs are only good the first time around -- they dry out so much. They'd just be an ornament except for those hungry ones... the ones who'd eat the Gingerbread house.

Does anybody "shake hands with the leg"? I used to, and then was told it should be cooked when you can shake hands with the wing... if you can shake the leg, it'll probably be dry. These are the things I do because I don't have a thermometer. I also press my thumb on a grilled steak to decide if it's done enough.

I grow my own squash, a very flavorful variety called Buttercup, which you can rarely find in stores. Kabocha is similar.

I like to halve them and roast them cut side down until soft, scoop out the flesh and add some butter and brown sugar, maybe a little cream. Mmmm. They are also good with sausage stuffing, but that is too filling for a T-day side dish.

I think growing garden vegetables is so manly, cjhsa. And one who cooks as well? Your wife must be so pleased.

I cooked to the point that my wife almost forgot how. I'm happy to report she has retaken much of the cooking duties and doing a very good job at it.

Thanksgiving has usually been my day in the kitchen, but I do like to watch the football games.

One year, I decided to use my own squash to make pumpkin pie. Perhaps due to the extra steps involved, I managed to forget the sugar. Truly "squash pie" it was.

That reminds me of my making biscotti and forgetting the sugar.. they were certainly bisquits.

I like squash without sugar, but one has certain expectations when tasting a pie...

I showed my mom how to make cornbread the southern way - with lots of sugar, and she adopted the recipe as her own. The other day, I was talking to her on the phone.

"Hi cj, I'm making your cornbread".

"The one with 3/4 cup of sugar, Mom?"

(sound of phone hitting counter top - footsteps)

"Damn. It's already crusted over!"

(picks phone back up)

"You forgot the sugar huh Mom?"

(silence)

I haven't found the tire tread thing to be true about free-range birds. Maybe I've been lucky.

Thanks all, I'm thinking we'll be ok.