Thanksgiving Recipes

We had a small Thanksgiving this year -- just the four of us plus my in-laws.  So, I felt that it was a good year to try new recipes.  Why not?  If they failed, it was only a small crowd.  Fortunately, they all turned out great!  Some recipes I followed to a tee, and others I changed a little.  Unfortunately, I was so busy that day that I neglected to take pictures of anything but the cranberry sauce (which I actually made the Tuesday before Thanksgiving).   So, here are the recipes for the cranberry sauce, the turkey, and the pies.  We also had a salad, garlic mashed potatoes, stuffing (which my mother-in-law makes), and of course, chestnuts.  

Turkey with Herbes de Provence and Citrus

Courtesy of Giada de Laurentiis, Food Network

(makes 8-10 servings)

1 (14-15lb) turkey, neck and giblets reserved

1 orange, cut into wedges

1 lemon, cut into wedges

6 fresh rosemary sprigs

6 fresh oregano sprigs

7 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons herbes de Provence

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper

6 cups canned low-salt chicken broth

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

To prepare turkey:

-- Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 400F

-- Rinse the turkey and pat it dry with paper towels. 

-- Place the turkey on a rack set inside a large roasting pan. 

-- Place the orange and lemon wedges, onion, and 2 sprigs of each fresh herb in the main turkey cavity. Tie the legs together to hold the shape of the turkey. 

-- Stir 2 tablespoons of butter, the herbes de Provence, oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of each the salt and pepper in a small saucepan over medium heat just until the butter melts. 

-- Rub the butter mixture all over the turkey and between the turkey breast meat and skin. 

-- Place the turkey neck and giblets in roasting pan. (Recipe can be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before roasting.)

-- Cover the tukey breast with foil and roast for 20 minutes. 

-- Pour 3 cups of broth into the pan and stir to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of pan.  

-- Add the remaining sprigs of fresh herbs to the pan.  Roast turkey for 40 minutes.  
-- Reduce the oven temperature to 350F.  Remove foil from turkey, and pour 1 more cup of broth into the pan.  
-- Continue roasting the turkey until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165F to 175F or until the juices run clear when the thickest part of the thigh is pierced with a skewer, basting occasionally with pan juices, about 1 

hour and 30 minutes longer.  
-- Transfer the turkey to a platter and tent with foil.  
-- Let stand 30 minutes while preparing gravy.  

To make the gravy:

-- Strain the turkey pan juices from the roasting pan through a sieve and into a 4-cup glass measuring cup; discard the solids. 

--Spoon off the fat from atop the pan juices. Add enough chicken broth, about 1 to 2 cups, to the pan juices to measure 4 cups total.

-- Melt the remaining butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. 

-- Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the broth. 

-- Simmer until the gravy thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10 minutes. 

-- Season with salt and pepper. Serve the turkey with the gravy.  

You can adjust this recipe for a smaller or larger bird.  Ours was about 11 1/2 pounds, so I didn't need quite the entire lemon and orange to stuff it.   

Blue Cranberry Sauce

Courtesy of allrecipes.com, submitted by: connie

(makes 9 servings)

1 (12 ounce) package fresh cranberries

1 cup water
1/2 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1 pint fresh blueberries

-- Wash and pick over cranberries. Place in a medium saucepan with water, and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, stir and simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries burst

-- Slightly mash the cranberries with the back of a wooden spoon to ensure all skins are broken. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. Mix well.

-- Remove from heat and mix in the blueberries (don't be afraid to break a few, but don't over mash either). The sauce will thicken as it cools.

-- Transfer to a bowl, cool slightly and place plastic wrap directly on top of sauce to cover. 

-- Refrigerate until chilled.

As I mentioned, I made this two days earlier and it held up just fine.  In fact, I suspect that the flavors melded together better over the course of those couple of days.  This dish is really verstile:  it can be eaten chilled or at room temperature or warmed.   Everyone really liked it -- even those folks who generally skip the cranberry sauce (like me).  

Pumpkin Pie

(makes 8 servings)

1 fresh pumpkin 

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust

2 eggs

1 cup light brown sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1 can (12 fluid ounce) evaporated milk 

-- Cut pumpkin in half and remove seeds. 

-- Place cut side down on a cookie sheet lined with lightly oiled aluminum foil.  

-- Bake at 325F for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the flesh is tender when poked with a fork. 

-- Cool until just warm. 

-- Scrape the pumpkin flesh from the peel. 

-- Either mash, or puree in small batches in a blender. 

-- Increase oven temperature to 450F.

-- In a large bowl, slightly beat eggs. 

-- Add brown sugar, flour, salt, 2 cups of the pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and evaporated milk. Stir well after each addition. 

-- Pour mixture into the unbaked pie shell. Be sure to place a strip of aluminum foil around the edge of the crust to prevent overbrowning. 

-- Bake 10 minutes at 450F, then reduce the oven temperature to 350F.

-- Bake an additional 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove the strip of foil about 20 minutes before the pie is done so that the edge of the crust will be a light golden brown. 

-- Cool pie, and refrigerate overnight for best flavor.

My husband who is a huge pumpkin pie fan told me this was the best one he had ever tasted.  Now that's a compliment!  When indicated, most pumpkin pie recipes state that a sugar pumpkin should be used.  It's a sweet pumpkin that can easily be found and is traditionally used for pies.  However, I happened to have a Long Island cheese pumpkin on hand from my CSA delivery.  I had to do a little research, but it turns out that these pumpkins are great for pies.  They're naturally very sweet.  I wasn't disappointed.  And lastly, you can use either a homemade pie crust or a store-bought frozen crust.  I wouldn't get the unrefrigerated kind that are sitting on the aisle with the cake mixes.  

Sweet Potato Pie

(makes 8 servings)

1 (1 pound) sweet potato
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon dark rum
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

-- Boil sweet potato whole in skin for 40 to 50 minutes, or until done. Run cold water over the sweet potato, and remove the skin.
-- Break apart sweet potato in a bowl. Add butter, and mix well with mixer. 
-- Stir in sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, flour, and rum. 
-- Beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Pour filling into an unbaked pie crust.
-- Bake at 350F for 55 to 60 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. 
-- Pie will puff up like a souffle, and then will sink down as it cools.
-- Cool pie, and refrigerate overnight for best flavor.

I've never made sweet potato pie before -- I've never even eaten it.  But I've always wanted to try it.  So this year, I knew that I wanted to have both mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes in our Thanksgiving meal, but I couldn't really justify two kinds of potatoes for just seven of us at dinner.  I decided to incorporate the sweet potatoes as dessert instead.  So, I found a few different sweet potato pie recipes and created my own.  It turned out really yummy.  It's sweet, so it's not for folks who like subtle flavors; you can probably cut the sugar to 3/4 cup in total, especially if you're adding the alcohol.  I used dark rum, but you can also use bourbon instead.

Those are my Thanksgiving recipes.  While I probably won't use the turkey and cranberry recipe again until next year, I am definitely going to make the pies again.  I actually have enough pumpkin puree left over in the freezer for another pie.  I am hosting Christmas Eve at my house, so maybe it will make an appearance then!