Our First Thanksgiving

And what a lovely feast it was! As much as I gathered recipes and opinions and hints and ideas...I was a little worried about cooking several dishes that I had never made before and timing it all to be ready to serve at the same time. Thankfully (pun intended), everything came out perfectly. Thanks to all who listened to me talk about my Thanksgiving menu for two months!

The Menu:
Hors d'œuvre:
* Shrimp wrapped in Sage and Prosciutto a la Rachael Ray
* Sliced Parisian bread with onion & tomato confits and olive tapenade
* Gerkin pickles - mom's request!

Main dishes:
* One 13-pound fresh turkey, brined and stuffed with herbs & veggies
* Portobello and Crimini Mushroom Pan Gravy
* Sage, Apple, Cherry & Mushroom Stuffing (from homemade bread!)
* Rosemary and Roasted Garlic Mashed Red Bliss Potatoes
* Green Bean Casserole (recipe straight from the Campbell's can)

Dessert:
* Homemade Apple Pie with Non-Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
* Sweet Potato Pie from Community Servings (Good idea, bad pie.)

Our tiny T-Day table (forced us into eating buffet-style):

Dad did the honors with his electric carving knife (I kind of forgot to take a photo of the intact turkey - who has time for that while preparing a feast?!):

A beautifully carved bird (with green bean casserole in the background):

I am admittedly proud of my stuffing:

Piled high, pre-gravy:

My dad wouldn't have come if I didn't make apple pie! (Kidding...I think...)

Is it too early to plan for 2008?

Crock-Pot Pot-Roast

This was my second attempt at Alton Brown's Pot Roast recipe from his Good Eats episode A Chuck for Chuck. During my first attempt, I slow roasted the hunk of chuck beef in sealed aluminum foil. So, I thought, why not just put the darn thing in the crock pot and slow cook it all day?

The olive-raisin-balsamic-tomato sauce that accompanies this dish is so good that I think it has (twice!) masked the fact that the chuck is a bit tough and chewy. It could certainly be my cooking technique, and I'm not ready to get rid of this recipe, but it is safe to say that I have not yet conquered pot roast.

Mac No More or You've Come a Long Way, Baby!

As I embark upon preparations for my first Thanksgiving dinner, I am proud to say that I came across these 6 boxes of my previously beloved Kraft Macaroni & Cheese in the kitchen cupboard, all of which were both dusty and expired by 5 months. And, I thoroughly hated the last box of mac I made.


Not all people viewing my blog (if there are any at all) know that there was a time when Kraft Mac and Cheese was not only all I could cook (er, "cook"), but also all that I ate. Despite a slight identity crisis, I am proud to have disposed of these dusty boxes, never to replace them.

Sunday Dinner - Turkey Testing

I am hosting my first Thanksgiving this year. Really, it's the only time of year that I *eat* turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy and the like - let alone *cook* it! So, I haven't had much practice with the meal prep involved for the holiday. Ever.

I recently made my first Green Bean Casserole (complete with nasty-looking mushroom soup - so good!) and have been testing some stuffing recipies. The turkey, though, is the star of the show and I decided I had better practice with a chicken roaster:

I didn't brine it, but I rubbed it in olive oil and rosemary and started it on very high heat for about half and hour. Once it was browned, I covered the breast with the foil "turkey triangle" suggested by Alton Brown so the breat meat doesn't overcook or dry out. My digital probe thermometer told me when the meat reached 165 degrees, I pulled the bird, and let it rest while I made my first gravy ever. It was a beautiful thing.

Malden Baked Beans - Attempt #3

The first time I made Boston baked beans in the crockpot, my beans never cooked. We left them in the crockpot for another entire day (!!) - the beans barely softened, but the heat from the crockpot melted the glue between the wood panels in our kitchen table.

Oops.

The second time I made baked beans I soaked them overnight prior to tossing them in the crockpot. Still no luck.

This time - the third time - I made baked beans, I boiled the beans for all of two minutes in the evening before adding them to the crockpot where they were to cook for the entire next day until dinnertime. Somehow, the beans were already done in the early morning! Boiling them for 2 minutes had more of an impact on the beans than heating them in a high-heat crock pot for 36 hours! I wonder what the science is there...? I'm not a fan of mushy beans, so I need to find a happy medium for attempt #4.

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches and Cole Slaw

My sister-in-law recently asked me to recommend some slow-cooked meals that could be dropped in the crock-pot in the morning and eaten in the evening. I know of a few, and thought I'd start testing them (and maybe re-testing?) before recommending them.

Here is the result of a pork shoulder that was marinated overnight and then slow-cooked on low in the crock-pot for about 11 hours (hey, my work days are long!). Topped with BBQ sauce (a new quick recipe that used ketchup) with a side of chilly coleslaw (made from farm cabbage that we accidentally froze in our fridge). I'll be repurposing the pork tonight as carnitas.

Geez, this food photo looks nasty.

Company Pumpkin Carving Contest 2007!

Today is Halloween, and that means it's time for my company's annual pumpkin carving contest. There was no theme last year and I arrived at the office to find that *two* of my co-workers were using the same idea as mine. I had to come up with a new idea fast and submitted this pumpkin in 2006:


It came in second to someone who "carved" their pumkin into pumpkin pie. How could anyone beat that??

This year had a "scary" theme, and few things are scarier to me than a hand injury. For as many surgeries and nasty medical things I've seen - none of which disturb me at all - there's something about a papercut that causes all of the blood to drain from my face. (This was exemplified a few months ago at work when I X-Acto'd my thumb and had to lay down so I wouldn't pass out!). So, here is my 2007 pumpkin submission:

Red Sox World Series Parade 2007

One of the perks of my current job is working smack in the middle of Boston. I get to catch a bunch of events and weird promotional things (for example, I got to see Fabio pushing I Can't Believe It's Not Butter one day last year...lucky me!) just by stepping outside.


Naturally, a small bunch of us went to the Red Sox World Series Parade yesterday, and we thought we had a pretty good position for viewing - right in front of the press stand! Unfortunately, this whole event was a chance for people to behave badly and about 15 people (including a mom with her 4-year-old daughter!) climbed up on top of the MBTA vehicle in front of us - the roof was concave, but that didn't stop them from doing the Papelbon dance.

Future car-tippers:

Despite a near altercation with some chic who insisted upon wedging herself in front of me, climbing on the truck, such that her butt was in my face (I would have taken a photo and published it on the web if I had her name!), I had a good time. And all was made well when I got to see my personal Red Sox MVP pick, Mike Lowell.

He waved right at me!

And it starts all over again in April...

Sunday Dinner - Turkey Meatloaf

I change my meatloaf recipe every time I make it. Sometimes beef, sometimes turkey. Everything else depends upon what's in the fridge!

Although we ate this for two days, I never took a photo. Maybe because meatloaf just isn't pretty? Or MAYBE because we were too excited (and overtired) watching the Red Sox win the World Series!

Penne with Pumpkin and Sausage

Wow, it was about a year ago in one of my first blog posts that I attempted to make a pumpkin pasta recipe. I had decided (last November!) to try to change the recipe a bit and try again - this time, with much success!