The Best Turkey Ever with No-Fault Gravy

This is the best of the best turkey recipes I've ever seen and guess what? It's my adult daughter's creation. Ever since she shared this with us we have enjoyed the moistest and tastiest  turkeys ever. This past Thanksgiving, she was actually in town and we got to taste her version firsthand. The one below is my morph. It's a guaranteed winner. If you need a larger amount of turkey for your feast, cook two instead of one big one. Be sure you have a digital thermometer.

A DAY OR TWO AHEAD OF TIME:
Prepare a brine for your 16-lb turkey. Using a large lobster pot, place your unwrapped turkey (with innards removed) inside and fill with water. Temporarily remove the turkey as you add brine ingredients to the pot.
- 2 cups Kosher salt
- 2 cups sugar
Stir to dissolve, then add up to 2 heads of garlic, roughly chopped (no worry about peeling away skin, you will discard later)
Place the turkey back in the pot and cover. If you live in a cold climate like Minnesota in the winter, you can just chill the pot in the garage. Otherwise, refrigerate. 

A COUPLE HOURS BEFORE COOKING:
Bring turkey to room-ish temp by placing in sink with cold water. Discard the contents of the brine pot. Pat turkey dry and preheat oven to 325. Form a thick ring of heavy duty foil in the shape of a "U" and place in the bottom of roasting pan.

Microwave 1 stick unsalted butter til soft, place in small bowl. Make paste by adding large handful of fresh rosemary and one other fresh herb like oregano or sage. Turn turkey over so breast is on top and carefully insert hand to separate skin. Shove paste between turkey body and skin. Place turkey breast-side down onto foil ring in roasting pan and place 1 & 1/2 garlic heads (cut in half) inside the bird.

Butter the exterior of the bird and salt and pepper to taste.

COOKING:
Place turkey in preheated oven and set timer for 1 hour. At that time, baste with chicken or beef broth (whatever you have on hand) cover entire body to keep wet. Set timer for another 1/2 hour and check to see if bird is browning too quickly. Add foil to wings if necessary and baste again using drippings in pan in addition to broth.  Set the timer for another 20 minutes. When timer dings again, check temperature. You want the turkey internal temp to read 165 when digital thermometer is inserted in the thickest part of the body. Continue to cook in 10+ minute increments and baste until the bird registers 165 in two different spots. It will take under 3 hours - sometimes faster.

Remove the turkey from the oven and let rest up to 20 minutes before carving.

NO FAULT GRAVY
No more cans or jars, you can do this in your large skillet!

Melt one stick unsalted butter with 3 cubes of chicken bouillon (or equivalent) over medium heat. Whisk in up to 1/4 cups Wondra. Enough to make a sand consistency and bring to boil for 1 minute. Add turkey drippings if available, add 1 carton reduced fat chicken broth and stir in 1/4 heavy cream and salt and pepper to taste, return to boil and stir til thickened. Reduce to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.

You can add all kinds of other fun to the gravy like fresh parsley, sautéed mushrooms or onions. Or... all of the above.

Are you kidding? Spot LOVES this meal cuz she gets all kinds of scraps! Depending on how many eaters, you'll enjoy leftovers for sandwiches or casseroles. When reheating, be sure to drizzle with more broth to keep it moist.

Best Bread Stuffing

This is our secret recipe we have enjoyed for years. The time has come to share it with the world and spare others from ever using a mix again. We serve this every Thanksgiving and Christmas. It's so moist and yummy some of us have just a bite of turkey with our plateful of stuffing. This recipe makes two large casserole pans - one to cook on Thanksgiving and another to cook the next day with leftovers.

PREPARE A DAY BEFORE SERVING

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter
2 cups diced celery
2 cups chopped onions
16 cups bread cubes - mix darks and lights
3/4 cup rough chopped flat leaf parsley
2 TBSP kosher salt
1 TBSP ground pepper
3 eggs lightly beaten
3/4 cup heavy cream

STEPS:
1. In extra large stock pot, melt butter over medium low heat. Stir in onions and celery. Cook until onions are translucent and celery is bright green - about 10 minutes. Mixture should be tender.
2. Remove from heat. Using large paddle or spatula, stir in bread cubes, then butter. Add parsley, salt and pepper, then cream. Mixture should be moist, not soggy. (Adjust consistency if necessary)
3. Chill in pot covered with foil - or in baking dishes covered with foil - overnight.

TO SERVE:
Bring to room temp about 90 minutes before serving. Bake in casserole or baking dish at 325 for 45 minutes. Cover and keep warm until serving. If cooking with your turkey, place on lower rack (at lower temp) and extend baking time as needed.

For some reason, Spot didn't care we were cooking onions tonight. Perhaps it was the large pot that disguised them? She was underfoot so much this is a 5-Paw-er!

My First Pepper Steak

Yes, I do get a lot of my food ideas from some of my fav foodie shows and this recipe is no exception. As typical of my ADD, I tweaked and made what my eating men love-love-loved! We served it with packaged parmesan pasta on the side. Yum!!

INGREDIENTS:
4 sirloin steaks, marinated in kosher salt and ground pepper with a splash of bourbon at least 4 hours
2 TBSP unsalted butter
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
White pepper
Bourbon
1/2 sweet onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, diced
2 shallots, diced
3/4 cup Half & Half
2 generous dollaps of dijon mustard
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

STEPS:
1. In a large cast iron skillet, melt butter over medium heat. While skillet is heating, genrously salt and even more generously pepper with both peppers, each side of sirloins.
2. Pan sear meat about 5 minutes each side without moving it around. (When I flipped to second side, I sliced each steak in half to be sure it wasn't raw) Move cooked meat to platter and cover with foil.
3. Using same skillet on slightly lower temp, cook garlic and onions. Scrape skillet. Add 1/4 cup bourbon and sizzle everything. Drop in dijon and stir. Whisk in Half&Half and bring to boil. Stir and remove from heat.
4. Pour over steak on platter, top with parsley and serve.

Spot gives this 4 paws and loved tripping me often while I cooked. This is great man food! It goes on our two week rotation and is fast 'n easy to make.

My First Chicken Pad Thai

Inspired by The Chew last week, I have played around with this recipe, changed some ingredients and thickened the sauce. The result is a quick meal that can feed 8... or 4 if you each have two servings. Tastes great as a leftover, midnight snack or between two pieces of bread for lunch the next day. Apparently this dish has been around forever, so I'm a late but happy bloomer. We loved it so much I made it again two days later!

INGREDIENTS:
8 boneless, skinless chicken fillets marinated overnight in soy sauce and spread with creamy peanut butter
1 cup peanuts
5 eggs
2 1/2 pkg Japanese Curly Noodles
10 cloves minced garlic
2 cups shredded carrots
2-3 cups bean sprouts
10 scallions thinly sliced
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Garnish with a thinly sliced Granny Smith apple

SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
Juice from 2 freshly squeezed lemons
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 TBSP Worchesteshire sauce
9 TBP soy sauce
Pinch kosher salt

EASY STEPS:
1. In large skillet with 1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil on medium heat briefly cook peanuts for 2 minutes, remove from heat. Add more olive oil and the eggs. Lightly scramble til almost done, remove and set aside.
2. Slice chicken in thin strips, add 2 TBSP olive oil and garlic along with the chicken and cook til done, about 5 minutes.
3. In medium saucepan, bring 1/2 pot of water to boil. Place noodles in large bowl and pour enough boiling water to cover noodles and set aside.
4. While chicken is cooking, in medium saucepan (I used the same one) combine all sauce ingredients and heat.
5.  When chicken is done, whisk in the scrambled eggs, carrotts, bean sprouts, sauce and noodles. Combine well. Stir in scallions and peanuts. Serve with chow mein noodles if you want extra crunch.

Spot gives this 4 big paws. She loves chicken anything and without any onions cooking, she stayed in the kitchen the entire time. I will serve this over Thanksgiving weekend when we aren't eating turkey.

Molasses Crinkle Cookies

I have made a version of this ever since high school. I keep forgetting how good and easy it is. This recipe doesn't make more than a dozen, but really yummy!

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup unsalted butter at room temp
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
2 TBSP white sugar

STEPS:
1.  Cream butter, brown sugar and egg in mixer. Add all dry ingredients except the white sugar and mix well. Chill for 45 - 60 minutes,
2.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Form dough into golf-ball size and roll in the white sugar. Space 1" from each other on baking sheet. Drizzle each cookie with drops of water.
3. Bake at 375 until cookies flatten slightly, approximately 15 minutes depending upon your oven.

Spot was thrilled when we dropped some crumbs on the floor! 4 paws it is.

The New Shepherd's Pie

Our fav comfort meal ever! We were first introduced to a version of this hearty casserole the night we came home from the hospital with our newborn son. Elated and exhausted, we were delighted to receive and eat up this lovely gift from a church friend. Ever since then, this has been a regular winter meal in our house. The way I prepare it makes 2 dinners. More work up front gives you a night off later on! Here's the version we currently enjoy almost 18 years later.

INGREDIENTS:
2 # ground beef 85/15 or 1# 85/15 and 1#ground turkey, browned
2 pkg Lipton's Beef & Mushroom dry soup
1 Family size (26+oz) can of Campbell's Vegetable Soup
2 pkg (10+oz) frozen mixed vegetables (like Bird's Eye Steamfresh)
4 heaping TBSP Wondra
3 cups mashed red potatoes
2 eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 TBSP paprika
2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Big pinch of Kosher Salt

EASY STEPS:
1. Brown meat in large skillet, stir in Wondra and add soups. Spread meat mixture into two medium sized glass casserole dishes. Sprinkle generously with Kosher salt.
2. While browning: Halve enough large red potatoes to fill a 5 quart stock pot, top with water and bring to boil. Lower heat and cook on med high til you can poke the potos and they are soft. Drain. Keep in pot.
3. While potatoing: Zap frozen veggies to thaw - about 2 minutes. Sprinkle evenly over both pans.
4. Mash potatoes with hand masher, adding enough heavy cream to create a slightly wet mixture. Stir in chopped basil, add eggs then paprika. Be sure this mixture is smooth enough to spread on two casseroles. If too thick, add more cream. Finish with cheddar cheese. Spread this mixture over meat.
5. Bake one casserole at 350 until bubbly - about 35 minutes. Cool the other pan then freeze. Be sure and use within 2 months for freshest taste.

Yummy! And since there no onions are involved, Spot wasn't hiding under the bed. This recipe could be morphed many ways. The way I first made it was with instant potatoes, but since I've become more of a cook I like to use real fresh ingredients and add freshness like basil.

Hearty Chicken Pot Pie

A few months ago I was in need of comfort food and went in search of Chix Pot Pie recipes. This is the one I found and tweaked that will comfort any man or woman in your life. I made it so often I started tripling the ingredients (except the pie crust) and freezing. Then all we had to do was thaw and bake when craving comfort or all your veggies mixed in one bite. We serve this with rice.

INGREDIENTS:
1 pkg of 2 refrigerator pie crusts at room temp
2 large chicken breasts, cubed or one deli cooked chicken skin and bones removed, cubed
1 cup sliced or shredded fresh carrots
1 cup sliced celery
2 cups frozen peas
2 small sweet onions, diced
1/3 cup butter
2/3 cups flour
Big pinch Kosher salt
1/2 - 1 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp celery seed
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, pulled off stem
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms

Let's walk through the recipe:
1. In large skillet, sauté onions, garlic and mushrooms in butter
2. In large saucepan, place carrots, celery and peas if using a cooked deli chicken. If using uncooked breasts, add them too. Add enough water just to cover. Bring to boil and cook 13 minutes. Drain and set aside, adding chicken if you didn't yet.
3. When onions etc are soft, whisk in flour and seasonings. Slowly add broth and cream. Add rosemary. Bring to boil, then simmer til thickened. Stir frequently. Set aside.
4. Unfurl one pie crust and fit to bottom and sides of 9" pie plate. Use fork to poke some holes in bottom and sides.
5. Spoon the chicken-veg mixture into bottom of pie crust. Pour the onion-gravy mixture over all. Fit other pie crust to top of pie and seal edges. Pierce crust to let out steam.
6. Bake 350 for 45 minutes or til crust is golden brown. If you need to keep warm, turn off oven and tent pie with foil.

Spot gives 4 paws and sits in hope like a mime at our feet! This recipe makes a generous onion-gravy and if we have extra and I'm not making more than one pie, I freeze it for the next one.