Thanksgiving Redux

I know you're over it, but you know I've got to do it. 

Thanksgiving in Hudson:  it's the third time we've done it, and I have to say it keeps getting better.

This year it's my family: Mom, Dad, Brendan, Sarah and Melissa.
And Michael's: his mom, Sue, brother Steve, and nephew Brent.

Good food with good people.  It's how we roll up here.

I thought I'd do an overview of the event today and post details on my dishes throughout the week. 
We kept it pretty casual with a buffet:

First thing's first:  Turkey.

As you can see, this one is from Lobel's.  It was organic, free-range, and lived a happy but brief life in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania.  Last year it was two small heritage birds.  It was fun, but I have to say, we missed the white meat of the good old broad breasted whites most of us eat every year.  So we went back.  And we don't regret it at all, just so you know.

We went incredibly simple.  No brining, no stuffing, not even a sliced lemon in the cavity.  Just a good rub-down of butter and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper.

And now things get a little high tech.  Our amazing beautiful new Electrolux oven came with a very special feature: The Perfect Turkey Button.

It all starts with a probe.  Hee hee. 

Get your mind out of the gutter:

It's a temperature probe.  It plugs into the oven and regulates the temp.

Tent some foil over the bird so it doesn't brown too quickly:

And our resident Perfect Turkey Button pusher Sue goes to town.

Except that little button was way too perfect.  We wanted the internal temp of the bird to finish out at about 170˚.  After about 20 minutes of cooking, the bird was nearing 100˚ way too quickly.  We had planned for the bird to be cooking at least five hours.  At that rate it would be ready in less than two.  We ended up turning off the convection feature and leaving the oven at 325˚.  That slowed things down enough so that we could cook the rest of the feast before the bird got over-cooked.

Michael's brother Steve was in charge of the Thanksgiving music mix:

Have I mentioned yet that my pal Brent was the resident thanksgiving photographer.  He did a great job, and it meant that I could focus on cooking.  Thanks!!!

Here's Michael worrying over the turkey.  Hey, who knew the turkey would be the quickest thing we made that day? 

We left the bird in a warm oven until, well, we needed the oven space.  When we took it out the breast was a bit low, but we knew all about carry over cooking.  Tent that baby up and let the heat do it's magic.  When you use high quality poultry you don't have to be so worried about cooking the bird to death, just so you know.

Sam to the rescue with the dish washing:

There's nothing quite like having my dad around when I cook- it's like I hardly dirty a dish before it's magically clean again!

Here I am dishing up the gravy:

That's some very special gravy.  Read about it here. 

Michael carved up the turkey as the fams walked the line.

We decorated the table simply with various squashes and gourds.

Here's the plate:

Starting with the turkey and going clock-wise:

Perfect Turkey with Perfect Gravy: probably the best turkey I've ever had, just so ya know.
Creamed Greens: Spinach, Turnip and Mustard.
Sue's Cranberry Sauce: whole cranberries roasted with orange zest.
All-Bran Rolls: a Maness Tradition that the Smarts have come to love.
Sue's Corn Bread Dressing: Simply corn bread, a bit of regular bread, sautéed onion and celery, sage, chicken stock and a beaten egg.
Pan roasted Brussels Sprouts
Turnip Gratin
and Roasted Sweet Potatoes in the center.


Stay tuned for all the juicy details.

Playing,
Meredith