In Preparation for Turkey Day(s)

I almost didn't blog today.
I'm really tired.
Doug had to bring me the lap-top in bed.

See, I've been wrangling a 28 pound turkey all evening. And it's no easy task for my twiggy little arms.
Last Friday I told Maxwell's cute teacher that I would bring a turkey to the harvest festival at school tomorrow...and then I sent Doug to the store to buy a second turkey.
And he did.
A 28 pound No-Name brand.
(We all know from America's Test Kitchen that no-name brands are a no-no, right? The tasters prefer Butterball, frozen. Which is what I bought for OUR Thanksgiving meal.)

Anyway, No-name has been in the fridge all this time, but when I took him out for a little cursory feel-up this afternoon, he was still pretty frozen. So I put him in a cold-water bath hoping by tonight he'd be ready. (for quick thaw, place in cold water bath for 30 minutes/per pound. Yep, that would be 14 hours if I were starting with a completely frozen bird.)

Unfortunately, tonight when I reached in to remove the neck and giblets, he was pretty icy inside. I'm just hoping in his new hollow state, he'll take the opportunity to finish thawing-- before 3 a.m.

That's when I have to wake up.

To put the turkey in.

28 pound turkeys take a long time to cook.

This is going to make my 16 pound Butterball seem like a CINCH on Thursday.

The thing is,
despite it all,
I'm still feeling thankful for turkey.
I'm happy my 28 pound ugly-step-brother No-Name and sweet, adorable 16.5 pound Butterball have fulfilled the purpose of their creation by offering themselves up for my dining enjoyment.

And I'm thankful for a husband that will do my shopping for me. Even if he does buy gargantuan turkeys.

But now I must sleep. And dream dreams of giant frozen turkeys and cooking calamities (as I know I will.)

Here's wishing YOU better dreams!

Good night!

(And see you tomorrow!)

I Make Bread, He Makes Mess

Monday night we had guests for dinner.  

I wanted to impress them with my mad skillz so I made 

Fae's Awesome Homemade Whole Wheat Bread 

in the Bosch.   

I was about to dump the dough onto the floured counter when something, (possibly a smell?) made me turn around.  

Aww kids!  You gotta love 'em!!!

(Actually, you don't, but it sure helps...!)

(The bread was very good, btw.  Go to my recipe blog if you want the recipe.)

1st Try Making a "Sneaky" Recipe

A few days ago I tried my first "sneaky" recipe from my new cookbook, "The Sneaky Chef" by Missy Lapine*.

We had two little boys over to play so I thought I'd slack off and make Mac n' Cheese for DINNER. (Doug wasn't home and I wasn't about to battle 4 boys without help.)

I looked doubtfully at the cookbook thinking it couldn't help me without a separate trip to the store but was pleasantly surprised!

There were actually a few suggestions for improving boxed Mac and Cheese! The first was to add 2-4 Tablespoons of "White Bean Puree" along with the regular cheese sauce package and just make it as directed.
I looked up the recipe for "White Bean Puree" thinking it would be hard to make or I wouldn't have the ingredients.

It said to mix a can of white beans (in a food processor if you've got one) with few tablespoons of water. That's it!

Easy enough! I keep canned beans in the pantry for Fae's Taco Stuff so that was no problem. I blended them. I added a few scant tablespoons to the Kraft (which I have never ever ever deluded myself into thinking was healthy) and I served it.

The kids loved it. They had no idea it was any different. But they got fiber, protein, whatchmacallit, and (probably) some vitamin whatever. And they didn't even blink.

So I'm sold. I'm a believer.

If I never try another recipe, it'll be worth keeping this book around! (Don't worry Claudia. I'll try more than one recipe.)

I always knew beans really were a magical fruit!
Hooray for the Sneaky Chef!!!




*I am not getting paid by anyone to promote this cookbook, but if you send me a check I'll HAPPILY promote it EVEN MORE!!!