Not Your Grandma's Thanksgiving Dinner

When we saw these recipes on Giada’s show last year, we both wanted this as a Thanksgiving meal. Fast forward a year and we still had these recipes on our minds.  While we are both celebrating a more traditional Thanksgiving this year with family and friends; we wanted to prepare a dinner that we thought would be an alternate choice. This is so adaptable to whether you are a dark meat or light meat fan, as well as serving any number of people. 

Giada’s original meal featured a whole cut up turkey. We both prefer dark meat, and used turkey thighs in our version. Who would have thought that a week before Thanksgiving, turkey thighs would be so unavailable? After visiting 4 stores on Wednesday, Meg called 8 grocery stores on Friday morning to secure the golden thighs . . . 

We loved the idea of the pomegranate juice in the Cosmo recipe being a good tie-in to the glaze for the turkey.  We substituted Grand Marnier for Cointreau, because that is what we had on hand. This is a killer cocktail and it is a perfect pre-dinner drink. It serves 6, or . . .  you can just forgo wine with dinner and drink the entire pitcher, which is what we did. (Chardonnay for another day.)

Pomegranate Cosmos

2006, Ina Garten, All Rights Reserved
Prep Time:  5 min
Inactive Prep Time:  --
Cook Time:  --
Level:  Easy
Serves:  6 drinks

Ingredients

2 cups (16 ounces) good vodka (recommended: Stolichnaya or Finlandia)
1 cup (8 ounces) orange liqueur (recommended: Cointreau)
1 cup (8 ounces) pomegranate juice (recommended: Pom Wonderful)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (3 limes)
Lime peel strips, to garnish

Directions

Combine the vodka, orange liqueur, pomegranate juice, and lime juice in a pitcher and refrigerate until ready to use. Pour the mixture into frozen martini glasses with a twist of lime peel and serve immediately.

Pomegranate Cosmos

Cranberry-Orange Glazed Turkey

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis
Prep Time:  1 hr 0 min
Inactive Prep Time:  35 min
Cook Time:  2 hr 0 min
Level:  Intermediate
Serves:  6 servings

Ingredients

One 11-pound turkey, cut into 6 pieces
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cranberry Orange Glaze, recipe follows
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
Assorted fresh herb sprigs, orange wedges and whole cranberries, for garnish
Special equipment: instant-read thermometer

Directions

Position an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Rinse the turkey pieces and pat very dry with paper towels. Brush the turkey all over with oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange the turkey, skin-side up, on a baking sheet with the thick end of the breasts and thighs at the corners, the drumsticks in the center. Roast for 1 hour and 10 minutes.
Remove the turkey from the oven and brush with the Cranberry Orange Glaze. Pour the broth onto the baking sheet to prevent drippings from burning and roast the turkey, covering loosely with foil if browning too quickly, until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F to 170 degrees F in thickest part of the thigh (do not let the thermometer touch bone), 20 minutes.
Transfer the turkey to a platter. Brush generously with more glaze and let rest 25 to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, scrape all the pan juices and browned bits from the baking sheet into a large measuring cup. Spoon off and discard the fat that rises to the surface. Heat the pan juices in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk 2 to 3 tablespoons of the glaze into the pan juices (or more if desired) to make the gravy and bring to a simmer for the flavors to blend.
Slice the turkey and arrange on the platter. Garnish with herb sprigs, oranges wedges and cranberries, and serve with gravy.

Cranberry Orange Glaze:

1/2 cup frozen cranberry juice cocktail concentrate, thawed
1/2 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1 1/4 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
In a small saucepan, bring the cranberry juice, orange juice, marmalade and rosemary to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil until the glaze thickens enough to coat a spoon, whisking often, 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk in the butter, then season the glaze with salt and pepper. Yield: about 1 1/4 cups.

Roasted Root Vegetable Salad

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis
Prep Time:  15 min
Inactive Prep Time:  --
Cook Time:  40 min
Level:  Easy
Serves:  6 servings

Ingredients

18 red pearl onions, peeled
2 large carrots, halved lengthwise, cut into 1/3-inch-wide pieces
2 large parsnips, halved lengthwise, cut into 1/2-inch-wide pieces
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon herbes de Provence
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
One 5-ounce bag baby arugula
1 ripe pear, halved, cored, cut into thin wedges
Apple Cider Vinaigrette, recipe follows
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine the onions, carrots and parsnips. Add the oil, herbes de Provence, salt and pepper; toss to coat evenly. Scatter the vegetables on a large nonstick rimmed baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes. Turn the vegetables over and roast until tender and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Set the vegetables aside.
In a salad bowl, combine the arugula, pear slices and roasted vegetables. Add the Apple Cider Vinaigrette and toss until coated. Sprinkle with the chopped walnuts and serve.

Apple Cider Vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In a medium bowl, whisk the vinegar, honey, salt and pepper until blended. Gradually whisk in the oil. Yield: about 2/3 cup.

Vegetables ready for roasting.

Roasted Root Vegetable Salad

Pumpkin Creme Brulee

Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2004
Prep Time:  15 min
Inactive Prep Time:  3 hr 0 min
Cook Time:  1 hr 0 min
Level:  Intermediate
Serves:  8 servings

Ingredients

2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar, plus 4 teaspoons
8 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup mashed cooked pumpkin

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Arrange 8 (1/2-cup) ramekins or custard cups in a large metal baking pan.
In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Bring to a bare simmer over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until frothy and lemon-colored. Slowly add 3/4 cup of the hot cream mixture, whisking constantly. Add the egg mixture to the remaining hot cream, and whisk. Add the vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin, and whisk until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Divide among the prepared custard cups.

Add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the cups. Bake until the custards are just set in the center but not stiff, 45 minutes to 55 minutes. Remove from the oven and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 3 hours or overnight.

Sprinkle each custard with 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining sugar. Using a kitchen torch, caramelize the sugar. (Alternately, preheat the broiler, and broil until the sugar melts and caramelizes, watching closely to avoid burning and rotating the cups, about 1 to 2 minutes.) Place on small dessert plates and serve.

Our biased and unsolicited opinions:

Talk about a do-ahead meal! With the exception of actually roasting the vegetables and the turkey, everything can be prepped ahead.  This dinner allows you to enjoy your guests and still serve a wonderful meal. Plus, it only uses one rimmed baking sheet. You can’t get much easier than that. People might actually volunteer to do the dishes!

We loved everything about this meal. We used frozen cranberry-pomegranate juice in place of plain cranberry with excellent results. We prepared 4 turkey thighs and had about ¾ cup of the glaze for serving. If you are cooking for more people, adjust the glaze accordingly. (You will want the extra glaze.)

The salad is seasonal, hearty and wonderfully delicious. The combination of the roasted vegetables and the slightly bitter arugula fills in for all the usual side dishes.

If you like pumpkin pie, you are going to love pumpkin Crème Brulee! The caramelized sugar crust makes this dessert! Meg happened to have a propane torch on hand and voila, brulee!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Almost Stroganoff . . .

One of our followers, Mary Ann, visited “the Tasteful Olive” in Overland Park, Kansas and sent us the most wonderful lavender balsamic vinegar and herbs de Provence olive oil. We thoroughly enjoyed them with slices of country French baguette and some herbed olives on Sue’s porch - possibly our last al fresco dining  for the season. However, if this temperate weather continues, we will happily sit on the porch, eat hors d’oeuvres and drink wine. 

Portabellas, stroganoff with goat cheese – we have been looking forward to this meal for at least two months. We generally don’t think that far ahead about a meal, but knew this was a “fall” dish and have anxiously anticipated preparing this recipe. 

Time-wise this could be a week night meal or a company dinner. The addition of a salad with a simple vinaigrette provides a good balance to the pasta. We constructed our vinaigrette with lemon zest, lemon juice, Dijon, herbs de Provence and Frantoia EVOO from Italy via the Bella Italia store here in Reno.

Mushroom Stroganoff with Goat Cheese

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2012

Prep Time:  10 min
Inactive Prep Time:  --
Cook Time:  30 min
Level:  Easy
Serves:  6 to 8 servings

Ingredients
12 ounces extra-wide egg noodles
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 portabella mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 bunch green onions, sliced and white bottoms and green tops separated
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
14 ounces beef broth
8 ounces sour cream
4 ounces fresh goat cheese
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground, plus more for garnish

Directions
Add the noodles to 4 quarts of cold water in a 6-quart pot, cover and place over high heat. Cook to al dente, 18 to 22 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Melt the butter in a 12-inch straight-sided saute pan set over medium-high heat. Increase the heat to high, add the mushrooms and sprinkle with salt. Saute until they darken in color, soften and give off their liquid, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the white bottoms of the green onions and saute 2 to 3 minutes.
Sprinkle in the flour and stir to combine. Cook until the flour disappears and the fond on the bottom of the pan turns dark brown, about 1 minute. Deglaze with the beef broth. Bring to a simmer and decrease the heat to medium-low. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, and then add the sour cream, goat cheese and black pepper. Stir to combine, and then partially cover and bring to a simmer to warm through, 2 to 4 minutes.

Drain the noodles, add to the pan and stir to combine. Garnish with the green onion tops and additional black pepper. Serve immediately.

Weight Watchers: 6 servings, 11 points -  8 servings 8 points 

We chose a cabernet to compliment the richness of the stroganoff and were pleased with the pairing.

 

It has been awhile since we had an elusive ingredient, and then came star anise. Not only was it hard to find, but also pricey. After tasting this dessert, we consider it an essential ingredient, and you will too. We are determined to find further uses for this “golden spice”. 

Baked Maple Pears

Recipe: Prevention magazine, November 2012
Serves: 4

Ingredients
4 firm-ripe pears
1/3  cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp. coarse sugar
4 quarter slices of fresh ginger
1 star anise

Directions
Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Trim the bottoms of the pears. Standup-right in baking dish just large enough to hold them. Drizzles with maple syrup. Sprinkle sides of pears with coarse sugar. Add slices of fresh ginger and star anise to syrup.

Tent pears with foil and bake until tender, 50 minutes. Discard star anise. Drizzle pears with syrup.

Weight Watchers: 5 points

Our unsolicited and biased opinions:

This recipe immediately captured our attention, because it was a spinoff on a childhood memory, and we anticipated the creamy richness we remembered. While it tasted good, we wanted more depth of flavor and more sauce.

The goat cheese was completely lost; so either more was needed, or perhaps adding a bit of bleu cheese would boost the flavor. We also think that adding garlic while sautéing the mushrooms would enrich the overall flavor. Don’t’ get us wrong – it was good, and we both ate two servings – we just kept talking about what we would do differently.  Also, don’t start the noodles until you are half way done with the mushrooms. The mushrooms will hold, and the noodles won’t! We added extra salt and pepper at the table.

We fell in love with the baked pears. We used both Comice and Anjou pears, which were equally suited to this recipe. The ginger and anise combined with the maple syrup make this dessert! Our only change would be to dice the ginger before adding it to the sauce; so you can have a bite of ginger with each bite of pear.  This dessert is best served warm. We licked our plates. It is that good.

If you are doing a dinner party, we think a Prosecco or champagne would be really great with the pears. 

Enjoy!