My top 5 turkey rules for home cooks.  Your mileage may vary, but these are the rules I live by.

1. I don’t brine any more.  It destroys the gravy.  Brining is thought to lead to a moister bird, but follow the other rules and you won’t have those issues anyway.
2. Do not attempt to prepare the turkey straight out of the refrigerator.  I let mine rest for an hour, otherwise the temperature change from fridge to oven is too shocking!
3. High Heat at the start, then reduce the temperature.
4. Use real butter.  It just makes for better flavor.
5. Let the turkey stand at least 15 – up to 30 minutes before carving.

Perfect Roast Turkey

16 lb turkey

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

2 tsp herbes de provence, (I like Morton & Basset the other brands contain fennel which is overpowering to me)

4 cloves garlic

1 and 1/2 tbsp melted butter

paprika

2 tbsp butter

Bring the thawed turkey out of the refrigerator approx 1 hour before cooking to bring closer to room temperature.  Preheat oven to 425.  Rinse turkey with water, inside and out.  Remove neck and giblets from the inside of the turkey.  Pat turkey dry with paper towels then place on a V-shaped Roasting rack in a roasting pan.  Inside the turkey cavity, add two teaspoons kosher salt, 20 turns fresh ground pepper, Herbes de Provence, and garlic cloves.

Drizzle skin with melted butter, then sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, and paprika.  Roast in oven for 30 minutes.  Use additional butter to rub on skin, then reduce oven temperature to 325.  Roast for about 2 hours longer – rubbing butter on skin every 30 minutes.  Begin checking internal temperature in thick part of thigh and breast after total cook time of two hours.  Turkey is done when the internal temp reads 175, be sure to check with thermometer between leg and thigh as well as in thickest part of the breast.  Tilt turkey at an angle to pour cavity juices into drippings.  Remove turkey to a cutting board to rest.

Turkey Gravy Recipe

Drippings from Roast Turkey

All Purpose Flour

2 qts turkey stock

Kosher Salt

Fresh Ground Pepper

I come from the school of thought that it’s impossible to have too much gravy.  So I never reduce down from the amount of pan drippings, but you can – the important thing is to be close to a 1:1 ratio of drippings to flour.  With a bird of this size, I usually have around 1/2 c. drippings.  Pour drippings into a measuring cup, then pour back the quantity you want to your roasting pan.  Position the roasting pan over two burners over medium high heat.  Add an equal amount of flour, then whisk over medium high heat until browned and paste like, about five minutes.  The longer you brown your flour, the darker your gravy will be.  Slowly! (this is key to preventing clumps) add turkey stock, whisking constantly to combine.  Increase heat to high.  Bring to a boil whisking constantly until thickened.  If gravy is too thick add additional stock, if gravy is too thin, keep boiling to thicken.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

**If you have troubles with your gravy being lumpy, I have another method posted in this Turkey Recipe.  It involves shaking the flour with stock or water in a water bottle to combine before adding to the drippings.  The flavor is not quite as rich and deep as with browned flour, but you may find it a bit easier of methods.

**Turkey Stock can be made or purchased.  I’d recommend Kitchen Basics brand – in Dallas available at both Central Market and Albertsons.  I haven’t seen it at Tom Thumb yet, but I’d imagine they may well have it during season.  You can sub chicken broth will good result, but go for the turkey if you can find it.

Turkey Tenderloins

1 lb turkey tenderloins

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

paprika

Old Bay seasoning

1 tbsp olive oil

1 and 1/2 c. chicken broth

Preheat oven to 375.  Sprinkle the entire surface of tenderloins with salt, pepper, paprika, and a smidge of Old Bay, ensuring you coat all sides.  Heat a braising pan over medium heat for 3 minutes, add olive oil, swirl for 30 seconds then brown turkey tenderloins on all sides.  Add chicken broth, then cover and move to oven.  Cook for 35-40 minutes then check with a meat thermometer.  Ensure an internal temperature of 170 in the thickest part, return to oven if necessary.

Slice at into 1/2 an inch rounds,then top with Chimichurri.  Enjoy!

Hands on Holiday Meal Class

Learn to roast a perfect turkey, every time.

Learn to make mashed potatoes that make your relatives weep with bliss not to be outdone by the art of perfecting a brown gravy.

I still love a green bean casserole, yum.  But it seems they’ve gone out of vogue on most holiday tables.  So we’ll cover haricots verts with almonds.  A crisp and crunchy bright green dish perfect for the holiday table.

Don’t forget the stuffing.  Herbed or cornbread?  Don’t be confused when you hit the grocery store.  Perfect stuffing, every time.

Only responsible for bringing a dessert?  Great, we’ll cover the basics of pie crust making, both the flaky pastry crust and the graham cracker crust.  I promise, it’s really very easy.  But don’t worry, there’s no shame in buying a pre-made crust.

Class time 3 hours -$70

each class will be kept to small groups, no more than 4

Email lane@dinnerandconversation.com for more information and to schedule your dates.

Yes. I’m a grocery store snob, and I know it.  And if I could get my food budget under control, we’d have an entirely different life.  Of course, where would the fun be in that?  Food is meant to be delicious and attractive, so it’s really hard for me to get inspired wandering a grocery store that’s run down and old.  Anyway, if you find the turkey cutlets where ever you shop, this is a great recipe and a super crowd pleaser.  And I’m still not sure how Emily wound up with *massive* amounts of turkey broth, but next year after your Thanksgiving turkey, if you don’t make turkey soup, at least make broth and keep it in your freezer!  This recipe tastes great with chicken broth as well, just in case Emily didn’t stock your freezer!

Turkey Scallopini

4 turkey cutlets

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

shallow bowl of flour

olive oil

3 and 3/4 c. turkey broth

juice from 3 lemons

4 heaping tablespoons capers

3 tbsp butter

3 tbsp chopped parsley

1/2 package capellini

Season cutlets with salt and pepper.  Dip in the flour on each side, shaking off excess.  Heat a huge skillet (I think mine is 16 inches) on medium high heat.  If you don’t have a huge skillet, you can cook them two at a time.  Add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil, and heat until fragrant.  Brown cutlets on both sides, then remove to a plate.

Add broth to skillet and deglaze the pan, stirring in the brown bits.  Cook for about five minutes, then add lemon juice and capers.  Cook another 2 minutes, then add butter a tablespoon at a time, stirring in with a wooden spatula.  Add cutlets back to sauce and continue to cook uncovered for 5 more minutes.  Sprinkle in the parsley, then stir and gently spoon sauce over the cutlets – heat 1 more minute and serve on top of cooked capellini.

Chili, like tortilla soup, seems to be a dish that means different things to different people.  I started to enter a contest earlier this year where part of the instructions required a smooth consistency of meat to gravy, containing no identifiable vegetables at all.  And some people think of chili only being a dish served so spicy it demands several beers in rapid succession to keep your taste buds from being destroyed.  This turkey chili with black beans recipe is not very spicy – you can adjust the amounts of cayenne and chili powder to increase the intensity to your desire.  You also could add half of a minced jalapeno in with the garlic, similar to the method I use in my tortilla soup.  I prefer to spice mine at serving with a sprinkling of red pepper flakes.  Enjoy experimenting!

Turkey Chili with Black Beans

2 tbsp olive oil

2.5 lbs ground turkey

1 large white onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic

5 tomatoes on the vine, chopped

1 and 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 and 1/2 tbsp chili powder

1/4 tsp cayenne

12 turns fresh ground pepper

1 and 1/2 tsp ground cumin

4 c. chicken stock

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Toppings: shredded cheddar jack cheese, diced onion, and crushed red pepper

Heat a heavy bottomed stock pot on medium heat.   Add olive oil and saute onion and bell pepper 8 minutes.  Add ground turkey, increase heat to high and brown thoroughly.  Add garlic, cook another minute.  Add tomatoes, spices and stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours.  Add black beans, simmer another 30 minutes.  Serve and enjoy!

Anyhow, with fall arriving, school starting, and college football heating up, I just had to have frito pie.  It’s a kind of bizarre choice for dinner when the highs are still in the 90′s, but this is September.  I’ve never made chili before – I used to make this with my taco meat instead.  But chili seems pretty standard, ground meat, peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, spices, etc, so I decided to give it a go.  I was also inspired by the turkey chili I had in Deer Valley this summer, which to my dismay I liked.  Even though I eat all sorts of foods now, sometimes the four year old in my head automatically assumes I won’t like something.  I’m much more adventurous with my own food, since well, I know there aren’t any frightening mystery ingredients which are going to creep me out.  Anyway, this turned out very well!  And seasoned – but not at all spicy.  The preschoolers were eating with us!  You could make this your own level of heat by adding, jalapenos or other hot peppers and spices.

I don’t remember Frito Pie from my childhood, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t there.  I first remember it my freshman year of college in my Hardin House dorm.  I originally thought the idea was bizzare, but it’s kind of addictive.  And it just feels like fall.

Frito Pie with Homemade Chili

2 tbsp olive oil

2.5 lbs ground turkey

1 large white onion, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic

5 tomatoes on the vine, chopped

1 and 1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 tsps chili powder

12 turns fresh ground pepper

1 and 1/2 tsp ground cumin

4 c. chicken stock

2 c. shredded cheddar jack cheese

3/4 bag fritos

1 small yellow onion diced

Heat a heavy bottomed stock pot on medium heat.   Add olive oil and saute onion and bell pepper 8 minutes.  Add ground turkey, increase heat to high and brown thoroughly.  Add garlic, cook another minute.  Add tomatoes, spices and stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours.

In a large casserole, layer the bottom with fritos.  Sprinkle fritos with half of cheese and onion, then top with chili.  Sprinkle with remaining onion and cheese, then bake at 350 for 25 minutes until bubbly.

My spaghetti sauce is very similar to the sauce I used in my lasagna post.  I change the consistency of the tomatoes and add some onion, and I didn’t manage to roast my garlic tonight, instead sauteing chopped garlic.  Tonight’s version was also made with ground beef, but I think I am firmly back in the camp of ground turkey only.  I’m still not satisfied with the ground beef I can procure.

I’m also using a whole wheat pasta these days.  Kayln’s Kitchen has a nice summary on the pasta I also use.  Back when my friends, Lisa and Bobby, started on this crazy Sugar Busters diet, I was overwhelmed with the whole wheat options in their home.  Flours, pastas, etc…. but when the darn gestational diabetes took me down, I vowed to integrate some of these options to my lifetime diet.  There are places that they work for me, like this spaghetti, and there are places that they don’t – the White Whole Wheat King Arthur flour pancakes I made this morning.  Then again, I don’t like pancakes anyway (unless I’m pregnant) so perhaps the White Whole Wheat flour pancakes would have tasted good to someone.  My husband knows not to complain in the morning, the kids are not nearly well enough trained to care.  They’d eat dog food if they’re hungry enough, all while swearing it’s fabulous.  I think of pancakes like the light and fluffy ones served at IHOP and whole wheat flour, in my experience (IMO), has a much denser, sturdier texture.  Whole wheat absolutely adds fiber and protein and other goodness not found in run of the mill plain white flour but it takes some experimenting to make it work.  Look out tomorrow for my zucchini bread with whole wheat flour results.

1 lb ground beef (or turkey)

28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes

28 oz. can of diced tomatoes, drained

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp bacon grease

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 white onion, finely diced

Brown meat in a saute pan over medium high heat. Drain. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, bacon grease, sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook on lowest heat for 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small saute pan, cook onion in olive oil on medium heat until soft, about 7 minutes, add garlic cook another minute, then scoop into the sauce.  Cook on low another 15 minutes.

Cook pasta according to package directions and serve sauce over drained pasta.

Tonight’s Recipe: Homemade Lasagna

Lasagna is another recipe that’s great for sharing. Making 2 isn’t really any more work than making one. Plus, you can pre-make it, then leave it in the fridge for up to 48 hours then cook or freeze it up to 2 months, then cook. It’s comforting food that reminds you of friends and love. My friend, Marti, made me a lasagna once and I never gave her pan back. It’s okay, cause she had another one and she said I could keep it, but really, up until that pan, I never made homemade lasagna, just the store bought kind. Sometimes all it takes is the right pan. Of course, now I make mine in glass because I like to see the sides during the cooking process. Umm, Marti? Do you want your pan back, it’s only been 5 years? : )

We’ve nearly quit using ground beef and switched over to turkey. We started in the interest of forming lifetime healthy food habits. The reason I’ve gone with the change in traditional dishes like lasagna is that I think the quality of ground beef and ground chuck, have gone seriously downhill. I don’t have an explanation, but the ground beef and chuck our groceries are carrying seems truly poor quality. Feel free to make this with ground beef or chuck, if you can find good quality!

2 lbs. ground turkey

3 28 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 tsps bacon grease

1 tsp sugar

2 tsps kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

5 cloves roasted garlic

Oven ready lasagna strips

3 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded

16 oz. Ricotta cheese

1 egg

1 tsp dried oregano

3 tbsps fresh grated Parmesan, plus an additional 2 tbsps

Brown turkey in a saute pan over medium high heat. Drain. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, bacon grease, sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook on lowest heat for an hour.

Meanwhile, heat an oven to 325. Place a whole garlic on a cookie sheet and brush with olive oil. Roast in oven 45 minutes, until soft and squishy. Pull off five cloves, and remove papers. Crush to a paste in a bowl, then add to meat sauce.

Cook on low another 15 minutes.

Cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 glass pan with a thin layer of meat sauce. Place 3 lasagna pieces cross wise. Coat in ricotta cheese mixture. Cover with another thin layer of meat sauce. Sprinkle the surface with shredded mozzarella cheese. Place 3 more lasagna pieces, then repeat. Repeat a third time but with no additional ricotta. Also sprinkle the top layer with more freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Either cover and refrigerate for up to 48 hours, or bake in a 350 degree oven immediately. Cook 45 minutes, unless it’s not bubbly, then continue cooking. Remove from oven, let stand 10 minutes and serve.

Tonight’s Recipe: Turkey Soup

Spring is around the corner, and I couldn’t be more ready. Current forecasts include an 86 degree high for Thursday. Thank goodness. In addition to being tired of my plates, I am also tired of my winter clothes. Well, technically, I don’t really have a winter wardrobe, but am seriously ready for sundresses and tank tops. But for one of our *hopefully* last cold days of the year, I did another steamy soup. The amount of crushed red pepper I added brings almost negligible heat, IMO, feel free to add a bunch more. Also, when storing your leftovers, make sure not to store the pasta in the soup, cause it will greedily eat up all of your brothy goodness. Cheers!

Broth:
Turkey Carcass, cut up to fit in stock pot

Turkey Neck, chopped into 2 inch segments

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

1 white onion, sliced

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

olive oil

Soup:
Shredded Turkey reserved from carcass

6 carrots, peeled and chopped

7 celery stalks, chopped

1 white onion, sliced

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

crushed red pepper

radiatori pasta, cooked

Add 2 tbsps of olive oil to a saute pan, bring to medium high heat and add turkey neck, carrots, celery and onions. Saute until slightly browned and soft, add to 6qt stock pot with turkey carcass. Cover with water, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Season with 2 tsps. salt and 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper. Simmer for 3-4 hours.

Remove carcass, meat, veggies, bones to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Everything should be falling to pieces. It’s a bit messy, but the taste is worth it. Separate turkey meat, shred and reserve. Add 2 tbsp olive oil to saute pan, saute carrots, celery and onion. When starting to soften, add to reserved broth. Add reserved shredded turkey. Simmer 15 minutes, then season to taste with salt and pepper, add 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper.

Serve over cooked pasta with a side of bread for dipping.