The Story
I think this is pretty.
Truth: I am easily distracted, and as much as I like to cook, remembering to turn recipes and crappy iPhone photos into blog posts is not my strong suit. The whole "cooking blog" project was derailed, and I've been refinishing furniture and recently bought a staple gun to do more DIY projects.
Anyway, I am back at it, and working forward from the oldest pictures in my phone. So, time for my Thanksgiving recipes. I made turkey that was actually delicious! I will never go back to regular turkey again- brining every Thanksgiving from now on! The stuffing ("dressing") was pretty tasty too.
The Food
I used a recipe from Food and Wine for the bacon and Guinness brined turkey, and a recipe from theKitchn for the "Southern" cornbread stuffing ("dressing"). I (along with my family) was very pleased with both.
The Turkey
STEP ONE: Wash the turkey and take out the nasty bits. Unwrap your 12-16 pound turkey, and remove the weird stuff you don't want to eat from the inside (the neck and associated bits, and also the bags containing giblets and other innards). Nasty. Next, rinse your turkey, both the outside, and the internal cavity.
STEP TWO: Make the brine. In a large pot over medium high heat, toast 1/4 cup of brown or yellow mustard seeds, two tablespoons of whole black peppercorns, and 8 bay leaves. Toast until the spices are fragrant, about 2-5 minutes, stirring fairly frequently.
Add a cup of brown sugar and a cup of kosher salt, stir to combine, and briefly remove from the heat.
Add four cups of water to the mixture, and stir. I returned the mixture to the heat and let it cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until I felt like the salt and sugar had dissolved into the water. I took the mixture off the heat and let it cool while I prepared the other ingredients.
STEP THREE: Prepare and combine all ingredients for the brine. The rest of the brine is composed of a 6 pack of Guinness, 16 cups of cold water, 1 pound of bacon cut into thick slices (3/8 to 1/3 inch thick, I used the Trader Joe's kind), and 2 sweet onions, cut into quarters.
You will need A REALLY BIG POT. Like, really, really, really big. Pour the mustard seed, peppercorn, bay leaf, salt and sugar combination into the pot. Put the cleaned turkey into the pot, breast side down. Add the bacon slices and the onion quarters. Pour the beer over the turkey, add the water, and admire. Then, put a lid on it.
STEP FOUR: Brine. Our refrigerator could totally not accommodate the giant pot. However, Connecticut in November is pretty damn cold, and our garage was built in the 1930's and has neither insulation nor heating, so it's like a giant refrigerator. So, we put the giant pot in a giant box, wrapped towels around the pot inside the box, checked the weather report to make sure it would be in the low forties for the next 24 hours, and left the box and pot in the garage.
STEP FIVE: Prepare for Baking. I brought my giant pot inside for a couple of hours before removing the turkey from the brine, just in case it was too cold in our garage-refrigerator, and let it adjust a bit.
Make sure one of the oven racks is on the lowest position, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Take your turkey out of the brine, pick off any seeds, peppercorns, or bay leaves that are stuck on, and pat dry-ish. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan, breast side up, and arrange the bacon pieces on the turkey using toothpicks. Put the onion quarters in the pan around the turkey
STEP SIX: Bake. Make sure the instant-read thermometer that came with the turkey is still stuck deeply into the turkey thigh. Bake at 350 degrees for about two hours, and at that time remove the bacon from the turkey. If you leave the bacon on a plate in the kitchen, someone will eat it. Return the turkey to the oven and bake it for about another hour, or until the thermometer pops to let you know the meat is done and has reached about 170 degrees (our turkey was on the larger side, and took about three and a half hours). Remove the pan from the oven, remove the turkey from the pan, and let the turkey rest on a cutting board for about ten minutes before carving.
STEP SEVEN: Make the gravy and carve. Bring a cup of turkey (or chicken) stock to a boil. Mix together about 1/4 cup of water with about 2 tablespoons of flour to make a paste. Drizzle the flour paste into the boiling turkey stock, stirring constantly. Add the juices from the roasting pan and the onions to the gravy mixture and bring to a boil. Once the mixture has boiled, turn the temperature down to low until you are ready to serve. Once the gravy has been prepared, carve the rested turkey, and serve.
STEP TWO: Make the brine. In a large pot over medium high heat, toast 1/4 cup of brown or yellow mustard seeds, two tablespoons of whole black peppercorns, and 8 bay leaves. Toast until the spices are fragrant, about 2-5 minutes, stirring fairly frequently.
Add a cup of brown sugar and a cup of kosher salt, stir to combine, and briefly remove from the heat.
Add four cups of water to the mixture, and stir. I returned the mixture to the heat and let it cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until I felt like the salt and sugar had dissolved into the water. I took the mixture off the heat and let it cool while I prepared the other ingredients.
STEP THREE: Prepare and combine all ingredients for the brine. The rest of the brine is composed of a 6 pack of Guinness, 16 cups of cold water, 1 pound of bacon cut into thick slices (3/8 to 1/3 inch thick, I used the Trader Joe's kind), and 2 sweet onions, cut into quarters.
STEP FOUR: Brine. Our refrigerator could totally not accommodate the giant pot. However, Connecticut in November is pretty damn cold, and our garage was built in the 1930's and has neither insulation nor heating, so it's like a giant refrigerator. So, we put the giant pot in a giant box, wrapped towels around the pot inside the box, checked the weather report to make sure it would be in the low forties for the next 24 hours, and left the box and pot in the garage.
STEP FIVE: Prepare for Baking. I brought my giant pot inside for a couple of hours before removing the turkey from the brine, just in case it was too cold in our garage-refrigerator, and let it adjust a bit.
Make sure one of the oven racks is on the lowest position, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Take your turkey out of the brine, pick off any seeds, peppercorns, or bay leaves that are stuck on, and pat dry-ish. Place the turkey in a large roasting pan, breast side up, and arrange the bacon pieces on the turkey using toothpicks. Put the onion quarters in the pan around the turkey
STEP SIX: Bake. Make sure the instant-read thermometer that came with the turkey is still stuck deeply into the turkey thigh. Bake at 350 degrees for about two hours, and at that time remove the bacon from the turkey. If you leave the bacon on a plate in the kitchen, someone will eat it. Return the turkey to the oven and bake it for about another hour, or until the thermometer pops to let you know the meat is done and has reached about 170 degrees (our turkey was on the larger side, and took about three and a half hours). Remove the pan from the oven, remove the turkey from the pan, and let the turkey rest on a cutting board for about ten minutes before carving.
STEP SEVEN: Make the gravy and carve. Bring a cup of turkey (or chicken) stock to a boil. Mix together about 1/4 cup of water with about 2 tablespoons of flour to make a paste. Drizzle the flour paste into the boiling turkey stock, stirring constantly. Add the juices from the roasting pan and the onions to the gravy mixture and bring to a boil. Once the mixture has boiled, turn the temperature down to low until you are ready to serve. Once the gravy has been prepared, carve the rested turkey, and serve.
The Stuffing ("Dressing")
STEP ONE: Make the "Southern-style" cornbread. Grease a 10 inch cast iron skillet or 10 by 10 square pan. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Melt 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (I microwaved it). In a large bowl, combine 1 cup plain yellow cornmeal, 1 cup all-purpose flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt. Mix to ensure the dry ingredients are evenly combined. In another bowl, mix together 2 eggs, the melted butter, and 1 cup whole buttermilk (you can also use 1 cup of regular milk that you add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to, stir, and let sit for about 5 minutes). Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir to combine evenly. Don't over-mix, but ensure that everything is thoroughly incorporated. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, and bake for 15 to 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cornbread cool, and set aside (the cornbread can be made up to 2 days in advance). NOTE: This cornbread is awesome- I made it to go with chili with the addition of some chopped pickled jalapenos, about 3/4 of a cup shredded sharp cheddar, and some cayenne.
STEP TWO: Fry bacon and preheat oven. The original recipe was vegetarian, but I added bacon. Bacon makes everything better. I know it's a "fad." Whatever. I like it fairly well-done (no limp bacon for me). Once the bacon has been cooked (do about 8 slices) and the excess grease has been dried off, cut the bacon into small strips. When you're cooking the bacon, also pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
STEP THREE: Prep the vegetables and other ingredients. Chop about 2 large sweet onions (to make 2 cups chopped onion), and about 3 stalks of celery (to make one and a half cups chopped celery), ensuring that everything is diced about 1/4 inch. Melt 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter in a pan. Saute the onion and celery in the pan over medium high heat until translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the another 1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter in a bowl (again, I just microwaved), and mix it with 5 cups chicken or turkey stock, 5 large eggs, 2 teaspoons to 2 tablespoons sage (depending on how herb-y you like your stuffing), and a GENEROUS amount of salt and pepper.
STEP FOUR: Crumble the cornbread and make the "bread base." Crumble the prepared cornbread into small pieces. Mix together the fresh cornbread with a 14 ounce bag of store-bought cornbread stuffing mix (I used Pepperidge Farm) in a very large bowl.
STEP FIVE: Combine. Pour the sauteed vegetables in butter, the chopped bacon, and the butter-stock-egg-seasoning combo over the "bread base" mixture. Mix thoroughly, so that everything is evenly combined. Add salt and pepper if you think it's needed (it probably is).
STEP SIX: Bake. Bake the cornbread stuffing/ dressing in one large 9 inch by 13 inch casserole pan, or you can use two smaller pans like I did (this stuff was delicious but DENSE, so we only consumed one pan, froze the other pan, and it was still delicious in January). Bake at 350 degrees, uncovered, for about 50 minutes, or until the top starts to brown.
STEP SEVEN: Eat it. It tastes delicious, and I generally find stuffing disgusting (ewww, it usually just seems like cubes of stale bread soaked in fat). Also, I am sure you could "stuff" the bird with this mixture rather than bake it in pans, but I just find that idea really disgusting. But this is awesome- it's delicious and rich and moist!
STEP TWO: Fry bacon and preheat oven. The original recipe was vegetarian, but I added bacon. Bacon makes everything better. I know it's a "fad." Whatever. I like it fairly well-done (no limp bacon for me). Once the bacon has been cooked (do about 8 slices) and the excess grease has been dried off, cut the bacon into small strips. When you're cooking the bacon, also pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
STEP THREE: Prep the vegetables and other ingredients. Chop about 2 large sweet onions (to make 2 cups chopped onion), and about 3 stalks of celery (to make one and a half cups chopped celery), ensuring that everything is diced about 1/4 inch. Melt 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter in a pan. Saute the onion and celery in the pan over medium high heat until translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the another 1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter in a bowl (again, I just microwaved), and mix it with 5 cups chicken or turkey stock, 5 large eggs, 2 teaspoons to 2 tablespoons sage (depending on how herb-y you like your stuffing), and a GENEROUS amount of salt and pepper.
STEP FOUR: Crumble the cornbread and make the "bread base." Crumble the prepared cornbread into small pieces. Mix together the fresh cornbread with a 14 ounce bag of store-bought cornbread stuffing mix (I used Pepperidge Farm) in a very large bowl.
STEP FIVE: Combine. Pour the sauteed vegetables in butter, the chopped bacon, and the butter-stock-egg-seasoning combo over the "bread base" mixture. Mix thoroughly, so that everything is evenly combined. Add salt and pepper if you think it's needed (it probably is).
STEP SIX: Bake. Bake the cornbread stuffing/ dressing in one large 9 inch by 13 inch casserole pan, or you can use two smaller pans like I did (this stuff was delicious but DENSE, so we only consumed one pan, froze the other pan, and it was still delicious in January). Bake at 350 degrees, uncovered, for about 50 minutes, or until the top starts to brown.
STEP SEVEN: Eat it. It tastes delicious, and I generally find stuffing disgusting (ewww, it usually just seems like cubes of stale bread soaked in fat). Also, I am sure you could "stuff" the bird with this mixture rather than bake it in pans, but I just find that idea really disgusting. But this is awesome- it's delicious and rich and moist!
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