Thanksgiving 2024 - Sweet Potatoes, Fruit Salad, and Dinner On the Table

 Thursday,  November 28, 2024

I got the sweet potatoes ready while the turkey was in the oven. I halved the recipe on the can.  

Ingredients: 1 29 oz can of sweet potatoes; 1 egg; 1/4 cup milk; 3/4 cups brown sugar; 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract;  1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. 

Directions: Heat oven to 375 degrees; spray 9x9 in baking pan with Pam; mix ingredients in large bowl; add marshmallows on top. just before baking; bake 30-35 minutes and then take out of oven and let rest for 10 minutes

Mom arrived around 2:00 and Dale got the marshmallows on the sweet potatoes while I entertained her.  He got the sweet potatoes in the oven by 2:10 so they could be out by 2:45 and rest for 10 minutes. 

At 2:30 I got the fruit salad together. Easy to make. Two cans of mixed fruit with whipped cream. Dale got gravy ready using the giblets I cut up. He also got the stuffing ready.

Dinner was on the table by about 3:10 and it was delicious.

Dale seems to think I do a great job carving the turkey. I feel like I'm hacking away with an ax to the carcass but I guess I do okay since there's barely any meat on it when I'm finished. There's gotta be a youTube video out there that shows the most efficient and perfect way to cut it up. Maybe I'll look for that sometime. 

Mom brought over a pumpkin pie that some friends from church had made. She said they usually make about 100 pies every year to sell to people for Thanksgiving. It was delicious and one of the better pumpkin pies I've ever had. That's sayin' something cuz I LOVE pumpkin pie. 

She also brought over some port wine. Dale didn't think he'd ever had any before. I poured some for us after the pie. Mom and Dale didn't like it. They said the alcohol level was too hight (turned out it was 20%) and they just didn't like the taste. I thought it was fine but what do I know. 

Can't believe another Thanksgiving has come and gone.

Thanksgiving 2024 - The Turkey Part 2

 Thursday, November 28, 2024

At 11:30 Dale buttered the underside of the turkey. We flipped it over to the other side and moved it to the baking pan and buttered the other side. It sat until noon when Dale put it in the oven at 400 degrees. 

                                                             

Dale put the giblets in water and got them on the oven at medium heat (5.0) at 12:23. He realized he should have gotten them on a little earlier so he turned it up to 7.5.

At 12:30 Dale basted the turkey with white wine and turned the oven down to 350.  He then basted it at intervals of about 20 minutes. 

Just before1:30 we turned the turkey over. 

And basted it again. 

And put it back in the oven. 

When the turkey was back in the oven I went to work on chopping up the giblets. 

I diced it all up. The liver was pretty soft but the heart and gizzard were pretty tough. 

All ready for when Dale makes the gravy. 

Dale took the turkey out right around 2:00 and tented it. We let it rest for an hour. 

Thanksgiving 2024 - The Macy's Parade

 Thursday, November 28, 2024

Kylie Minogue performed by 10:30. I don't know that there's every been a parade with so many acts Dale and I didn't recognize. Kylie was just about the only one from our era althought the Temptations, Joey McIntire and Jennifer Hudson made appearances. 

Although the Rockettes should be recognizable to everyone. 

Some of my favorite balloons from this year.

Jennifer Hudson performed and then Santa and Mrs. Claus appeared. After the parade we watched the dog show. 

Thanksgiving 2024 - The Turkey Part 1

 Thursday,  November 28, 2024

At 10:20 we took the turkey out of the fridge and cut it out of its packaging. This year we bought an 11 pound bird (unfrozen). 

Took the neck out (which we don't use)...

Took the giblets out (which we DO use for the gravy).

Continued to rinse it out. 

Next we set it on a platter...

...and I dried it (inside. and out) with paper towels.

By 10:25 it was left out to come up to room temperture. Dale said that would take till about noon.

Thanksgiving 2024 - Cranberries

 Thursday, November 28, 2024

At 9:40 Dale started the cranberries. He brought 2 cups of water and a half cup of sugar (the recipe on the bag called for 2 cups) to a boil. 

He rinsed off the cranberries...

And by 9:43 added them back to the pot and took the burner temperature from hi to 3.0.

He let them sit for a while but continued to stir them from time to time. 

At 9:55 Dale called me in to taste them to see if they were sweet enough. He had turned the temp up to 4.0. At first I thought they might need a little more sugar but as I let them sit on my tongue a little longer I decided they were just right. 

At 10:02 Dale scooped them out of the pot.

They stayed out until they came down to room temperature and then we put them in the fridge.

Thanksgiving 2024 - Bloody Mary Time

Thursday, November 28, 2024

At 8:30 I turned on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and mixed up a Bloody Mary.

Kowalski's makes a great Bloody Mary mix. My unopened bottle's been sitting on the counter since last Christmas. It had settled quite a bit so it required a LOT of shaking. In fact, after shaking it up and giving it an initial pour I realized I needed to dump a little out to make a little more shaking space in the bottle. 

Anyway,  it all turned out great. I garnished it with a pickle,  an olive, and a couple of pearl onions.

Delicious. And by the way,  as a second career I think I might have some potential as a food and drink stylist.